m1ghtymaxXx

I just finished building a 3" exhaust, but haven't put a tip on it yet. The flared outlet of the Dynomax Superturbo sits flush with the rear valence. I might just leave it like that haha.

I paid 6500 CAD for my rust free 77. I also paid 6k for a rusty ZX. $3500 sounds like a deal to me, but these cars fetch a much higher price in Canada.

If it makes you feel better, a cheap generic battery tiedown snapped in my 77 while autocrossing, and the battery fell down and welded the positive post to a braided ground strap. It was like that for about a minute or so, but it fired back up and ran just fine. I think it may have led to a phantom draw issue, but I've been lazy and just leave the battery disconnected rather than trace it so far.

So the only issue is that I'm an utter tard. Despite doing this many times over the years, somehow this time around It never occurred to me that both wires share the same post. All is good

The battery was disconnected the entire time in storage. The fan and radio were probably turned while tearing the interior apart like an idiot looking for wiring issues under the dash.

Bingo. Took a crack at it last night. This is embarrassing, but i still didn't get it fired, but I'm close. I have 2 starters kicking around, the stock 77 and a ZX, both have 2 identical sized posts, but one has a contact leading to the motor. It seemed logical to assume the battery cable would bolt to that one, while the white wire goes to the other, however wiring it this way gave me no signs of life until I go to crank the starter, then the dash voltage gauge would show about 4 volts and the starter would make a faint grinding noise. Then while attempting to jump the starter from the battery, I fumbled and touched the post the white wire was attached to, and all of a sudden the car came to life (fan and radio was left on). I left it the jumper connected and tried to start the car, but the solenoid didn't seem to be getting a signal and there wasn't so much as a click. I bench tested both starters and they spun fine. Then I switched the poles around and that just makes the starter run constantly. Clearly I'm just clueless how the wires are arranged at the starter. If anyone has a pic or diagram, think that would sort me out. FSM didn't seem to show it.

I don't think I was getting anything at the alternator positive. The fusible link block takes power from the + starter pole correct? I'm wondering if that could be the issue. Gonna make the trek out tonight and see if I can get it sorted.

So I take it the link in the first post regarding a similar problem being traced back to a voltage gauge is 240z specific. I found a nice colour wiring diagram here: http://4moores.com/280z/files/77_ZCAR-WIRING.pdf I would think the issue must lie before the fusible link box, since that seems to be the first distribution point between various harnesses. Also I guess the seemingly redundant connectors on the positive wire running along the firewall contain a length of fusible link. Does anyone know if the + and - that run along the firewall are spiral wound in what looks like electrical tape? Just wondering if that's factory. My current game plan is to jump a positive to the fusible link box and see if that remedies things. Beyond that I'm at a bit of a loss here.

Yes, no lights, no horn, interior lights, no cranking, no door buzzer, no sign of life whatsoever. Battery voltage was good. terminals were fine, I was getting a ground reading the same as the battery voltage from the engine and chassis. The fusble links are good. Hoping for some guidance on where to go from here. Going to work my way down the line from here, but hoping for some insite on typical things that can cause this, besides the usual battery/terminals/fusible links.

So today after wrapping up a painstaking exhaust build, I went to fire up my 1977 and nothing, no sign of any power whatsoever. Of the Battery, terminals, and fusible links seem fine. Unfortunately the car is stored out of town, and was supposed to come home today, so I'm thinking I'll might the trek out tomorrow evening. I was hoping to put together a checklist. Here's some background: - Car was put in storage last December, battery was disconnected immedialte - Building was broken into, wheels were stolen off my car, along with all my tools. car was rummaged through, but no signs of being vandalized - I did some work on the car, replaced transmission, diff, installed rear mount sway bar and built a new exhaust (was careful with ground placement). No electrical work done unless you count removing the starter for the trans swap. I did install a somewhat unkown ZX starter, but that seems irrelevant. Some suspicious things to note:http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y174/m1ghtymaxXx/IMG_2609.jpg harness power wire look to have been replaced. They look like they're wrapped in electrical tape, but done very neatly. That's not factory is it? Also the abundance of connectors on the negative and positive side, along with some shady looking crimps. They do carry continuity though. Searching under the dash I found this: http://s5.photobucket.com/user/m1ghtymaxXx/media/IMG_2614.jpg.html Apologies for the blurry pic, but it's a plastic hose (similar to what might be used for rear window washers), wrapped in copper strand wire and insulated. It runs into the rocker through a factory looking grommet and I can't find the other end. It's clearly been slashed, but no sigh of what it connected into. I've been skimming through pages of search results, and the only relalvent thread I've found is this: http://forums.hybridz.org/topic/98327-240z-lost-all-electrical-power/?hl=no%20power it doesn't specify what year, but so far the voltage gauge is the first on my list of things to check. I still have to go over the wiring diagrams and see and make a list of a potential culprits, but if anyone can offer insight on typical issues that can cause this, it would be much appreciated!

bmr89, What year is your Z? I just went to fire up my 77 after a winter's storage (battery disconnected) and nothing. Wondering if the voltage gauge could be the issue, it does get a bit humid where it was stored, and perhaps something corroded.

Good to know. Thankfully I found a deal on a Hans device. Not a requirement for Targa NL, but doing 200+ on roads that are sketchy enough at the speed limit, I'm not going to chance it. The group N cage in T45 chromo just arrived too!

Why bother with 7" in the front? 8" will fit fine, allow you to rotate tires, and potentially reduce understeer?

The non-serviceable sealed part would be referring to the viscous coupling and not the gear oil. You can treat it like any other diff, except when the viscous coupling goes, it would have to be replaced.

What year 280ZX calipers are you using?

I was thinking of using some harness with the stock seats PURELY for autocross, but as mentioned, they'd be dangerous anywhere where you risk being in a collision.

That price would be about right in Canada

Is it just glued to the underside of the console? I need to figured a new shift boot since I swapped in an 83 ZX trans and shifter, and the stock boot in my 77 doesn't allow enough movement for the straight ZX shifter to engage 1st, 3rd and 5th.

Looking good! I'm co-driving in this year's Targa Newfoundland rally. We're in the midst of building an Evo III, and you can track our progress here: www.facebook.com/targaevo80 I heard about the fatality last week, scary stuff. Any updates on the condition of the co-driver?

Look up to post #23 Here's some more though (Flickr and image tags don't seem to play nice with this forum) http://www.flickr.com/photos/87466467@N04/8311870618/ http://www.flickr.com/photos/87466467@N04/8311870806/

The car was stored at my cabin. There were 90 reported break and enters in the jurisdiction when I contacted the police. In hindsight I was foolish for leaving the car on jackstands with my tools next to it, but to access the place in winter, I have to hike in from the highway, and I thought I'd save myself some effort by leaving all my tools there first. Thank god I had the sense to hide my welder and tank. Thanks for the heads up! They sound like beautiful wheels, but probably more than I'm prepared to spend, and not as wide as I'm hoping (not quite the style I had in mind either). Best of luck with your sale though! Edit: Just for an idea of what I'm looking for style wise, I was going to order some Rota Shakotans in 15x9 if something doesn't fall into my lap in the next day or 2. I was also considering Grid V's and various Work Equip 03 ripoffs.

So my XXR 002, 16x8's were stolen off the car while in storage, along with my collection of tools. I've now got the insurance claim settled for the wheels, and I'm getting a $1100 CAD to replace them. Since I'm likely still on the hook for the tools (much more valuable than the wheels), I'd like spend as little as possible. I've have some new wheels picked up, but if I could find something used in the next day or 2, that would be amazing Another set of 16x8's would be ideal, something with a stepped lip and oldschool flare. I would also consider 15's and 17's if I can find something suitable. If you have something laying around please let me know ASAP as the car is stranded on jackstands with summer just about hear and autocross less than 3 weeks away!. Thanks in advance!

So I began work on my 3" exhaust on a bone stock N/A 280Z. Why? Because i have a L28ET laying around, but for now I I'm maxing out the car for stock class at autocross, so I'm killing 2 birds with one stone by building a turbo-ready exhaust. Anyways, I ordered everything from summit except for the straight pipes (straight pipes doubled the shipping cost) for about $200. This includes 2 U bends, a 45 degree bend, some generic 22" long glasspack (3" straight through), Dynomax Superturbo muffler, Vibrant stainless flex pipe, and 3 Walker band clamps. The plan is to splice a 3" downpipe onto the stock collecter, then run the glasspack right off the the downpipe and the superturbo at the back. Still not sure what I'm going to do for tips, but I was thinking of stacking 2 small "boom tubes" for a twice pipes look. As well, the muffler will be clamped on so I can swap it out for a down turned pipe for racing. I only have a few hours into it so far, in which time I grafted the 3" 45 bend onto the stock merge collector. My plan of attack was to trim down the collector and ovalize the 3" pip and slip it over collector as far as it goes, trace where the overlap is, cut the bottom off the collector and lap weld them together. Unfortunately I screwed up right off the bat and squished the 3" pipe inline with the bend before realzing the bend should be about 20 degrees off from the collector to pass between the trans a TC rod box. After hours hammering, cutting, grinding and fitting, I finally ended up with the beginnings of a well fitting 3" downpipe. I only have 1.5 weekends to finish this up, so stay tuned for some pics.

I think they're 15" only. The only 16's I've found that fit the bill are XXR and Drag. Also here's my Z with the XXR's http://www.flickr.com/photos/87466467@N04/8311869016/

Wow, same boat indeed. I was looking at the Spinwerks, but It's more than I wanted to spend since I'd like to use some of the $1700 insurance cheque to replace some tools. I was also looking at Enkeis, but the Apache II's caught my eye more than the 92's. Message me if you find anything else!