2ManyZs

A 4.11 would be way to low for a 4 speed, you would be turning 3k+ rpms at highway speeds. That would get annoying really quick, and kill your gas mileage too. You might want to think about a 3.54 out of an automatic Z. It will increase your rpm's a little, give you a little better acceleration and will be a simple bolt in if you don't want to change to the 5 speed.

What really annoys me about Nissan turning their back on us "Zedheads" and discontinuing a lot of parts we need is the fact that we are being put out in the interest of this 350nadaZ. They want us to remain loyal to the brand yet they continue to bombard us with cars that are no where near the simple, stylish, affordable sports car the early Z series was. They say the 350 is an extension of the Z yet it is not affordable to a very large segment of the market, it's not as elegant and stylish as the early car, and it sure as hell isn't something the average person can work on in the comfort of their own garage. That's why I said that in ten years or so the early cars will be in short supply and the prices will reflect that. Everytime a car needs a part to repair it, another car will be scrapped to supply the parts. There is really a lot of parts still available if you get right down to it. There are a few important body parts that have been discontinued and that is a shame. But if you look at other "cult" cars like the early Mustang, a huge percentage of their parts are coming from the aftermarket. So, hopefully somewhere down the line someone will see that there is a large number of these cars still in existence and start making some of the parts we need, whether in the US or Japan. It doesn't really matter, as long as they get made. It would be interesting to do the research to see how many Z cars (before 79) that are still on the road or the track. Maybe if someone were to find out and show this to Nissan they might re-think their position on abandoning the tooling for some of these parts. Perhaps they would license the tooling out to a supplier so that parts could be made available. I would be really surprised if there weren't at least 150,000 cars still registered just in the US. And that is not counting the later ZX's, since we are primarily concerned with the early Z series here. One of the great things about being a "Zedhead" is the fact that it's not a "class" only car. Nearly everyone can afford one as the membership here will attest too. We have owners ranging in age from 16 to 60+, and all up and down the wage scale. You don't have to be rich to own one, but it sure would help. Perhaps someone should get an address for all of us to send an e-mail to, someone up the ladder at Nissan, and tell them we want them to license the tooling for these parts we desperately need. Who knows, maybe we would be able to buy a few more parts in the future. If not, then the prices of Z's will surely rise as the numbers of cars goes down due to there being so many cut up for parts. I'll stop now before I get a blister on my fingers.......:tapemouth

A 4.11:1 rear in a stock 240 would be a perfect choice if you put in a 5 speed out of a ZX or even a 280 Z. You will get a big increase in the acceleration in the lower gears and with the overdrive you will even end up with a higher overall gear ratio than stock. In other words you will turn less rpm's at highway speeds in 5th gear with the 4.11 than you would with the 4 speed and the 3.36 stock ratio, but gain a lot in the lower gears(especially 1-3) to win those stop light "races". See the post in the tech articles for the ratios for the transmissions combined with the 4.11. With the ZX 5 speed you could even go lower than a 4.11 to a 4.37 without turning more rpm's at highway speeds.

No problem, Eric has first chance, then we'll go down the posting list. How's that for being fair? If Eric isn't interested I'll take the rear and 59ghia can have the front since I already have one on the car already. I take it the one in the pic was a fiberglass one?

It is not an easy job under the dash although the underhood work is pretty straightforward. It depends on how you plan on doing it. Are you using used parts from another car or are you buying a kit from MSA or someone else that has everything new that you need? One caveat for the used parts is that you won't know the condition of the parts until you have it installed and charged. Then it's back to taking it apart to repair and then re-charge. I think if I were to do it I would uswe the kit from MSA for about 700-800, at least you know you are getting parts that will work. By the time you do a swap from another car you may well end up buying replacement parts, compressor, dryer, etc. that will end up costing you nearly as much. The big plus of the kit is it has the rotary compressor which is more efficient and quieter. The hardest part will be working under the dash to install the components around the heater. You may well end up removing the dash to get the room to work as it may get a little cramped trying to run the vent hoses and removing and installing the heater box when you have installed everything. I know when i removed the A/c unit from my 280 it was a PITA to try to get it out from behind the heater control panel, where most of it is located on a 280. Not sure if the kit for the 240 will have it in the same place or if it will be more under the dash around the heater box.

I may be interested in the spoilers if Eric isn't, let me know how much you want for them if he deosn't want to trade. I really only want the one piece rear, but will take both in a package deal for the right price.

Nah, I'm not offended, besides, I know where you live.:eek:

Ok, Jeremiah, ya got me there. But it isn't as though mine will always be stuck in the garage. Just need more time to work on it so I can take it for a spin once in a while. Now that I have sold the 280 I can actually work in the garage again if my job will cooperate.

I agree and I also disagree with all the previous posts, here's my 2 cents on subject. Yes, it's a beautiful car, and it does have a lot of very decent modifications. Is it worth that high a price? Maybe to someone who doesn't have a Z, but to me it's too high and here is why. For that kind of money I would expect a car that equals the Z Store restoration. Not modified like this one is. Why? I will have everything this car has except the A/C and adjustable struts in my car when it is finished and for a lot less than 18k. Will mine be worth that when I'm done with mine? I'd like to think so but in reality it won't be. For one simple reason. There are still too many cars on the market for the price to go that high. That's one of the reasons the factory resto's had trouble selling for the price they were asking. It would be nice to see our favorite car get to the point where we all could get this type of money for them, but if they did we wouldn't be buying them in the numbers we are. It's not that this car isn't worth it, it's a fact that for every one car that goes for a price like this, there are ten more just as nice going for 5k to 7.5k. In another ten years or so when more of these cars have fallen to the "rust monster" the values of the surviving cars will definately start reaching these numbers, but the fact remains there are just too many cars still on the road for that to be reached anytime soon. In some ways we are the enemy, we are preserving so many of these cars that we are the ones keeping the values down. That being said, I'd like to say that IMO I prefer to see more cars that anyone can afford, that was the whole idea behind the Z in the first place, an affordable sports car that nearly anyone could afford to drive and enjoy. If the prices were to reach the truly collectible car status, we would not be willing to take our car out for a weekend drive, or just cruise around on a nice Saturday night. They would be trailer queens, cars that never are driven, and then the next thing you know none of us would be able to afford one. The worst thing to happen to the collector car market is the number of speculators who buy a car and pack it away hoping to make a huge profit on it. This car is a perfect example of that, it's a very nice car that someone is trying to make a killing off the sale. While this might be OK for old Ferrari's, Aston Martin's etc. you have to look at the fact that no one ever really enjoys them, they are just "eye candy". I have seen quite a few cars that were just for show, and I saw one person in particular with a Ferrari F-50 that took it to the race track and was giving spectators a ride around the track for donations to charity. He wasn't afraid to use the car for what it was built for, in fact they kept having to tell him to slow down. I have the utmost respect for him in that he was willing to take it out and run the hell out of it, instead of leaving it sit in a climate controlled garage waiting for the price to go up. I for one hope the early Z never gets to the point where a person is afraid to take it out and use it, they are just too damn much fun to leave sit in a garage all the time. I guess what I'm trying to say is this car could be duplicated easily, and for a lot less money than his asking price. If it had some special significance in Z history the asking price would be acceptable, but it's just a nice car with a high price tag that will be hard to sell.

Let me say one thing, there were no LSD's in Z cars until 1987 from the factory. However there were other models that used the R series diff that may have a LSD in it. Perhaps the first generation Maxima, but I believe they had an R-200 if I'm not mistaken. The only other car that may have a LSD would be the 200SX Turbo's but they had R-200's also. Not sure if there were any R-180's offered with an LSD from the factory, however, there are units available for either diff. Not sure what will be in a 79, I think it will be an R-200. I know they went to the R-200 in 75 yet the later 77-78's had an R-180.

Well, with the Ground Control set up they will sell you a recommended strut cartridge for your car. Then when you cut the strut housing you will measure the cartridge they supply in the housing with the top mounting nut installed. You will extend the strut cartridge (won't have to worry about it with a gas cartridge since it will be fully extended), install the top mounting nut and drop the cartridge all the way to the bottom of the housing and mark it with a piece of tape on the shaft of the cartridge. Then you raise it all the way to the top until it comes in contact with the mounting nut, then mark it with tape, and measure the distance between them. This is how much you will remove from the housing when you cut it. In effect you are shortening your housing to fit the strut cartridge, so in the future you may run into a problem if you try to change to a different type of cartridge. You will have to make sure it is the same length as the one it is replacing or it won't fit into the housing. Not all strut housing will be cut the same amount from one car to another unless they are all using the same cartridge, although there may not be much difference , it will depend on the brand of cartridge and what type it is. Hope that answers your question. I thought it odd when they told me they were selling me a set of cartridges for a drag racing application, but they worked OK on my 280 IT car. All depends on the compression/rebound of the cartridge in order to fit it to your application.

Eibach progressive rate springs are about 275 for a set of four, but you can get single rate springs for 180 or a little less depending on where you get them.

Yup, more dollars than sense. Jeez, talk about overkill. I'm not sure I would be brave enough to ride in it, something about self-preservation............

Well, could be a kit or a re-body of an F-Body GM car. Or was it a real one? Hard to tell without seeing under the hood or hearing it run. Doesn't look like a real one, looks like one of the re-body kits to me. They are getting more and more popular, cheaper and easier to build, and you can buy parts for it anywhere.

Yup, I'm afraid you do have to remove the stock spring perch. There would be no way to put the spring collar on the strut tube if you don't. If you are cutting the strut tube to shorten it would be doubtful you would want to use the bottom stock perch anyway. I found the easiest way to remove the stock perch was to use a 6 inch grinder and grind off the weld on the bottom just enough to let the perch loose. When you cut out the section just cut it above and below the weld seam where you just removed the stock perch. Saves a lot of grinding that way. You can usually rent a large tubing cutter (for up to 6 inch pipe) that will work great to cut the strut tube. Not only do they cut straight but it will be easier to chamfer the edge of the tube when you go to weld it back together, it will already have a bit of chamfer from the tubing cutter, just add a little more with a file and you are good to go.

Well, if the rheostat worked (did the rest of the dash lights dim or brighten up when you tried it?) it is only a matter of pulling two dash lights out of the speedo and tach and replacing them. It can be done from under the dash if you are willing to try to become a contortionist. There should be two lights on either side of both gauges. The easy way is to turn on the lights in a dark garage and lay on your back on the floor and feel around for them. It isn't easy but it can be done.

The cam you choose depends on which carbs you decide to use, which head, compression ratio, exhaust system etc. You should pick your cam when you decide on how you are going to build your engine. It will be easier to choose a cam to fit your engine specs than to build your engine around the cam choice. EWven what gear ratio and transmission figures into the equation so you have a cam that gives you the right power range for the rpm's you plan on running the car. Once you decide on how you are going to build your car, the right cam will be what works with your modifications. I would stay with a cam of less than .460 lift and 270/280 duration unless you are planning on some tripple Webers and high compression. Probably your best bet with Su's and some mild modifications like a header and 2 1/2 inch exhaust would be the 480 lift, 274 duration. If you get too wild you will run into vacuum problems and idle/driveability issues.

kmack is right, changing over to an R-200 with anything less than a turbo L series engine or a V-8 conversion is a bit of a waste. If you plan on using a L-24 up to an L-28 save yourself some trouble, money and weight and stick with the R-180. If you change to the R-200 you have to change the mustache bar, the rear suspension transverse link or bar, and also the front diff mount, plus what kmack said. There are different ratios available for the R-180, just takes a little patience to find them. As far as the clunking issue goes, there are 4 main reasons for it. Bad U-joints, bad bushings in the mustache bar mounts, loose front diff mount, and too much lash in the ring and pinion. Check the u-joints first, then replace the mustache bar bushings and the front diff mount, make sure the mounting bolts are tight on the mustache bar and if you still have a lot of clunking it's time to re-build the diff.

If you used the 280 rods it probably would, but it all depends on which pistons and rods you used with the 280 crank. You could probably use the 240 rods with 240 pistons on the 280 crank and be OK. With todays pump gas you should shoot for less than 10.75:1 for sure, any more and you have to use an additive to control the detonation. There is an article in an old Z car magazine where a guy did this exact thing in his 240. It came out to 2663cc or something like that. He just had it for sale on ebay less than two weeks ago. If you have any of the old issues of the original Z Car magazine it's in the Nov/Dec 1997 issue. Oops, after I re-read your post I looked up the article, he used a 280 block with a 240 crank, not the other way around.

Changing the seal in the slave cylinder is quite easy. I would recommend using a brake cylinder hone to clean up the cylinder before you put a new seal in though. All you need to do is remove the slave cylinder, take off the dust boot, remove the retainer clip and pull out the plunger. Most times it's almost as cheap to just buy a reman. cylinder or a new one, they are only around 20 bucks, then rebuild the old one at a later date to keep as a spare. Be careful when you unhook the line to it though, as they tend to never be replaced and usually are not in the best of shape. Most people replace the brake lines but never do replace the hose to the slave cylinder. used to be able to get stainless stell lines like the brake line replacements but a new rubber line will work fine. When you are done you can just gravity bleed it, there is no reason to bleed it like you do the brakes in most cases.

Well Jim, the only reason I know this is because the first Z I owned was in fact a 73 that I bought in 82 or 83. It had a vapor lock problem and when I talked to the local Nissan dealer the mechanic asked if it still had the electric fuel pump and the rest of the parts installed in the recall. It did not have it, so when we researched the Vin number it turned out the car had never been taken back to the dealer for the recall. So, the parts manager got on the phone to Nissan and about a week later he gave me a big box of parts to put on the car. It contained all the parts for the recall, the 7 blade fan, the electric fuel pump, the line insulation and a couple other things. So, in effect, I did the recall on the car myself in the back yard. And lo and behold it didn't help, turned out it was the water control valve, so had to block off the water to the carbs. Did that and never had another problem with the car.

The 73's did not come from the factory with an electric fuel pump. The cars had a vapor lock problem due to the flat top carbs and emissions controls added that year and the factory was forced to recall all 73's. The recall consisted of a 7 blade fan, thermo wrap for the fuel lines and an electric fuel pump, and a couple other small items that I don't recall (there may have been a lower temp thermostat, and a fuel pump block off plate ). That being said all 73's and later cars will have an electric fuel pump. One easy way to tell if yours had the recall done is to count the fan blades. So yes, it should have an electric fuel pump.

Another way to do it is to take the plugs out and turn the engine over with a socket on the crank pulley. Any valve that has the lobe pointing straight up is one to adjust, take a magic marker and make a mark on the head where the valve gasket goes to keep track of which have been done and which are left to do. You can do multiple valves at once before you have to turn the engine over again. Just make sure you are putting the right adjustment on the right valves, it isn't hard to forget which is which if you get in a hurry. Don't ask me how I know that. You will get a better adjustment if you do the valves when they are hot, it will take into account any variations in the expansion of the metal in the cam and rocker arms. You could do a cold adjustment and then run the car for a little while, then do it again when it is hot just to make sure the clearances are correct, or do it hot the first time and be done with it.

Well, sounds like you are making progress (on the car that is). "Honey-do" list is all yours.....seems we all have a list of some kind don't we? As to the turn signal dilemma, if one side is flashing and the other isn't it's not in the flasher. Have you checked the stalk itself? I have had the cover on the steering column move slightly which didn't allow the turn signal stalk to completely actuate the signal. If not there then check your signal assembly on the column, it could have dirt, or corrosion in it. Might no hurt to spray some contact cleaner in there just to be sure.

Yup, the Panasports are kinda expensive, but they sure do look good on a Z! Figure on paying at least 200 each for Panasports, Revolution is having a sale on their wheels, around 160 each. There may be some billet wheels from Centerline etc. available in the right stud pattern but they will be about the same price as the Panasports. The days of "cheap" wheels is sadly over as far as new wheels go for a Z car, but the 15 inch wheels are about what the 14's used to be. They are slowly getting pushed out of the market since so many manufacturers are now mounting 16's, 17's and larger wheels as standard equipment. And the aftermarket is concentrating on what is selling, all the way up to 18 inch and even larger wheels. It's a shame that all the older cars that have a following like the Z's have 13's and 14's and no one wants to supply aftermarket wheels. It's their loss.