rossiz

i originally made a plate out of some 1/4" aluminum and just bolted it on & plugged the odd tubes going to it - then wound up completely restoring the manifold so while i was at it i cut off the extension and plugged it all up permanently. the exhaust gas recirculation system essentially allows unburnt fuel in the exhaust to pass from the exhaust manifold back into the intake for improved emissions. the egr valve is vacuum controlled, and when working correctly the recirculation occurs in a controlled manner that should not affect performance one way or the other. removal of the system, while allowing a little more unburnt fuel to pass out the tailpipe, doesn't add performance - it just cleans up the manifold area and eliminates a couple more potential vacuum and exhaust leak areas (my main reason for removal).

mine was broken too - fell apart as i was taking off the (also broken) egr valve atop the manifold...

could also be part of the re-circulation system - the gas going back to the tank and/or vapor collection which would only "leak" (liquid or vapor) when the car was running...

cable it to an exhaust diverter valve so you can go from whisper quiet to full-breathing fury at will.

hey euro - not to hijack, but how are you planning to fit the 240 valence and signals with the 280 frame/radiator support? i've got the same issue to deal with...

interesting post - but i'm still a little fuzzy on why the switch to this particular CS144 model. the "performance curves" graph seems to start at about 1,200 rpm, and i don't know what the pulley ratio is in relation to the crankshaft, so i'm not sure if this alternator kicks in sooner or provides an overall greater output or what... interested in finding out though!

i have to admit i was shocked that you would strip that car for a re-paint.... until i saw the "after" pics! wow, wow. such beautiful work. congrats!

i used both while re-doing my fuel system. the oem clamps are very robust and work great. the galvanized ones work, but they are more of a one-time deal, as they are softer and deform when tightening. be very careful/watchful of the little tang that covers the bolt gap - it's supposed to slide under the clamp and keep the fuel line from lipping up at the bolt gap, but the tip can dig into the fuel line, and as you tighten it will bend in half and dig in further. had to pull apart and re-do a couple of those misfires... but in the end, it's just a clamp, so you should be fine.

wow. i think i'd throw in some ribs to pick that car up for $2,500 - heck, adam gave up one for a wife

nice!

on my 78 280 i discovered that all the sockets for the tail lights, markers and directionals were a bit corroded and allowed them to short. take 'em apart, use some sandpaper, some deoxit, some dielectric grease and it'll do wonders. also, while you're in there check that the little center contact (the one on the spring plate) is seated correctly and not shorting to the outside cylinder - i had one of those as well.

wow... what a mess! at least when you've gone through it all yourself and made things right you'll have the peace of mind knowing what ISN'T the problem going forward...

fwiw - i pulled mine with a breaker bar, without any real drama. 148K on the car, pulley was rusty on the outside, bolt was clean on the inside. i had the oil pan off and put a piece of wood between the block skirt and the crank to lock things in place. wasn't a big deal. getting the pulley off took some creativity, as the two threaded holes in the pulley for a pair of puller bolts were mucked up so i had to rig up a makeshift setup with 3 long bolts and some bailing wire wrapped around the outside of the pulley, but it came off with very little resistance. don't pry - pull straight off.

for those of us who haven't experienced an LSD, can you illuminate? what makes it better? is this something noticed on the track only, or is there some quality to it that is somehow noticeable on the street? i've never noticed anything particularly odd or bad about the stock diff in my '78... what am i missing?

hard to tell, can't be sure, but is that the little light that illuminates the cigarette lighter when the headlights/dash lights are on? it pokes into the side of the lighter recess in back, i believe on the side closest to the steering column...

oh god... if my mum ever saw that - my dad would be on me for ever about all the tires he'd need to replace! fantastic oh, and awesome paint too!

wow - great deal, where did you find it? i'm needing a clutch myself...

man, i have SO been there.... actually started tearing apart wiring and installing additional grounds before accidentally bumping the blinker stalk while upside down under the steering column trying to remove my cover and tear apart the switch... so your'e NOT the only dummy

Sweet

cool - sounds like you're on the right track. a nice advantage of doing the engines in stages is that you'll love the L26, then after driving it for a while you'll be even more impressed with your performance build - like christmas x2

Thanks Sean - I saw your post a while back and the heat shield looks pretty cool (pun intended). I'm actually getting ready to replace the clutch, so I'll have the tranny out and that would be a great time to do a heat shield. The tunnel itself only gets warm on my car, except for the ashtray, which gets HOT inside. I only use it for a cup-holder and to hold my iphone while driving, and melts ice and roasts the phone. I think this is because the ashtray sits metal-to-metal on the tunnel and so transmits the heat. the rest of the tunnel is covered in sound insulation mat, which has a foil component (radiant barrier) and a thick felt under my carpet, which also has a heavy rubber backing. All this helps the tunnel heat from entering the cabin, but I'm not excited about the heat cooking my carpet and sound mat over time... always best to stop the heat BEFORE it gets through the body metal I'm actually going to be revising my exhaust system a little - the original design had the muffler in the tunnel lying flat and the resonator at the end, and my home-made trial worked really well with zero drone. The new system reversed that, which necessitated a short muffler and there is some drone between 2K and 2,500 which is starting to bug me. I'm going to get a longer muffler and a shorter resonator and do the swap. The resonator is also polished SST, so it should look good with the tip welded right to it, and it will show a lot less in the rear wheel well.

nice progress - looking forward to seeing things when they're all cleaned up. i warped a head due to a clog in the water passages and wound up popping out all the freeze plugs with the head off and using a pressure washer to clean out all the sludge and rust and crud in there - i assume you're gonna hot tank the block, do whatever you can to get the coolant passages clean. the rust scale and crap that came out of mine was unfathomable in both size and qty. also, i'm sure you've read lots of posts about how a good chunk of the performance on these motors comes from the head work - lots of really smart folks have spent the past 30+ years sorting out the best ways to extract ponies with careful flow work, valve matching, rocker setup, cam grind, etc. since you're in it up to your knees, might be a good time to look at some machine time up there... oh, and there's a guy by the name of larry hassler that makes a really nice, very simple oil spray bar cut from a bar of aluminum. inexpensive, very stout (won't fall apart like the oem) and provides great coverage to keep those cam lobes happy. larry's a good guy - lots of datsun race engine experience and knowledge, check him out.

thanks all for the suggestions - great info. i like the idea of the 240mm clutch and lightened flywheel, just a little confused about a couple of points: - can i use a 240mm clutch on a maxima flywheel? - if so, what years of the maxima will be a straight bolt-up? - i assume i just order an oem 240mm clutch, is that simply a zx turbo or 2+2, or are there specific years? appreciate the help!

beautiful! such a nice job - better avoid puddles on the way home to keep that baby clean!

Looks like it's time to replace my clutch - it was a bit long in the tooth when I got the car, so I figured this would need done at some point, and I've smoked it a couple times doing childish stunts involving high rpms and bad smokey smells... It's currently functional, but engages at the tippety-top of the pedal throw and will slip at peak torque if I drive like a donkey. I'm hoping to limp along until I gather parts and do a swap on a weekend afternoon. I've read a few threads which give me the naive impression that it's not that tough a job, and I may even invest in a tranny adaptor for my floor jack to compensate for my shortcomings in the bicep department. My long-term plan is to build an F54 flat-top block and get +200 ponies to the wheels, but that is probably a year away. I don't think the current clutch will last that long, and even if it did, there's no joy in driving a z daintily until then. Soooo... I'd love to hear suggestions on a good replacement setup that will work happily with the re-build down the road. I'm not going to auto-x or run the drag-strip, but I would like something that will chirp nicely in the first 3 gears when asked to I've seen various ads for "oem clutch kits" and "turbo clutch kits" and centerforce 1 & 2, and 2+2 conversions, etc. and I'm a little confused (my typical starting point). Thoughts please? Thanks!