Datsun 280ZX 1981 User manual

1981
DATSUN
280ZX
OWNER'S MANUAL

AWord
To DATSUN
Owners
Thankyouforchoosinga DATSUN.Wearesureyouwillbehappyyoudid.Thismanual
hasbeenpreparedtohelpyouunderstandtheoperationandmaintenanceofyourcarso
thatyoumayenjoymanymilesofdrivingpleasure.Wehaveincludeddrivingtips,infor-
mationaboutthelocationandpurposeofdashboardinstruments,comfortandsafety
features,andmuchmorethatwillhelpyouknowyourDATSUN.
AWarrantyPamphletorBookletsupplementsthisOwner'sManual.Itprovidesvaluable
informationconcerningthewarrantyonyourcar.Italsocontainsa maintenanceservice
recordwhichshouldbevalidatedbyyourNISSAN/DATSUNdealereachtimeyoubring
yourcarinforperiodicservicing.ReadtheOwner'sManualandWarrantyPamphletor
Bookletcarefullyandkeeptheminyourgloveboxatalltimes.Theyareimportantto
you.YourWarrantyPamphletorBookletshouldbepresentedtoyourdealerwhenwar-
rantyrepairsarerequired.
BeforeyourdealerdeliversyourDATSUNtoyou,hegivesita carefulpre-deliveryinspec-
tion,checkingandservicingthemechanicalpartstobesureyourcarisreadytodrive.
Yourdealerhastheequipmentandexperiencetoserviceyourcar,heiskeptadvisedof
everynewtechnicaldevelopmentandyouarehiscustomer.Hewantstokeepinthat
way.Returnyourcartohimforregularservicingorotherrepairsthatmayberequired.
YourNISSAN/DATSUNdealeristhebestplaceforyoutotakeyourcarforanykindof
service.
Toassistdealersinhandlingyourneeds,a numberofRegionalOfficesaremaintained
throughouttheUnitedStatesandCanada.Ifyouhavea problemthathasnotbeen
handledtoyoursatisfaction,followtheproceduresoutlinedinyourWarrantyPamphlet
orBookletundertheheading"ConsumerAssistance".
Allinformation,specificationsandillustrationsinthismanualarethoseineffectatthe
timeofprinting.NISSANreservestherighttochangespecificationsordesignatany
timewithoutnotice.
©1980NISSANMOTORCO.,LTD.TOKYO,JAPAN

Becauseofthevarietyofoptions,components
andfeaturesofferedbyNISSANandyour
NISSAN/DATSUNdealer,the equipmentde-
scribedinthismanualmayormaynotbe
identifiedasstandardoroptionalandmayor
maynotbeapplicabletoyourparticularcar.
Whenplanningtotravelinanothercountry
youshouldfirstfindoutiftheoctanerating
ofthegasolineavailablethereissuitablefor
yourcar'sengine,Usinggasolinewithtoolow
anoctaneratingmaycauseenginedamage.
Therefore,avoidtakingyourcartoareas
wheregasolineoftheappropriateoctaneis
notavailable.
Allmodelscanbeoperatedonlywithunlead-
edgasoline.Also,beforeattemptingtoregis-
teryourcarinanothercountry,youshould
checkthatcountry'sregulationsandrequire-
mentstomakesurethatyourcarwillbeable
tomeetallofthem.
Contents
1
ECONOMYHINTS........................
BEFOREDRIVINGYOURDATSUN...............
INSTRUMENTSANDCONTROLS...............
STARTINGANDOPERATING..................
COMFORTANDCONVENIENCEFEATURES........
INCASEOFEMERGENCY......................
EMISSIONCONTROLSYSTEMS................
MAINTENANCESCHEDULE..................
DO-IT-YOURSELF...........................
APPEARANCEANDINTERIORCARE.............
SPECIFICATIONS.............................
CONSUMERINFORMATION.................
INDEX..................................
GASSTATIONINFORMATION.................
2
3
11
23
33
50
54
56
61
82
87
92
101
104

Economy
Hints
OperationaleconomyisoneoftheoutstandingfeaturesofyourDATSUN.Bydeveloping
thefollowinggooddrivinghabitsevengreatereconomymaybeattained.
1.Donotpumptheaccelerator.Gentlydepressuntilthedesiredspeedhasbeenattained
andthenmaintainthatspeed.
2.Alwaysdriveyourcarinthegearwhichproperlysuitsdrivingconditions.
3.Maintainmoderatespeedsonthehighway.Speedsabove50MPH(80km/h)will
considerablyincreasegasolineconsumption.
4.Maintaina safedistancebehindothercars.Avoidsuddenstops.Thiswillreducewear
onbrakepadsandsavefuel,asextragasolineisrequiredtoacceleratebacktodriving
speed.
5.Excessiveengineidlingincreasesgasolineconsumption.
6.Keepthetiresattherecommendedinflationpressuresforlongertirelifeandfuel
economy.
7.Keepyourenginetuned-upandfollowtherecommendedperiodicmaintenance
schedule.Thiswillincreasethelifeofallpartsandloweroperatingcosts.
8.Checkyourtiresregularlyforabnormalwear.Wheelsthatareoutofalignmentcause
thetirestodrag,resultinginprematuretirewearandadditionalgasolineconsumption.
9.Usetheairconditioneronlywhennecessary.
2
Normaldrivingsavesfuelandmoney.
Severedrivingwastesfuelandmoney.
EH002
EH001

Before
Driving
Your
DATSUN
FamiliarizeyourselfwithalltheDATSUN
featuresandsafe-drivingprocedures.
SAFETY CHECKS
BeforedrivingyourDATSUN,besureto
checkallthesafetyitemsmentionedbe-
low.
BEFOREENTERINGTHECAR
•Checktobesurethatallwindowsand
lightlensesareclean.
•Visuallyinspecttiresfortheirappear-
anceandcondition.Alsochecktire
pressureforproperinflation.
•Checktobesurethatareaaroundcaris
clear.
•Makesurethatthehoodisclosed
securely.
AFTERENTERINGTHECAR
Lockalldoors.
Positionseats.
Adjustheadrestraints.
Adjustinsideandoutsidemirrors.
Fastenseatbeltsandaskallpassengers
todolikewise.
•Checktheoperationoflights,switches,
hornandbrakes.
•Checktheoperationofwarninglights
whenkeyisturnedto"ON"position.
IMPORTANTOWNERINFORMATION
Fluidlevelssuchasengineoil,enginecoolant,brakeandclutchfluid,windshieldwasher
fluid,batteryfluidshouldbecheckedfrequently,oratleastwheneveryourefuel.
Thisisnotonlya goodpracticebutisespeciallyimportanttoownersusing"self-service"
servicestations.Itisnormal,especiallyinthecaseofengineoilandcoolant,tohaveto
addoilorcoolantsolutionbetweenrecommendedmaintenanceintervals.Lowor
improperfluidlevelscancauseseriousdamagetoyourcar.Iffrequentreplenishmentis
required,takeyourcartoyourNISSAN/DATSUNdealerorothercompetentservice
facilityfornecessarycorrection.Furtherdetailsaredescribedin "Do-lt-Yourself".
3

DOOR LOCKS
KEY
Thekeysoperatethelocksandtheignition
switchonyourDATSUNasindicatedin
theaboveillustration.
RecordthekeynumbersoyourNISSAN/
DATSUNdealerwillbeabletoreplacea
lostkey.
Itisalso a goodideatokeepyourkey
numberinyourwallettogetherwithyour
license.
Ifthedriver'sdoorisopenedwhenthe key
isintheignitionswitch,a chimewill
soundanda lightwillglowtoremindyou
toremovethekey.Thiswillhelpprevent
theftofyourcar.
4
FROMOUTSIDE
Thedoorscanbelockedfromtheoutside
withouta key.Movetheinsidelockknob
tothe"LOCK"positionandthenshutthe
door,pullingtheoutsidedoorhandle
upward.
Whenlockingthedoorwithouta key,
besurethatthekeyhasnotbeenleftin-
sidethecar.
FROMINSIDE
Alldoorscanbelockedfrominsidethe
car.Whenthedoorislocked,itcannotbe
openedbytheinsidedoorhandle.
•Alwayslockdoorsfromthe insidewhile
driving.Thisprovidesgreatersafetyin
accidents,helpskeepchildrenfrom
openingdoors,andhelpskeepout
intruderswhenstoppedforlights,etc.
•Beforeopeningthedoor,alwayslookto
besureitissafetodoso.

SEATS
FRONTSEATADJUSTMENT
Thefore-and-aftcontrolleverlocatedat
thelowerfrontoftheseatreleasestheseat
latch.Toadjusttheseatposition,movethe
leverasshownandholditwhileyouslide
theseatforwardorbackwardtothe
desiredposition.Releasethelevertolock
theseatinposition.
CAUTION:
•Donotadjustthe driver'sseatwhile
driving.Theseatmaysuddenlyjerk
forwardorbackward,whichcouldre-
sultinlossofcontrol.
•Afteradjustment,testtobesureseatis
securelylocked.
RECLININGSEAT
Therecliningseatcontrolleversarelocated
attheoutsideofeachfrontseat.Toadjust
theseatback,pulltheleverupward,and
leanbackuntilthedesiredangleisob-
tained.Tobringtheseatbackupagain,pull
theleveranditwillmoveforward.When
thedesiredangleisobtained,releasethe
lever.
Afteradjustment,testtobesureseatis
securelylocked.
WARNING:
Neverrideina movingcarwiththe
seatbackinrecliningposition.Seatbelts
areeffectiveonlywhenthe wearerisina
fullyuprightposition.
TILTINGFRONTSEAT
2+2model
Tofacilitateentrytotherearseat,the
frontpassengerseatbacktiltsasillustrated.
Whenthelatchisreleased,theseatback
willtiltforwardandtheseatwillautomati-
callyslideforward.
Rearseatoccupantcantiltthefront
passengerseatbymovingtheleverlocated
onthesideoftheseatback.
5

HEADRESTRAINTS
SEATLIFTER
Adjusttheangleofseatcushiontoany
desiredpositionbysimplypullingupthe
lever.
CAUTION:
Donotadjustdriver'sseatwhiledriving.
6
LUMBARSUPPORT
Tolessenfatiguefroma longdrive,adjust
thehardnessofthepartoftheseatwhich
supportsthelumbar-vertebraareaofthe
back.
Withthepushbuttondepressed,pushthe
adjustingleverforwardandthemiddle
portionoftheseatbackwillslightlymove
forwardforincreasedlumbarsupport.To
returntheseatbacktoitsoriginalposition,
moveyourbodyforwardslightlyatthe
waist.Then,whiledepressingpushbutton,
leanbackandtheseatbackwillreturnto
itsoriginalposition.
CAUTION:
Donotadjustdriver'sseatwhiledriving.
Theoptimumpositionforheadrestraintis
onewheretheheadrestraintisjustabove
(orona levelwith)thetopoftheears.Do
notcenteritontheneck.Toraiseor
lower,justslideheadrestraintupordown.
WARNING:
Headrestraintsmayprovidesignificant
protectionagainstwhiplashinjuries.Do
notremovethem.

SEAT BELTS
FRONTSEATBELTS
1.Adjustthefrontseattothefullyup-
rightposition.
(Takeanerectpostureposition,andsit
wellbackintheseat.)
2.Thebelttongueissecuredtothebeltas
illustrated.
Theupperpartofthebelt,inwhichthe
tongueisinstalled,servesasa shoulder
beltandthelowerpartasa lapbelt.
3.Slowlypulloutthelap-shoulderbelt
andinsertthetongueintothebuckle
untilyouheara snappingsound.
4.Positionthelapportionofthebelt
acrossthelapaslowonthehipsas
possible.
5.Ifthelap-shoulderbeltisslackafteryou
havebuckledit,pulltheshoulderbelt
towardtheretractortotakeupthe
slack.
•Undernormalcircumstancesthebelt
retractorpermitsthebelttomovefreely
withtheoccupant,lockingonlyinthe
eventofanabruptstoporimpact.
•Somestates,provincesorterritories
mayspecifythatseatbeltsbewornat
alltimeswhena carisbeingoperated.
6.Tounfastenthebelt,pressthebutton
ofthebuckle.
Theseatbeltwillautomaticallyretract.
Theseatbelthookisconvenientforim-
mediateuse.Wheninusebyoccupantsit
willremainthreadedthroughthehook.
Afterunfasteningseatbelt,bringbelt
tonguetothehookandsuspendit.
CAUTION:
Besuretoobservethefollowingcautions.
Failuretodosocouldincreasethechance
and/orseverityofinjuryinanaccident.
•Alwayspasstheshoulderbeltoveryour
shoulderandacrossyourchestasshown
inillustration.Neverrunthebeltunder
yourarm.
•Positionthelapbeltaslowaspossible
AROUNDTHEHIPS,NOTTHE
WAIST.
•Thebeltshouldbeadjustedtoa snug
fit.Slackinthelap-shoulderbeltwill
reducetheeffectivenessoftheentire
restraintsystem.
•Neverwearthebeltinsideoutortwist-
ed.
•Donotallowmorethanonepersonto
usethesamebeltatthesametime.7

SEATBELTMAINTENANCE
•Tocleanthebeltwebbings,applya mild
soapsolutionoranysolutionrecom-
mendedforcleaningupholsteryorcar-
pet,brushit,wipewithclothandallow
ittodryintheshade.
•Donotallowthebeltstoretractuntil
theyarecompletelydry.
•Donotuseanyotherchemicalsortry
bleachingorre-dyeingthebelt.These
operationsmayweakenthewebbing.
•Periodicallycheckthebeltandthe
metalcomponentssuchasbuckles,
tongues,retractors,flexiblewiresand
anchorsfordeteriorationordamage.
•Ifanycomponentisfounddeteriorated
ordamaged,orifthebelthasbeensub-
jectedtoloadingastheresultofanacci-
dent,thebeltshouldbereplacedasan
assembly.
REARSEATBELTS
1.Slowlyandinonemotionpulloutthe
outerlapbeltandinsertthebelttongue
intothebuckleuntilyouheara snap-
pingsound.
Ifpullingmotionisinterrupted,letthebelt
rewindintothe retractorallthe wayand
thebeltcanbepulledout.
CAUTION:
Positionthe lapbeltaslowaspossible
AROUNDTHEHIPS,NOTTHEWAIST.
•Neverwearthebeltinsideoutortwist-
ed.
•Donotallowmorethanonepersonto
usethesamebeltatthesametime.
2.Letthebeltrewindintotheretractor
untilitfitssnuglyacrossthehipbone.
8
3.Tounfastenthebelt,pressthebuttonin
thecenterofthebuckleasillustrated.
Theseatbeltwillautomaticallyretract.
CAUTION:
Somestates,provincesorterritoriesmay
specifythatseatbeltsbewornatalltimes
whena carisbeingoperated.

REARVIEW MIRRORS
TRAILER TOWING
YournewDATSUNwasdesignedtobe
usedprimarilytocarrypassengersand
cargo.Foryoursafetyandthatofyour
passengers,pleasereadthefollowingsec-
tioncarefullybeforetowinga trailer.Re-
memberthattowinga trailerwillplacead-
ditionalloadsonyourcar'sengine,drive
train,steering,brakingandothersystems.
MAXIMUMTRAILERLOAD
Neverallowthetotaltrailerload(trailer
weightpluscargoweight)toexceed1,000
lbs(454kg).Towingloadsgreaterthan
thiscouldhaveseriouseffectsonyour
car'shandlingandperformancewhich
couldresultincardamageand/orpersonal
injury.
MAXIMUMTONGUELOAD
Neverallowthetongueloadtoexceed10%
ofthetotaltrailerload.Inaddition,re-
memberthattongueloadshouldbecon-
sideredpartofthecarpassengerandcargo
load(GrossAxleWeightRating).Inno
caseshouldthisloadratingbeexceeded;
otherwise,carhandling,brakingandper-
formancemaybeadverselyaffected.
TRAILERHITCH
Choosea hitchdesignwhichiscompatible
withyourcarandtrailerandmakesure
thetrailerhitchissecurelyattachedtothe
car,tohelpavoidpersonalinjurydueto
swaycausedbycrosswinds,roughroad
surfacesorpassingtrucks.Axle-mounted
hitchesshouldnotbeused.
Thehitchshouldnotbeattachedtothe
bumper;inaddition,itshouldbeinstalled
ina mannerthatwillnotaffecttheopera-
tionoftheimpact-absorbingbumpersys-
tem.
Nomodificationsshouldbemadeduring
hitchinstallationtothecarexhaustsys-
tem,brakesystem,etc.Ifthehitchisre-
moved,sealtheboltholestopreventex-
haustfumes,waterordustfromentering
thepassengercompartment.
Fromtimetotime,checktomakesure
thatalltrailerhitchmountingboltsremain
securelyfastened.
TIREPRESSURES
Whentowinga trailer,inflatethecartires
totherecommendedcoldtirepressure
indicatedonthetireplacard(located
ontheinsideofthecenterconsolebox
lid).
Trailertirecondition,size,loadratingand
properinflationpressureshouldbeinac-
cordancewiththetrailerandtiremanu-
facturers'specifications.
9
OUTSIDEDOORMIRROR
Theoutsidemirrorcanbemovedinany
directionforbetterrearview.
Remotecontrolmirror
Thistypeofmirrorisadjustedwiththe
remotecontrolknoblocatedatthecenter
console.
INSIDEMIRROR
Theinsiderearviewmirrorcanbechanged
fromcleardaylightvisibilitytonon-glare
nightvisibilitybypullingtheknobunder
themirror.

SAFETYCHAIN
Alwaysusea suitablechainbetweenyour
carandthetrailer.Thechainshouldbe
crossedandshouldbeattachedtothe
hitch,nottothecarbumperoraxle.Be
suretoleaveenoughslackinthechainto
permitturningcorners.
TRAILERLIGHTS
TrailerlightsshouldcomplywithFederal
and/orlocalregulations.
Whenwiringcarfortowingconnection,
connectstopandtaillightpickupintothe
carelectricalcircuitatpointbetweenthe
sensorandstoplightswitchorlight
switch.
-
TRAILERBRAKES
Ifyourtrailerisequippedwitha braking
system,makesureitconformstoFederal
andlocalregulationsandthatitisproperly
installed.
Undernocircumstancesshoulda trailer
brakesystembeconnecteddirectlytothe
carbrakesystem.
TRAILERTOWINGTIPS
Inordertogainskillandanunderstanding
ofthecar'sbehavior,youshouldpractice
turning,stoppingandbackingupinanarea
whichisfreefromtraffic,becausesteering
stability,operationandbrakingperform-
ancewillbesomewhatdifferentthanunder
normalcircumstances.
•Avoidabruptstarts,accelerationor
stops.
•Avoidsharpturnsorlanechanges.
•Alwaysdriveyourcarata moderate
speed.
•Alwaysblockthewheelsonbothcar
andtrailerwhenparking.Parkingona
slopeisnotrecommended;however,if
youmustdoso,andifyourcaris
equippedwithautomatictransmission,
don'tshiftthetransmissionshiftlever
intothe"PARK"positionuntilthe
wheelshavebeenblockedandthepark-
ingbrakehasbeenset.Otherwise,trans-
missiondamagecouldoccur.
•Whendescendinga hill,shiftintoa
lowergearandusetheenginebraking
effect.Whenascendinga longgrade,
downshiftthetransmissiontoa lower
gearandreducespeedaspermittedto
reducechancesofengineoverloading
and/oroverheating.
•Iftheenginecoolantrisestoanex-
tremelyhightemperaturewhentheair
conditioningsystemis"ON"turnthe
system"OFF".
•Trailertowingrequiresmorefuelthan
undernormalcircumstancesbecauseof
aconsiderableincreaseintraction
powerandresistance.
•Avoidtowinga trailerduringthe
"break-in"period.
•Haveyourcarservicedmoreoftenthan
atintervalsspecifiedintherecommend-
edMaintenanceSchedule.
Whentowinga trailer,changeoilindif-
ferentialgearevery30,000miles(48,000
km)or24months,whichevercomesfirst.
10

Instruments
And Controls
Sideventilator
Sidedefroster
Cruisecontrolsetswitch
Lightandturnsignalswitch
Fuelgauge
Illuminationcontrolknob
Hazardwarningflasherswitch
Speedometer
Headlightcleanerswitch
Tachometer
Windshieldwiperandwasher
switch
Coolanttemperaturegauge
Cruisecontrolmainswitch
Oilpressuregauge
Upperventilator
HeaterorAirconditioner
control
Voltmeter
Clock
Centerventilator
Glovebox
Steplight
Automatictransmissioncontrol
lever
Stereotapedeck
Speakerbalancecontrollever
(ifsoequipped)
Ashtray
Parkingbrakelever
Manualtransmissioncontrol
lever
Radio
Doormirrorremotecontrol
lever
Cigarettelighter
Floorventilationcontrollever
Acceleratorpedal
Ignitionswitch
Brakepedal
Clutchpedal
Hoodreleasehandle
Footrest
Rearwindowdefrosterswitch
Rearwindowwiperandwasher
switch
11
IC136

'81
S130-D
ThisOwner'sManual has been provided to
introduce youto your new Datsun. A sepa-
rate Warranty Information Pamphlet or
Warranty and ServiceBookletcontains in-
formationconcerningyour new vehicle
warranty.
BUTDIDYOU KNOW ?
Thousands of Datsunowners are learning
evenmoreabout the technicalside of their
new automobiles by purchasingFactory
Service Manuals.
For information onhowyoumay orderyour
individualvehiclemanual, see "Ordering In-
structions" in this Owner'sManual.
Issued: June1980 (171000)
Publication No. OM1E-S130UO
Printed in Japan