Zed Head

I thought that style felt familiar. He got me on the identity switch, but still didn't hear what he wanted to hear. Must be frustrating. Maybe he'll go buy a Scarab now, then he could talk about it. He might have to sell his V8 Z first though to get the cash, and he'd probably have to take a loss to get someone to buy it. That would be illuminating.

You're still either missing or avoiding the point of "value". If you put a new V8 in an old crappy Z you'll probably increase the value. If you put a V8 or any other engine at all in the car that Benton Performance is restoring, http://www.classiczcars.com/forums/open-s30-z-discussions/52718-hls30-00502-a.html#post460820 , you'll almost certainly decrease the value.

In the big general scheme of things this is how a head swap should go, minus a few hiccups. More power to Datsunparts LLC if he's listening to the customers and fixing his issues. Looks like he almost got everything right on yours. MSA also for the easy header exchange. Hope I'm not jinxing you. Good luck with it.

Check out this handy Timken web site. Use the Cross Reference tab. "P" comes up as a transmission output shaft bearing. "A" comes up as the Timken SET2 bearing, used for the wheel. Timken Online Parts Catalog You can also use the Application tab to input your vehicle. You'll see SET2 there.

I think that you meant two ears. Yes, it does look like an early 5 speed. The other switch is probably for top gear or overdrive. Even the 4 speeds had a top gear switch. Nissan actually had both on their 1983 5 speeds, for a total of four switches. The easy way to test is with an ohm-meter, and the shift lever. They're all switches. Closed when the condition they monitor is met, I believe.

The coil will actually work with the wires backward. I don't know if it's good for it or harms the performance or if it even matters. But the ballast resistor connections need to be correct, to have the correct wires to the ignition module and power supply. You're on the right track though, getting all wires back to spec. L = blue, BW = black with white stripe, BL = black with blue stripe,

What brand of new injector did you get?

No change. It really is all about the guy with money. Plus, "V8" can mean almost anything. An old 80's era GM 305 would almost certainly lower value. A high performance LSX with proper engine management might increase the value just because the powertrain is worth more than the car. I do know that I often see Z cars with V8's for sale on CL, for $10K or more and they sit there for months or even years. If it's not a top-notch,professional quality job, it's just somebody else's project, that they got tired of or realized was not as fun as they thought it would be. And the sellers always think the car is worth a lot of money because it has a V8, and they always describe how they've invested way more than the sale prices. A V8 swap is not a money-making investment. Without a name and a reputation behind the transplant, any V8 swapped car is nothing special. They sell kits, anybody can do it. I would rather do a swap myself than buy someone else's work.

Not necessary. If you're really tight on money though, and the engine runs well, you might look at replacing hoses only on the injectors, like site suggested. Take a really good look at the where the leak is. The injector bodies don't break that often, but the hoses do. You'll still need to take the rail and injectors off.

The question cannot be answered. If the car is old and original and in good shape, a collector might place a high value on originality. So a V8 transplant would lower value. If the car is old and modified and rusty and beat up, a collector might not want it anyway, so a V8 transplant might add value, by turning it in to a fast car that's fun to drive. Value is determined by the guy with the money.

Don't forget the good ol' factory service manual. These old cars were high maintenance and have very good instructions in the manual. The whole procedure, including replacing the hoses on the injectors themselves, is written up in the Engine Fuel chapter. Replace the filter while you're in there too. Once you get the EFI hose clamped on it does not want to come off again. Index of /FSM/280z

Is there a John Coffey Z-locating Service? Or is it friends and family only? How does a person even know where #502 is sitting in a horse trailer, in a barn? And then how do you go pry it out of the owner's hands? Lots of mystery here. My computer does not like vimeo at all. Lots of starts and stops. 7 with Chrome.

Site makes a good point. The hoses will crack internally lengthwise and leave a very tiny path for fuel to squirt out, in about a pin's width stream. Injector body's do give up occasionally though, but are not fixable. It's not a hard job. On an old engine the hardest part might be removing the hoses. Best to not even try saving them, just cut them to get the rail and injectors out as an assembly, then carefully cut the leftover pieces lengthwise just enough to loosen them and use some pliers to twist them off. There is one bolt in the middle that I tend to overlook, an intake manifold bolt that is also a clamp bolt. If you have "all" of the bolts and screws out and the rail still won't come off, it's probably that one, still there. Also, the hoses to the FPR need to be just the right length to slip around and get the FPR back on but still have enough hose to clamp properly. It's a back and forth operation. Match the length of the old hoses before you cut them up. Best to replace all of the hoses while it's off. One more also - today's fuel injection hose seems to creep quite a bit after installation. Recheck the clamps several times after a few heating and cooling cycles.

Euro, I think that you meant 36 psi, not 46? You typed it twice. Fat fingers? No offense.

When you say misfire is there popping back through the intake or just hesitation or something else? Sounds like the typical lean situation. Today's fuel and old electronics, a vacuum leak or two, bad fuel pump or FPR, CHTS reading hot... When you turn the engine off, the CHTS probably picks up a little more heat from the cylinder heads since the coolant has stopped flowing. The little extra bit of leanness might be pushing the mixture in to the stumble range. You could add a potentiometer to the CHTS circuit as a test. Cheap and reversible. Could also be a worn spot on the AFM circuit. The narrow RPM range is probably the same spot on the AFM.

Well then, S30Driver's comment about Pin #1 is important. But here's an odd thing about the Z EFI system that I've experienced - if the tachometer is not installed, with its inline resistor, the ECU will not control the injectors. I think the tachometer may be acting as a pull-up resistor but I'm not sure. I do know that if I remove the resistor to the tach my engine will not start. I would only consider that if you've been messing around with other stuff though. Before you get in to that, check for power to both sides of the injector pugs with the key on, and check for continuity from Pin 1 to the coil. And you might as well do as many of the Bible tests as you can while you're down there. Good luck.

You didn't mention the notch and groove. I think that's the best verification, for a stock cam anyway. It takes timing chain wear in to account.

I was just making a joke, but ECU and fuel system are pretty far apart themselves in operation, add in overheat and you're spread pretty thin. If the problem now is that it won't start, you really want to begin even before the "bible" with the basic spark and fuel verification. You're at square one on the game board. Pull the small wire off of the solenoid and turn the key to Start. See if the fuel pump runs. Remove a spark plug, ground it, crank the engine and check for spark. Squirt some starter fluid in to the intake manifold. It sounds like the engine hasn't been run much for three years? It could just be bad old gas. Might even have some water in it. Eurodat found a few gallons in his tank.

S30Driver's suggestion is the way to go. You've run out of ideas it's time to do the tedious work. It's really not bad once you start, you'll find things that are not quite right and each small fix will make everything else better. Here's a link to the book known as the Bible, below. Use the 1980 Electronic Fuel Injection Guide and find the tests for your car. Or just go directly to the 1975 Guide, it's probably close enough that nothing will be missing. Yes, ohms is the test. But the problem you described may not have anything to do with the EFI system, it sounds more like a cooling system problem. Saying that a clogged fuel rail or bad ECU causes overheating is kind of like saying that 2 + 2 = a circle. But the lack of fuel in three injectors doesn't indicate a clogged rail either. The fuel can feed from both sides. Anyway.... " but now it will only run for 10 minuets at a time and need to cool down," XenonS130 - S130 Reference

Read up on the Auxiliary Air Regulator (AAR). It is a device designed to increase idle speed when the engine is cold by allowing air past the throttle blade. They get stuck often, there was actually a dealer-installed fix for them, but only if people complained. Index of /FSM/280z

Pretty sure that Nissan knew the gauges aren't very accurate. That's why the "red zone" is just a tiny sliver at the very upper end of the range and the Owner's Manual describes essentially the whole sweep as normal. We should all probably have a better aftermarket gauge somewhere in the car, considering the damage overheating causes.

Blown head gasket is looking more likely. You're probably low on fluid and the "air" is actually exhaust gases leaking from the line from the thermostat housing that supplies the AAR heating block. The fluid then gets warm and expands until it can start spewing. There are no lines that would normally hiss air, then spew coolant. The cooling system will always be pressurized when the engine gets warm. The limit is typically 13 psi, set by the radiator cap. Eurodat's suggestion in Post #25 is a good one. Take the cap off when cold, start the engine and watch. You might see bubbles and frothing. As the engine warms up though the coolant will expand and start to overflow. "Next the heating problem. Remove the radiator cap and get the engine hot again. Check for bubbles escaping from the radiator. It a sign that the head gasket is leaking or cracks in the head. Its not 100% but its a good indication."

Premium just means high octane, it only really affects knock or detonation. The running issues sound like it has a lean fuel-air mixture. That's why there's a focus on vacuum leaks. But it could also be a weak fuel pump, or a clogged filter, or a clogged tank outlet, or a bad FPR. The best starting point would be to measure fuel pressure. Otherwise, even after a new pump, you could still have the problem. And there are ways to test the pump if you have a pressure gauge. If you haven't paid for the pump and can hold off, buying or borrowing a pressure gauge might be a better idea. If you confirm that fuel pressure is right, and no vacuum leaks (including the PCV system [the crankcase]) then the coolant temperature sensor modification might be in order. Several of us have the lean problem and have modified the system to work around it. If you're using the gauge to decide it's hot, that's a bad idea. The gauges aren't very accurate. And you never did confirm that it was actually over-heating. Just trying to help you avoid the common pitfalls. Replace and hope never turns out well. Expensive too.

You can start the engine on a stand, or the ground pretty easily, especially with a carb'ed engine. Hoses to a gas can, the fuel pump which is probably in a box, a battery, and some wires. Might be easier than installing the engine only to find out it needs to be removed. Plus it leaves you room to work until the engine has to go in. You only need to attach the transmission for the starter, no clutch parts are needed. I have my spare engine with a transmission attached sitting on one of those 1000 lb Harbor Freight dollys. I had to reinforce the center boards because the sag screwed up the casters but it's been on there for a year or two. I've had it running with a spare EFI harness and spare radiator.

You need to get new or reground rocker arms with a new cam. You'll probably need new lash pads also. Delta cams will regrind your rocker arms for about $4 each apparently. They also regrind cams. Many people seem to like the cam from Isky and reground rocker arms from Delta. If you're going to keep your cam until you get another, and you want to go back to the stock grind, then you might consider just buying a used cylinder head and swapping over the cam and its rocker arms and lash pads as a matched set. Each rocker arm needs to stay with its cam lobe. That seems to work. If you get bad rockers (apparently some of the new ones out there aren't very good) or try to re-use used rocker arms, that seems to be a formula for wiping out a cam lobe or more.