BD240Z

What electrical connections need made in order to start the engine? I've had the engine rebuilt in my 1970 240Z and want to try and start it without having to install the dash and make all the other electrical connections. I took the car down to a metal shell to address any rust issues so there's nothing hooked up in the cabin except the ignition & fuse box. The only other connections that have been made are in the engine compartment. ALso, I when i hooked up the battery, the positive cable and the ground cable to the firewall got hot. Any ideas on what I've hooked up incorrectly or it it related to not having everything else hooked up. Thanks in advance!

I'm in Phoenix so I can't recommend any shops. If no one here can, try the yellow pages under "radiators". Many radiator shops also rework gas tanks. Good luck with your car.

I don't know what would be considered excessive wear or how exactly the oil pump does it's job but it does look like your fingernail would go "bumpity-bump" over those ridges. Due to the importance of the oil pump and that they're reasonably priced, consider getting a new one to eliminate all doubt. Good luck with your car.

Stephen, I need to check my microfiche before I respond to some of these posts, thanks. However, I just took a look at mine and there seems to be different setups depending on what month/year your car was made. There are small windows on the right side of the scan that show the differences. It looks like: Up to 4/70, the pump was held on by two studs and a bolt at the lower hole. From 5/70 till 7/73, it looks like three studs. From 8/73 till ?? it looks like two (screw - machine?) and a bolt. My car was made in 5/70 so somebody fooled with the recipe and removed the lower stud and installed a bolt. When I installed a new fuel pump, I put a stud in the lower hole but couldn't get the pump to clear the stud. Looking at Arne's picture, I see the stud is just long enough to get the nut and washer on and torqued. My stud was longer which was what made me install the bolt instead. Good luck with your cars!

Chris, I don't think you can install a stud in the third hole because of the way the pump rotates/rolls into place when installing it. It won't clear the stud/the stud in the lower hole will get in the way of getting the pump flush with the head. I believe this is why the original setup had a bolt in the lower hole. You might get away with it if you first install the pump on the two upper studs and then install the third stud and nut. Hope this makes sense!

On my 1970 240Z, the fuel pump is held on the head with two studs/nuts, (on the top) and a bolt in the third hole, (lower). I believe this is the original setup, hope this helps.

I just got my new carbs from Z Therapy, I can't wait to get them installed. When I was thinking of buying new carbs, I called MSA and asked where they got theirs from and did they keep any kind of stock on the shelf. They explained they bought from Z Therapy and all carbs are made to order so I figured just get them from the source. Bruce at Z Therapy was patient and answered all my questions. Good luck with your car.

Years ago I bought a full dash cover for an older BMW I had at the time. I put it on with the intentions of letting it "settle" on the existing dash and then would apply the silicone after a few weeks. When the time came, it fit so well I never took it off to apply the silicone. It didn't move around while driving so I left it that way. I have one for my 240Z that I haven't installed yet. I have the dash out and will "custom" fit this sucker so it looks as good as possible. I'm going to use the same "settling" technique for this one as well.

Yep, I'll second that. I've ordered from them several times and have been satisfied with the parts, service, communication and delivery times. BTW, I'm also waiting on the radiator decal.

Autozone gets their reman Racks from either A1 Cardone or ATSCO Products, both are ISO 9001 Registered. This means they have a management system in place that helps assure product quality. That doesn't mean you won't get a bad rack from either but at least they have a documented system in place. I don't know where VB, MSA or the Steering Store has their reman work done. Anything used can be a gamble but most reputable salvage yards will give you a warranty of say 30 days. Enough time to get the rack installed and know whether it's still servicable. Good luck with your decision.

Congrats on the purchase, these cars are addicting. Seems you've got the right manuals to guide you through too. Use the search engine for specific topics/questions, I do all the time and have been able to get through spots where I was stuck. If the car hasn't been started for a long time, use the search engine for advice on how to do this properly. I'll bet you can't wait to get her home, give her a bath and get started. Have fun and good luck with your car!

With the steering column installed in the car, the angle of the column prevents the upper section of the steering shaft from sliding out the bottom. The upper section of the steering shaft will hit the top of the frame on the way out. All the hydraulic lines are in the way too. I just reinstalled mine but EVERYTHING was removed from my interior. To get mine in I had my wife hold the steering column kind of parallel to the ground so I could slide the upper section into the column. The steering column is held in place with four bolts at the firewall behind the brake/clutch pedals and four more bolts in the picture below. If you remove all eight bolts you should be able to lower the steering column and kind of angle it towards the drivers door so that the upper section of the shaft can slide out/back in. I hope this helps and I don't know of any other way to get the upper section out. Maybe someone here has discovered a slick way of doing this job. Good luck with your car.

Yep, it would certainly help me out. This way I won't have to damage three of them before I finally figure it out:stupid: . I'll be installing mine pretty soon and would like to go through it before I do.

I'm going to inspect this 240Z tomorrow afternoon. In talking with the seller, he "claims" the problem areas are rust-free. He said the floor, frame rails and battery tray area are good with no rust. It's also a numbers matching car. http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=140035460841&ssPageName=STRK:MEWA:IT&ih=004 I want some of the parts off this car, I'm interested in the bumpers, tail-lights, centercaps, some interior parts and whatever I happen to see/like/need. I don't want the carbs, I already have a set on order from Z-Therapy. Any parts I take off will be replaced with the existing version I already own from my current car. If the shell is "free" from rust, would anyone be interested in buying it from me? The Seller claims the car runs and is driveable and I won't be taking anything off the car that would prevent it from being driveable. I know this is important to the auto freight companies, they prefer the car be able to move under it's own power. I'll take alot of photos and if there's any interest, I'll either email them to that person and/or post them here. I'm not interested in parting the car out, ideally it would go to someone who would restore it or at least needs a shell with good metal. I'll assist with the shipping in any way I can, that doesn't mean I'll drive it to your door:D I know I'm getting ahead of myself and need to see if the car has as little rust as he claims. Let me know if there's any interest. Bruce

Arne, just got a call from the Dealer and they now claim the pipe is NLA. I don't imagine a replacement from the salvage yard will be in any better condition than the one I have. (Plan - I'm going to try and find some steel-tube and bend one myself then weld on the clamp.

2003z, I'm not certain how all the coolant ports/passages work together. But if I understand what you're saying, I don't think you want to block off or eliminate coolant running through the aluminum head. Consider rotating the rear elbow 180 degrees to allow coolant to run through this circuit. Good luck with your car.

That was good timing, I just happened to be taking some pictures of my engine. The little hose with the two clamps in your picture connects to the pipe in the picture below. The pipe wraps around the back of the engine and connects to the rear of the intake manifold. I just ordered a new pipe from Nissan, I was glad it was still available. I've read many posts that claim that you don't need this hooked up if you live in a place where it's warm most of the time. Running coolant through the intake manifold/carbs helps with cold weather starting and running. I'm going for as original as possible so I'm hooking mine up even though I live in Phoenix. Hopefully this helps, good luck with your car.

I've refinished a couple sets of wheels. I thought the process was simple and the results were pretty nice. I used a silver metallic wheel paint and clear, the clear was catalyzed. I got the paint from the local auto paint supply house and I used the Preval throw-away sprayer to do the job. When the clear dried, the wheels were pretty smooth and this really helped when it came time to clean them. The brake dust and dirt washed right off. The clear held up and showed no signs of cracking or flaking for over 5 years, I then sold the car. The wheels for my 240 are aluminum also and everything I've tried has failed in cleaning them up. I'm going to have them sandblasted and then I'd like to apply a clear coat with a low gloss/mat finish. I need to talk to the PPG guys and see if this is possible. Good luck with your effort.

Motorsport has them for gulp! $140 plus shipping. I'm in the same situation but haven't done any homework on other sources. Hopefully someone has a lower cost version. Good luck with your car.

I haven't used this site personally. My wife and I go to the EG&G, (US Customs & Border Enforcement) auctions, they're held approximately every two months in Nogales Arizona. They also have the same auction, (for different vehicles/items) in Southern California and in Florida among other places. They primarily have cars/trucks but they'll also have real-estate, office equipment, industrial equipment, etc., anything that can be seized. IRS stuff also. You can view/hear the vehicles run the day before the auction. There's usually over 300 vehicles up for auction at the one in Nogales. These auctions can attract alot of people but most of the buying is done by a small group. You can get some pretty nice vehicles, BMW down to KIA's, (no offense to any KIA owners!). Prices are good, the only negative is that some of the vehicles will have higher mileage. You need to check them out the day before, we do. You get your title from the US Government and it's guaranteed not to be a salvage title. You don't have to pay to get in, you just have to register when you arrive at the auction. Once registered they mail you a list of the vehicles for the upcoming auction about a month before it happens, and it's free! Seems this group has collected all the possible auction information and grouped it in one website, if it's good and current information it's worth $35. It's possible you could get all the same information from the Federal, State & Local Government offices for free. You might have to do some searching but once you have the websites or are on the mailing list, you're good to go. I can confirm that the government auctions are real and you can get some nice vehicles for below market value. I haven't seen any that were 90% below book value like their website claims.

Try some detailing clay and soapy water. It's available at most parts stores and auto paint stores. Good luck with your car.

I'm like you, I don't have much knowledge or experience with carbs. I just purchased and watched the "Just SU's" DVD from ZTherapy, there's a lot of good information regarding adjusting, cleaning and making sure they're setup properly. What they show is a little hard to explain here, consider getting a copy, I think it will answer your questions. Good luck with your car.

I agree, I was very surprised with the price. Anyone in the Phoenix Metro area looking to get their fuel tank/radiator reworked, try "Valley Radiator" at 2530 W. McDowell, 602-233-3259. I'm not affiliated with them in any way at all.

I just had my gas tank reworked. It was $55 to have it boiled, pressure tested and repainted. It would have cost another $65 to have it re-lined if it failed the pressure test. Even if the tank did need re-lined for another $65, it still would have been less than a new one. Got my radiator re-cored for $55 also at the same time. It took two days to get them back and I was pleasantly surprised at the prices. Check your local shops and get a quote over the phone. You can buy kits from Eastwood, POR-15 and others if you want to do the cleaning/re-sealing effort yourself. I didn't due to the nature of the components. Not sure where you could get a new tank, possibly the stealer. Good luck with your car.

Thanks for the feedback & ggarrard, thanks for the photo. I like the idea of leaving it white but there are several logical reasons for painting it black, I just need to make a decision. This car will be driven at least weekly so no trailer queen here. My oldest son gets his license this fall, he might get the car. Scanlon, I didn't notice the drain tube gasket until I was painting over top of it. I was hoping no one would notice! Thanks for pointing that out:laugh: Good luck with your cars!