LanceM

Hard to say without seeing what you are trying to come from, how about a pic of your car so we can see what has to be done to get where you want to go...

I find it interesting that your low readings are in pairs for the most part. Putting oil in and increasing your readings does indicate rings but can be a fooler sometimes. Typically low paired cylinders indicate a bad head gasket/warped head/cracked block, alowing one cylinder to leak into another. I would be very tempted to pull the head and look inside, it would be only an afternoons work and a couple of gaskets. With readings down to 20 that cylinder should either have a ridge like a clif at the top or look like someone took a grinder to it!! This would also give you a chance to see if the engine is worth rebuilding, if the cylinder walls are tore up you would be better off finding a newer better block to start with. You can change rings with the engine in the car, no fun but it can be done. I too wonder how you got it home with readings like that, I'm suprized that it runs at all

First thing I would do is run a compression check, it will only take 10 minutes and will tell you a world of info before you tear into it. If it is just a head gasket, you could have it changed in a couple of hours for the cost of the gasket. That would keep you driving until you are ready for the big swap, if it is more than the gasket then I would only work on the swap not spending any money on something that you are going to toss in a few months.

I'd say bad sending unit. I've had simular problems before except I would loose pressure at speed, sort of a shock the first time it happens

Just got mine out after 15 years of sitting. Clean the fuel tank, unless it was put away dry you will have some really nasty stuff laying in the bottom of the tank. Bleed the brakes and the clutch, flush out all of the old fluid. If after the bleeding they don't work expect to buy new masters, don't bother with the rebuild kits, they are a waste of money, been there done that. I replaced some fuel lines & filters, cleaned the carbs, changed the oil and filter, I greased up the cam for the first start and dumped the last two quarts of the new oil on the valvetrain. She fired right up! I've still got some carb problems but I hope to cure them today. Good luck on your new project!

No they shouldn't be tightened as far as they will go, they are the adjustment for toe in. The best way to adjust them is to center the stearing wheel then adjust them so that the rotors are parallel and in line with the rear wheels.

I would say that all's well, there isn't much resistance in the clutch pedal and it should go all the way to the floor. As long as you are getting full disengagement of the clutch with the pedal pushed in you are ok.

A knock sounds like someone wacking the block with a ball peen hammer, nothing like valve noise. Usually only heard under hard acceleration or high load like lugging it in high gear.

Before you take it apart try running a bunch of fluid through it. I've found that the clutch will gravity feed, put a 3/16" id hose on the bleeder and stick it in a can, open the bleeder and get back to the master and keep it filled. If you have an extra person have them pump the clutch slowly. That should really flush the old crap out of the lines. If after that the clutch is soft or leaking down it's time for a new master and maybe slave. Don't bother trying to rebuild them, I just went through that and now have new, with wasted money on the rebuild kit Something else I found is that the slave is steel, water in the system sinks to the low level when the system sits for a long time and rusts the crap out of it. If it works now it probably won't in a week.... If you change the master spend the extra $20 and replace the slave at the same time and be done with it. Another case of do it now or do it later....

I'm putting what I was told were Datsun Euro 240 springs on my 240. I can't tell you much about the fronts as they are already on the car but I have a rear here, Free lenght 14" about 9 1/2 coils wire dia. .460" part # 55020-E4201 Right ft 9 1/2 coils .460" wire part # 55020-E4106 Left Ft 9 1/2 coils .460" wire Part # 55020-E4107 They are suppose to lower the car 1" and are a higher rate spring. I guess I'll find out next spring For compairison my old stock springs off the front were 10 coils, .430" wire.

Timing is a funny thing. With the timing too advanced static you can have cold start problems and low speed problems, though yes it seems to give you the best power warmed up and running. Since your engine is mostly stock my recommendation is to do it how we did it in the old days, lug it like you are doing in 4th gear and keep reducing the timing until the pinging stops, pinging is bad. Now if you have problems cold starting or low speed continue backing it off until you have the best of both worlds. One of the things to remember now that these cars are older is that the springs in the distributor are tired and the weights may be worn. This will change the curve of the distributor, the amount of advance to rpm. In a perfect world there is a perfect advance, giving you spark at the right time to make the most power at that particular rpm. When things get tired you get too much advance to soon causing pinging in the midrange until the engine rpm catch up to the spark advance. Remember that every ping is a little chunk blown out of the top of your piston, like I said not a good thing... So by setting it so you don't have a ping through out the rpm range you know that you are not exceeding the advance curve no matter what your static setting is and hopefully getting the most power available from you advance curve. Clear as mud right Oh and to get higher timing marks, put a timing tape on your dampner and use the zero mark on the case as the reference point. I don't know any more who or if anyone has them anymore but once again that's how we did it in the old days It just divides the dampner into 360 degree marks using the TDC mark as the zero point. Ah if it was just 30 years ago and I still had my 454 Monte Carlo SS I'd show you Boy am I glad I'm not buying gas for that today!

Sounds like a place to give return business to. So often anymore the job is done when you drive out the door instead of when you are satisfied.

Since it was done in a shop I'd take it back! Sort of sounds like a short in the wiring causing a full load on the system since in theory all current runs through the ampmeter. Could be just a bad connection or a bad VR but since someone else did it I'd keep showing up at their doorstep with a smile until it was fixed right.

Closing the warm air intake won't hurt. It's a polution thing, cars before the '70s didn't have it. Ram air sounds neat but requires proper ducting and is only effective above 100 mph. Cost to gain ratio makes it unpractial for the street. The money is better spent in increasing hp in other ways.

Hi Brian, The stock electric fuel pump is mounted to the chassie in front of the fuel tank on the passengers side. If I remember correctly the electric fuel pump only runs after the engine reaches 600 rpm or so. This is a safety feature so if in an accident the fuel line ruptures and the engine is stopped the pump won't empty the fuel tank just because the key is on.

No sorry I don't, it was about 20 years ago when I did it. I do remember picking them up at the local parts place, at the time I was one of the few in the area that ever wanted any metric fasteners

If I remember right I used one of those $10 universal steering wheel pullers, I just had to buy some long bolts with the right thread to bolt into the pully to pull it.

The average seems to be around $700 give or take(full set up, manifold, linkage, carbs, aircleaners). Depends some on what kind of shape they are in, costs around $30 a piece for the rebuild kit. K&N aircleaners are around $50 a piece. Figure it would cost $1300 + or - some to buy everything you need new and go from there.

Looking at mine I would say that the pin was a press fit, in other words it was never ment to be removed. Given that and the age of the car it is probably rusted in place. I would go with your option of threading it, drill and tap the pin out, that would save a lot of pounding

The other day I got my 240 out and drove it up to the house to do some power washing on it, (just running after 15 years of storage), it ran fine and I put it back in the shop. Last nite I wanted to fiddle with the carbs and went to start it when it went Klack klack klack with every turn of the engine and I mean it was a real LOUD KLACK! Needless to say the start was aborted and the cause of this sound was looked for. Found it under the valve cover! one of the rockers had come off and was getting beaten by the cam and other moving componets!!! Oil spray tube bent, spring cap dinged up but luckly that's about it. I was able to straighten the spray tube and put things back together. Needless to say I checked the valves, several rockers were about to fall off! and a couple were way too tight! The funny part was that there was little if any valve train noise when it was running... Moral of the story, just because it was running when you put it away 15 years ago, and started and ran fine 15 years later, you should check all of the adjustments even though you aren't going to be driving it for 6 months..... sort of one of those pay me now or spend more later things

I'd say the VR is shot. I don't remember for sure but I think if you unplug the VR there is no output from the altenator, so the steady voltage you are seeing is the battery voltage.

Close but no cigar!! Well Don, you're making it tougher Since the head is rebuilt that can pretty much be eliminated. Seems strange that it's only at hi r's, if it was rings I would expect it all of the time. You can try an engine wash, I have no experiance with them so don't know if they really work. If you try it and it doesn't help I would probably switch back to regular oil. Eventhough you are not burning that much I wouldn't want to be adding that carbon to the combustion chamber along with the added plug fouling.

48, in northern Indiana, wife, 2 boys, one almost driving age along with the usual and some unusual country pets. ' 73 240, no where near stock, a project started before I had a wife and has finally moved to the front burner after 15 years of sitting. Hopefully this spring she will be my daily driver, making my 40 mile comute to the "city" on what is considered the worst highway in the area a total driving pleasure, 40 miles of curves and 300' long or less passing lanes. Now if I could just get everyone else to leave either 15 minutes before or after I do it would be great

Man I hate it when that happens! But since you were hit their insurance is buying right? Or is CA a no fault state however that stuff works???

Here's my guess... Since it is low miles, but has age against it I would guess you are sucking oil past the valve guide seals since synthetic is a lot slipperier and only 5 weight. That and the fact that it only happens above 4.5K, there's a lot more oil on top then than at lower r's. I'd install new valve guide seals and try again, cheap fix and it wouldn't hurt.