m1ghtymaxXx

I've owned a 77 and an 83 2+2 non turbo. My 77 had sat for 2 years before I bought it last fall, and I'm still working the bugs out of it. My 83 was bought from a sketchy used car dealership, and my high school gym teacher was the original owner, so I knew the history of it. It was pretty much rock solid reliable with exception to some electrical issues. It ate alternators and batteries, and lit the fusible link box, but that was all due to a corroded ground. My opinion is that the ZX would be the better daily. It feels far more modern to drive, and I found basic maintenance to be simpler, thanks to among other things, 4 wheel disc brakes, lack of spindle pins and rear mcpherson struts. In the 6 or so years of driving my 83, I only performed basic maintenance, and it was rust cleverly hidden by the shady dealership) that killed it. Power steering, cruise control, larger hatch space, T-tops, 4 speakers mounting locations, larger hatch space, power mirrors and locks, and standard AC(?) contribute to a more comfortable driving experience, plus the ladies love bitching Betty Of course both cars get tons of attention and are fun to drive, but for extended periods of driving, I would say the ZX is the way to go. Asa bonust, S13 coilovers are a cinch to install on the ZX to improve looks and potentially ride quality and handling.

Well I spoke too soon, zcarparts seems to have it, but for a mere $115! http://www.thezstore.com/page/TZS/PROD/SFC03L/11-3470 I'm open to more suggestions...

My fuel pump has been running constant as long as the battery running. It may have been doing this since I bought the car as I noticed my battery was running down when the car was parked last fall when I bought it. I didn't notice the fuel pump running until recently when walking past the car, I heard a hissing sound which I mistook for a leaking tire, but quickly found to be coming from the fuel pressure regulator (much louder than the fuel pump itself). My parking procedure than included pulling the battery terminal every time I shut the car off. Anyways without attempting to troubleshoot, I ordered a new fuel pump relay, not being able to think of anything else that could cause the issue. Anyways the relay showed up yesterday, and after searching for it's location I found it above the ECU under dash, but of course the one I pulled out was nothing like the one I just acquired, it had 2 plugs into it, and I believe it's the combination fuel pump and EFI relay I've heard mention of. The FSM had instructions on how to test the relay (matching the relay I removed, not the new one), and sure enough I wasn't getting a click and it failed one of the continuity tests. Since it was presumably stuck in the closed position, i decided to give it a couple smacks and sure enough it then tested good. I reinstalled it and now the fuel pump is shutting off, so I've stopped pulling the terminal. I'm still a bit nervous about it sticking again, so I'd like to replace it for peace of mind, however I'm unable to locate another. Does anyone have a source for a new one? The only ones I can find are the same as the wrong one that already showed up to my door.

I'm interested. Are you going to reveal what the calipers are sourced from? Also I'm guessing a 300mm rotor setup won't clear 15" wheels? Any chance of a kit being made with a smaller rotor for those of us wanting to keep our 15" wheels?

There's nothing forcing you to stay on the track any for any extended periods of time. The course is set up as a circuit, so you do a lap and then head to the "pits" for as long as you'd like before lining up at the start again where cars are released at 30 second intervals. I'll be taking the school in the Z since my driver already has his rally license, however another friend is co-driving with another buddy who has his license, so we'll pair up and take our own street machines. Since I've already dragged this thread far off topic (my apologies), figured I'd point out this is for the Targa Newfoundland Rally, and you can keep track of our Evo III build progress at www.facebook.com/targaevo80

I just got 15x9 Rota Shakotans for street wheels and I figured my next wheels would be 17's for brake clearance and tire choice. Now I'm considering a set of 15" race wheels to take advantage of all the cheap/used race tires (spec miata!), but it would hinder brake options. Thanks everyone for the suggestions so far. At this point I won't be getting another set of wheels (also had a set of 16's stolen over winter, cops think there's a chance they could be recovered). I checked ebay yesterday and found a vendor with a nice selection for 13" and 17" Hoosiers, nothing in 14" unfortunately.

Unfortunately I have 2 years to go before the 10 years driving experience Haggerty requires. My current insurer will only touch stock vehicles, which mine is currently with the exception of of "invisible" suspension mods, LSD and exhaust. The car desperately needs to shed the diving board bumpers and I was going to do a duckbill and air dam while I'm at it.

Looks good. A club member just built a hitch for his 78 for autocross.

14" wheel diameter, not tire. Need 14x6 wheels for stock class. Thanks 240zttV8 for the suggestion.

I bought a set of used Hankook Z214's off a club member however 2 events in and they're slightly corded in a few spots. 225/50R14 are ideal, but I'll settle for anything that will fit a 14x6 rim. If you know of a cheap set laying around with 8 events worth of tread, and are willing to ship to Canada, let me know!

What are you running for calipers? I just had my ass kicked at autocross last weekend by my combination of 1" Wilwood MC, Stock calipers and drums, Hawk HP Plus pads and Hankook Z214 slicks. I had been running the 1" MC and stock brakes with unknown stock replacement pads for a while without issue, however the aggressive pads make it too easy to lock up the wheels with the very little pedal travel the big MC provides. The issue was much more exaggerated with the R comps since there's no warning of wheel lockup until you see the plume of tire smoke or realize you have no steering. I ran some fun runs on street tires and found the issue to be much less severe. I'm curious to see what's involved in changing the pivot location of the pedal. I bought the Wilwood MC because the the one in the car when I bought it was shot and saw big brakes in my near future, however I've been having second thoughts about the big brakes because of the balance issues that everyone seems to be having, and the fact they just don't seem necessary. I bought the HP+ because I'll be running a road rally school in September and wanted some heat capacity. The format for the driving portion is 2 two hours sessions around a course closed off through a town on a small island near where I live. You can line up to run as frequently as you want, but I didn't want to be held up by cooked brakes.

I'm not concerned about the safety aspect of not having the diving board bumpers. My concern is weather the insurance company would ever cover my claim if I ended up in an accident, since presumably the damage would be greater without them. For that reason, a set of stock 240Z bumpers would probably be a better choice since they look factory, however that would be an expensive option and I'd never find them local to me.

I had planned on doing the same thing, except I was thinking about making my own shocks to preserve the frame in a fender bender. I was thinking of making a cylinder with a 2 pieces of tube, one who's ID equals the other's OD, capping the inner one and filling the "cylinder" with a dense foam and tacking the 2 pieces together so that in a collision the tack would break and the foam absorb energy. Now to find appropriately sized tube and what foam to use. Any suggestions? Also did you slip roll your "rebars"? Unfortunately I don't have access to that kind of equipment, so I'll have to add some pie cuts. Edit: Although I'm not worried about being ticketed for improper bumpers, I am worried about insurance coverage if my car is in an accident and found to not have the proper bumpers.

When I installed the Wilwood MC i was unable to turn the pushrod on the threads. I ended up trashing the threads with vice grips but still never got it to turn. Thankfully the adjustment was within a millimeter of where I measured it needed to be, and it worked flawlessly sans adjustment. It looks the the MC that came in the car was from an early 240Z, so perhaps in replacing it, a previous owner got creative with locking the pushrod in place. Since there wasn't a trace of rust, perhaps the threads were glued in place...

I've got Megan coilovers to drop it, but Autocross is the priority this year, and I don't expect the Megans to offer much benefit in that regard.

Is it a solid rear axle? Can you not find a 12x1.25 stud with a knurl to fit the new axle?

Your main issue is that different dyno's can't be compared. It's a tool for measuring difference in performance over a session, but unless it's been SAE calibrated, not useful for determining outright power figures.

I've got a brown one from an 83 turbo, had no cracks when it was put in storage over 2 years ago. Haven't checked on it since, but it should still be good. Not sure where you are, but given my location in Newfoundland, Canada, and the crate required to ship it intact, I expect shipping could be pricey. Send me a PM if you're interested.

Pic as promised:

I just installed 15x9, 0 offset Rota Shakotans with 225/50's. I'm just running Eibachs and Tokico blues, and I needed an 8mm spacer for the tire to clear the spring perch (5mm just barely cleared, but I suspect it would have rubbed when cornering). Both front and rears poke maybe 3/4" or so at the top of the fender. I haven't had any rubbing, and I just autocrossed on these wheels on a somewhat bumpy surface. Of course if you're looking to dump your car, you'd need a pretty sever stretch and stiff springs to keep your rubber inside the fenders, but the moderate stretch of the 225's should allow me to go a further inch or so lower when I get around to coilovers. I'll try and remember to post pics after work.

I installed a start button in my 83 out of necessity when the starter contact gave up in the ignition switch. Apparently fixing it properly isn't hard at all, but bu the time I learned that I was long done. My setup still required turning the key to the on position. Just to get it going I ran a fused wire from the battery terminal to a momentary push button. Of course this is a bit of a fire hazard and it also means the starter can be fired without a key. I then picked up a $5 dollar fog light relay kit and ran it off an accessory wire so that the starter would only fire with the key turned. Of course this also prevented the full amperage to the starter solenoid from running through the button. Electrical work is certainly not my forte, but with some consultation from my millwright roomate, it was a fairly simple job.

Door sills would be a easy one I would think. I like the dash cap idea a lot too.

Just for reference, My 16x8's have now been replaced with 15x9 et0. I think with coilovers you could get away with a 16x9, but they poke a bit, so you would't be able to go terribly low without a fair bit of tire stretch (but some people are into that). The rears have plenty of room to spare, but the front with a 225/50 is within a mm or so of the strut with a 5mm spacer. I've got 5/16" spacers now (7.9mm) but I'm waiting on longer studs.

I wasn't aware of this throwout bearing collar issues, but I guess I lucked out. I just recently swapped the trans from my 83 2+2 (big flywheel) into my 77. I was going to use the throwout bearing from the 2+2, but the one in the 77 seemed to be in better shape so I went with it. Good to know though!

So I finally got to take my car around the block with OBX installed. I flipped the gears, and my RBryant washer stake came out like this (()()()() giving me approximately 1.25-1.5 turns of the bolt preload. I took the diff to a shop to have the backlash set, so I'm not sure what the finally measurement was. Once assembled I was able to turn the diff with a screwdriver through the stub axle studs. Once installed on the car the diff acted like an open diff in that that the wheels spin in opposite directions when spinning a wheel. Do these seem like symptoms of inadequate preload? Finally I was able to take the car for a spin around the block, and was getting the grinding noise when coasting/decel. I didn't get a chance to inspect it further, but I'm guessing that could be the axle studs grinding on the case. Is there another potential source for this noise? If it is the axle studs, can it be resolved by adding more preload? Or is it just a matter of clearancing the case with an angle grinder?