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"Zeke"- '72 510 2Dr


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Yes, I still have a Dymo labeler.  If you are under 40 you've probably never even seen one of these.

 

 

Recently picked up two of those label guns at a yard sale for $1, with extra tape reels!   :thumbup:

 

Got home and decided to go on Amazon to see if they have new reels, and they not only have those, they also still sell the label guns new.   ^_^

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Been working on electrical lately.  After removing unnecessary wiring from the engine room harness, decided to test it out so I temporarily installed it. Looks like a total rat's nest unwrapped.

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Connected the battery and fortunately everything works except the e-brake warning lamp switch which I will need to fix. I verified that the starter and fuel pump work. Dash lights, idiot lights, signals, hazards, horn, heater blower, wiper/washer, dome light and map light all work. I also finished hooking up the auxiliary water temp and oil pressure gauges, and they are showing signs of life.  Stoked!  Now I just need to wire in the new headlight and horn relay setup, finalize wire routing and lengths, then wrap the and install the harness for real.  Zeke is finally coming to life!  Here's a few shots showing headlight and exterior lights operating, along with lighting on the speedo and auxiliary gauges. 

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  • 3 weeks later...

Long overdue update on Zeke:

 

I finally got the engine room wiring harness sorted and re-taped.  Here it is spread out on the floor, ready to go back in the car:

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This is the tape I used, from Summit Racing:

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And here is how it looks with the headlight relays and wiring installed:

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With the wiring completed, I could finally move on to the final and most exciting phase- firing up the engine!  I installed the radiator, fan and fan shroud. 

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I installed the heater and radiator hoses. I had to order a hose barb for the block coolant inlet housing. You can see in the previous pic a blue Earls 1/2" hose barb-to-3/8" NPT fitting for the heater return line at the block coolant inlet housing. I think that is a 240Z housing because it doesn't have the vertical pipe for the intake manifold water line like a stock 510 housing, which is nice. Not sure why the stock heater hose barb was replaced with the Earls fitting, maybe because it was broken? Whatever, that's the way I got it. Anyway, turns out the 1/2" barb is too small for the stock Nissan heater hose (I had previously used double hose clamps to get it to seal), so I found an Edelbrock 5/8" hose barb -to 3/8" NPT that fits.  So here is what it looks like under the hood with everything installed and ready to go:

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Yesterday I filled the sump with 6 quarts of Valvoline VR1 30W oil (high Zinc), filled the radiator with 50/50 Zerex Japanese car antifreeze and made final preparations to fire the motor. I pulled the spark plugs, removed the valve cover, grounded the coil  and cranked over the motor on the starter to build oil pressure, but for some reason I couldn't get any. After much gnashing of teeth, testing of pressure senders, and dropping/priming the oil pump, I still couldn't get any indication of oil pressure or anything at the cam, so I gave up for the night, figuring I'd sort it out tomorrow. I did not sleep well.

 

Today was a new day and I felt optimistic. I decided to re-install the braided hose at the block sender hole and see if I could get anything out of the hose, since I knew the oil pump was fully priming.  Sure enough, after what seemed like forever cranking the motor (maybe 1 minute?), I got good oil flow out the sender port. Bolstered by this success, I re-connected the line to the gauge sender junction, and cranked her over again, and lo and behold, after about 20-30 sec, the cam lobes started gushing oil. Woohoo!  I guess I was just impatient and hadn't cranked it over long enough?  But we we have oil pressure now!

 

I then re-installed the plugs, cam cover, hooked up the plug wires, rolled Zeke out of the garage and prepared to finally fire up the engine. I had my timing light hooked up, a 10mm wrench for the distributor to adjust timing, a screwdriver to set idle speed, a jug of antifreeze to top up the radiator, and a fire extinguisher, just in case. It was the moment of truth. Now or never.

 

I switched on the fuel pump to fill the carb float bowls, gave the accelerator 2 or 3 good pumps, and hit the ignition switch. VROOM!!!  I could not believe how fast it lit off!  Those carbs were singing that throaty Mikuni song almost immediately! OMG, I pulled this carb setup off this very motor in 2001, stored 'em away in a box, and did nothing except bolt them back on and here it is, 17 years later, and they are running flawlessly, no leaks, nothing. Amazing.  Zeke lives!  

 

Tonight Tequila. Tomorrow we ride...

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Was hoping to go for a test drive today, but found a couple of small puddles under the car this morning. Both were coolant. At least there's no oil leaks! The obvious culprit was the right rear most freeze plug from which I had previously noticed a slight weep after the initial coolant fill and engine run.  It was dry while warm and running, but after cool off there was some wetness in the join between the plug and the block.  I also noticed that it is installed too deep and slightly crooked, which is probably why it weeps. Here's the plug. You can see that it was driven in well below the block surface (unlike the other freeze plugs), and more so at the bottom than the top, though the camera angle tends to exaggerate the crookedness. The other freeze plugs are correctly installed just below flush with the block surface. 

lodk43M.jpg

 

Still, there was no obvious trail of wetness from the freeze plug down to the oil pan flange, yet clearly there was coolant dripping from the right rear edge of the "hammerhead" portion of the pan. So what I think may have been happening is that the coolant found leaking from the upper rad hose was dripping down the front cover to the oil pan flange (this was confirmed), then seeping along the pan flange across to the passenger side and back to the right rear before dripping onto the pan and floor. Today I adjusted the valves, tightened the upper  hose clamp, and also tightened the leaking temp sender adapter in the thermostat housing, and ran the engine for about 15 minutes to get everything up to temp.  So far, no drips, but won't really know for sure if the freeze plug weep is significant until tomorrow morning. Everything is still dry as of now, about 6 hours after last running the engine.

 

Assuming the coolant leaks are under control, in order to go for a maiden test drive I need to bleed the brakes again (pedal still not quite as firm as I would like), oil and install the air cleaner, and install a seat belt.  All in all, though, I'm pretty happy. Engine runs good, no oil leaks, and no smoke from the exhaust. Exhaust is very subdued, more intake growl than exhaust rasp, which is exactly what I was after for this car.

 

Tonight, mas Tequila, perhaps tomorrow we ride...

 

 

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I'm not ruling out the possibility of making the cruise yet, but chances are slim.  I did finally take a few laps around the block in Zeke yesterday, so it was a happy St. Patrick's day. The car runs and drives pretty good!  Super stoked to finally have Zeke back out on the street after all these years.  The brake pedal is still a little soft. I can't lock 'em up, but the pedal was getting firmer with more stops. I need to do a proper bedding-in, like 10 hard stops in a row from 40 or 50 mph. Get the pads/shoes good and hot, then let 'em cool.  That approach has worked well for me in the past. 

 

Also, I've been trouble shooting what appears to be low oil pressure. The pressure gauge was reading only 25-30 psi above 3000RPM and the warning lamp was coming on at idle after my test drive. Today I figured out that the gauge pressure sender body was not grounded. There was about 150 Ohms of resistance between the case and ground. Once I grounded the gauge sender case the gauge indicated about 50 psi cold at idle, and that went up to about 65-70 psi at 2000 RPM, which is more like it. So off I went for another test drive today, and once the oil warmed up I still had about 65 psi at 3000 RPM, but at idle it was down to about 12-15 psi, which is not bad except that the idiot light was still coming on.  I've already shimmed the pressure regulator spring in the oil pump by placing a ~1mm washer in the cap, so not sure at this point if the issue is the warning lamp sender or the oil pump, but now I think I can trust the gauge .  I have a longer regulator spring from a high volume ZX-T oil pump that I might try, and I also have a few other used warning lamp senders that I can try. So, as of today Zeke has clocked a total of 4.5 miles and maybe 75 minutes of run time on the motor. I can't see taking him up into the mountains on Angeles Crest next weekend, but perhaps we can make the pre-run meet up?  We shall see how it goes this week...

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Got the oil pressure warning lamp issue solved!  Turns out that I had installed a 30 psi sender switch. No wonder the warning lamp was coming on at idle!  I had on hand two used stock 510 switches with the bullet connector and another nearly new one with a spade connector, so naturally I installed the newer one. Whoops. I hadn't noticed the much higher switching pressure when bench testing beforehand, and I had totally forgotten that I once used the 30psi switch for an auxiliary low oil pressure warning lamp that I installed in the seatbelt warning lamp hole in the dash of my SR car.  This was back when I was doing lots of track days. I got annoyed that it would come on at idle, so I swapped it for a 20psi switch which solved that problem. The spade connector and NPT thread should have tipped me off when I installed it into Zeke.  Fortunately I had previously purchased a 1/8" NPT to 1/8" BSP adapter for this very purpose, so I have installed a stock 510 switch and all should be well.  Now, I just need to wait out this rain storm  so I can put some serious shake-down miles on Zeke...  

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Unfortunately we did not make the run this morning. Yesterday I took Zeke to the gas station for his first fill up. Fuel odor permeated the cabin after leaving the station, so it was straight back to the garage to check it out. I found that the lower fuel tank hose was leaking at the tank filler neck. I cranked down on the hose clamp about as much as I dared, and then repeatedly rocked the car to simulate fuel slosh. It seemed to be sealing.  

 

Zeke has also developed a very minor oil leak at the right rear of the engine. Since the engine was leak free until I dropped the oil pump while troubleshooting the oil pressure situation, I figured that it was the oil pump gasket which I had not replaced after dropping the pump. The oil pan gasket seam between the oil pump and the right rear of the engine showed evidence of oil running along the seam, so I decided to drop the pump again and change the gasket. I found no evidence of any other leaks from the cam cover, oil filter, sender port, or anywhere else. Here's the oil pump gasket, which came off totally intact and none the worse for wear.

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I fired up the engine and brought it up to temperature in the driveway to verify no leaks at the oil pump (all good), then shut it down and closed up shop for the night. This morning once again I found a couple of oil drops on the garage floor under the right rear of the engine. Dang it! Externally, the oil pump was still dry, so I decided to check the oil pan bolts and found that they were actually pretty loose. Perhaps that was the problem all along? I tightened the pan bolts, and have my fingers crossed that that will solve the oil leak.

 

Zeke has also been pushing a small volume of coolant out the over flow tube after each test drive. I had installed a used but nice looking factory radiator cap, but upon closer inspection I found the rubber seals to be overly hardened, so today I installed a new Stant rad cap.  I also installed a radiator overflow catch tank. Here you can see the new rad cap and catch tank, which consists of an aluminum bicycle water bottle cage and a plastic drink bottle. I drilled out the bottle lid to fit a rubber grommet for the hose to run through:

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To round out today's accomplishments, I applied these cool BRE logos to the side markers:

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Assuming the leaks are now under control, I can re-install the rear seat firewall, install the carpeting, seats, door sill thresholds, make and install a passenger side kick panel, install the under-dash package tray and Zeke will be pretty much done!

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So I need to ditch the clear reinforced lower fuel filler hose because the gas is turning it to slippery goo. After doing some more research I found and ordered a 2 1/4" ID rubber fuel filler hose from Filler Neck Supply Co.

23976 Gates 2-1/4" Inch (SOFT WALL) Rubber Fuel Filler Hose

This hose should be more compliant and fuel resistant. Also, the OD is 2 5/8" instead of 2 3/4" so I should be able to use the factory hose clamps, though I also ordered a pair of T-nut clamps just in case. 

 

While I'm waiting for the filler hose to arrive, I decided to tackle the fabrication of a passenger side kick panel. I bought a 1/8" thick  2'x4' sheet of Masonite (aka hardboard) at Home Depot.  I used the driver side kick panel for a template and traced it out, then cut it out with a jig saw.  I used a hole saw to help make the cutout for the cowl drain tube. Here it is before and after painting.

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And here it is installed, along with the package tray:

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I have enough Masonite left to make a new spare tire cover, so that's on the to-do list now. 

 

Before I installed the kick panels, I was also able to fix the dome light door pin switches.  Neither was grounding due to crappy wire crimps at the switch end. It's been a LONG time since I had working dome light door pins in a 510, so I'm super stoked that the dome light is fully functional now!

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Here's the new fuel filler hose, 12" x 2 1/4" ID x 2 5/8" OD, along with the T-nut clamps I ordered just in case.  

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Here is the hose cut to length and installed. I don't think I'll need the T-nut clamps. The stock 510 clamps fit fine.

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Pretty sure that fixes that. Moving on, then... 

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The oil leak seems to have been stemmed somewhat, but I still get a drop or two under the bellhousing after a drive.  It looks to be coming from the RR oil pan/block interface, and running down the engine side of the bellhousing closeout. If I can't positively pinpoint another source, or if it doesn't get worse, I may just decide to live with it rather than go through the hassle of dropping the pan to replace the pan gasket. It's really a very minor leak.   

 

In other news, I increased the main jet size in the carbs from 155 to 160 because the plugs and exhaust pipe were looking white-ish, indicating a lean condition.  This makes sense to me since the jetting for this carb setup was originally dialed-in back in the ethanol-free days. Now that we have 10-15% ethanol in our pump fuel, the carbs need to be jetted a little richer.  

 

I also fitted the 50mm tall Mikuni velocity stacks inside the air filter. This was greatly facilitated by replacing the original Mikuni-supplied nuts and lock washers (10mm wrench size) with self locking 7mm wrench size jet nuts. The smaller wrench, along with the ability to fit the box end over the nut (impossible with the larger hardware), makes all the difference when installing the stacks, which must be done with the air filter assembly loosely in place since there's no way to install the air filter with the rear stacks in place due to interference with the brake master cylinder. Here's the setup before buttoning up the filter.  

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Close ups of one of the jet nuts installed, and with the 7mm wrench:

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Comparison between standard M6x1.0 nut with lock washer as supplied by Mikuni, and the M6x1.0 jet nut:

FVCviKU.jpg

 

Package label for M6x1.0 Self Locking Jet Nuts from Pegasus Auto Racing Supplies:

el5QC2V.jpg

 

With the fuel filler hose sorted, today's project was to repair, paint and install the trunk fuel tank bulkhead panel. The one that came with Zeke was a little warped and scuffed, but in fairly decent shape except for a few structural cracks in the Masonite. Here it is before painting. You can see where I glued some reinforcing pieces of new Masonite up near the right side of the package tray. You can also see cracked Masonite at the upper right attachment hole, and at the lower right attachment bracket. I glued reinforcing pieces to the back side to reinforce these cracks. At the edge of the tray, I had to glue to the front side since the cracks were too close to the plastic tray to effect any improvement in rigidity from the back side. Not going for Concours quality restoration here, just making it functional again, and half way decent looking. In most 510s you'll see these days, this panel has long since been completely obliterated, so it's fortunate that Zeke retains an original panel.

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The plastic package tray was in good shape:

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Reinforcements glued to the back side for the upper right and lower right mounting points:

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Sprayed it satin black:

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Installed (sorry for crappy low light pic):

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With my jigsaw I also cut out a new spare tire well cover from the remains of the 1/8"x2'x4' Masonite sheet that I had used to fabricate the passenger footwell kick panel. Almost looks factory!:

nwOrWqc.jpg

 

 

 

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Took Zeke out for another test drive today.  Engine is still running really good. No ill effects from the carb re-jetting. It was quite warm today with air temp in the upper 80s. Zeke endured idling at one of the longest stop lights in the area (a 5-way intersection) without topping 185F, so that's re-assuring.  Snapped a few pics in the driveway after the ride:

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Still getting a few drips of motor oil from under the bellhousing, though. Lifted the front end once again and took a look. Close inspection seems to indicate it might be the rear main seal, which would totally suck!

 

In this last pic you can see where it is dripping down the block side of the engine plate from the right rear edge (i.e. passenger side) of the oil pan to the right lower engine plate bolt. The oil accumulates under that bolt and eventually drips to the ground. I probed  the gap between the oil pan flange and engine plate with a business card, and it was noticeably wetter on the engine plate side. I found no evidence of oil leaking down the pan flange, so I tend to think the pan gasket is sealing.

Xi6SBfS.jpg

 

Really not looking forward to dropping the trans to inspect the rear main seal for leakage...

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Yesterday I finally got up the nerve to take Zeke on the freeway. The car actually drove real good! I'm surprised how well it tracks and steers given my eyeball wheel alignment (note to self- make appointment for 4-wheel alignment!). Once up to freeway speed I thought I sensed some vibration in the steering wheel, but I'm pretty sure it was the road surface.  This was on the 110 southbound into San Pedro and there's a sh#t-ton of truck traffic to the port of LA so the right lanes are pretty beat up. The northbound return trip was relatively smooth. Funny how your senses are all on hyper at such times.

 

One thing I wasn't imagining is that the speedometer needle began oscillating and reading fast once I got over 60 mph. I know that with my tranny, rear end gearing, and tires, it should read about 60mph at 3000 RPM in 5th, but it was closer to 80 mph and bouncing +/- 10 mph. WTH?

 

Today I disconnected the cable from the tranny and turned it with a cordless drill while recording the speedo action with my phone. Review of the video shows the needle was rock steady at 70mph (max drill speed). WTH? This is a new, albeit super cheap, replacement cable. The only differences running it with the drill vs. a real road situation are that the last curve into the tranny is straightened out and nothing is up to operating temperature. I also noticed a fair amount of gear oil drained out of the cable end when I removed it from the tranny. Could this oil in the lower end of  the cable affect operation?  There was no rubber seal in the replacement cable like in the factory cable, so I had installed the seal from a seized factory cable I had on hand, though it wasn't in the greatest shape. Clearly it is allowing gear oil into the cable. 

 

At this point I'm considering trying to track down a factory 75" cable which will have the proper rubber seal in the trans end...

 

In other news, I got this cool BRE shift knob in Randy's parts stash that came with Zeke. I was able to find the missing M5 metric Allen head set screw at my unusually well stocked local hardware store for 22 cents. Behold.

 

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  • 2 weeks later...

I decided I just can't live with the minor oil leak at the rear of the engine, so today I finally bit the bullet and pulled the tranny, clutch and flywheel to have a look at the rear main seal.  As I suspected, the main seal appears to be leaking. The seal was wet with oil around the bottom, as was the rear main cap face between the bottom of the seal and the bottom of the cap. The seal is pretty flush with the rear main cap face at the bottom, but is well below flush at the top, so it probably leaks because it was installed crooked. The oily surfaces don't show too well in the pic because the oil is new and clear, but here's what it looked like:

gKk1fgo.jpg

 

The good news is that the oil pan flange and gasket are dry, so I don't think I'll need to replace the pan gasket. You can also see that there's some oil on the end of the crank around the lower bolt hole. The corresponding mating surface of the flywheel also had oil on it in the same area.  I'm a bit puzzled how oil would get between the flywheel and the end of the crank.  Seems strange that oil would wick up in there around just that one bolt hole, but maybe there's just enough of a void only in that area.  There was no evidence of oil anywhere else on the end face of the crank.  

 

I have a spare rear main seal on hand, so looks like tomorrow I'll be replacing the seal. I understand you can carefully drill a small hole into the seal face and use a wood screw to grab onto and pull the seal out. I might try that if I can't find a one of those tee shaped pick-like seal pullers. Harbor Freight is just down the street. I'm pretty sure I've seen those there. 

 

I also noticed some minor oil wetting on the trans tunnel around the driveshaft yoke, as well as on the underside of the floor above the diff drive flange. Smells like gear oil in both cases.  I  installed a new rear seal in the tranny before installation so how could it be leaking already? Took a closer look at the yoke and noticed a small ding in the polished surface in about the right spot along the yoke shaft to cause leakage. Also found a very slight binding in the front u-joint, so it'll be off to the drive shaft shop in the morning to have a new u-joint installed, and maybe they can polish the yoke shaft for a better seal. Might have to replace that seal again as well...

 

As for the diff flange seal, or more technically, the "drive pinion seal", it is not yet dripping, though I guess I wouldn't be surprised if the seal is hardened and could use replacement. Afterall, the diff had been sitting in a crate for ~15 years before I installed it into Zeke.  It looks like that seal is still available (38189-U3001 for an R160) for $13.25  from Courtesy Nissan. I don't really feel like tackling that job now, at least not until it starts dripping...

 

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I was able to pull the rear main seal easily using the drill & screw technique. I carefully drilled a couple of holes in the seal face, threaded in some long wood screws, and pried the seal out using pliers and a small wood block against the end of the crank.

YHaX9V4.jpg

 

Pulling the seal:

icqaV2O.jpg

 

Leaky seal be gone:

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After greasing the seal inside diameter, and applying a thin coat of sealant to the outer diameter, I was able to tap the new seal back in flush with the block using a small hammer and a small wood block to spread the load. 

Q5DMEuK.jpg

 

I had sent the driveshaft off to have the u-joints replaced, so Zeke wasn't going anywhere on 510 Day. I figured if you can't drive your 510 on 510 Day, at least show it some love, no? On 510 Day I re-installed the flywheel, clutch and wrestled the transmission back into place. Oh yeah, while the radiator was out, I installed this billet heim jointed alternator adjuster arm from Motorsport Auto:

cExOy2n.jpg

 

This morning I re-installed the radiator and grille, then went and picked up the driveshaft from the shop this afternoon. When I got home I re-installed the driveshaft, exhaust, re-filled the radiator coolant and Zeke was ready to fire up. 

 

It's now about 4 hours after running the engine fully up to temperature in the driveway, and I'm happy to report that so far there's no sign of any leakage! Stoked!

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