trippintl0

Wow! Great work!

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Fit an entire drumset in my 280zx coupe. Also one time removed the hatch lid completely so I could take home a washing machine from a garage sale!

Just my opinion, but those sticky zip ties come loose. I like the zip ties with a hole to run a screw through them - Home Depot calls them "Mounting Ties" or mounting zip ties or something. Cheap and very effective.

The only thing I know from working at AutoZone is that the 1983 280zx Turbo has different part number for rear shocks than any of the other year 280zx. I never could compare the two because we didn't stock them at my store, but it may be worth looking into.

I just looked on AutoZone website: All 280zx Non-Turbo cars use the exact same JA929 "ignition rotor." If you're talking about the "distributor" showing different part numbers between different years, this is true: Earlier 280zx had a 2-plug ignition module (E12-80 I think) and the later had a 4-plug ignition module; and possibly, though I'm not 100% sure, the vacuum advance canister may be different between different non-turbo models. Some had one vacuum connection and some had 2 I believe. Good luck.

Go to the junkyard and look at Volvo's and other Bosch injection cars. They have the 3-terminal plug that fits on the TPS, but they are completely insulated and look really nice and pretty. Cut it off, solder & heat-shrink it to your existing wiring harness. (edit) - Just FYI I've actually done this, unfortunately I don't know which exact year or model, but I am 100% sure I have a nice clean insulated OEM plug from another vehicle on my L28E's TPS.

Use cheap NGK plugs until you get this thing figured out!! And DON'T leave your wideband in there until you get the thing at least idling because the excessive richness will foul out the O2 sensor! It happened to me.

Good info! And just fyi: Freon enters at top of condenser as a gas. Freon exits at bottom of condenser, hopefully condensed into a liquid.

So you know in the future, buy two nuts: one regular nut and one "jam" nut. Thread pitch is 3/4" x 16. Here in Dallas I went to a local Ace Hardware and they had the regular and jam nuts in stock for this particular size. This way you can remove and install the stud without risking damaging the threads.

I have hauled an engine in a 1983 Maxima. 4 little bolts and trunk lid comes off. Engine goes in. Engine hoist folded up in backseat! I have also hauled a Chevy 3.1v6 engine in a 1980 Datsun 280zx. 4 little bolts and hatch comes off. Engine goes on an old tire (no rim)... you get the idea! Of course it would've been much easier with a small pickup.. Only thing I can say about using an SUV or van is that it is more difficult to put engine in sometimes. The two times I bought complete engines at the junkyard, a huge bulldozer with a chain on one of the hooks picked the engine up and set it down in my trunk/hatch. To do it in an SUV or van would've probably required a forklift, which they didn't have.

Good job on the troubleshooting! So, where'd you get the MS from?

That's not what RollingParts said at all...actually he explained it very clearly, better than I could have, which is good, so I won't try to repeat what he already said! LOL this thread is getting messy...

I think the one you are talking about sends a signal to automatic A/C to delay Heater operation until coolant is up to temperature.

I stick a long screwdriver in the breather tube at the top and then pry it up, using the screwdriver as a pry bar.. (oops thats a no-no).

The video with the Grandma is the best one ever! I loved it

One time I broke off a valve cover bolt. After fighting with it for a while I realized the bolt was sticking out the bottom about 1/4 inch and I was able to use vise grips and unscrew it like that.

That website looks like a joke. No matter which car you click it reads exactly the same thing, just with that car's model inserted in 100 times. The pictures don't even show a housing for the bulb...

If it was me, I'd stop driving the car and drive something else for a while. Spend more time with family & less time in the garage. Then, when you get to come back & drive it or work on it, you'll remember what an awesome car it is and it will be much fun (for a little while at least). Everything in life is a compromise, and the way I see it, you're better off to compromise on the car than on time with family. Besides, your car truly is awesome!

Why not use Freon? You've already got an A/C compressor from the factory. It's already got a condenser. Build the intake manifold around a small evaporator coil. Add a big accumulator so you don't slug the compressor when the turbo's not doing anything. Will it work? Who knows! Although, I KNOW TonyD has mentioned using refrigeration for some sort of engine cooling or intercooling...

"sitting agents a tree in a riding area" I'm sorry if this is off topic and anal, but I just spent 5 minutes trying to understand what you meant! "Against" would be used for when something is leaning "against" something else. "Agents" would be like a James Bond, double-o "agent". Insanely ridiculous about not being allowed to have tires in the dirt, though! That's just nuts.

There is no reason to feel bad at all for the money. If you go to a good quality body shop and get this thing fully repaired without bondo the way you want it, it will probably cost much more than 2100! It sounds like you seem to think that since you're going to do a lot of the work yourself, that you don't deserve as much. I used to be the same way. I would fix people's cars and charge so little. I could have made the same money pushing carts at Wal-Mart. And I would not count the time to set up, get tools out, put tools away, clean up, do paperwork, etc. Believe me, I rarely do side work anymore, but if I do, and it's not a freebie (like for my parents) then I bill my time from the time I leave doing whatever I was doing until I get back - even my friends I bill this way. It seems cold-blooded at first, and it makes some people not want your services anymore, but you will eventually realize (especially once you are married and have children) that your time is very precious!!

So do I, and I have had plenty of corrosion issues with vehicle wiring. It's a real problem no matter where you're located. My first MegaSquirt wiring, I used butt crimp connectors. I never had one come loose. But a professional mechanic convinced me to cut them out and solder / heat shrink everything, and I was surprised at the corrosion that had occurred within a time period of about 6 months. The wires weren't rusty yet, but the copper looked dull and dark in places.

When you say, "i had a voltage drop," what do you mean? Do you mean voltage reading at battery was too low? Do you mean there is a measurable voltage drop from Alternator output to Battery positive? Are you saying that you measure 13.9v at Battery, but only 13.2v from your cigarette lighter? Please get specific.

That looks really neat and obviously took a lot of initiative. The only thing i am worried about is having all of those insulated crimp connectors. They don't seal out any moisture and are prone to corrosion. The factory harness used crimp connections but they were sealed with heat shrink. Newer cars use plastic harnesses with rubber seals that seal out moisture, but allow for easy disconnecting (example GM weatherpack) It may not cause any immediate problems, especially being on the interior of the car, but I'd still avoid it. Possible alternative: If you used UNinsulated crimp connections but put a small piece of heat-shrink around the crimp to seal out moisture, you may get the best of both worlds. That being said, it seems to be a great setup for testing and troubleshooting, since all the connections are exposed for quick voltage / resistance checks.