Zed Head

This is probably the most popular thread on installing the ZX distributor, a link the OP could use anyway if he decides to go that way (with attention paid of course to the fact that the writeup is for rewiring a 77 280Z setup). It shows pictures of the two different mounts also. The problem is in the position of the lock down screw. http://atlanticz.ca/zclub/techtips/distributor/index.html Looks like he has plenty of choices. Wonder where he went...

I think that your HC numbers are pretty close. Small changes will probably get you there. Do you have the vacuum hose connected to your fuel pressure regulator and does the FPR work correctly? Fuel pressure should be ~36 psi with the hose disconnected and 28-32 psi with it connected, at idle.

Kind of confusing, I went back and see in Post #9 that you had measured 180 and 100 with the AFM removed. Was that the replacement AFM or the old one? Now you're at 204 and 126. Is that the connector or at the AFM? Post #9 suggested that your AFM was fine but that you had bad wiring connectins. For the temperature sensors higher resistance adds fuel. The spec. from the FSM is actually 3.25 kOhms to 4.15 KOhms, so your 1.5 kOhms is actually reading a little lean. If the leanness isn't causing a miss then it shouldn't hurt the emissions. A lean miss can hurt emissions though. The TPS is just a three position switch that tells the ECU if the throttle is at idle, mid-range or open. The continuity measurements need to match exactly what the FSM calls for. More fuel is added at idle and at open throttle. In the middle the ECU uses the AFM. Your failing the test at the mid-range so the TPS could be the problem. Did the PO do any other "mods" like a different camshaft or bigger injectors? The "big-throat" throttle body doesn't add much without them. You might check the other engine parts to see if they are stock. I think that FastWoman was right and you'll just have to keep fixing the PO's "upgrades". Looks like you're making progress though.

These numbers are more then 20-30 ohms off. Looks like 40 and 45 off. I'm not positive but I think that it's the ratio between the two numbers that matters most since it's a voltage splitting device. I think that the ECU uses the ratio between what goes out and what comes back to determine where the AFM vane is. The spec. ratio is 1.8 (180/100), your ratio is 2.2 (321/145). What is the number on your AFM? The guy that put the big throttle body on might have also installed the wrong AFM. Should be A31-060-001 I believe.

For the record, I wasn't trying to jerk anybody's chain or confuse the issue (for some reason there seems to be a time limit on editing posts, hence the new post). I think it's fair to respond to the statement that the 79 ZX is a simple "remove and replace" operation. It's not. The ZX distributor requires a mounting base for an electronic ignition distributor. The 240Z points distributor base will have the dist. clocked incorrectly if the correct mounting base is not used, making it difficult or impossible to set the static timing. If the OP buys a rebuilt distributor from any auto store he will not get the base, he will have to source it from EBay or CL or a salvage yard. Kind of another illustration of my point that there's always something else to think about when you get in to these kinds of upgrades. I'm a big fan of more information than I need when I start a project. Getting the perfect amount is almost impossible, and the only alternative is not enough info. to do the job right.

The screen in the pump inlet can be hard to see since it is cone-shaped. I don't know why you think that pump might be clogged, but measuring the fuel pressure is almost always a good thing. It's one very important measurement that is good to know is right before getting too deep in to other stuff. As far as the 1000 RPM idle speed, that's what my tachometer shows also. But I have measured my actual RPM with a meter and my tach is off by 200 RPM, so my 1000 is actually 800. I wouldn't worry a lot about it. If you have a multimeter that will measure DC frequency you can calculate your RPM off of the coil pulses.

Getting a little meldramatic, aren't you. Let's assume, then, that "easiest" means the least amount of wrench work, with the lowest potential for complications. I think that Pertronix wins in that scenario. Take the "distributor" cap off, remove points, install Pertronix unit. Tach works, car runs. I think that all you need is a Phillips head screwdriver. Pertronix is the easiest.

Not really clear what you're saying there. Maybe you meant that distributor is a misnomer, or a misleading name. The "thing" called the "distributor" by most that work with it, contains the spark triggering device and the timing control mechanisms for doing that at the appropriate time based on engine conditions, along with the spark distributing hardware. It just comes down to how far in to it you want to get. You can go simple and "slap" any old combined spark distribution, triggering and timing control device (aka distributor) in there or go a little deeper and think about the other functions. That was my intended point. The 79 ZX probably has a decent timing curve. But the later ZX's have some radically different curves. There are ways to make things worse. No good reason not to consider it.

Distributors on the older engines (pre ECU-controlled timing) do more than just distribute spark. The vacuum and centrifugal advance mechanisms are built-in and curved for the engine. Something to consider. Race engine builders spend a lot of effort on their timing curves.

No problem, I've had the exhaust leak frustration, and the broken studs that had to be drilled out (thermostat housing) frustration, and paid a shop good money to remove a stud (one of the three for the flange to the pipe) and resurface the sealing surface (before I knew that undamaged manifolds are relatively easy to find). Did you check the manifold for straightness, across all of the ports, and good sealing surfaces on each one? Good to know that the Seafoam showed something, another trick for the tool box. Good luck.

I was the only one that suggested head gasket. Because you said "may have blown my gasket out", not "certainly blown the manifold gasket". Heads warp and head gaskets leak, it happens, more so with aluminum heads. It seemed worth checking while the engine was together, rather than after the manifolds are off. And you didn't mention the state of the water and oil in your first post. siteunseen just suggested a way to check it. Even so, that's just two people. Just being thorough in my response. I try not to waste people's time, although this post might contradict that. Did smoke come from the leak in front or are you still working from noise? A piece of heater hose to your ear works well to find noise from a small area. And, sometimes, you can actually feel the hot gas leaking with a hand or finger, if you can shield the air from the fan.

I've heard that blown head gaskets make that noise also, along with cracked exhaust manifolds. I've also read that Seafom is a good way to find an exhaust leak from all of the smoke it produces. A leakdown test should confirm the head gasket. You might also check your spark plugs, one could be loose and on its way out.

It could be considered insurance for that day you end up driving at high speed over a bumpy road for a very long time. Can't hurt. Just leave the old oil in if you're replacing stock with the HP's. Edit - the question of why or why not isn't answered but KYB says explicitly to leave the tube dry in their installation link - http://www.kyb.com/service/installationtips/installationtip08.php For what it's worth and further discussion, if anyone wants to go there. The KYB's and the Tokico's are essentially identical as far as form and installation go.

You don't need oil. The HP's have their oil inside. You can search around and find lots of threads about it and/or read the FA chapter in the FSM to see how the original inserts used the oil. If you have stock factory inserts in the tubes now, you'll understand when you take them apart.

Congratulations. Better keep an eye, or ear, on them though, if you pressed on one race to get the other race to seat, you might have damaged the races. It's called "brinneling" in reference to the Brinnel hardness test, where a metal probe is pressed in to a piece of metal and the size of the dimple measured to scale the material's hardness. http://www.dynaroll.com/excessive-force.asp Don't shoot the messenger, please...

Heat has a much bigger effect on hole size than many people imagine. Heat up the control arm ends and the old sleeves will probably press out (I pressed out both of the inner sleeves on my front control arms with a shop vise and a MAPP gas torch), heat up the strut housing and the bearings will probably press in easily. A propane or MAPP torch will do the job with about 5 minutes of applied flame. No serious chance of damaging the metal, it won't even get a glow going. Apply some preload with the press, start heating and things will move when they're ready. The inverse of using the torch to get things out is preheating a press fit ring or collar, like the ring gear on a flywheel, before installing. Heating it, then letting it cool, makes a super tight fit. So if you have a super tight fit, heating will make it looser.

If everything is clean and nothing is rubbing, and the problem goes away when air flow stops, then it seems like the only think left is a pressure imbalance between the two sides of the blade, the trailing edge and the leading edge. I had a similar problem and started thinking about this but then found that the problem was varnish/gunk/residue in the throttle body. I cleaned up with liberal amounts of carb cleaner and some Scothbrite so don't really know if there was crud in the ported vacuum holes or not. Here's one off-beat thought though - how about the AC idle-up mechanism, the thing with the vacuum pot and the hook that pulls the linkage when you turn the compressor on? Maybe it's activated through a shorted or leaky solenoid. You might not notice it if you're staring at the throttle body.

ksechler is probably looking at the FSM procedure, which describes leaving the transverse link (control arm) installed and removing the spindle pin to remove the upright and change the shock insert. If you remove the control arm, by disconnecting the inner mounts, along with the upright, you do not need to remove the spindle pin to get it done.

You can also pick and choose the bearings you want to replace from CourtesyParts. I would use carpartsmanual to compare the A and B style parts, then Courtesy or drivetrain.com to get what you want. Note that drivetrain.com has the A, B and C designations wrong, by model and year of car, on their web site, as EuroDat notes for the C kit. I've sent them messages and copies of the FSM, and received replies back, but they don't seem to care or couldn't comprehend. Here's a trail to the countershaft bearing, for example - http://www.carpartsmanual.com/datsunS30/DatsunZIndex/PowerTrain/TransmissionGears/4Speed/ToAug71/tabid/1710/Default.aspx http://www.courtesyparts.com/bearing-p-341410.html

This won't help the resolution of the discussion, but it has the word "engineer" in it - “An optimist will tell you the glass is half-full; the pessimist, half-empty; and the engineer will tell you the glass is twice the size it needs to be.”

Imported maybe? I recall a post from Hybridz, ozconnection (from Australia) had an N42 head with no notches. Post #59 - http://forums.hybridz.org/topic/62691-l6-heads-pics-and-descriptions/page-3

It's easy to remove the inner control arm mounts and take the whole two sides of the triangle off, the strut and the arm, as an assembly. You can dink around with trying not to break the brake line open but that's also much easier than you would think. I've wasted lots of time trying not to remove the brake line and to keep the arm bolted up but in the end I realized I had just wasted more time and taken more chances on damaging something, like the fender well lip or the brake hose. If you're planning to do the brakes, including flushing with new fluid and bleeding, just take the whole thing out, but remember to break the main strut/shock nut loose first. If you don't have a spring compressor, try Harbor Freight for a cheap one, you'll need one. You might find that the inner bushings are in good shape and decide not to replace them. The KYB shocks should work great, especially if you're not lowering.

The N-42 heads have the threaded holes for mounting carburetors AND the notch in the intake for the injector tip. The injectors are mounted in the intake manifold and stick through in to the top of the head's intake port. So you can use EFI or carbs on the N-42 for sure, maybe on the N-47 also, not sure there. Apparently, in other non-domestic markets carburetors were used for quite a while after EFI was introduced in the states. I think that the big driver for EFI was the emissions regulations in the US market.

It is fun to turn that knob and get an immediate effect. Too bad you're short a few fingers for a while, might make it difficult. I wish we had more tuning tools that were so simple.

Car and year would help. I have a 76 and all I see is a body-colored panel that flows with the body lines, with nothing on it. I think that there's a notch in it for the exhaust pipe. Your description of what you're thinking about is not very good.