Agno's 1975 260Z

[Agno]

Hi there fellas,

I thought that now I have made my member's introduction that perhaps I should start a build thread so I can both document my progress as well as ask a few questions that any zed driving knight in shining armour may be able to answer for me.

When I was a kid there was a very haggard and rusty looking dark green zed that used to drive past my house when I would walk to school. Although it looked super rough around the edges it always stands out in my memory. Since then I had always wanted a zed to call my own... This year I took a year out of my studies to work and as a result I started to save up some money, so I decided that this was the year I got my zed. Fortunately it didn't take too long to find the one I was looking for: A 1975 260Z 2 seater.



Dad wanted me to find something a bit more original but I am wrapped with it. Quite a few members might know this car as the previous owner is into the zed scene and racing zeds... and as a result this one has a few "additions" which include an L28 (F54 block, N42 head), 240z carbs, height adjustable coilovers with Koni inserts, a rollcage with harnesses, superlites and an exhaust.

Since I got the car I have given it a really thorough wash and vacuum... And it came up looking pretty good! The paint looks a bit hit and miss in spots (crows feet, cracking) but is acceptable for now. The more worrying thing for me was the dampness in the driver's side carpets caused by a coolant leak somewhere. I tried to trace where it might be coming from but no luck so far. I really have a thing about rust as body work is the only thing I can't fix on a car so I'm trying to sort this ASAP.

I have also ordered some carb tuning gear and started reading up on tuning SUs so hopefully I can have the car running sweet and not chugging down the juice like a 16 year old.

Plans for this car to tidy it up and make it looks really nice and clean... and a bit more cruise friendly. So there are a few things I would like to have done in the short term:
         - A factory looking (Retrosound?) radio
         - New seats (perhaps OMP Thruxtons or similar period style race buckets)
         - New (or non warped) door trims.

Questions:
1. Is the coolant leak in the drivers side footwell a common problem or has anyone come across this before?
2. Any tips or tricks on tuning SUs?
3. Is there any way I can quieten down the fuel pump? It's an electric item and it is almost louder than the exhaust lol.

Thanks for taking the time to read guys and I hope it wasn't too long winded!

Alex

[chris240]

1. could be heater core hose or tap
2. read the forums, lots of info there
3. try to insulate it somehow or make the exaust louder 

[Wayne G]

Most electric fuel pumps are noisy when they have no load on them. The z likely still has the return line fitted, so the pump likely to be running flat out all the time. You can block the return line to see if this solves the noise issues but it may induce other issues into your car like flooding carbs. The phrase "suck it and see" springs to mind .

As already stated, the wet floor likely to be the heater or the rubber hoses that connect it to the engine.

[.]

The leak is almost certain to be the heater tap. This is the piece that connects via a cable to the "climate controls". It controls the amount of coolant flowing into the cabin's heater, thus controlling the amount of heat. They were an ingenious device cleverly designed to dump hot fluid on your clutch foot as soon as they reach a certain age. You have a couple of options:

a) Re-route the coolant hose so it no longer comes into the cabin at all. (This might be an OK stop gap but not a long term solution)
b) Buy a replacement for the original item. This will work for about another 15 years. I am not sure if you can get replacements from Nissan but Black Dragon does have them.
C) I have heard that you can do a conversion, A Ford item was mentioned, and I think it ends up with the valve in the engine bay rather than in the cabin. Sorry but I don't know any other details. The difficulty would be connecting up the original control.


Just one more possibility. Have you checked whether there is moisture coming through the windscreen plenum? (The vents in front of the windscreen) The plenum is a common rust spot and if that's the case they drop rain water straight through on your feet. I hope for your sake this is not the case.

[Agno]

Thanks for that galderdi. I can assure you it definitely isn't water as it's luminous green fluid thats been leaking in the cabin... so it looks like the heater tap will be getting replaced then! If I leave the heater off and drive the car will the tap still leak?

[.]

Yes, the tap will leak regardless whether the heater is on or off. You either have to replace it or disconnect the hose in the engine bay.....or start wearing gum boots when you drive....Keep in mind the longer you leave it the more rust potential you have.

[NSVD#115]

hi alex, nice to see you've come across from the 31 club

[bryan3976]

Jason ?^^^

you could run a different pump such as a holly which is more quite you probably still have the stock carb pupm which is loud any way but i couldn't hear mine when i drove it

[Agno]

Jase I had to think twice about who you were lol. It's pretty good to be here... How did that 280ZX go for ya? 

Bryan I doubt it's the stock pump... The amount of noise it makes would be pretty surprising (to me) if it was a stock pump. For reference I made a video earlier:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fT3DyrjOgsA

The video sound quality is pretty bad but anyone can see it's running a bit rich. I ordered a unisync and colortune last week so when they rock up I will get a (slightly) better tune going so I can drive it without spitting fuel out the back! Then I have a few mechanical issues to sort out:
     - Replace perished clutch hose with new one (current one has slow leak)
     - New radiator plug
     - New sump plug (leaks a bit)
     - Carby rebuild kits
     - Find out why my clutch makes a grinding noise when the clutch is pressed in

Fun times!

[Gareth. J.]

In the vid that pump is LOUD! Kinda sounds like a carter rotary pump. I run a Pierburg electric pump, quiet as a mouse with plenty of flow and only 2.7psi fuel pressure at the carbs.

[zeds4ever]

  Leak could also be coming from water heater container unit itself. Had same problem as yours so pulled whole unit out & re soldered it totally all round. Fixed the problem for me.

                                                                 Regards: Alan.     

[Agno]

Good thinking! I was going to check all the hoses and the heater box when the valve is due to be swapped (at this rate, some time next decade).

Car still isn't on club plates as Vicroads are dragging their feet a bit with paperwork for CSA's club rego scheme. Which means I won't make the cruise on Sunday unless something amazing happens
On the plus side it's time to start ordering little bits and pieces to make the car look better than it does now. Carb tuning parts arrived last week too so this weekend it's time to give the car it's tune

[Agno]

CSA was approved for the club permit scheme for Vicroads last week. My car was inspected and signed off and it's now regoed!

The whole process was very straight forward and simple and the checks for the permit were not too stringent... so anyone with a safe and lightly modded zed perhaps CSA might be worth looking at!

In other news I ordered a heater control valve and braided clutch hose to stop the coolant leak and to hopefully stop my clutch grinding when I press the pedal... The current clutch hose is split, the master and slave cylinders look good and clean and the clutch doesn't slip so I hope that's the fix.

[peter t]

Don't forget to insure the beast.

[Agno]

2 steps ahead Shannons gave me a great price too!

Forgot to add. It still needs a tune. Either my unisyn is broken or I can't use it properly