(Click on picture to see more pictures
of the car)
This is my 1976 Datsun Fairlady 280Z. In Japan they call it a Fairlady
if your wondering where I got that name from, they also refer to it by it's
chassis code S30 or S30Z. During the summer of 2002 my uncle asked me if I
wanted a 280Z. He told me it was a S30 one also. What is good about
this particular model S30 is that it was lighter than the ZX or S130 Zs but it
still had the higher displacement L28 engine. It is also fuel injected
which is another plus. He said if I could
find an ecu for a Jeep Cherokee he would give me the car. I didn't think
much of it at first but then I actually found the correct ECU on ebay so I bid
on it and won for 50 bux. Gave the ECU to my uncle and a few weeks later I
got myself a 280Z! It had all sorts of problems when I first got it such
as: clogged catalytic converter, different plugs in each cylinder, corrosion
everywhere, and worn out bushings just to name a few. For now this car is
my 2nd car to drive and my first FR layout car. I'm using it to drive when
I have down time on my RS. It's a fun old car to have, I love the look and
the style of it and it puts out some impressive power for an old car. It
still has many problem to be fixed though. I blew the headgasket which
caused it to burn and smoke water in two cylinders. After I got back from
Operation Iraqi Freedom 2 instead of changing out the head gasket I decided to
go with a L28ET swap. The car had sat for nearly 2 years and all I had to
do was put a good battery in it, inflate 3 flat tires, and drive it to my house,
started right up. I had originally planned to just convert my existing
engine to a turbocharged one by putting on the turbo setup and adding a rising
rate fuel pressure regulator. Thanks to the California Smog Nazis my 76'
car will never become smog exempt. So to have the turbocharged S30 monster
that I've always wanted I decided to go with a full L28ET swap to make it smog
legal. During the summer of 2005 I found a whole turbo swap setup from a
guy in Sacramento. I hopped in my mom's Pontiac Transport minivan and went
and picked that beast up. It wasn't easy either. I got nearly
everything I need for the swap minus the downpipe and some sections of harness.
Luckily I had a downpipe from the junkyard and I went to the junkyard and found
all the parts I need to complete it. A New turbocharged S30 was born on 30
JULY 05! After some wiring mishaps and bad battery connectors the car
fired up. First I had to replace some water hoses that deteriorated, then oil
sprayed all over the place because I didn't tighten the oil cooler lines enough
for the massive SA22 front mount oil cooler. During the swap I also fixed
the infamous Z driveline clunk. This problem has been driving me nuts
since I got the car and I finally solved it. I too the plate that was
covering the front diff mount on and looked at the diff mount and saw that it
was brand new OEM. Apparently someone had replaced it before but...
they forgot to put the nut that holds the diff mount to the suspension, so it'd
be floppin up and down on that. Replaced it with a solid differential
mount I got on ebay and its nice and rock solid no more clunkety clunk ^_^.
STATUS:
EBRAKE LIGHT
AND CHARGE LIGHT WON'T TURN OFF FOR SOME REASON, I'VE BEEN READING POSTS ON ZCAR.COM
AND IT LOOKS LIKE THAT COOL ALTERNATOR I FOUND IN THE JUNKYARD IS THE CAUSE FOR
IT.
ACQUIRED AFTER MIDNIGHT RUSTOLEUM PAINT FROM HOME DEPOT, THE CAR JUST NEEDS TO
BE STRIPPED AND PAINTED NOW. INSTALLED ANOTHER TURBO AND IT WAS BAD I
THINK AND THE TURBO BLADES HIT THE HOUSING. CAR DOESN'T BOOST ANYMORE,
NEED TO TAKE THE TURBO OFF AGAIN -_- ALSO SMOGGED IT AND IT FAILED
HORRIBLY, HIGH CO =( GOTTA GET THE TURBO OFF NO TIME TO DO IT THOUGH, NEED
TO FIND A NEW TURBO. BOUGHT A REBUILT T3 TURBO JUST NEED TO INSTALL IT AND
SOME OTHER KIND OF INJECTORS.
Specs
Engine Code: L28 SOHC (150 psi per cylinder)
L28ET SOHC (165 PSI per cylinder)
