Zed Head

Another modified 280Z. They seem to do well. It has the VG30E V6, edit - actually VG30DE, like my old Pathfinder, but the more fancy version. No driving video, I don't get how anyone could list on BaT and not have a driving video. Just weird. The seller has a long list of past listings too. Maybe it's a sales technique to get people to keep coming back. I feel manipulated. https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1976-datsun-280z-115/

So, is this a good "restoration" or is it more a revivation? Wrong brake line material and color, wrong head, wrong wheels. Did the Australia cars not come with the anti-resonator in the exhaust system? Doesn't have one here. Are right side drive cars valued differently than left side? Still curious about the buyers for these cars. What are they looking for?

It's still odd that this car does not have the usual 200 - 300 pictures, for what it is. 107 pictures. Seems like a candidate for an S30.world restoration.

Here's a clue.

Why? The seller did not describe it. You haven't verified that you've seen it. It had a 280Z engine in it, many of which came with five speeds. Who can say that the 280Z five speed wasn't installed? The head has been changed, so one aspect of originality has already been lost. Saw your comment on BaT. Feel free to verify that you are certain it's the FS5C71-A. It looks like you might be assuming. Of course, the seller should be doing this, unless you are representing him. It's what the Comments section is for.

My mistake, I must have confused it with a different car, the red 71, which does not have the original engine. Plus the fact that it was removed once, when the 280Z L28 was intalled. Still not clear which five speed it has. "where it was refurbished in the early 2000s and subsequently fitted with a 280Z-sourced engine. The factory 2.4-liter inline-six was later reinstalled with a high-compression E31 cylinder head," https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1971-datsun-240z-357/ I'll try to fix my error:

That 1970 #99 car seems like it's seen some use/abuse from a collector viewpoint. Engine not original, not clear which 5 speed it has, the seller apparently doesn't have spellcheck. Doubtful that it sells. https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1970-datsun-240z-147/#comments-anchor

It's a square shape by design. The small one is a seal, and there's a bigger one that is an insulator, probably meant for vibration and heat. You can probably get them at your local auto parts store. The small one is very important, since it's an intake system seal. p.s. amateur tip: it's tempting to try to assemble the rail and injectors as a unit then slip the whole thing in/on to the intake manifold. But it's actually easier to install the injectors first and slip the rail in to the hoses. https://www.oreillyauto.com/shop/b/fuel-delivery/fuel-injection/fuel-injector-seal-o-ring-kit/ee721b9bfdb5/v/a/6637/automotive-car-1978-nissan-280z

There are a couple more - https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1971-datsun-240z-357/ https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1972-datsun-240z-396/

I tried to post a midly critical comment about the 290 HP 2+2 but BaT moderated it away without posting it. I was actually giving the guy a chance to explain the weirdness of his car. It looks kind of like a con/scam at the moment. No way it makes 290 HP. But BaT filters out any comments that are even mildly critical. Cheers and happy talk only. It used to be a place where a potential buyer could get some good feedback about a car. Now it's all caveat emptor. Tending towards eBay level. Shame.

That's why I always wait and turn the preview back in to a link. You have to find the sweet spot in the preview image to get it to open. Click on the title words. Here's the straightforward link: https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1970-datsun-240z-147/

Interesting 2+2. Has some strange labels and strange claims. 290 HP!? I don't think the owner knows much about it. A PO apparently did the work. https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1976-datsun-280z-116/

Anybody been watching basketball?

The injectors should always have power. The ECU closes the circuit allowing current to flow, opening the injectors. Your test was a good one for the injectors but doesn't tell you if the ground circuit back to the ECU is intact. The tests from the EFI Bible do that.

Yarb's EFI Bible comment is on target. You've already tried the quick stuff. You can check power through the injectors at the ECU connector. You can even ground them there to see if they open. If you don't have power at 4, 5, 6, then new-used injectors won't help. https://www.classiczcars.com/files/file/32-efi-book-1980/

Read back over the thread and try the other suggestions. Water pump, fan, fan clutch, damper pulley, etc. Watch the pulleys and belts while the noise is happening. Light things up with a bright light.

It's just a typical subscription service for resto videos. Odd that they don't describe more of what it's about. It's either a club for people that already know each other or just a common make-some-money scheme. What questions did you not answer? Might be a clue.

Do the front discs show signs of wear at all? Your lock-up experiments suggest that there's no front brake action. At ten mph it should have stopped immediately just from weight transfer to the fronts. A bad seal on the piston that provides front brake pressure could do that. The MC is two pressure cylinders in one bore. Might be that your front brake piston is just along for the ride in the MC bore.

I'd want to know what shape the engine was in before buying the power parts. A set of used injectors might be worth the money just to get it up on all six for a thrashing. Or having them cleaned and verified. A set of cleaned and verified injectors with documentation can probably be easily resold after your upgrade. There could be other reasons that the back three aren't combusting. The testing that's been described is pretty weak. No voltage seen, no noid lights, etc. And, on the tapping, you need something hard that causes a high frequency shock. A rubber mallet is not enough. Good luck, looks like fun. https://www.ebay.com/itm/187699479261?_skw=280zx+injectors https://protunerz.com/collections/intake-manifolds/products/l-series-intake-manifold-fuel-rail-75mm-throttle-body https://protunerz.com/collections/intake-manifolds/products/datsun-l-series-intake-fuel-injector-adaptors-14mm-11mm-1

They can get gummed up and stuck if they dry out. Gasoline residue. Sometimes they do come back to life. Tapping them with a solid object will sometimes break them free. You can do it with the engine running. You'll hear when it happens.

Probably want to find out what they mean by bad, and how they determined it. If they are bad electrically they can't be "rebuilt". Also, if they are rusted internally they can't be rebuilt. Cleaning, plus a new screen and pintle cap are all about all that a rebuilder can do, along with verifying flow rates and solenoid performance. They can't be disassembled. @Terrapin Z might have a set of old injectors. I don't know if he tests them or not.

That looks pretty simple really, doesn't it? Pretty standard resume stuff. What's interesting though is how specific things were added that were not in your original request. And the last item is kind of nonsensical. "offering long-standing industry relevance". That's not really something that is "offered" and not something that a member can use, like technical knowledge. Wasn't in the original request. Where did it come from? It's a dangerous pseudo-tool.

I just did a search for when the local school's year is over and the AI Overview says it is Thursday, June 12, 2026. And it gives the document that it "extracted" from. In the referenced document there is no mention of Thursday. "AI" just chose it as the day of the week. The AI slop epidemic is getting worse. It's incredible to watch. I still see people posting AI Overviews here and there as fact.

A recent AI interaction.

Edit - about $32,500. Not bad for somebody's garage hobby race car. The 76 US import to the UK is ending in minutes. Interesting that the seller commented that the fender edges had been cut and properly sealed to fit the flares and wide tires but the images he uploaded seem to show raw rough cut steel. Nobody commented about it. Still looks like it will get a decent price. About $24,000 already. https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1976-datsun-280z-117/ "The flared aspect of the wheel arches were removed to accept the new extended wheel arches to allow wider wheel fitment (10×5). This was done in a clean and linear manner and sealed with a view to no potential future corrosion. I will upload photos of the inside of the arches on Monday."