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Wednesday, August 30, 2006

 

Maybe I shouldn't have ignored that problem...

It seems that every time I mention Summit Racing Equipment and bad parts in the same post, within a few days somebody from Summit stops by to read my blog and see what I've posted. Well, if you're the Summit employee on blogwatch duty today, you can relax - this time the bad part was one I got from a junkyard and that I'm now replacing with Summit parts. Why don't you stop by my comments and introduce yourself?

Earlier, I'd mentioned that the junkyard Nissan fuel pressure regulator seemed to have an internal leak. While I can't watch the fuel pressure from the driver's seat, it may be that I should have paid more attention to that loss of pressure. As the Dodge Dart won't start, I might as well replace every part in the EFI that I know has any problems whatsoever. I checked the prices of a replacement 280ZX regulator - most parts stores wanted $75 or so for a brand new one.

So, today I went down to Summit and bought an adjustable fuel pressure regulator. I decided to go with the cheapest option, MSD's part number 2222. It came to a few bucks less than the replacement Nissan regulator, which isn't adjustable. Like the unit I have, it has 5/16" hose barb fittings - and, again, I've cut the ends off so I can stick compression fittings on it for a rubber-free installation. Right now I need to bend one more hard line as it is not set up quite the same way as the Nissan part. I'll have pictures of this regulator tomorrow.

The pictures of this part showed a very stock-looking part, not something with neon-colored anodizing that screams, "Hey, look! This is a mod!" Which suits me fine. When I got the regulator out of the case, I was surprised to see it didn't even have MSD's logo on it. Instead, it was stamped with the Bosch emblem and Bosch's part number! I know a fair number of aftermarket performance parts are actually repackaged OEM parts, but this is the first time I've seen anything this obvious. MSD does appear to have modified this regulator for boost referencing, however. Not that I'm complaining - a lot of the parts I am using on the Dart are stock appearing, and the price on this regulator is quite reasonable.

I also went out and picked out some spark plugs. Dan Stern and many other slant six gurus recommend NGK's ZFR5N plugs for a stock slant six. Since turbo engines often benefit from slightly colder plugs, I called NGK's tech line to ask what would be one notch colder. After convincing him that ZFR5N plugs actually fit in a 225 (they stick out a ways, but you'd need a really long plug to hit the pistons on this motor), he told me that the closest thing he could come up with was the ZFR6F-11. It's not quite the same sort of extended reach as the '5N, but I think it's a little longer than stock. I don't know if these are the best plugs to run in a turbo slant six or not, but we'll find out.

Tune in tomorrow to see if this gets the Dart up and running.

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Comments:
HEY THERE! I am just a girl reading through random blogs and I happened across YOURS! I don't even know how to change a tire, so I don't think I would last long in your world! Just wanted to say hi! :)
 
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