jonathanrussell

I always assumed, right or wrong, that they were not present on 240z models. My 24k mile 6/72 240z does not have the two piece steel straps / braces.

They are present on my very original 75 280z.

I will share a couple of things with you that you can think about and potentially try out. I do think SU carbs are sensitive to temperature. They are also prone to fuel percolation in the float bowls. When the weather is below about 55 degrees I move the air cleaner to the winter setting which pulls air from the warm area around the exhaust manifold. If you have headers you may want to figure out how to direct the winter air duct to the area around your headers for cooler weather (assuming you have a winter/summer air cleaner housing). On 80+ degree days, I disconnect the winter duct and run a duct from the air cleaner round winter port through the hole in the radiator support so cool air gets pulled from in front of the radiator (so, in this case I set the air cleaner to winter). On fall and spring days between 60 and 80, I use the normal summer mode where air gets pulled from the under-hood area. Also, I was having idling in traffic problems at the start of summer this year. I have an electric fuel pump and I only run ethanol free fuel. After lots of trial and error, I solved the problem by wrapping pretty much every inch of my stock (but ceramic coated) exhaust manifold with the product in the link below. I also wrapped the float bowls. I haven't had idle problems in the heat again. Here is the product I used, though there are lots of ways to accomplish with headers. Heatshield Armor As mentioned above, your plugs look great and your carb float setting must be pretty spot on....key in my opinion to getting these carbs to work right.

I would stick with OEM regulator. I would buy and install in the engine bay a good fuel pressure gauge. Since you are replacing the injectors, I would probably wait and measure PSI with your current regulator before buying a new one. It is important to really understand what psi readings you should see at idle and under load / rev. See FSM and read forum messages. Also, critical to make sure efi electrical connections are solid and clean, no vacuum leaks (follow the tiny vacuum lines that enable hvac controls, boot for afm / throttle body, egr valve, etc), clean fuel, etc.

@johncdeere I have a printed MSA catalog from around 2006. In the "new products" section they have a rear disk brake conversion kit. There are three options. 1) buy all of the brackets, hoses, bolts, etc that you will need. With this kit you had to supply the calipers and rotors. 2) buy all of the above and they supply solid rotors and calipers. 3) buy all of the above and they supply drilled rotors and calipers. In the first option above, you had to supply the following: - 82-83 ZX rotors. - 85-88 Maxima front wheel drive calipers. Also, fyi, I have a 2007 Black Dragon catalog and there is no option for a rear disk conversion kit.

I would be careful about taking it some place and letting anyone swing away at it. They'll get it out....but. I do agree that removing this bolt is on par with spindle pins. Actually, I think it is worse. The good news for me is I am refreshing a 4spd transmission later this month so will enjoy the bolt removal joy again. Best of luck!

I did this last summer and it is very frustrating trying to apply enough force but not damage the bolt. In the end, what worked for me is a combination of what EuroDat and Patcon wrote. I used lots of heat. left the nut on to protect the threads. Tried to avoid heating the bolt and instead direct heat to the fork body. Key though was to use a steel bar resting on the nut so that I could hammer from closer to outside of the housing. I used a 3/8" socket extension with the square side resting on the nut. I would heat and then tap. Eventually, it moved. I bet I worked at it for 2 hours too. Be patient and it will eventually free up.

Do the valves that correspond with the piston you think was replaced look different from the other valves? Maybe a valvetrain issue caused a collision...which caused the head to get worked on but not really rebuilt?

The symptom you are describing is consistent with the flaw I have seen with the older one. The soldered joints become loose and then the pipes move around, fall off, etc. I would use the newer one.

The link below is for the newer style Nissan oil spray bar. I know I have seen it on 75 and 76 280Zs. Not sure when it first appeared. I have seen it cheaper but like anything you may need to wait to find it cheaper. In my experience it is the early spray bar that is prone to failure. https://rover.ebay.com/rover/0/0/0?mpre=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.ebay.com%2Fulk%2Fitm%2F173949822218

Agree.

My struggle has always been with the long ear lid. I find it causes the float to hang too low in the bowl and hang against the wall. What is the length if the needle valve you are using for front...long, and rear...short? If I measure the needle valve body...not the threads and not the floating needle...just the full body...I get 18.5mm short 20.5mm long. Any chance you are using a long needle valve in a short ear lid?

It was a needle and seat / jet alternative that was available for our Hitachi SU carbs at one time. I don't know when they stopped being available. They are still available for other SU carbs. I have never used them so I don't know first hand how well they work but just based on the photos and concept I would think they would be an improvement. The photo below is a grose-jet for a Triumph but it shows the concept.

What I have found is....if you compare the needle jets that were originally installed in these cars 47+ years ago with the new needle jets that come in the carb rebuild kits, you will notice that they are different. New needle jets have a pretty thin needle that contacts the tab on the float. The old had a much thicker needle that contacted the tab. What I have observed is that if the tab is too curved the thinner new needle jet needle gets hung on the tab. So, I try really hard to bend the tab so that it allows for the right fuel level but also is as flat as possible.

I assume you have the dowel / guides that help you align the head to the block. Your comment about using a cut bolt makes me wonder if yours are missing due to PO. I would use ARP studs with nuts. I don't like torquing into the block threads. 60 ft pounds of torque too (though I think the turbo bolts are same). Just me. ARP not cheap though so I get it.

I have new in box nissan original, as follows. 11044-n4210 11044-n4221 I also have an original used 280z gasket pulled from my engine and saved. The two new gaskets noted above are identical in terms of cutouts...as is my used gasket. The n4210 gasket and the n4221 gasket differ in terms of the materials used. The newer gasket has more of a foil like surface. My original used gasket is more like the n4221 gasket material...more rigid....more like the beck arnley gasket I mention below but with some sort of stuff sprayed on it (if I were guessing I would say something like copper coat). I have a stash of 280z aftermarket gaskets too. One is from a stone / ishina headset kit. The part number is A1042-P692K....plus another number....JHS-00168-N. The head gasket in this kit looks very similar to the n4221 nissan gasket. Cutouts are identical. Materials are very similar...more of a foil like feel. There are minor differences though. Ishina gasket has copper around oil passages where nissan is aluminum or steel. Nissan has some sort of sealant running around the timing cover area. Fyi, i also have a felpro and the cuttouts in terms of water passages are the same. Beck Arnley...cutouts are the same but material is entirely different....more like two pieces of rigid card stock pressed around a foil center. I should also mention that i have a stone/ishina that is not part of a headset kit....single gasket. The material used for this gasket is more like the Beck Arnley. I used felpro in my last build. So far so good but time will tell. One thing i have observed is that the felpro is thinner. Not a big deal unless you are concerned about even a bit more compression...detonation. Finally, I should mention that my stash of aftermarket gaskets is 5 years old (except felpro) so much could have changed if you order today. For you, I would probably suggest a nissan11044-n4221.

ZH...so you have seen this kind of wear where the lobe has walls carved in it? Never seen that but....

On my 14" rims I am using Vredestein Sportrack 5 tires. They are 195 70 hr 14. They are a summer tire so not good if you want to drive in temps colder than about 45. They are 300 treadwear tires so pretty sticky. I was looking for a summer tire that is stickier than most of the all season 14" options. And, they work well and stick well for an old school tire size with tall sidewalls. I don't expect that they will last more than 10k miles due to the 300 TW but that isn't an issue for me....I drive my cars often but not a ton of miles. They will probably reach their age limit before I wear them out. I think I purchased from Tire Rack. Edit: I see you are in Austin...so maybe a good option for you.

OMG..that camshaft lobe is unbelievably messed up. Never seen anything like that. What could have caused? Zero valve lash clearance? Are the other lobes normal?

I just took a look at a valve on my N42 head with 56k miles. The original seal allowed the valve to move freely and if I lift to the valve closed position and release the valve slowly moves down. I then installed a sealed power seal. I think there is a slight bit more drag but the valve still moves freely and if I release the valve from the closed position it will drop down...though maybe a bit more slowly. Bottom line, both seals allow the valve to move freely without much drag. This seems consistent with what I remember when I used these seals on my E88 head last summer and that car doesn't burn oil....fyi.

Really cool that you drive your car every day. Nice wheels.

The method of setting float levels where you turn the mixture screws 10 turns down, remove the domes, and set the fuel level so it is even with the top of the nozzle tops has been written about many times on many sites. The site / article where I was first introduced to the method is at the link below. https://zcarguide.com/tuning-adjusting-datsun-240z-su-carburetors/ I learned a lot from the article but 4 key things in particular. First, adjusting SU carbs really hinges on getting the floats set right first. If you don't have that right, then I find that everything else ends up being a compromise. BTW, some disagree that setting the floats is super important but I am a believer and kool-aid drinker on the theory. If you don't get the fuel level set right in the floats then you end up setting the mixture level significantly different than 2.5 (plus or minus .5). When you do this you end up shifting the needle zones up or down and outside of the intended range in the power band. Worse, if the float adjustment is off by enough, you can't even get the mixture adjustment screw to cause any change. Again, this is all my opinion...and is shared by some and disagreed with by others...which is fine. You will figure out what works for you. Second, the 10 turn down method was the only method that, for me, was exact and repeatable. I just could never get the .55 hanging down while sucking (no comments Site) or clear tube set to 23mm or whatever to work for me. No doubt, it works for some. To me though all of the other methods, at the end of the day, are trying to get the fuel to a certain level in the nozzle (10 turns down), so why not measure using the goal? Third, once you have the floats set, using a Color Tune to set the mixture works really well for me. A couple of Color Tune tips though. 1) use the Color Tune in the dark...or low light. This will let you see the colors better. 2) Clean the Color Tune often. Once the engine has been running with the Color Tune for 1 minute or so, I find that I cease to be able to see the distinctions between Red (rich), Blue (ideal), and White (lean). So, I pull the Color Tune plug and clean with carb cleaner spray often. It is a kind of tedious process but it is accurate and repeatable. Fourth, I use the Color Tune at two rpm levels- Idle and about 3k rpms. I let idle run a little rich (red)...which makes 3k end up being about right (blue). Also worth checking if you are having fuel delivery issues is the little flexible hoses that connect the float bowls and the nozzles. Make sure you use ZTherapy or similar hoses that are super flexible. And, make sure the hose is not creased...impeding flow. I assume that your nozzles are moving up and down correctly and closing fully when choke is off and opening when choke is on. Stay with it. You will figure it out. EDIT: One more thing...and many may disagree with this too. I have never had any success getting the 3 screw carbs where one float bowl lid has longer ears and you use a longer needle jet to work. This arrangement causes the float to remain angled lower in the float bowl, which I think causes it to get hung against the float bowl wall. So, if you have a carb set where one has the lid with long ears and longer needle jet, and you can't get the float level set exactly and reliably, consider locating another short ear float lid. You can use any short ear float lid from any round top carbs. I had an extra set of 3 screw carbs sitting around and scavenged the short ear lid from that set of carbs.

I am in Marietta GA. On a convenient Saturday, I would be willing to drive my 72 to Chattanooga so you can look it over, take photos, etc.

Personally I think grannyknot made a valid comment about the color. His point, I think, was to show a roof shot that is painted the same color as the OP's car assuming the OP's car is original blue, but looks silver because camera auto exposure and color balance functionality can easily be tricked into making, for instance, blues lean silver or reds lean orange or oranges lean red or lemon/lime yellow lean yellow...etc, etc. The question I think grannyknot wants the reader to ask themselves is.... could it be that the ash tray / tunnel shot provided by the OP suffers from the same camera color shift phenomenon, thereby causing the OP's shot to look more silver than blue. We could also just bypass the technology (and I am a technology guy...camera hobby guy too). OP....what do your eyes see? Is the tunnel of your car and area under the ash tray the same color as the exterior? What about under the carpet on the rear deck? What about under the carpet behind the seats? Under the seats? Under the floor carpet? Under the rear strut tower caps?

Very interesting car. No doubt, the color code on the radiator support is puzzling. I find myself wanting to see 30-40 high resolution photos of lots of key areas. Personally, I don't see what another poster is seeing with the tunnel under the ash tray. Looks right for the blue paint to me but again more resolution would be better. If we were playing a no risk game and I had to decide whether it is a 350 mile car based only on the photos provided, I would have to vote that it is a 350 mile car. To me, the zinc and metal under the hood, while dirty, doesn't look like a 100,350 mile car. I don't think you have showed us the "dent" in the fender but I would try like heck to not disturb the original paint. If it means leaving the dent, fine. If it means finding the best paintless dent person on the planet and fixing without painting then ideal. No matter what though you have a great car to own and enjoy. No doubt you could flip it...but you could also enjoy it some and flip later. Welcome to the site! More photos please! Edit: One other thing I would do if it were my car...I would remove the original seats and save them and find another set on ebay to restore. If you show the car install the original seats. When you drive some...use the restored seats.