Dan_Austin

On the topic of a cam sensor, if you have a 82/83 turbo CAS (distributor) you already have a workable solution for cam and crank position. The MS3Pro should be able to use the stock 360/6 CAS wheel, but it absolutely can use the DIY CAS wheel that appears to ECU to be a 12-1 wheel, and is perfect for full sequential. Even if you think you will never move past wasted spark to sequential I'd run that one extra wire in the beginning instead of fighting to fish it in later if you do change your mind.

You missed a few- 1 wire sensor ground (OK, this might be in your 12) 1 +5v ref used for MAP and TPS 1 for TPS 1 or 2 for Idle control 1 Boost controller (if you want it) 1 or 2 for e-fan control 1 for CAM sensor 1 for O2 sensor You won't be using the cylinder head temp sensor, so you get that one back. The ECU connectors used on the MS3pro are very, very easy to add or remove wires from. So I recommend making a list of what you need under the hood, what you might want and actually do in the near future and what you likely will not use. With that list you can remove wires you will not be using from the harness. When looking for a place to put the ECU, keep in mind that you will likely need to remove it in the future, or mod the harness. High and center behind the dash would be clean, but a PITA later. Depending on the connector height the factory ECU location behind the kick panel might be viable, provide easy access and be hidden in plain sight.

Thanks for that. A few actually listed their rates, and they match the quote I received from the first shop, which I thought was high. The first place did mention that if they got into it and did not find anything wrong, or in need of extreme adjustment they could lower the price. Monday will be spent seeing if I can get a CHP appointment a whole lot quicker than three weeks. The clerk was not wearing a name tag and I seriously regret not getting her name. She even called me about 30 minutes after I left to let me know I needed a new statement of construction with the corrected stated value so the next visit to finish the paperwork would go as smooth as possible. If I wanted to do this again(OK, I do but don't tell my wife), I know where I would be going to do the paperwork...

I had a 9:10AM appointment in the Santa Clara office. Walked in to huge lines, and news that that the licensing and id system was down statewide. Meh, not here for a license. My number came up quick and I informed the clerk I was there for a SB100 vehicle registration, 'Oh, a specially built car' was the reply. I did the internal happy dance and turned over my folder of forms and evidence. She then said that she knew the process, but all DMV computer systems statewide were now down, but I could wait if I wanted. The wait was only about 30 minutes and the clerk was on top of her game. Less than an hour later I had my sequence number and ready to go. The only major negative was that they noted the lack of sales tax on several major item receipts, so I got hit with a fairly big 'Use Tax' bill. There appears to be only one certified Brake and Lamp inspection station in the San Jose area (really?) and they want $150 for the service. They did agree that if everything tests quick and easy they would adjust the price, and they are only about 2 miles from home. The CHP office is booked for the next three weeks, so that step will have to wait. Did I mention I got an excellent clerk? She issued a 90 day temporary operating permit instead of a stack of one day permits, so getting to and from these inspections won't be a challenge.

I've got a 3" cat, and no it does not do much to knock the rumble down. I also have a Dynomax 14" long straight through muffler, that also does not make a huge difference. It is livable, but occasionally annoying, especially if I need to be on the road early in the AM, or getting home late (more for the neighbors than me, but I don't want to be "that guy" on the block). I am now looking at a slip in resonator tip. It is easier if you live off the beaten path or don't care if the neighbors hate you, otherwise I suspect you will want a bit more noise control...

It gets funnier (I just have to see it that way). The DMV agent in Sac called me back this AM. They wanted to let me know how to contact the BAR referee and schedule an appointment for a qualification inspection. I recognized the number and let the clerk know I had called that number yesterday, and they had confirm the process I was trying to use. The clerk was sure I had to have spoke to the wrong group and insisted I call to get my appointment, so I did. I spoke to Ramon, who sounded familiar, and after a short lead in he says "Didn't I speak to you yesterday?" Yes, yes you did. And no the rules had not changed over night. Ramon agreed to take a call from the DMV to gently correct them. I called the clerk back and let her know that BAR had not changed their position, and gave them Ramon's name as someone to contact. A couple hours later I got a call from a BAR scheduling agent, not a supervisor, who was not familiar with the process, but all too happy to schedule my appointment. So now I have an appointment next week at another DMV to try Ramon's suggestions to get the process started, and an appointment the week after for my 'qualification' inspection if that fails.

I had all the build photos, start to finish, on my phone. They did not want to see them, The Sac team did, but would not make a decision. They did not say no, but would not instruct the Los Gatos team to proceed either. The BAR inspector said he could not call the DMV to correct them, but did say he would take a call from me in the DMV office to speak to whomever I was working with if they we also confused. I'll find out in a week...

Fair question, but the reality is this should not be this hard and I am trying to avoid future heartache, The car really is not a Datsun anymore or at least far enough from it to make insurance transactions or traffic stops harder than they need to be. The smog inspection exemption is just gravy, although after multiple hassles over trivial visual issues only to finally be tested with numbers between 1 and 5% of allowed limits, it is good gravy. I had two chances to chuckle today, the first was the BAR CS rep commenting how it appeared to him how the DMV was recently trying to force people to abandon these projects for a new Hybrid, Then the appointment referee saying 'You are trying to follow the right steps and doing it right, why are they giving you this bad info?' I followed the rules and am entitled to participate in this program, so I am not going to let an under trained DMV bureaucrat or six stop me. The 'we don't want to waste a sequence number' that had me hang up on the DMV clerk. I wondered the same thing about issuing close to 200 numbers in the last 7 business days of the year, but I also realized that logic and reason would hold no sway with this crowd. I have an appointment next Friday with the second most recommended DMV office in the bay area for an SB100 application.

I spoke to the BAR customer relations and technical reps, and the short answer was that they thought the DMV was wrong, but to call the appointment line and ask for a supervisor to confirm the requirements. I called the appointment line and apparently got a supervisor who also answers phones. I gave him a short run down of my adventure and asked if I needed a sequence number to see if I qualified for a SPCN. He responded that I did not unless I wanted to be in the SB100 program, to which I said yup that is the one, and he confirmed the DMV had made a mess of it. He was clear about the order and steps, DMV 1st for a sequence number an temporary operating permit, CHP for VIN verification and re-issue and the final stop was his shop. All three suggested asking for the field supervisor when getting to the DMV and skipping the counter. That is my plan for next week...

Received my call back while waiting for my annual physical. The decision after seeing my evidence is that they don't want to decide. They want me to go to a BAR ref to confirm I qualify. I pointed out that they will not give me a SB100 appointment, which is what they are asking for, unless I have a sequence number. They stood their ground with the logic that they do not want to risk wasting a number if I don't quality. Not the best plan, but being in the Dr's office I did not want to get into an argument so I just hung up. I'll be calling BAR later today to see if they will accept an appointment without a sequence number, or if they can set the DMV straight. I may even try the other local DMV that is reputed to know what they are doing...

Your experience made me hope this would be smoother. I scoured every kit and custom forum I could find seeking reviews of the local BAR ref stations and DMV offices to see which were recommended. I actually took steps to follow the letter of the law, hence my annoyance. I did not get my call back today, so I will try again tomorrow, which might have been the third positive to come out of today, that I have the names, email addresses and direct numbers of three agents in Sac who can approve my initial application, assuming they agree a VR coupe does not look like a 280Z...

The car is complete enough to drive, so I thought I'd see if I could get my SPCN Certificate of Sequence number before the new year. I did my research, identified all required paperwork, which DMV offices were most familiar with the process and assembled six years of receipts for every major, minor and down right trivial expenditure. I showed up to the Los Gatos DMV (rumored to be very familiar with Sb100/SPCN) 20 minutes before it opened and found a good long line. Once inside asked for the 'Kit car lady', which another rumor indicated knows this program inside out. The blank stare should have been my first clue my day was heading south. A fairly reasonable 45 minutes later I was at the counter. I explained I was there to register a Special Constructed Vehicle and that I had my already completed statement of facts (for the re-title process) and my new registration paperwork. The clerk started looking up the process and said my SOF was not needed, but I did need a 'Statement of Construction'. OK, no problem, that is a simple page and a half of info already provided, so I filled it out. She then asked for my receipts, and frowned mightily at the stack. I offered to submit only the major items, and her mood improved and goes away to photocopy the forms and receipts. 10 minutes later she returns with another agent in tow and informs me that my currently non-op'd donor is ineligible since it was previously registered. I politely point out that many SPCN vehicle start our with a donor chassis, to which she replied "No way, they all must start as a kit'. Clue two my day is going down hill. She agrees to call Sacramento to check, but makes it clear that I am not a sequence number today. While she is one the phone I review the rules which I thought enough to print out and bring with me, and I see the explicitly clear statement 'Previously registered vehicles MAY be used and issued one of the first 500 certificates each calendar year'. When the clerk returned I showed that to her, but she remained unconvinced and again called Sac and put me on the phone with a very pleasant rep who appeared wanted to help. Our conversion went as follows DMV - Sorry a restored vehicle does not count (reads part of the regulation to me). Me - Um, it is not restored, it is a custom built and looks nothing like the donor (key provision). DMV- Take it to the CHP to confirm it qualifies for SPCN ME- Doesn't BAR do that after the sequence number is issued? DMV- No, we don't want to waste your time, so the CHP should do that. (I suppress a scream right here) ME- The CHP is only supposed to confirm nothing is stolen, and with the current non-op registration how do I take it to them (playing a bit dumb here) DMV- Oh we can re-instate the registration and collect the fees so you can drive it Me- But that reinforces the old title and registration that are no longer accurate and would require a fraudulent statement from me to complete. DMV- But how else can we decide if it is custom built? Me- Issue the sequence number so I can schedule the CHP inspection to prove nothing is stolen and then a BAR inspection to confirm the vehicle complies DMV- We cannot do that (go back to the beginning and repeat, twice) There are two slightly good bits of news, one is that there are almost 200 numbers left in the system, and two the agents in Sac seemed to be genuinely interested in solving this as opposed to the local staff that wanted me to pay and leave. I've have two calls from Sac since I left and send emails with photos of the construction process. They thought they could provide an answer later today whether they consider my project 'custom' enough.

Check the temperature rating of the Pro. It gets real hot under the hood, and every previous ECU in the MS family including the Microsquirt had strict warnings about installing in the engine bay. With the long stub harnesses you have you can reach anywhere under the dash for a very neat install.

You appear to have the longer ampseal harnesses, so soldering should not be needed. I installed a sequencer in the factor location using two of the 30 inch microsquirt harnesses, and only needed a short extension for the coil near plug install. In addition to or instead of a soldering iron I would suggest a weatherpak kit from DIY and a decent crimper . I used one listed on Amazon that was not really designed for the weatherpak pin, but worked OK with care. One thing that helped me was to make a spreadsheet table with three columns, ecu pin (function), wire color, connector pin, which allowed me to follow a step by step plan and allowed me to spot a couple mistakes as I made them, such as wiring coil 4 to the coil 5 pin. I credit the wiring plan with allowing me to start the car with no alterations to the planned wiring on my 1st MS project with only 30 minutes of futzing with the trigger angle. I also made engine side stub harnesses for the coils, injectors and sensors in advance so I could disconnect subsystems easily, which also let me layout the ECU side harness avoiding heat sources and other such concerns.

Did you set it up with the 1K pull up resistor(s)? Stock CAS wheel or the DIY wheel?

The turbo will quiet it down, but if you drive regularly you will want a bit more. I ran a 3" mandrel setup with just a cat for a short while waiting on a small Dynomax can muffler. The Dynomax does not make a huge difference, but enough that I only slightly annoy my neighbors and less that the Audi S4 on the other side of them.

I started down this path, and it is a valid program, not a loophole. There a couple more possible gotchas, one being a qualification question along the lines of 'Have you modified your car'. A yes answer disqualifies your car. There is a visual inspection, specifically checking for fuel leaks or other safety issues, so a swap will not likely slide by...

I've adjusted the driver side a couple times and a couple ways. I found the inside handle required a full pull to open the door, so I used a couple sets of pliers to enhance the 'S' bend in the pull rod, taking up a lot of slack. The chassis side capture can be adjusted up/down and in/out. I'd found that by just barely loosing the bolts I can open and close the door a couple times to find a decent natural position. The key to that is for the bolts to be snug enough to not let the capture move on its own, but loose enough that it can be nudged into place by the door side mechanism. Wiring is not my favorite part of working on the car, but it does teach patience. I bumped a loose ECU relay while testing the power windows and trimming in the harness and popped the ECU fuse. Did not notice that until going to start the car after weeks of sitting and noticing the fuel pump did not engage. Pulled out part of the ECU harness, neatened up the relay install and thought I replaced the 2A fuse, except while upside down under the dash managed to palm swap the blown and good fuse. Quickly found the 'second' blown fuse and started digging deeper into the harness and power connections, and after many minutes of failing to find anything wrong, spotted the un-blown 2A fuse on the floor mat. After I finish swearing at myself, I put the good fuse in and started the car, turned off the car, re-tucked the ECU and harness back where they belong and restarted the car to confirm there was no real issue. The missus has the next couple of weeks booked with social engagements, so I'll have to finish re-installing the exhaust in December and then decide if I start the SB100 then, or wait a couple more weeks and just tackle it after New Years.

I kept the stock latches. The passenger side worked fine with no adjusting, but the drivers is tight and requires solid slam. Looking closer I see that I managed to bond the passenger side perfectly, and the body alignment is beautiful. On the drivers side the rear of the skin sagged 1/8" which is enough to cause the alignment to be crap and a hard to close door. In my case it looks like I can sand down the trailing edge of the panel 1/16"- 1/8" and I will have good alignment and a better closing door. I bought a Chinese set of door locks and power window kit of eBay. The power window kit was decent, albeit a tight fit and can see where the SPAL would have been easier. I did not buy the SPAL based on the fact they did not have a keyless entry kit, and the Chinese setup was only about 45% of the SPAL window kit alone. Now the bad, the actuators are too big to mount anywhere that will work. A search hear turned up a single post that turned me on to the DEI line of products. The 524N and 524F fit with ease. The door lock harness was the major disappointment, it had several connectors that pulled off while fishing the harness through the firewall and door, and a couple more that had very little wire in the crimp, leading to erratic operation. I tried soldering the poor connections, but that just melted the weak crimp. So I ended up putting new ends on short sections of better quality wire and then soldering those sections to the original harness. Even with the DEI actuators and harness repair the kit was not a bad deal, and I would buy the same kit again, only taking more time to do the QA the manufacturer did not do before fishing the harness in.

All body panels are bonded. The spoiler height alignment is not perfect on the drivers side, but a small shim, 1/8", should fix that. I finished installing the front turn signals and wiring in a tail light converter to cope with signals being a single element LED. The addition of a electronic flasher completed that task. All lights do what they should when they should, except the hazards. I replaced that relay with an electronic relay, but no joy The hazards did work before swapping all the lights, so I doubt the switch or dash harness, but this task can wait. I installed power windows and locks last weekend and have spent almost every night this week dealing with a lock actuator that was inconsistent on the drivers door (of course the drivers). I thought it was the position sensor in the five wire actuator. So a couple days were spent on alignment and strengthening the mount so it would not flex. I then thought it might be a loose joint in the lock harness and I did find a pair of weak crimps near the controller, no joy, but close. Turns out one of the bullet connectors had no wire in the crimp and was only occasionally making enough contact to work. I had a replacement for that end and that fix the inconsistent behavior, but I found three more crud bullet connections on that side. Another pack of bullet connectors and a few door panel fasteners and I can wrap the inside up. That leaves reinstalling the muffler that does not quite fit with the new rear valance and some time with the DMV before she goes back on the road.

There are a couple good wiring diagrams on here that document how to build/wire the relay harness. The headlight plug only has three wires, one 12v and two grounds. With the lights on and one headlight unplugged you can figure the wires quickly. First with a multimeter set to DC find the pin in the chassis plug with power, then note whether you have the dimmer in high or low, finally set the meter to continuity and see which of the remaining two pins is actively grounded. You now know the pin-out and color/function of each wire. If you use the weatherpak connector you can always just release the pin and move it to the right spot if you get it wrong... Electrical repairs are my least favorite part of car maintenance and I managed to build my harness in a couple of hours with diagrams found in the electrical and ignition forums...

The gent that makes the harnesses for MSA and sells directly on one of the other Z forums will make you a harness with 280Z connectors if you provide them. I suspect he could indeed sell the 240Z harness with a set one new 240Z chassis side connector, two 240Z headlight connectors and the appropriate wire terminals, but folks not inclined to make their own harness may balk at installing three connectors and terminals. One strong recommendation if you want one and do not want to make it, do not buy one of the universal units. They are not plug and play, and I've yet to see a positive review. The best I've seen is that it does not suck too badly...

I'm not commenting about the load caused by the lights, only why the harness is not commercially available for the 280Z. The 280 does benefit from a harness, mostly from not needing to run full power threw an old set of column switches, but also from increased power available to the lights. As far as just swapping the connectors, I just have not seen that covered here. I cannot see any reason why not, and considered doing that, but I found a matching year in a salvage yard with a trashed body harness, so I did not feel guilty about chopping off just the pigtails I needed for my harness.

The problem is a lack of round connectors, so no one can make the harness as a plug in solution. If you find correct plugs in a salvage yard you can send them out and get a harness made, or make your own harness. Oddly I have not heard of anyone replacing the 280Z harness connectors with the available 240Z connectors, but that might be an option as well.

Both. The inner bearing is one and the other is the other. The Wilwood search tool is lacking some basic functionality, and they put spaces in URLs so ignore any of the hubs that are not an A6/A2 combo- http://www.wilwood.com/Hubs/HubList1.aspx?subname=&minorname=&bc=&bearset=A2&dimm=