rejracer

Kenny, Alternatorparts.com sent me the wrong front housing on the alternator, I was able to mount it but the upper mount geometry is not good and it allows too much flex, so the belt slips on sudden acceleration. I called them up and they are sending me the right front housing with bearing. This is perfect as I get to keep the other housing. I needed to clock the alternator anyway, so I would be removing it and partially disassembling it to do so. I am currently running a stock balancer and the GM alt pulley which is larger and thus turns the alternator slower. Idle output at 850 rpms is around 12.5v, not what I am shooting for. I get a full 14.45v at 1150 rpm's. I will swap out the alternator pulley for the smaller nissan pulley. I also have a BHJ Damper which I believe has a slightly larger diameter than the pully I am currently running. I will have to do some math to figure out the current alternator shaft speed at 1150 rpm to know where I will be at when I change out the pulleys. The goal is a solid 14.2 to 14.5v at 700 RPM. As far as the max output Nigel is right, you don't need the 200 amps, I upgraded it because the better stator has a slight increase in idle output, and I do mean slight. The main reason I upgraded is the higher quality bridge rectifier, which is a reliability thing, not an output increase. If you wanted to save a few bucks get a junkyard 140amp model, and if you wanted to have more of a workhorse alt, upgrade just the bridge rectifier. Upgrading the bridge rectifier will also increase the load rating to 170amps. One thing to note though, is that GM runs much larger crank pulleys, so the stated Idle output does not apply. You must look at the application that GM is using the alternator on, and calculate the shaft RPM speed (you could also just look it up on the Delco-Remy service manual). From there do the math to calculate what your shaft speed will be, and then look up the shaft speed on the Delco Remy service manual to determine what your output will be. I don't know if your misfire issue is voltage related or not, so I can't speak to that. I can say out of the box, this alternator might not be what you are looking for.

I ordered companion flanges from them, and sent them a mail asking when I could expect things to show up. I received a mail back stating they were at the SEMA show, and would be a bit slow as a result. So with that in mind they may be a bit backlogged. -REJ

There is more vibration with the brass shifter bushings. There is nothing wrong with the feel of the nylon bushings, it's just that they fail every x years.

Dave, The walls look very thin. If they are as thin as they appear in the pics, it's an accident waiting to happen. How much side wall is at the thinnest point? If your looking for stock, have you tried these guys? http://www.midwestcontrol.com/rigid-linkages.php -Robert

Dexcool is a good product. Dexcool in the hands of ignorant owners/mechanics is a bad combo. First off GM from the factory used clay tablets in the cooling system. This caused some problems on the early 90's vehicles, of which my 94 impala was one of them. I had to flush the system about 9 times to get it clean to my satisfaction. The symptoms was it was eating through radiators at the rate of 1 per year. This was caused from a contaminated system, not the coolant itself. It is these abused systems that have cost GM dearly, not the coolant itself. When using the stuff, you must follow a few simple rules. 1. Don't add stop leak. 2. Use only distilled water, NEVER use tap water. 3. NEVER mix coolants, especially with dexcool. 4. Ensure the system is clean before converting to it. If you can follow the above simple rules, dexcool will work just fine. If you mix green with the orange, and leave it in there for 8 or 9 years, and then wonder why your system is all crudded up, well, you abused the system.. Tap water is already loaded with all sorts of minerals. It is these minerals that cause a radiator to get calcified and and contaminated with the minerals. The minerals also negate the anti corrosion properties of the coolant. Stop leak is just so much more crud floating around in the system. It's not needed, and should never be used, except for an emergency. GM thought they would use it to prevent a leak, but did not test it for long term stability. They paid for that mistake, and lost a lot of customers. Mixing coolants together is bad because the chemical composition of the two is not compatible. It creates an acidic solution, that does the damage as described in previous posts. Lastly if you are converting a system, you must get it clean, clean, clean before using it. don't just drain the radiator and fill it up. Take your time and do it right, drain the block, rinse it out, flush with radiator cleaner/flush, repeat. This is true for just about all coolant systems, and any coolant. With that said, I converted to prestone yellow because it's said to be compatible with anything. If the prestone yellow was not available, I would use dexcool in ALL my cars, Z included.

I've used engine primer and enamel on mine, the diff does not get very hot. Road debris, corrosion and moisture will kill the paint much faster than the temps.

The nylon shifter bushings are a common failure point. If you like replacing parts every x years, then the factory style nylon is the way to go. However if you wish to increase shifter precision, and eliminate the need to ever replace the bushings again, then I strongly suggest upgrading to brass shifter bushing. You can get them at autozone. Dont' waste your time replacing your shifter Pin or retaining clip, i've never seen those parts show the least amount of wear. the HELP line of auto parts at places like autozone/kragen/checker parts stores has the item you need. The brass shifter bushings needed are in 2 different kits: Help 38374 and 38377. Search on brass shifter bushing and you will find all the info you need: http://forums.hybridz.org/showthread.php?t=122484&highlight=brass+shifter+bushing

it's been a while, i've not driven the datsun for almost a year now because of a dead alternator. Well I just ordered the alternator from alternatorparts.com. Here is what I ordered: I ordered the 200amp alternator D1-CS144-A200 http://www.alternatorparts.com/CS-144_Special_offer.htm both serpentine and v-groove pulleys Datsun mounting bracket. http://store.alternatorparts.com/partnoa285.aspx OEM pigtail. I did not order the the self exciting regulator as it does not have the provisions for a charge warning light. I have a 280z volt gauge that I will be installing. I plan on removing the factory ammeter from the setup. I have also purchased the equipment to make my own battery cables, so I will be making a custom set. I plan on running 2ga cable between the battery and the alternator, and 1/0 between the battery and starter. I know it's overkill, but I will have stable voltage from idle to redline I can't wait to start driving it again. I drove it around the block this week, and it was running great. I had recently put in a lightweight flywheel, and a 81-83 NA trans, and I want to drive it again!

These parts are no longer available. But if anyone know's a source let me know. the stamp is how many degrees of mechanical advance. If the unit has 8 stamped on it, that is 8* of distributor advance, which translates to 16* of crank advance.

I run both the RT mount and the stock mount, the difference is I use a rubber mount up top. I think I used a mount out of a 79 Z28, but most the GM cars equipped with a Th350 would use the same mount. I don't get any odd vibrations. In general when you replace a stock type isolator with a poly isolator, you will get increased noise/vibration transferred to the body/cab. The movement of the diff is going to have little to do with vibration, assuming your drive line angles stay within reason, and the motion does not cause metal to metal contact that would transmit the vibration around the isolators. When installing these things, you must be sure not to over compress the isolators. Take your time, and shim them to get the right driveline angles, and make sure the upper and lower diff mounts are not already compressed.

I was just on Maui and they had these at a dive shop. The model I saw was only rated to 60ft, and had no sound. I could have used it on a couple of dives while there.

Hey Big Phil, While watching your video of you driving and making a video at the same time, I had an idea which could help you out: http://www.adorama.com/UWLIHD320M.html Just put it on and your ready to start filming! If you do use the idea, we would require a video of you making a video of course.... I think it's available in green too. -Robert

Jason, I still don't have pics of the brackets, but I will get them for you. The brackets are simple L brackets with 2 gussets on the outer edges. I used 1/8" thick bar stock, I think 1.5" wide for the L bracket, and the gussets were from 14 Ga plate. The Angle was determined when I bolted the bracket to the seat, and to the stock mount, it was something like 100 degrees, but don't take that literially, it was just a wee bit past 90*.

I'm 5' 7" an wear a 33. You should update your avatar to a stick figure. My dad is 5'10" and in the rear most position he cannot reach the pedals. I think you will be fine if you get the mounting spot on. The rear left to right positioning is critical and is what will allow the seat to go back so far.

I've seen very few slick top's out here in Cali. I'd say they are worth more. If you want it for racing, I think the slick top is the way to go. If it's a daily driver I'd opt for the t-tops. These cars are barely worth their weight in scrap metal, so hope your not planning on big returns. (i bought one of my cars for 450). I'm surprised to see one go for 4600..

If i were to attempt this, I would look at entire drivetrain packages. STI, EVO, Gt3000, BMW IX's, Chevy IOP's are all good starters to check out. I think one of the newer v8 chevy motors has an IOP. (integrated Oil Pan) which means the oil pan is the front diff housing as well. I think BMW's IX 3 series cars are the same basic design, but it's been 12 years since I've seen one. The only other option I see is creating your own IOP for the L series, which I foresee as being an engineering challenge. Off the shelf parts are the way to do this imo.

I have cancelled the seal kit from rock auto. I also have an 83 turbo car I'm going to pull the rack from. I'm trying to fix this car as cheap as possible. The other rack has half the miles as well, so I think it's going to be a better overall solution. I will flush the system before though to see if that changes anything. I have downloaded the service manual, and wanted to avoid pulling 2 racks if possible. I have time so I will just do the investigation more throughly.

I did not think of the u-joints, but I will check it out. I don't know the history of the car, I bought it from a guy as a parts car. Upon inspecting the reservoir it does not appear to have any of that stuff in it. I have purchased a seal kit from Rock auto. We will see if just the seals do it.

Hi all, I have an 83 NA 280zx project car that I am working on for a friend. This car has an intermittent power steering problem. Let me explain: At first I noticed around corners the steering was a bit weak. I topped off the reservoir with a little bit of power steering fluid. This seemed to solve the problem, and all was well. About a month later I was lubing up the front suspension and was moving the steering by turning the front wheels from left to right, lock to lock. Towards the end I was doing this quickly and heard the rack sucking air and gurgling. It was leaking as well. When I fired it up it seemed to be fine, no leaking and the steering seemed fine. While parking i turned the wheel to the full left lock and started to straighten out the steering wheel when the steering locked. When I say the steering locked, I mean it was frozen, locked, and no amount of force was going to budge it. To get it working again, I put it in neutral, raised the rpm's and repeatedly bumped the steering to the right, it took about 10-15 seconds of doing this to free it. I can reproduce the problem, but not every time. Clearly this is a serious safety hazard, and I need to know how to repair this right. Now I have read that I should not have used power steering fluid in the car, I will be flushing the entire system with ATF to remedy that problem. I have also read that PS fluid will destroy the seals and hoses in the system. If that's the case, and I did destroy the seals, do rack seals going bad cause the symptoms I am describing? For reference, I have another 83 power steering equipped car with no PS pump connected to it. The steering is very easy to turn, but it also has no fluid in it anymore. Can a failing pump cause the symptoms I am describing? My plan of attack is to do the following and test after each change if not fixed do the next step 1. flush the system with ATF. 2. Inspect system for binding. 3. pull the rack and install a seal kit from rockauto 4. replace the pump with a known good unit. 5. buy a rebuilt rack. If you have insight to this type of problem, I'm all ears! Thank you, Robert

Are you locking the jam nut to the top of the pivot ball? Just for reference, you hold the 14mm wrench stationary and turn the 17mm wrench right, Aka clockwise, or pull towards the rear of the vehicle. when done the jam nut will be all the way down. When your done the pivot will be locked in place. To move it will require considerable force, i'll guestimate in excess of 70ft-lbs. In other words, it aint moving on it's own, or even the force of the pivoting action from the rocker arm. Valve adjustments on the L series is very easy. Once again, good luck.

ARP studs and nuts were not available for what I am wanting to do. I ended up using Class 14.9 M8.1.25x25mm socket hex screws from bolt depot and class 10.9 matching thread nuts. I took the assembly down to the local racing supply/machine shop to get their input, and they said go for it, and had them install / locktight the studs in, and then zero balance the flywheel. they then balanced it with the pressure plate on as well. they had to take material off both flywheel and pressure plate, and even added weight to other spots on the PP. I hope it's smooth. I've been having PC problems, otherwise I would post up pics. Winquist, were you running a 225 or 240mm clutch?

Make sure the cam tower bolts are torqued to proper spec, could it be the studs pulling? I adjusted my valves today. I adjust them with the keeper springs on, thinking that they will hold the rocker arm closer to where it's going to run when the engine is in operation. Also, the symptoms sound like a broken valve spring, might check it... This is a clearance adjustment, the problem will be very basic, so don't overlook the simple stuff. Make the clearance measurement with the wrenches off of the stud/jam nut, the wrenches can push the pivot end of the rocker arm up if they are too thick, or if you don't support them properly. This would give a false measurement. If you are properly snugging those jam nuts up, they won't be backing out, at least in my 15 year experience with L series engines happy wrenching

The design on those extractors is fairly good, but it appears the metal is not. Check out snap on extractors, they are very good. I don't know how many craftsman extractors I have broken off in bolts.