Walter Moore

Err... then he would have to learn the "nuances" of the SU. And vacuum leaks on a carburetor equipped car are no better than on a fuel injection system. Besides he is upgrading to a turbo motor soon so he needs the practice. I agree that it sounds like a combination of fuel pressure and vacuum leaks. Both of which are endemic on cars once they get to be 30years old.

The Aluminum engine enamel sounds interesting. It would probably come out a flat silver when it dried. Don't bother with "Chrome" paint because it just turns silver over time.

When you set the top lever to "Heat" there shouldn't be ANY air coming out of the dash vents.

When the engine is cold I have to keep the chokes on at idle or low speed operation. I have the heat tubes, but on the 71 they only heat the intake manifold. When the engine is dead cold they don't do anything anyway. It runs a little rough until the temperature comes up, but then all cars from that era ran badly when cold. BTW, when I say cold I mean below 40F. What does cold mean in Sacramento? That is a serious question, not a slam.

That is a really nice looking car. The flat 4 allows for a low hood profile while still meeting current safety standards. Of course the whole point of the Sion brand is to appeal to tomorrow's customers, not yesterday's. (The latter would include those of us over 40.) If there was a line of 40-70 year old men lined up to buy the car, Toyota is going to think that they have made a mistake.

Sorry, that is just the way that the car works. The dash vents only blow cold air. When you switch from "Vent" to "Heat" the lever actuates a door that redirects the incoming air from the dash vents to the heater core box. From there you can select the hot air to either the defroster or the floor. You cannot direct hot air to the dash vents. It seems like a strange system to us today, but 40 years ago this was common. I was actually shocked when my 1976 Volvo could direct heated air to the dash vents. I had never seen such a "luxury" before.

The first problem is going to be that the 260Z, as a 1974 model, had the energy absorbing bumpers. (At least in the U.S.) The bumpers for he 71 mount on bent, flat steel bars that bolt to the sides of the unibody's front "Manta-ray" wings. (Sorry, I don't know how else to describe the protrusion.) The 74 bumper has tubular shock absorbers that have to mount to the frame. I am not as familiar with the details, but I suspect that you would have to alter the grill and the unibody to make the shocks fit, and I have no idea where you would mount the shocks for the rear bumper. (You were planning on making both ends match?) I bought both my front and rear bumpers on Ebay. They may be available other places. If you have more money than you know what to do with: http://www.zcarsource.com/front-bumper-with-guards-70-72-refinished_8_53583_63386.html

If you have the money, the best way to clean the gas tank is to take it to a radiator shop and have them clean it for you. If you lived in this area there is a really good shop in Frankfort IN that I have used for years. But there should be one near you, ask around at club meetings or car shows if you want to be sure. A lot of times they can even coat the tank to seal small leaks. If you search the site for gas tank repair there are many, many threads about doing this yourself.

On nearly all cars that have an alternator light on the dash the "L" wire is the initial excitation source. Once the alternator is running and producing power the alternator's output voltage is higher than the signal from the idiot light and the light doesn't glow. (There is a blocking diode in the alternator for this purpose.) I don't know how far a fuel injected Z will go running only on the battery, but other cars that I have owned left me stranded after about 10 miles. (In fairness the battery may not have been fully charged.)

You can download the factory service manual for the 1974 here: http://www.xenons30.com/reference.html It looks like the circuitry is pretty much the same. But I would still check the wire colors just to be sure.

If you intend to rebuild the engine, take the block to a reputable machine shop and let them inspect it and tell you what they can do. You will always be better off to get the opinion of a trustworthy professional, particularly if they have to stand behind the work. I have rebuilt engines without taking them to a machine shop, and that has never worked for me. (Maybe I am just unlucky, but I doubt that...)

Yep, most "good condition" Z-cars that have spend their entire existence East of the Mississippi river would be considered parts cars in California. At least that is my observation from the years that I have been visiting this site.

You need to use flat black paint in that area to prevent glare when driving toward the sun. I believe that is the original color as well.

I recently discovered that my ancient compression test gauge is off by something like 25% low. You might have a similar problem.

Jon, I have always wondered if a stock Z, particularly one with an open differential would see any advantage to a front to rear "stagger", that is with wider tires in the rear. Most modern sports cars do this, at least on the high performance packages. I have just wonder if having a little more tread in the rear would help coming out of the corners. Do you have any words of advice on that point? My interest in tires is growing because my existing tires are pushing 6 years old, and the "experts" now recommend replacing tires at that age. Some people in the local club give me a hard time about still having tread on tires that old, but to be fair the existing tires are supposed to be 80k mile tires. I guarantee that the next set will NOT be rated for high mileage. I want something sticky this time.

The other bolts that Blue mentioned are M10 fine thread (1.25mm) I ended up buying a whole box of them when I was working on my car because the original bolts were so rusted in place that they all snapped off when I tried to remove them.

Several people on the site have replaced their fuel tank (and spare tire mounting) with a fuel cell. Other than that, I have not seen a solution offered.

For those who are wanting to add power steering to their car, I just saw a review of a potential source on Jay Leno's garage: http://www.americanonlineimports.com/index.html I have no idea if this would work on a Datsun. I have no interest in this my self, and don't plan (or see the need) to add power steering to my car. But I thought of all the discussion and debate that has occurred here over the years and thought it might be worth looking into if you are interested in adding power steering.

The last car that I ever ran motor flush through apparently had not had an oil change in years. It was an old Chevy with a 305 V8 and a mechanical fuel pump. The motor flush carried crud around to so many places that the push rod for the mechanical fuel pump stuck and the car quit running periodically. I had to "flush" that engine over and over and over to get it cleaned out before it ever ran half way right. After that I never used it again. If the engine is that dirty, just rebuild it. If you don't want to go that far, just put good oil in it and drive the thing.

In the picture you posted the odometer appears to read "54558" so your initial title would be closer to correct. And of course if it has truly been under the control of a single owner for decades there is no way to confirm that it is 54,558 and not 154,558 or 254,558. I am not intentionally casting aspersions, just pointing out the obvious.

First, get under the car and unbolt the slave cylinder and see if it moves when the pedal is pressed. If it doesn't the problem is obvious. If it does then re-attach the slave and adjust it per the FSM. If the problem persists you likely have an issue with the clutch pressure plate or throw-out bearing.

Personally I was looking for a 928 when I found my 240Z. The problem is that 928s are still way too expensive for my budget. Maybe someday...

My prayers are for Dan Welden's family. I could say lots of things about IRL, but there is only one thing I will say: When I was a child fatal accidents were a routine occurrence in open wheel racing. Today they are rare enough that we find them shocking. In the 60's and 70's people just shrugged and went on like nothing had happened. Did the illusion of safety contribute to the magnitude of this event, or did the magnitude of this event shatter the illusion of safety? It is a "chicken and egg" question that cannot be easily answered.

There were 33 cars in the Indianapolis 500 this year, as there has been every year since the 1940's. But Indy is a 2 1/2 mile track with nearly flat corners, and Vegas is a 1 mile, or 1 1/2 mile track with much taller banking. Draw your own conclusions.

Um, yes... that is exactly what I want, an application that will record my every movement including date, time, and speed in a convenient color coded form. That way all the little speed trap towns that I travel through can just check my Facebook page before they mail me tickets for going 23 in a 20, with exact date and time stamps. Tell me again why I want this application?