Hello,
I have some questions I'm sure you guys can answer. I just went through emissions for the last time and my car is now exempt due to the age.I want to remove anything I can to make it quicker without spending money. I have a 1980 210 with automatic. So far I removed my air cleaner and vacuum lines except the lines going to the brake master vac and transmission. Then I ran I line from the top vacuum port on the carb(mine has 3)to the spark advance. I tied the 2 other vacuum ports on the carb together. I plugged all open ports to manifolds and installed a 2"x4" air cleaner. I have the pvc pipe connected and have a breather on the valve cover. The gas line is still connected to the charcoal canister but just by itself.
The car seems to have much better acceleration and runs much stronger.

My questions are: Is this correct? I'm really not sure about connecting the 2 ports on the carb together. Is the pvc setup safe? In the winter will I have problems not having any hot air intake? It can get as low as 0 degrees F where I am. If I take my catylic converter off and hollow it out(broom stick) and put it back, will that be safe as far as back-pressure? The exhaust is all ready louder.

Thanks for any help.

Pete

sorry if I don't get back for a few days

Plug the unused vacuum ports on the carb (it's less likely to cause a problem if you don't tie them together). The distributor advance should be the middle one (just above the throttle blade).

Yes, in the winter you probably will have problems not having any hot air intake. The problems starting happening a few degrees above freezing. Connecting the stock air cleaner up to a tube to the radiator support (cold air intake) will give you better performance than using an "open" air cleaner (open to the hot underhood temperatures).

I suggest that you get a workshop manual & study the emissions controls section very carefully. Gain a full understanding of what each device does, how it works, why it is there in the first place, & how it affects performance.

Once you have done this, you can confidently procede & alter your engines specs knowing full well what you are doing, & why.
This is more than can be said just now.

Many of these devices actually make things better, like hot air to the carb. At full throttle, when you want max power, most emission devices are NOT functioning at all, which is the same as removing them.

Think twice, act once.

Thanks for the advice. I'm not very knowledgable about engine performance. I mainly drive datsuns because they are easy to maintain and so retro. I'm really interested in finding out which components are good for performance. I've read the Haynes manual and honestly still don't understand the whole emissions system. I do have the throttle opener control system hooked up as well. I'll have to set up a hot air intake and use the orinigal air cleaner, which isn't a problem. The acceleration on the car is so much better that I wonder why? I don't want to completely undo what I did. Could it be the pipes from the exhaust manifold to the air cleaner or the EGR valve that was making the car so sluggish before (the original air filter was new). The reason I want to clear the catylic converter out is because my 1976 B-210 which doesn't have a converter seems quicker than my 1980. I had a another 1980 210 which I drove 12 years which was also sluggish. I'm still not sure about the back pressure issue.

The EGR Valve is commonly blamed for performance problems in 1973-1985 model cars. If the Cat Convertor is not replaced every 100,000mi it may also cause problems. I actually fused the engine side of my cat-convertor closed from the hot turbo exhaust air on my CA18DET (Using a CA18DE Convertor).

Many early pollution motors ran smaller valves and lower compression to deal with the "new" unleaded petrol. I'm not sure how this affected A-Series engines.

Getting the ignition timing right, fresh plugs/leads/coil and cleaning out the carby will yield good improvements too.

Chris

Thanks again for the advice. I just rebuilt my carb recently, set timing, changed plugs, cap & rotor, and set valve timing. But the car didn't seem quicker until I removed everything else. I'll probally hook everything up that an older datsun would have. I'll omit the EGR valve, AB valve, BPT valve etc., and see how that is. My Catalytic Converter is 24 years old w/110mi. Do you think it would hurt to hollow it out? Or do I need a pre-muffler.I don't want to buy a new you.

You can replace the converter with a straight piece of exhaust tubing.

Mine's simply hollowed out (A series in a 1991 1200) and it worked great with the stock engine as well as the current setup.

HJy. I am here in California, US. Here the emission laws are more strict than in Connecticut, I guess my car (s) had more devices than yours(your's is federal emissions vrs mine being Californian(really F&^%K*&^D up), so I might talk about stuff you do not have, but all is very similar ,it's all good.
You have the :
`Catalic converter
`EGR system
`PCV system(positive cranckcase vent
system)
`Air system(air pump, valves, etc)
About the catalic, get rid off it, no need for it no more
About the EGR system, the valve(EGRvalve) is bolted onto a plate in the intake manifold, and this valve is conected to a little thermal valve(hooked on to the engine block, works under water temp, to open or close the EGR valve) which itself is conected to manifold vaccum, the valve(thermal) blocks vacum from the manifold onto the EGR valve untill the water temp is as desired by the manufacturers, then only the port opens and manifold vacumm is felt by the EGR valve directly. Get rid of the EGR valve, take it out of the car and throw it away. Cover the EGR base on the manifold with a metal plate cut to size, using a gasket in between.
If you check your Datsun manual, you will see that american intake manifolds have what is called a EGR passage, the EGR valve and other crap is bolted onto this plate, (also the PVC valve, and the small pipe connecting the exhaust manifold to this area, next to the EGR valve.)The best thing to do is to get rid off all this "EGR passage plate", and just put a plate in place, metal plate cut to fit, with a EGR passage gasket off course to seal, and rid your manifold of unnecesary weight and crap. The little pipe that brings exhaust fumes from the exhaust back into combustion through the EGR valve has to go too, and plug shut the exhaust manifold opening for it.
The small thermal valve I talked about before can be left in place, does nothing, just unplug it(rubber hoses) and leave it there alone.

About the PCV system, this system also creates havoc in your engine, designed to stop charged air from the inside of the motor from coming out to the atmosphere. If you think about it, it will always come out , the idea of the emissions is that by recirculating it into the combustion chambers(piston/mix explosion/ignition) this air will become treated. Baloney, the real thing is that you are sending oily air into your carburetor and igniton event in the piston chambers, doing a mess.
As racers do, and as cars where done prior to emissions, disconect the valve cover to carb hose, which, under acceleration is routing oil into your carb,and install a breather filter on the valve cover. Plug shut your carb opening for this hose. The other end, the block vent, also has to be disconnected from the PCV valve and connect it via a hose to another breather, and locate it at the same height or higher(not below) the other breather filter(valver cover), this is a very special point, both have to be at the same height, to have the pulling efect/scavenge effect and vent the motor. The PCV valve is to be thrown away, and plug shut the opening on the manifold. If you get rid of the "EGR passage plate" as mentioned before, the PCV valve opening goes away with it, but if not getting rid of the passage plate, just use a pipe bolt and shut it close off.
I did these operation in my 610, excelent performance, clean carburetor, excelent healthy breathing for the motor.
Your carburetor should be connected with a hose to the distributor,(by the throatle area) the other openings(sometimes the EGR valve, as said before, is connected to the thermal valve, which is then connected to the manifold vacumm, directly on the manifold or to the carb, next to the distributor port in the carb. Some times there is no thermal valve, only the EGR directly conected to the manifold vacumm/or the carb port for the EGR valve next to the distributor port)...in the manifols/and carburetor that will not be used no more should be plugged closed. You can get assorted plugs at any auto store, rubber or plastic caps to plug ports.

About the air system some do have it, it is about the air pump, hoses, and other crap, like the air relief valve, emergency air relief valve, etc, bunch a crap! Disconnect and throw away the air pump, and related hoses.Get rid of the system(you will see these litle valves, like one under the OE air filter, the antibackfire valve, get rid of them, all, and if you have as my car does, close to the thermostat cover, the air valve, where air goes into the cyl head, that one you can take out and plug the opening with a pipe plug, or, in case of just leaving the valve bolted on to the cyl head, just buy a plug(rubber) at an auto store(I used a plug made for the closing of the heater passage in the cooling system, used to eliminate the heater hoses off the cooling system) and plug shut the opening of the valve with this rubber plug. Once the air pump is out, all those hoses away, plug any vacumm ports open in the manifold and the car is ready to breath the way it was intended.
I did all this to my 610, and it runs clean and efficient, and even noticed it runs cooler too, the intake manifold runs cooler due to no more crap(exhaust, cranckcase, and other unnecesary bad stuff put into it, hot air) going inside. Same about your carburetor,no more cranck case hot and oily air going into it. The ventilation of the engine is efficient, no more recirculated stuff, all efficiency.
I can not think of anything else right now, but if I do, I will come back. Ask any questions, make your car healthy, happier, efficient, more reliable and cooler.
Later.__________________

Of course the other alternative is to slip a small steel bearing ball from a bicycle shop into the relevant vacuum hose to prevent that particular device from functioning. This might save a days work & a few $$ on parts.
The upside is that if your car is pinged by the smog cops, just remove the ball[s] & get them off your case.

If it looks stock under the hood, sometimes these zealots will leave you alone.
It's just a thought

P.S. PCV was responsible for the vast reduction of sludge buildup in engines when it was first used in the 60's. Improvements in oil technology since then have only made this situation better still. If your engine is pumping noticable amounts of oily gunk into the air cleaner, then it's time to overhaul your engine.