cgsheen1

Yes, there's room and flexibility. And in both cases our A/C compressors and associated tubing / hoses are installed. There's a bit of manipulation involved in the liquid line going through the radiator core support to the condenser. It gets pretty tight in that area with the larger AFM and the cold air...

No, this isn't Goldie, it's my son's 280Z. His original color was 304 Gold Metallic. The original color of my 260Z was Brown Metallic which was oversprayed single stage orange... Nick's 280Z had been running with the L28ET for a couple of years when the above pic was taken. I bought the 260 frame in late 2007 and drove it for the first time in March of 2008. Humble beginnings.

I would NEVER delete my A/C compressor! 🤪 It's the first thing I had working after my L28ET was running. But, my early 260Z frame had factory A/C so it wasn't a big deal. (My L28ET was a gift from my youngest son who knew once he gave it to me, I'd have to find an S30 to put it in. He was correct.) Our first turbo swap was into my youngest son's '76 280Z. Mine was done a couple years later. We both used the AFM in the beginning - then a MAF. I'll try to find some pics but all were mounted in or near the usual 280Z AFM location - not USING stock AFM mounts however. I think we cut his out and mine didn't have any mounts to begin with. We did custom cold air from the AFM / MAF in front of radiator core support - not the stock air filter. He still uses the F31 (Infiniti M30) ECU (with Nistune) and MAF. I moved on and will be moving on again to an AEM Infinity 506 ECU. I just need to get the engine harness finished.

Even in an Olde Timey A/C system, there's a sensor attached to the evaporator (cooling) coil and a microswitch or temperature control dial or lever. Just like in your newer automobile... The "knob" came with your new Vintage Air Refrigeration system, correct? You shouldn't need to replace it. You also need to be more specific - "the AC does cut off sometimes." What do you mean? It stops working entirely? The fan doesn't blow? You can tell that the compressor shuts down? Does it start cooling again at some point? To me, it sounds like the charge is not correct - for some people, it's more difficult to properly charge when the ambient temperature is low (like the "winter" months in Arizona when the ambient temps are in the 70's or 80's (but it still gets to 100 inside the car in the parking lot)).

Welcome to the club! Sounds pretty good, I do think that idle is a little high - probably by a couple hundred RPM. The stock L28ET ECCS will "prime" the fuel system running the fuel pump for about 4 seconds at IGN ON. It'll then stop the fuel pump and not run it again until it gets the signal from the CAS that the engine is turning. It doesn't have to be fired, just a stable repeating signal from the CAS. Like I said before, the green LED will come on at IGN ON and will stay lit until the ECU gets that signal from the CAS. You can watch for that too (if your ignition key wasn't on the opposite side.. 😝) Those AFR's look pretty standard for the stock engine management. I'm impressed with your test stand and I think you've got a nice L28ET there. I'm probably more impressed that you have it running so well with the stock harness... Enjoy it! I do. Goldie is an uphill beast - the torque of the turbo motor is awesome even at stock boost. Stock boost is 1/2 Bar (~7ish pounds) and the stock over-pressure relief valve is set for something between 9 and 10 pounds. The intake manifold has a "blowoff valve" built in (that's not what Nissan calls it, but it performs the same function - dissipates the boost pressure if the throttle is suddenly closed so it doesn't slam back to the compressor wheel).

Factory Service Manuals - NICOclub Nicoclub.com is run by a good friend of ours on the other side of town. (the Ads are horrific, but if you need an FSM, it's worth the trip...)

Picture Four: Correct on the three greens to the horn relay. Our left hand drive cars have the horn relay in the same place - it just happens to be drivers side with all the speedo, tach and steering column wiring. We DO NOT have any 4-pin connector on that side that looks like yours (edit: because the US cars didn't have a PASSING RELAY...) End of the dash harness on the left side is just door switch and horn relay. My guess is that it's for the passing relay and the non-US wiring diagram shows similar wire colors. Picture Five: Correct on both. Our turn signal flasher is left side near the steering column, Hazard flasher is right side near the body and engine harness connectors. Picture Seven: I think you need the 1971 FSM Supplement for that. Weird to me that the Body Electrical doesn't show wiring for the Blower Motor or Switch - which that small harness must be. The Heater and Ventilation System is described in the Supplement.

Picture One: Fog Lamp wiring - Red - taped off = correct. The engine bay harness has corresponding wires also taped off near the horn wiring R & L sides. You are also correct about the 6-pin connector with the greens - hazard switch - which looks bypassed by the factory. Picture Two: Top connector (blues) is the stock power antenna (which operates differently than the more modern auto antennas) Middle connector - The two whites are for the speaker. The blue I don't remember, but I think it may be power to the radio...

I bought the Infinity 506 and am currently building the wiring harness for it. I've looked at the Series 3 - it's a very capable standalone. More than adequate for the L28ET.

The green LED is not a constant state indicator. In normal operation the LED should light at ignition ON and turn off as soon as the ECU senses engine rotation (crank angle signal from the optical disc). Then it's OFF unless and until the ECU is attempting closed loop. There are many conditions that will cancel the closed loop attempt so don't rely on the green LED to trouble shoot. The ECCS should run the engine well WITHOUT EVER attempting closed loop. Again, closed loop is ONLY for fine tuning the fueling at cruise for emissions and fuel economy. If you have a stumble or poor operation at 2000 RPM the fault is more likely to be worn carbon traces in the AFM if the AFM is original (not rebuilt/renewed). It could also be a host of other issues - MOST of which could be related to the stock ECCS harness wire and connectors. The L28ET really hates a lean condition - loves to run rich. Are you sure: 1. Your injectors have balanced flow 2. Your fuel pressure is correct and the FPR working properly. The FPR should maintain a PRESSURE DIFFERENTIAL of ~36.3PSI between fuel and manifold pressure (meaning 36PSI STATIC and 36PSI minus vacuum pressure OR plus boost pressure) So if the intake manifold has 10 pounds of vacuum the PSI should be ~26 pounds 3. No one has messed with your AFM spring 4. EVERY connector on the ECCS harness is CLEAN and making superior contact with a CLEAN mating connector on every sensor or device. Have you checked the wire itself for oxidation? Even in Arizona we get some pretty GREEN copper inside that insulation. (this should have been NUMBER ONE.) 5. Your Bypass Air valve is closing. 6. I'm sure I'm missing something since I left the stock ECCS 10 years ago... (I also had a mysterious issue with the CAS at one time - broken solder connection on one of the connector pins gave me random faults and was a nightmare to track down. CAS optical unit can be replaced and many of the late 80's - early 90's Nissans used the same type unit) A wideband would help you a great deal rather than guessing what your AFR's are (reading plugs or using colortune).

The L28ET ECCS uses the O2 sensor rarely (unless you're doing a lot of freeway cruising at a constant speed). It's effectively used only to trim fuel economy during cruise. At idle, under load, at low RPM or high RPM the ECU is just reading its maps and ignores the O2 sensor. Don't make the assumption that the ECCS is smarter than it actually is. There is no Throttle Position Sensor - It's just a switch that "senses" idle. And there's no brilliant use of the O2 sensor in controlling fueling or any other engine function. It's only a small step smarter than the EFI of the N/A engine. The CHTS is just the EFI engine temp sensor mounted in a smarter place. The ECU only polls the sensor under very specific conditions - fairly narrow RPM and Load values. When the ECU IS in closed loop mode it varies fueling until a RICH condition is reported, then it cuts fueling slightly to get a lean signal, rinse and repeat in a fairly continuous pattern as long as the "cruise" conditions exist. It tries to keep the exhaust output just on the edge of the lean/rich flip of the sensor (so, close to stoich). That's what the Green LED is telling you when you have the engine in a cruise configuration and the ECU is attempting closed loop.

In stock form, the FICD is controlled by a solenoid valve - Nissan calls it a "Magnet Valve". The solenoid is mounted near the vacuum bottle (one of two) and serves to control the vacuum applied to the FICD. I think nearly every ECU has a pin tied to the A/C clutch. In the swap into my 260Z I didn't use any of that (vacuum bottles, magnet valves, FICD) and: A. The ECCS ECU didn't seem to care 2. My A/C worked fine and the turbo engine has enough torque that it doesn't seem to mind the extra load of the A/C compressor at idle. c. The stock ECCS kinda sucks and I moved to a different ECU (not nearly as soon as I should have) cuz the stock harness REALLY sucks after all these years. I my opinion the 1983 FSM is MUCH more difficult to navigate than the 1982 FSM and there are only minor changes between the years. I normally refer to the '82 manual much more often.

Yup, that's how I mounted the antenna switch on Dale's Series One.

Well I've been driving for over 55 years and I don't even know HOW to spell rheostat!

Gauge lighting, correct? I didn't have any problems swapping my incandescent bulbs for LED bulbs and they dim with my stock rheostat. (I also replaced the turn signal and high beam indicators without issue) I used these: Amazon.com: QasimLed Bayonet BA9 BA9S 53 57 1895 64111 T4W Super Stable and Bright Led Bulbs Exterior Marker Indicator Interior Reverse Side Corner Light White 12V DC 10pcs : Everything Else

As far as replacement glass goes - no difference. I've never had a 2+2 in my hands so I can't vouch for that.

My experience is YES, they can be that bad. I pulled an original off a 240Z that had bad diaphragms and replaced it with one we got from Rock Auto (a GMB maybe?). The new one wouldn't pump fuel. I took it off and could work it manually and it pumped just fine. I started to wonder if there was something wrong with the eccentric in the L24. Then I compared the arm of the new pump to the arm of the original pump and there was enough difference in its aspect that the lobe on the cam wouldn't move it enough to pump. Ordered a different brand and had the same problem. Took a third try before I found a working mechanical fuel pump.

Yup, my dyslexia was showing - got that backwards. Good thing I don't have SU's! I left carbs behind in 1981 and you'd have to drag me kicking and screaming to go back to them... Or EMP me I guess...

He means, put it back on, recheck your valve lash, and go thrash it...

So, no altitude compensation in the '75. Once stopped and restarted, was it better? (some ECUs read barometric pressure at ignition ON and use that figure until power off) Now the SU guys are gonna say: Dang, I could have just rolled down my jets (temperature/altitude adjustment knobs) and kept on going! Sucks you got EFI... The forests in the Rockies are a bit different than in the East, eh. I was raised on the Western slope of the continental divide in Idaho. I thought I knew what a forest was until: A. My wife and I drove across country to Virginia. B. My son and I drove up the West coast to Portland, Oregon. Those are forests.

None of my turbos "freewheel" much if I were to spin them with a finger, but they spin a bit. I think however that mine spins whenever there's exhaust to move it. Yours will break-in I'm sure. Pikes Peak? You're going to need an ECU and maps that compensate for altitude change. That means it'll need a baro sensor, maps for different altitudes, and map switching and/or averaging. I can't remember if the stock L28ET ECU has a barometric sensor or not. My youngest son still runs his turbo-swapped 280Z (swapped in 2006) with a 1990 M30 (F31) ECU made tunable with a Nistune Type 2 daughterboard (11-12 pounds boost and it's a beast). (one can also Nistune a Z31 turbo ECU) Even the low-end standalones have more features generally than the L28ET requires or can use. My MS3X has features that can't be accessed by this old engine but it did give me an easy path to coil-on-plug, full sequential fuel and ignition. Phoenix is about 1100 feet and most people don't think of Arizona as mountainous, But Flagstaff is 7000 feet and my son's house in Snowflake is 6000 and they're just close to the mountains. So, we have a bit of elevation change here if you want to go up into the "piney woods". The basic L28ET engine harness (usually crap after all these years) isn't that complicated. I always advise anyone with an L28ET to scrap the stock harness and build a new one. Most of the connectors are Bosch and easily sourced - new with pins not pigtails. I'm on my 4th harness now (I bought an AEM 506 ECU so I'm building a harness for that right now). My 260Z is an uphill monster - the turbo engine has that much torque, especially with 12-14 pounds boost. Coming back down, I'm glad I have vented rotors and Porterfield friction - they work best when they're HOT.

Dave, did you post the specs of that engine and the modifications you've made? What turbo is that? Then I'm wondering why in hell you're using an L28E ECU to try to run a turbocharged engine. It's a good thing you have it in a situation where you're not inducing any load. It will not build boost (the boost you get will be at zero manifold pressure) while not under load. (my L28ET running 5000 RPM in NEUTRAL will not build boost) You need a proper ECU. On a stock L28ET that would mean a 1981 280ZXT ECU with dropping resistors OR 1982-83 280ZXT ECU without dropping resistors OR a tunable standalone ECU. You're giving more weight (credit) than you should to the O2 sensor. The early ECU does NOT poll the ECU constantly to regulate fuel. Most of the time the ECU completely ignores the O2 sensor and runs off the maps. The ECU tunes cruise AFR under certain limited conditions, in a certain RPM and LOAD range. Even the more sophisticated turbo ECUs of the 80's use basically the same strategy. Do you know for certain if your FPR will RAISE fuel pressure under boost? You can break pistons in an instant if you're hot and lean and mis-timed under boost. Ignition timing is another aspect that needs to be controlled properly. Your posts above throw up all kinds of red flags to me - but it's your engine... I have a stock L28ET intake manifold. It's a bit more sophisticated than one might think - even has a built-in "blow off valve" (that's not what Nissan calls it though). Most of us turbo-swap guys don't use them, opting for a custom intake manifold, the cleaner early 280Z non-EGR manifold, or the like. But, as soon as you ditch stock, you need a tunable ECU. You can add a Nistune daughter board to an L28ET ECU, use Megasquirt, or AEM, or... but you need the ability to tune the maps. Man... There are SO many things here... Turbo lag. I did my turbo swap in 2008 - running stock in early 2009. I've used 3 different ECUs and about to go to a fourth. Stock turbo, Chinese T04E (which I've run for 8 years or more). Stock J Pipe, custom charge pipe, custom charge pipe with same-side intercooler. I've run AFM, MAF, and none of the above with MS3X. I'VE NEVER HAD TURBO LAG - not because I'm a genius - because I have a properly sized turbo and reasonably well thought out charge and intake air piping. I have a turbo that starts to build boost around 2500 RPM, comes on smoothly, and really lets you know it's there when it hits 8 or 9 pounds and beyond. Turbo lag... Edit: OH, and get a WIDEBAND!!

The "pin" is electrically isolated, so it doesn't necessarily need to be plastic. Brass?

That's generally always a good idea. If someone comes up with a replacement for that plastic tip, I can fix 2 or 3 headlight switches that I have.

If you've tried holding the plastic "knob" in the front while using a flat blade screwdriver at the back and it didn't unscrew, then I'd assume the knob is pressed on the shaft like many other knobs on a steel shaft. Since it's a thing that's meant to be turned, I'd think it was the latter - a knurled shaft with the knob pressed on. Since it has a spring behind it, the fit would have to be very tight. It has a few disparate parts, so there had to be an assembly procedure. Now, whether it was meant to be disassembled is another matter... I have a few at the shop but I've never tried to take that particular assembly apart.