Micks 240

[Cozza]

Hi Guys, I have been on the forum for a while now and I figure it is about time I started a build thread for my 240.

 

I bought her from a friend back in January 2011, she had been off the road since 1999 and holed up in his garage under a car cover. This meant the body was generally in pretty good nick when I got her, with only some small rust spots on the guards. These will get a seeing to later on down the track. She had been broken into and the stereo had been stolen and the heater fascia broken.

 

The original engine with matching numbers was seized, so I bought an injected 2.8 from a ZX and did a straight long motor swap but keeping the original round top Hitachi’s and L24 flywheel, but installed the electronic dizzy from the ZX.

 

The original 2.4 motor is sitting in the garage waiting for some money to be thrown her way but will end up back between the strut towers eventually.

After putting the new donk in, I fitted some new headers and had the exhaust tacked back together, replaced the rear wheel cylinders, flexible brake hoses and front and rear sway bar bushes and went for a blue slip (roadworthy).

 

I expected to have a long list of repairs before gaining a pass but fortunately my only problems were slow wipers, no washer jets and noisy exhaust. After getting these bits and bobs sorted over the next 7 days (with a bit of handy info from zeds4ever) I took her back for a re-test and to my surprise, she sailed through no probs.

Since then a couple problems have reared their ugly head.

 

1. Solid clunk from the diff. I have got another R180 240z diff and diff mount from Peter Allen (thanks Mate) haven’t got around to fitting them yet but is at the top of the list. Eventually want an LSD centre in there but that costs money.

2. Running rough. Turned out the front carb float level was high, I adjusted and problem fixed!

3. As mentioned earlier the heater fascia was broken and no stereo so I fitted a new head unit and put the heater fascia back together. There was a bit of dodgy wiring at the fan switch that I tidied up as well as fixing up the high beam flasher button

4. I have some 15 x 7.5 Performance Challenger wheels from an old 1600 and am keen to get them on there but they have 26mm positive offset meaning that the fronts rub the bottom spring seat and the rears only just clear but look a bit funny (they need to push out a bit). I need to get some spacers (about 10mm I think) but assume that means I need some longer studs. Does anyone know how to go about spacing the wheels out a bit?

5. Both front and rear suspension is pretty tired and will get a seeing to as time and money present themselves. The rear is far worse than the front so I will start at the back with some lowered stiffer springs from King or Lovell and possibly some Koni classic inserts. I am interested in finding out some more about the original wet legs. I am led to believe they were very good in there day and might be worth rebuilding them as opposed to replacing them. I would love some suggestions if anyone knows about rebuilding them.

6. The auxiliary gauge clear lens covers are loose and prevent the gauges from reading correctly, I think the covers are leaning on the needles and stopping them from moving freely. I’m not sure how to fix this, but it is something I want to get onto so I can monitor oil pressure and water temp correctly. Has anyone had this problem before? How did you fix it?

7. Gearbox synchros are stuffed. Not sure what I will do about this but is still driveable so is at the bottom of the list.

 

The main purpose of the car is a weekend drive with an option for a bit of fun on track days, so I am after a sleeper look with some increased performance

 

I’ve attached some photos, let me know what you guys think.

 

Cheers

Mick

[Cozza]

Couple more pics

[Riceburner]

Hey Mick, nice ride. With the gauges they have removable face plates witch are easily bent, especially when cleaning. They could be touching the needles stopping them from moving, hopefully it as easy as pulling them apart and bending the plates back slightly.

 

I'd recommend kyb gas inserts over koni classics, pretty sure Warren at all Zparts stocks these. They are cheap and very good.

 

Be warned with track days, they are very addictive!

 

Best of luck, Gareth.

 

 

 

[MaygZ]

Looking good Mick,  looks like you've got most of the hard work done, so now it's time to play with her.

 

MaygZ

[Cozza]

Thanks for the response Guys, Yeah I am loving having the car, it's been a long time since my last ride. Ive had a couple 1600's and 180b's as well as Mini's but I think this is my favourite yet. I'm going to take her down to Thredbo in a few weeks, will probably end up with a sore back but a BIG smile on my dial. 

 

Gareth, I'm interested in the KYB gas insert option. I guess you have them in your car, have you tried the Konis too? The KYB's would have to be cheaper than the Konis which is definitely a good thing, but other people I have spoken to reckon there is no alternative to Koni, I guess it is all personal preference.

Also, to bend the plates back on the gauges, do I need to pull the guages out from behind? And, should the clear lens in front be loose or is it supposed to be glued into position?

 

I started to replace the door lock barrels last night and ended up getting in deeper than expected. I pulled the window and regulator out as well as the whole door lock assembly. Gave them a good clean and lube. Will spray the inside of the doors with some fish oil to prevent the evil cancer. Have just ordered some Bailey channels from Rare Spares so will hopefully receive them soon so I can get it back together.

Will post some photos later

 

I have started to look at the rubber kits available, has anyone tried the Black Dragon rubber kit, its heaps cheaper than the kit from Rare Spares. I wonder if it's any good?

http://www.blackdragonauto.com/features/z/zrs1.htm

 

[Riceburner]

I have run KYB Excel-G which were great(cheap) with 220lb lowered king springs, Monroe gas... Horrible!, Koni reds which don't last very long and had to be removed to adjust, and KYB AGX 4way adjustable which I have in now. They are great and I will keep using these from now on only downside is they require spacers and a larger hole in the strut top hat, so not a bolt in change over. I'd say go with the Excel-g's they'll go straight in and be great bang for buck.

 

You'll have to remove the gauges from the dash and undo the screws for the facia, this will enable you to check the faces and the lenses. To get to mine I pull out the glovebox and get access to the back of the dash that way, there will be little brackets on each gauge you'll have to undo.

 

I'd like to hear how you go with the rubber kits I'll probably have to do this down the track 

[Cozza]

Taking my 240 to Thredbo this weekend, if people want something couriered between Sydney - Canberra or nearby, let me know. More than willing to help.

 

Will be her first big trip in a long time, hopefully I won't have to call on the Canberra boys for break down assistance.

 

Cheers

Mick

[luvemfast]

Good luck with the trip

[Cozza]

Had a great trip to the snow last weekend, driving the 240 was as much fun as the snow and the boozy nights!!

 

The car drove without a hitch. Once I got home she had a bit of a miss and I could hear a bit of a noise coming from the dizzy so I pulled it out and found it very tight to turn so tonight I got stuck into stripping it down.

 

I'm running an electronic ignition dizzy from a 280zx, not sure what year but the dizzy number is D6K8-02

I have found the bush at the bottom of the housing has a bit of play, the magnet under the stator is broken into a few peices and the breaker plate looks like it needs replacing, there is a gasket in the middle of the breaker plate that has disintegrated and there are 3 balls lying around the bottom of the dizzy body.

It looks like the posts where the mechanical advance springs fix to are bent out a little bit, does anyone know if they are supposed to be perfectly vertical or is it normal for them to be bent out a little bit?

 

Any suggestions on where I could find a new bush, magnet and breaker plate?

 

Also I am still running the original 240 (points ignition) coil with resistor. I think I can bypass the resistor now that I am running the electronic dizzy but do I need to replace the coil, or is it OK to run a resistor type coil without a resistor?

 

Any suggestions would be great.

Looking forward to getting her back together for another cruise.

[Six_Shooter]

Looks like a clean car.

 

On my car, I bypassed the resistor when I went to the 280Z(X) dizzy, but for reliablity it is said to use a 12V coil. My car already had a 12V coil when I got it. I would assume some previous owner replaced the coil.

[Cozza]

Thanks Six Shooter, yeah she is pretty clean, lucky buy

 

Tonight I rebuilt the points dizzy and stuck it back in until I can find the bits for the electronic dizzy. I will bypass the resistor and put in a new coil once the electronic dizzy is ready to go. From some info I found today, it should make a big difference to the spark produced.

 

If anyone knows where I can find dizzy parts please let me know.

 

Cheers

Mick

[Six_Shooter]

I have a few 280Z(X) dizzies, but posting across the pond might get a tad pricey.

[Agno]

Thanks Six Shooter, yeah she is pretty clean, lucky buy

 

Tonight I rebuilt the points dizzy and stuck it back in until I can find the bits for the electronic dizzy. I will bypass the resistor and put in a new coil once the electronic dizzy is ready to go. From some info I found today, it should make a big difference to the spark produced.

 

If anyone knows where I can find dizzy parts please let me know.

 

Cheers

Mick

 

I have found that quite often a few whole distributors and parts too can be found on eBay. Otherwise have a look at MSA:

http://www.zcarparts.com/products.html

[Zedman240®]

Not sure if the magnets can still be bought new from Nissan; call up spare parts and find out (may help to find out part number first as I think alot of them couldn't be bothered looking up older parts)

[benny]

here you go for PN's

 

 

http://www.carpartsmanual.com/datsunS30/DatsunFairladyZIndex/Electrical/Distributor/280Z/tabid/1636/Default.aspx

[Cozza]

Thanks for your help Guys

 

I spoke with Stuart Wilkins who says he has some 2nd hand ones with good bushes but is not sure about the breaker plate etc.

I think the breaker plate is most likely the weakest link within this dizzy and once it is kuffed the stator leans over and then comes into contact with the reluctor causing further problems.

I figure there is not alot of benefit in buying another dizzy if it has the same problem.

Stuart also warned me about some of the stuff that he has seen sent from the States that were bought on the net, which makes me a bit nervous.

 

Not sure if the magnets can still be bought new from Nissan; call up spare parts and find out (may help to find out part number first as I think alot of them couldn't be bothered looking up older parts)

 

I hear you, my local Nissan dealer was not amused at the idea of having to go upstairs and look at the microfische. And here was me thinking I was a paying customer!!

They said the magnet and breaker plate might be available through Japan and would be an 11 week wait. I think they were trying to get rid of me, although I do have part numbers now and will try some other Nissan dealers. has anyone found a HELPFUL dealer.

 

Benny that carpartsmanual site is another handy one for the newbies like me. Thanks

 

Anyhow, I will continue my search

 

Cheers

Mick

[benny]

the site is awesome... though some PN's are old and they microfiche is based on LHD models but many parts are the same!!

[Cozza]

Well it's been a while but I do have some exciting news.

First, I'm on paternity leave for the next few months, sent the missus back to work for a bit before Bub number 2 comes along in April.

And second, I bought the triple 40s and motors that Paul had advertised a while back http://www.viczcar.com/forum/index.php/topic,9749.0.html

 

The deal was a long motor with a 72 degree cam, ported head matched to triple 40mm webers. The catch was that it came with a hole in the sump from their last rally event, and the dizzy didn't turn when you spun the crank.

So  another short motor was thrown into the deal as a donor bottom end, both F54 blocks.

 

After stripping the long motor down this week, turns out the oil pump/dizzy drive shaft gear was stripped along with the worm drive on the crank shaft. I didn't expect to find that, does anyone know if this is a common failure?

Next I found a snapped crankshaft just in front of the rear main bearing. Again, I wasn't expecting that

And finally a bit of corrosion in pots 3 and 4 due to sitting around for a bit I assume. (bad enough to need a rebore)

 

Considering the hole in the sump, I was expecting to find lubrication issues at bearings etc but not major failures like these.

Anyway, will start to pull down the short motor over the next few days and hope that isn't in the same condition Otherwise I might have to go to 3mm rebore and a stroker crank.  (no just dreaming)

 

The top end all looks good with a N47 head with some nice port work but no real combustion chamber work, and the cam looks like it's in good shape. Will send it off to get skimmed and pressure tested when I know what the other bottom end looks like.

 

I know I will be needing an oil pickup and sump to suit a Z as well as dizzy drive shaft so if anyone has any of these spare, please pm me. I'm in southern Sydney but happy to pay for postage if I can't find them locally. I will post in parts wanted section too.

 

And just out of interest, are there any LD28 cranks about for sale? and what are they worth round abouts?

 

So this motor build will keep me pretty busy during the young blokes morning and arvo naps.

 

Hope to make it to the social day on Satdyto meet a few of you guys, but there's never a sure thing with a young family.

 

Cheers

Mick

 

 

[Cozza]

Wow, it's been over a year since my last update.

 

Unfortunately the motor in my last post is still in pieces and waiting for money to be thrown at it. 

 

On a more exciting note, I bought a WRX Sti LSD and the output flanges from beta motorsports that mate up to the original half shafts.

I also bought the Tokico Illumina suspension kit, some lowered King springs and an assortment of bump stops and bushes.

The last couple weeks I have stripped down the rear end and cleaned / painted everything I have removed. I ended up using VHT Roll Bar and Chassis paint. I am happy with the finish but only time will tell how it holds up against stone chips and oil.

Had to cut and press the spindle pins out of the lower control arm / hub. They were seized in there tight, got some new ones from SW Motorsport.

 

Hopefully by Sunday arvo I should have it all back together and test driving

 

Here's a couple pics of before and after paint

[Cozza]

Rear suspension is all back together and went in relatively smoothly, this mini project was well worth the effort.

 

The "lowered" King springs have lowered it by about 10mm compared to the springs that were in it before (not sure if they were original or not). I have set the Tokico Illumina shocks to position 2 and it sits firmly on the road without being too stiff. Overall I am very happy with the ride but was hoping for a slightly lower ride height. See photos attached with 205/55/16

 

The limited slip diff has made a huge difference to both acceleration out of corners and handling, it is now much more predictable.

 

I took it for a couple drives locally but it's first real test drive was down to Goulburn for a V8 track day at Wakefield Park, (the commodore wasn't as powerful as I was hoping but the handling and brakes were fantastic) and came home via Moss Vale and Kangaroo Valley road through to Berry then the coast road back to Sydney. Fantastic roads, lots of fun.

 

I am still having problems with my left rear brake binding. It seems to be overadjusting itself each time I pull the handbrake on, and I don't understand why. Any ideas?

 

Next stage will be the front suspension, I will do the same thing of removing, cleaning and painting and replacing all the usual bushes before putting it all back together.

 

Couple pics of the rear suspension complete and both the rear brake adjusters

[Cozza]

Well its been ages since my last update, and a fair bit has been happening on the Zed but I will wait until I have decent photos before I indulge in the story.

 

On another note, I have had to enlarge the stable, just bought a 1600, to be my daily.

Datsun's are just in the blood.

The 1600 is in very original condition bar the L18. She does need a bit of rust repair and some body work around the front right corner. Plan to bring her back to original without any major mods.

 

If anyone has or knows where to find a decent RHS front guard and a bonnet please let me know.

I'm in Sydney but happy to pay postage for decent panels.

 

Cheers

Mick

[Scoota G]

There's a place called 1600 Spares in Howitt St Ballarat. Maybe give them a try?

 

http://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Datsun-1600-Spares/142822862430379?fref=ts

[bluerat]

They have just started stamping out new front guards to suit the 1600 Mick. Dural Datsun were test fitting a set, try them on Facebook. If you have trouble with finding a steel bonnet try Alpha fibreglass in Melb, they do a top job. Grab a R30 5 speed, shorter and bolt in with no mod's and a 4.1 diff and she will be as sweet as!!

 

Sorry just spotted she is an Auto, just go the 4.1!!

 

Hodgo 

[Cozza]

Thanks Hodgo, sounds promising, I will look into that.

 

Cheers Mate

[Cozza]

G'day all

 

Well here goes my 6 monthly update.

 

First I rebuilt my front end much the same as the rear end, sprayed everything pretty, had the rack rebuilt, new bushes, lowered king springs and Tokico Iluminas. As others have found, the front still sits to high and would look better 15-20mm lower. I would also like some more camber but haven't decided on which way to go, adjustable strut tops or control arms.

At the same time I had my brake booster rebuilt, put in a new master cylinder and rebuilt the original calipers.

The car now handles and brakes well.

 

Now that I had the steering and stopping sorted, it was time to look at some more power.

I canned the idea of building the motor myself and got James and Brett at MIA on the case.

I went with a relatively conservative build and couldn't be happier with the results.

L28, triple 40 webers, 2.5" mandrel exhaust and it's knocking out 210hp and 300ftlb at the tyres.

The boys were always mindful of my tight budget and full of helpful advice.

If you're thinking of having a motor built, I recommend you give them a call.

 

I also made up an exhaust heat shield and radiator shroud to keep the intake cool

 

The Z now feels really good so I'm going to try my hand at regularity for the first time next month

 

On the other side of the stable, the 1600 has been getting some love, but that's for my next post, probably about Christmas.

 

Cheers

Mick