Fitting 280ZX Distributor in a 240Z

[Zedman240®]

Yep, that is a loop and that wire from the tacho goes to the + on the coil to supply power.

[stevo_gj]

The one in the picture is actually a spare I have, there is still one in my car. I found out already that it won't run without one Thanks guys, once I sort out the fuse blowing issue i'm discussing in my build thread I'll have a crack at testing out the taco. Cheers

[zeds4ever]

The two connection points on sides of distributor are for earth connections to motor.

[Zedman240®]

The two connection points on sides of distributor are for earth connections to motor.

 

Are you reffering to the module on the side of the elec distributor (C + B) ?

C connection goes to the -ve side of the coil and the +ve goes to ign 12+ power..

[zeds4ever]

Not the connections on the module unit top itself (B-C), the spade connection at the front of the module unit , with the other situated on the vacuum housing . These are meant to protect harness wiring should a short occur in either Module or Dizzy ,also to act as an additional earthing situation for dizzy.

[dazzed]

you dont really need to change the ballast resistor , i have found that running a lower voltage stabilises the spark line, and that was tested on a scope, ok

[Cozza]

Hi Guys, I am a new Z owner and also new to this site. My 240 is hard to start, I was given an electronic dizzy out of a 280zx when I bought the car and think this might help with my starting problem.

 

After finding this thread I want to try changing it over but I am still a little confused. Can someone please confirm where do electronic dizzy terminals B and C connect to? Do they both go to the -ve side of the coil, I figure one of the terminals should go to the +ve side but I am not sure and don't want to blow anything up.

 

Also, do I need to replace the coil or can I use the original 240 points ignition coil? If I can keep the 240 coil, do I still need to bypass the ballast resistor or should I keep it in line?

 

Thanks in advance and loving being back in the shed.

 

Cheers Mick

[benny]

Just checked my 240...

 

C goes to Neg side to trigger the coil to fire and is variable

 

B goes to Positive and is constant

 

Ben

[Zedman240®]

Welcome Mick,

The two terminals "B" is for positive power which normally is tapped from the 12+ from the ballast resistor (before not after it goes through the resistor; you can check with a test light which one is the supply by disconnecting one of the wires then probe with the light) and the "C" terminal is for the negative side of the coil. After this mod, you can bypass the resistor and it is preferable to run a coil from a 280ZX or what I used a coil from a mid-late 80's Pulsar.

[chris240]

failing that, just go to page 1 & start reading..

oh yeah welcome to the site

[Cozza]

Thanks for the quick responses guys, it went in no probs and surprisingly the timing was almost spot on. Unfortunately it hasn't helped my hard starting issue.

 

Think I will have a look at choke now unless you guys have some other suggestions. It is hard to start when cold but is nice and smooth and easy to restart once warm. Original 240 carbies.

 

Hmm, could old oil in the carby pots make for hard starting?

 

Thanks again

[Zedman240®]

Usually the Htatchi "Round top's" need a good amount of choke to get the engine to start. Are the choke cables adjusted and moving their full travel? Give them a quick spray of WD40 or similar to lube them up a bit.

[dazzed]

I think Ive got the same dizzy as Peter...Not sure what type youve got there Bruce..mines off a 6/82 engine with the E12-80 module...see pics..

If I get time tomorrow I'll try putting mine on..also why do the balast wires need to be connected / joined ? I thought they become redundant.

& my coil is rated at 12 volts, (I dont think its the original 240z coil, therefore can I still use it ?) ok...wheres Dimitri 

i have fitted a crane coil but eliminated the module on the dissy

[Mikey]

hey guys,

i just recieved my 280zx electonic distributor, and i bought a 12V Bosch GT40R coil..

so im going to have a go at swapping them 2moro.

i know the write up says to bypass the resistor.. but on the coil it says to "use with resistor"

should i still bypass it?? or keep it in??

Thanks

Mikey

[Zedman240®]

Keep the resistor or you will melt the coil as the resistor type ones only need about 9 volts to work. If you can replace it with a 280ZX type or one that I used from a late 80's - early 90's Nissan Pulsar (Reebok type) they run off 12V.

[nizm0zed]

If your going to use one of those bosch performance coils, you need the GT40 model. The GT40R is for use with a ballast resistor (as Dimitri said)

R for Resistor.

 

You likely have it sorted by now, but the info is here for anyone else later.

[Mikey]

i did the swap on wednesday with no issues.. but unfortunately the 280zx dizzy was not in the best condition, i couldnt seem to get it running properly with it in.. i dont know if something happened to it during shipping but i found the ball bearings rolling around inside and the plastic plate underneath falling apart. so i swapped it back for now until i can hopefully fix it..

would there be much benifit if i swapped the coil for the GT40 instead of the one i bought?

[Zedman240®]

Major benefit I can think of is a bigger spark. As the coil runs off a full 12v compared to 9V, that will mean a bigger spark while running instead of just under cranking.

[gav240z]

i did the swap on wednesday with no issues.. but unfortunately the 280zx dizzy was not in the best condition, i couldnt seem to get it running properly with it in.. i dont know if something happened to it during shipping but i found the ball bearings rolling around inside and the plastic plate underneath falling apart. so i swapped it back for now until i can hopefully fix it..

would there be much benifit if i swapped the coil for the GT40 instead of the one i bought?

 

Is it second hand / new or rebuilt? The bearings wouldn't have gone like that in shipping. If you bought it as new or reconditioned I'd be speaking to the guy you bought it from about that.

 

 

[Mikey]

It was a second hand unit.. But was apparently in "good working order"...

If I can't manage to fix it I'll probably go for a pertronix kit..

Thanks for all the help guys.

[peter mc]

send it to porformance ignition and have it fixed , they do great work

[Six_Shooter]

If you're looking for another electronic dizzy, I have a few that I could part with.

[ThaPimpShrimp]

Hey guys! Not from Australia, but a Z fan nonetheless. Sorry for bumping an old thread, but the content was relevant.

 

I've been reading up on doing the 280zx dizzy swap into my 240z. Stock engine at the moment, but I will upgrade to a high compression L28 someday.

 

My biggest fear is the vacuum advance. Is everyone that does this swap using it? A lot of places I read say it advances way too much for our engines, some say they're perfectly fine, and others don't even use the vacuum advance.

 

What are your setups, and how is the timing? I'll be reading up on everything else that I can..

 

 

[Six_Shooter]

When I was running dizzy I didn't use the advance, since it wasn't connected when I got the car. I then swapped to EFI that controlled teh advance, so I locked out the dizzy for that.

 

It's easy enough to connect it, test the results and then disconnect it if you don't like the results.

[ThaPimpShrimp]

When I was running dizzy I didn't use the advance, since it wasn't connected when I got the car. I then swapped to EFI that controlled teh advance, so I locked out the dizzy for that.

 

It's easy enough to connect it, test the results and then disconnect it if you don't like the results.

 

Hmm alrighty very true. I can do that by just watching the timing with my gun while revving the engine up? Out of curiosity, what did you set your base timing at without the advance hooked up? Still ran way better than points I assume? Haha

 

Thanks for the help by the way. I still have yet to find a definitive answer on this subject as to the best solution. "Best" would probably be getting a custom curve..