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zedsaid

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About zedsaid

  • Birthday 09/16/1976

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  1. zedsaid

    wood interior

    Hi, i've got a 280zx and i'm looking at doing a custom interior down the road... want to do the hatch area in wood... put padded slots to stand the T-tops in where the speakers are presently. Move the speakers to the back where the little cubby and the jack are presently located, probably do the dash in wood as well... don't know that i've ever seen it done in a z. (i'm thinking much like old wood bedded pickups) The thing is, the interior isn't in all that terrible shape for me to gut it until i'm ready to do the work. So i don't really have an idea going into it what kind of space i'll really have to work with. Can anyone point me to a diagram of the (stripped) interior of a 280zx? or maybe even good photos (i've looked, and half of the photos i find i can't make heads nor tails of) Also, is there any gain in replacing the stock fuel tank and putting in an aluminum or plastic fuel cell in an effort to make more space, maybe enough to move the spare and jack into the same spot (under the flat)? I figure i can make up for some of the weight of the wood while i'm at it, though i can't imagine it'll weigh all that much more than what's in there with the carpet and all. If i want to fit the tank and spare/jack in there, am i going to have to give up a bunch of fuel capacity? thanks for any pointers, z
  2. Sorry, yes, Autoclimate, which is why i suspect the vaccum hose issue, the problem is would that take out the radio? Also, since getting it back, it starts rough. Runs fine once warm... It's fuel injected... so??? Is there a part that would mess with all three of those things? Did he fry something? None of these issues were present when he got my car. The only issue was that it wouldn't start.
  3. Yeah, i had a bad feeling about the guy from the git-go, but was in a pinch. Thing is, the car runs now, so whatever he did has at least gotten me that far, even if it killed the radio, the heat, and the dash vents. There's no noticable drain when braking at this point. (never did understand how braking was supposed to spotlight the symptom of no charge in a battery that never had a problem holding a charge before) I just need a shop down here that knows what they're doing. In the meantime, thanks for all your input, i'll try to check out those things i can... the fuses, i've already checked, and they checked out fine. As for the wiring to the battery, a previous owner did some weird stuff in there, I've got an extra connector cable that runs to who knows where, which isn't currently hooked up to the battery.
  4. Kind of a convoluded intro to a hopefully simple question. About a month ago, i noticed that my battery drained quickly when stepping on the brake. Plenty of juice while driving, or even idleing with the parking brake on, but if i hit a stoplight, and put that left pedal down, the lights dimmed to nearly nothing, the guage swung down from it's drivetime high of 14v to 6v. I made the mistake of turning the car off at one of my stops. (something i really didn't need to do considering i can pull the key out of the ignition while it's running). The car wouldn't start. Wouldn't even attempt to turn over. I had it towed to an auto-electric shop. They said that the alternator was overcharging the battery, resulting in it not being able to hold a charge (seemed i would have noticed some symptoms before death, but okay). They swapped out the alternator and the battery. Great. I pull out of the shop and decide i need some tunes. Only thing is, now my radio doesn't work. Antenna won't even go up. I flip a bitch, head back, and the guy spends an hour poking around with a current tester. Only to conclude that something has happened in the radio, and he's not a radio guy. Seriously? That's that? Fine, i've been thinking about upgrading anyway... may just have to do it sooner than expected. So i drive off in a huff... A little hot under the collar. So i need a little air circulating. But it only blows out of the defrost and floor vents now- and no heat, just AC. I really don't want this guy touching my car again, but he broke it, he should fix it. I reluctantly take it back to him the next day. He keeps it a month. I need it back. I've been borrowing a car for a month, and that's exessive. I drive my car for a living. So i tell him i need it back, that he's had a month. It's still not fixed. His excuse "They don't make the module for that car anymore, and no-one has one" He'll have to wire around it. Hell-no. He can't have my baby any longer. I don't even trust that the "module" is the problem. I've picked up my car. I have no heat, no radio, and no dash air. This makes for some very cold, boring driving. Which brings me to my question. Does this sound like a module problem to you? I'm kind of thinking that (durring the tow) one of the vacume hoses fell off the back of the control unit, and disconnected the power to the radio below. I street park, and don't really have a way to get under there and check it out myself. Sound plausible to anyone else? Also, anyone have a recomendation of someone to take my car to in the Los Angeles area? I'm not interested in just keeping it running... it's my daily driver, but i'm looking at making it something i can be proud of. Seems that every mechanic i go to is of the "do the least i can to keep it on the road" mindset. Even when i tell them i want the works.
  5. I recently bought a 280zx, and am enjoying the hell out of it. Thing is, if the ground is wet (believe it or not, it does happen in LA) the rear end looses all traction in turns. I'm not running anything heavy duty, the car is stock, as far as i know. (though the suspension feels a little stiff, even for a sporty car) I don't really notice any roll. It's an auto, and in a straightaway i'm not laying any rubber, (actually had a tough time keeping up with my brother's '06 tacoma) but the rear end will spin free if i pull a u-ey from the curb (my 7 yr old neice thought that was the coolest thing she'd ever done in a car). I'll admit i'm pushing the car a little hard, and if i drive carefully there shouldn't be a real problem, but i want to be able to take it on the twisties north of San Simeon without the fear of going sideways over a cliff. I'd like to be able to take a turn at twice it's posted speed recomendation (when dry). I'm not looking to go widebody kit, and don't particularly like the fatties sticking out sideways look. What's the widest tire/wheel that'll fit in there and what kind of inset can you get without rubbing the wheel well, springs, etc.? Anything else that i can do to help keep me from ending up sideways in my lane? (so glad i've been able to stay in my lane all three times it's happened) I'm really not driving it that hard (knowing that it's just rained and all) and i'm affraid of what's to come once i get some real power to the wheels. Maybe i should learn how to drift? sorry for the ramble. help appreciated.
  6. Read this thread last week when it got bumped, so it really caught my eye when Mythbusters (on the discovery channel) actually built one of these systems to test out. Not to spoil the results (ok, exactly to spoil them) it didn't work. Low yield of gases. They did, though, run a hydrogen hose directly to the carb, and the (unmodified) engine ran off the gas... until it backfired and shot flames back out through the carb. They then decided not to play with that again.
  7. Just to revive this thread, i've been thinking about doing this, very good to know it's doable. Even if i wouldn't know how myself. Now, to find a very good body man. and have him read this.
  8. First, it's possible, but more expensive than going turbo. Second... Everyone else is gonna say "search" here's a start. a good start. http://forums.hybridz.org/forumdisplay.php?f=93 I'm thinking of staying N/A myself.
  9. And they say red cars are ticket magnets. You'd have every cop that saw you pull you over, even if you are legal, just to say they had pulled over an indy car.
  10. Thanks so much. I thought i'd done a search at zhome. Very cool, so at least i know it's doable.... as to the rigidity of the chassis there's got to be a way to compensate. Maybe not a full roll cage (gonna be street, and twisties), but a few strategically placed bars should help. I'm not an engineer, but before i make the attempt i'll do a lot of reading on the subject, and much more research. Just encouraging that it's doable. (then again i'm sure pretty much anything is possible with enough money to fab it.) z
  11. Have you seen anyone who got the itch to swap t-tops to a z? I've searched here and on other forums, and came up with nothing... I figured i'd ask here because there are a lot of creative ideas floating about on this site as opposed to the more "stock" sites. (Even if most of the ideas are geared toward performance, and this would be far from it.) I'm not sure how well the lines would work, i know next to nothing about welding... but i love my t-tops in my 280zx, and eventually intend to take a 260z to the limit. This is a mod i'm considering... of course i need that second car first I'm guessing that door size will be an issue. May not be able to swap... custom glass? sorry train of thought... anyone seen anything like this? wow i sound like the n00b that i am.
  12. Just wondering two years later, how the swap worked out? New to the site, looking around to get some ideas of what i want to do to my car... this seemed like a coool idea.
  13. Funny, i just got a 280zx, and have the exact opposite problem. Hot air only, unless i turn the heat down past the temperature zone to completely cold, then i just get outside air temp.
  14. But as i live in an apartment, and can't do the work myself i'll have to have a shop do it. (this is how i found this thread). I've only had my Z (280zx) about a month, and love it. (i'll post my "here's who i am, why i'm here, and why i was destined to own a z" thread soon). Only drawback to the car was the fact that it was Auto. (I needed a car, it was a Z, and i could afford it.) In any case... i was thinking (since it's gonna cost an arm and a leg for a shop to make the conversion) about simplifying by throwing in a more modern auto tranny instead, maybe something with a triptronic shifter. Anybody have two cents to throw in on the idea? Suggestions on tranny? It's my daily driver, i don't mind making some investment in it, don't much plan on making it a track car, rather take it on a drive up the winding california coast. With the t-tops (which i love, having grown up on SMOKEY AND THE BANDIT) off. And i wouldn't mind being able to get up to highway speed a little quicker. Also, if anyone knows a good Z mechanic in Los Angeles. I'm in the market. Sorry for hijacking the thread. Just fit so much what i was hoping to have done to my car. Loving the site. Feel free to tell me to start my own damn thread.
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