PapaSmurf

didnt know where to post this, I'm planning on installing a pair of 6x9s right behind the seats above the storage compartments and I need some templates to cut the wood (my car either did not come with the storage compartments as an option or the interior was redone and the compartments were done away with as the holes for the compartments are there but the inserts are gone and the wood hatch floor has no holes for them either) Does anyone know where I can find a template for a 6x9? These are lightning audios I got them free I just crave a bit more bass than my 4in pioneers can offer lol.

haha these were horrible I think they were the stock ones mostly because they were so mangled and they didnt want to come out, two dissimilar metals being pressed together for so long tend to chemically bond

holy **** haha all I can say is better you than me!

what do you mean by hone the cylinders is this something I can do my self or will I need to take it to a shop (which is something I'd very much like to avoid) thanks I think I'll leave the bearings alone as I'm going to be rebuilding the whole thing this next year, I'll turn her into a stroker I just gotta have this thing drivable so I can take her down to cali this summer to visit a friend oil burning doesnt make for good gas mileage

k guys I have a 1978 280z and I'm burning oil. I'm buying rings and a headset and I'm gonna be changing those out but I need to know if theres anything else I should do while I"ve got everything apart. I've been told the valve seals and the crank bearings and rod bearings should be replaced by a friend but ... I dont know anything about that I"m not a mechanic my grandpa is and I'm trying to learn as I go here so what I need is a list of things I should replace while shes apart and things I should do. I'm on a very limited budget so no I'm not taking it to a machine shop to be ported balanced or anything.

It took me and my grand dad 7 hours to get my U joints changed out! We had to cut them out with a grinder and torch the caps to get them off it was hell on my knees and I am dead tired. the good news is it doesnt clunk any more, it still clicks just barely while accelerating you coulnt tell unless you knew when it should happen and were listening for it but its there, probably from the bushings on the mustache bar or maybe that loose differential strap but any how it's done it works I'm taking a nap

sorry guys the camera was out of commision I got a new one and will try to start writing the guide today after I get my U joints replaced. I"m drilling out the anti theft screws on the ignition housing today too so I wont have to worry about the wheel lock anymore yay so much to do today I cant wait for my u joints to be done with it's been driving me insane for a month now

well I finally got around to pulling off those fugly bumpers from my 280z I think I hurt my back trying to carry them both to the garage tho eek those things weigh a ton and those mounts too I love the way the front looks bumperless but the back needs something to cover up the gas tank... any suggestions?

had a bit of trouble with the stock ignition housing I gotta dremel out the theft proof screws and take it off so the wheel will stop locking up. gonna have to include that in the guide me thinks

found the locking mechanism just had to slide it into the right position and bingo it was all betta

I'll post them soon as I get the camera back from a friend

haha somebody tries stealing my baby and I shall rip them a new hole. Ok is the lock mechanical or electrical? I just switched to a push button ignition...

woot just wired up my push button ignition it works great, I've got a switch in the consol that gives the interior power for the stereo and stuff so the engine doesnt have to be on for that and then a push button that is hidden that starts the engine and I wired up a red light to go in the ignition hole that is on when the car has power so I dont forget and end up with a dead battery. This was a really easy mod guys if anyone has any questions I'd be glad to answer them. I might have to make a guide cuz I've seen a lot of questions about this

figured out how to get off the damned steering wheel still cant figure out why the damned thing is locked... is there a lock on these things? I dont know because I"ve never had a working ignition can someone tell me? I've been using the back end of the ignition to start the car with the plastic slot that fits into the key lock. I found a nice button and switch tho that I"m replacing tonight and I'm painting that rusty old steering wheel right now.

wierdness the locking part of my ignition has been broken ever since I got my car, the key does not fit in the lock so today I figured I'd take it out and have a look see and when I put everything back together the steering wheel was locked up. it wont turn! any ideas? What did I break this time? lol also I need some help with getting this wheel off to paint, it's lookin pretty fugly right now I took off the alen screws a few weeks ago and it didnt come off so I just put them back and gave up but it would be nice to figure it out.

hey I just got my z a few weeks ago and I'm in about the same situation as you are, I'm going to college and this is my only mode of transportation. Let me tell you it's difficult finding the time that I can do real work to this thing and money is scarce. You gotta learn to streatch your pennies and make the best use of your time. My car is generally at my friends shop on the weekends and I'm currently working on getting this stock l28 into good shape. These cars dont seem to age well and there are a million little things that need attention. I'd reccomend just making this motor go until you can save up the funds for a turbo swap and then in the summer when you dont need the car so much to get to school you can swap out that tired old thing for a nice sound turbo engine that's been rebulit the right way, you dont want to put something in that's gonna sieze up and die after a few weeks you cant be in a hurry, you gotta do it right, ballance everything, machine the head for warpage and a little extra compression port it etc have some fun with it! This hobby isn't for people who need fast results you gotta be willing to wait you gotta put some time and work into it and in the end I'm sure you will appreciate the results much more.

Hey all, I took my car in to a shop the other day for a free diagnosis and aparently I have a lot of back pressure or else they just wanna sell an exhaust system I'm not entirely sure haha but it would make sense since this thing has burnt quite a bit of oil in its day and the catalytic converter is likely plugged up pretty good. So my question is, until I can afford a new exhaust system, would it be workable to take off my catalytic converter, and just leave the system open with the muffler on there to make it look legal... I gotta drive this thing around town and I wanna know the loudness. I hear a turbo quiets things down nicely but an N/A .. that would probably attract some unwanted attention wouldnt it? does anyone have any ideas? cheap alternative to a new exhaust? any way to clean out this poor old thing?

Hot damn I added it through the shifter and it worked brilliantly damn it needed that so bad! I only added a little bit to make sure nothing leaked or went wrong but I'll add the rest of it tomarrow I can actually shift now yay

I found the problem, the wire that attaches to the positive terminal on the starter that goes to the inside was bad. it had a short in it, and by a short I mean it melted right in half. So I replaced that and she starts right up. Damn this starter makes a differance!

ok I tried replacing the new starter with the original again and it didnt work either. Then I got a bright idea, I turned on the headlights so that if anything I did restored power to the car I'd know it. When I jumped the starter by bridging the power and the black cable I discovered that the headlights turned on. What could this mean? I've been through all the wires inside the car, I had to redo a few connectors that were pretty much dead from long ago when a heater core probably went wrong and leaked over them. But that did not fix my problem. I'm lost here.

awesome thanks for the info guys

Ok guys I have a 78 Z with a 5 speed and Icant get the filler bolt off the transmission, I've tried everything and it's just gonna stay there, so my question is, can I put the gear oil into the place the shifter goes? will it work it's way to where it's supposed to go? Or is that a bad idea

Ok I've taken my entire car apart. Literally. There is not a single piece in the interior that was bolted on, it is gone, as long as this thing isn't starting I figured I might as well start the cleanup. I found 9 dollars in change a bullet and 4 cans of primer (in the storage compartments that somebody carpeted over) I'm redoing this interior. Now that everything is out I can get to the wiring and start trouble shooting!

oh they are supposed to be wires? I thought that was somebodies cheap jerry rig. Yeah I checked them and one was melted, I spliced the wires together and still have no power. This is a manual not an automatic. so heres a question what is the yellow wire that plugs into the starter on the second post, theres the positive from the battery a ground from the battery a black spade connector and a yellow wire on the second post. whats the yellow for? I assume the black spade is for the ignition as when you bridge the power and spade it turns over whats the yellow one for?

I tried the ignition, it was one of the first things I thought of, I bridged every one of the wires int that cable in every combination and got no response the voltmeter on the dash stayed at zero. I would love to have a parts car but I just dont have the money, or a place to park it for that matter lol, I checked the spade wire that I believe you were referring to, the black and yellow wire that goes into the starter near the posts? it's on there good and tight. I tried running a jumper cable from the negative battery post to bare metal on the car to make sure it was grounded right that did nothing... anybody got any more ideas? *edit* I also cleaned all the connections with rubbing alcahol and sand paper, and the battery posts too. My fear is something went snap crackle pop from the jerry rigged fusable links