2ManyZs

The amount you bore the block is dependant on how out of round the cylinder bores are to begin with. Have someone check them with a micrometer and only take it as far as is needed to give you a good true bore. You may only need to go to 20 oversize. Don't go to 40 over just to get the extra little bit, if in the future something goes wrong and you need to bore it again it will not be possible. The more you take it out now will only hurt you in the future. Once the bores are at a certain size they can't be taken out any more due to the amount of material in the block that has already been taken out. The bore size is not as critical as the type of head, pistons, cam and related items when you decide to run the Dell Orto's, Webers, Mikuni's and the like. However bore size will make it necessary to adjust all the other components to compensate for the change in chamber volume, and compression ratio. Find out how much needs to be taken out to true the block and then match the rest of the components to work with that.

I guess you could try some of the aluminum wheel cleaner. If you don't want a polished finish most of these have a mild acid that will clean them up pretty good, and it's easy too. Just spray it on and hose it off. It will leave a somewhat whitish color to the aluminum though. I believe the fuel rail had some type of coating on it from the factory, perhaps some type of cadmium plating. It should come off using a cleaner. For the really tough parts you might try using a very fine scotch-brite pad.

The air pump was standard on all the Z's, not just CA models.

I just bought a set of the Eibach progressives from MSA less than two weeks ago, they are still available for the 240 at least, perhaps not the 260's. The stock spring rates were around 100-110 lbs/in so if the aftermarket springs are 10-20% stiffer you can figure 120-130lbs/in. There were slight differences between the 240's, 260's and the 280's spring rates because of the weight of the cars. I'd have to look it up to ge the correct spring rates. But this at least will give you an idea. For the street I would definately stay below 150lbs/in or your ride is going to be terribly stiff. Couple that with stiff strut cartridges (high compression/rebound) and you will have a "kidney buster".

Looks like "universal fit" weatherstripping to me. May have a thin metal strip in the rubber where it then pinch fits to the jamb. Notice it says trimming is necessary? May be better off spending a little more and getting something that does fit. You could probably buy this stuff at most any good automotive trim shop, probably save a buck or two at the same time.

Dog doesn't look too happy about someone playing "Tarzan" though. Good to see Mike may have gotten his hands dirty on this project, but I'm trying to figure why he had to jump up and down on top of the engine like that. Did it need a little persuasion maybe? Or did he just want to vent his anger at the engine for giving out?

Before you spend money on triples, you will need to address the rest of the engine to make the triples worth the trouble. You are going to have to upgrade the ignition, put on a header and a good free flowing exhaust, and get a better cam than the stock one. They will work on a bone stock engine, but you will not see any benefit from them till you modify the engine to use the carbs you decide on. Then when you decide on the engine mods, you may want to look into a rear gear change to use the powerband of the engine based on the modifications you made. Bolting on a set of triple carbs won't help much at all until you address the complete package.

The timing being off a little could also contribute to the backfiring. If you haven't done it yet, a complete tune-up would be a good place to start. Plugs, points, condensor, timing check, check your plug wires, cap and rotor. If this fails then go for the carb adjustments, and check the ABV.

Well, you could possibly service it yourself, but it might be better to have an A/C shop do it. R-12 is very expensive now, since the EPA doesn't want you to use it. If you take it to a shop they can recycle what is in there and add the amount that is needed. You would need the gauges (not too expensive) to service it and get the correct amount in the system. You should also evacuate the system to rid it of any moisture, which requires a special vacuum pump. Any time you service the A/C (evacuate the system) it is highly recommended you change the drier. Also, after charging the system, you should always check for any leaks which requires some special equipment. As long as everything seems to be in good working order, I would take it to a shop and have it done. Take a new drier with you when you do it, it might save you a little money. Of course, if you know someone who does home HVAC work, they would have all the equipment you would need. Might only cost you a six-pack that way.

If doors start popping open or the hood won't stay latched. Just kidding. In reality all unibody cars have some amount of flex in the chassis. Some just have more than others. If someone did a torsional rigidity test of the Z cars, especially the early ones, they would probably flex more than a new passenger car, even a Hyandai. In the 70's no one was worried about crash testing and safety like they are today with the crumple zones etc. One of the biggest reasons the early cars flex a bit more than they should is because they were built using what today is thought of as very thin sheetmetal for the basic chassis. That coupled with the fact that all the panels are spot welded together instead of being seam welded contributes to the chassis flexing. One trick a lot of racers have used is to strip the chassis down and seam weld key areas of the unibody. If you are missing rivets on the interior panels it is just magnifying what little flex there is. If you go under your car and find panel seams that are starting to separate then it's time to start worrying, until then, "enjoy the ride".

It just goes to show that for everything we have, there is always some SOB sitting in there basement or wherever trying to think up a way to screw it up for everyone else. If they are so smart to be able to think up these viruses and infect so many computers on the web, you would think they would be able to find a job and get a life so they would have something constructive to do with their time. Personally, I think instead of prosecuting these sorry pieces of s--t, they should just bring them to my place, I can think of ways to make them wish they never existed! Or put them out in public where passers-by can have a shot at them. Stones, sticks whatever. Bet there would be less repeat offenders in court if they went back to actually dispensing a little justice in this world, instead of the lawyers p****-footing around the law and haveing them receive nothing more than what amounts to a slap on the wrist.

OK, so much for my silly idea. Now for another one. Have you looked at the taillight bulbs? I have seen taillight bulbs blow a filament, and the filament breaks and crosses over to the other filament and causes all sorts of weird things to happen. I've seen a taillight short out all the lights on a trailer when I worked in a truck shop many years ago. Never hurts to look right? Only other thing I can think of is to check the ground wire that connects the headlight and turn signal switch and the ground wires on the wiring harness in the engine compartment. If it's not there then it probably will require some work and/or replacement of the switch at the stalk.

To tell the truth, I'm kinda curious as to what happened to the other engine aren't you? Are you planning to send it back as a core or are you going to take it apart and try to find out what the heck happened? Besides, if it didn't hurt the bottom end you have an L-28 to hop up for your 240 if you ever want to.

Well, if the right ones flashes OK then it probably is in the switch. Before you start tearing it apart check one thing first, check to see if your steering column cover panels have moved and are not allowing the stalk to completely activate the switch. It's happened to me before, so try it and see what happens. Try some spray contact cleaner into the switch before you start looking for another switch. They aren't cheap, unless you get lucky enough to find one used from the same year car. They have different plugs that connect to the wiring harness, so you will need to find one with the correct plugs. I know that there is a difference between 72 and 74, not sure how many are interchangeable.

200hp is possible out af an L-24 but it is going to cost a lot more than you may be willing to spend. Here in the US, Rebello engines is charging 4-5K for their racing engines with that kind of hp. You might get 20-35hp with head work, cam, carb and exhaust mods. The easiest and cheapest solution to getting near the 200hp range is doing these mods to an L-28 with the early carbs and intake.

There should be some type of check valve but am not sure if it is in the fuel damper or if it is separate from it. The fuel damper is on top of the electric fuel pump, it's purpose is to even out the pulses from the fuel pump to avoid high/low pressure spikes in the fuel rail. Since I no longer have my 75 service manual I can't say for sure where it is but am pretty sure there is a check valve back there somewhere. Have you tried it without the mechanical pump in place? Actually, it's not needed with the electric pump. Might not hurt to try it sometime just to see what it does. It is possible your electric pump is not working at 100% and is not pumping at the needed psi. Got another one you could try?

A fan shroud will help a tremendous amount. It will allow the fan to pull more air through the radiator especially when you are sitting still or in slow speed traffic. Timing that is too far advanced will also contribute to running a little hotter than normal. If all else fails you could try a 160 dgree thermostat. If my memory serves me correctly the hose that goes to the heater control valve should come off the Y in the rail along the side of the block. The return hose is the short one that goes to the back of the head. This might be part of the problem, I think you do have them backwards and are trying to force water against the flow. The line coming from the lower radiator hose is the line that feeds water to the block and should also feed the heater and the intake/carbs. Diluting the mix wouldn't hurt, just drain a little out and add a quart of water to it. The oil pressure drop probably was due to the low idle, but installing a new sending unit would add to a little insurance that everything is working right.

Well, as far as the oil pressure problem. First thing to do is to change the oil pressure sending unit or verify the oil pressure with a mechanical gauge in place of the electric one. Doubt you would have heat if you hooked up the hoses wrong so that is probably not the problem. Since it is probably warming up (even in NY state), you might want to check or replace the thermostat just to be on the safe side. Of course a new sending unit there might be the culprit too, hard to tell how much corrosion is on it, or if it has ever been replaced. Best to start with the obvious, before we go to the other causes. It could also be your mixture of antifreeze and water, most of the time a 50/50 mix is recommended. It is possible to get too much antifreeze in it and it will not cool as effectively.

Good looking wheels, had a set similar but not exactly like them till last week, unloaded them on the guy that bought my 280. I think you would be a little happier if you go with the 60 series tires. A little less sidewall height, a little less sidewall flex and an overall better look on the car. I've run 205's, 215's, and also 225's with no problems.

Just about any of the Z parts suppliers can get an airdam like that. MSA, VB would be the first places to look to find one that is cloest to the same. MSA has a pretty good selection of styles. If you get one like this I would suggest getting one in urethane, a fiberglass air dam is not a good idea if you plan on lowering your car.

Not sure exactly, but all the ones I have messed with it almost seemed to be about the same as wheel bearing grease.

Looks pretty darn good to me, no obvious rust thru in the body. Looks better than the free 72 I got. Lots of work yes, but geez, it's a 72, could have been a lot worse.

Mike, sounds like you may get your hands dirty on this one. One possibility is that it dropped the valve seats, or maybe they were hardly there before. Another possibility is the valve guides have dropped or the valves have siezed in them. If the valves have hit the piston and bent there has to be a reason for it, that is what I'm wondering about. Guess the only way to find out is to get your helper and yank the head off to find out what has really happened. BTW, don't forget to use the block on the cam chain or you'll end up pulling the front cover too.

Well, that isn't good at all. Must have had a bad timing chain or tensioner and when you started it up it jumped the cam timing. If it is the valves being bent, you should be able to just get a rebuilt head or rebuild the one you have and I'd definately do a timing chain while you are at it. Of course if it has damaged the pistons, well, we know the rest of the story. In answering your other post, I ran an ATK crate long block in my 75 for a couple years on the street, then raced the car from 89-84 with absolutely no problems with the motor. IMO the ATK crate engine would be an excellent motor for a street car. They do quality work and the motors themselves are not too expensive. You might try to go to them directly instead of buying one from MSA, you might be able to save a few bucks.

Hmm, guess I started something didn't I? Seems they both have that "What do you want?" look on their faces. Mine does the same thing everytime I pick up the camera, she looks at me with that look that says "you are such a fool" that I quit taking her picture. Got about 200 to choose from anyway.:eek: If we are going to trade pics of our pets we should at least identify the breed for the rest. Mine is a Sussex Spaniel. Oldest and rarest of the Spaniel breed.