ZR8ED

uhhh let me think about it! hehehe We still need to hook up sometime this summer before it ends.. Sept 18 is our giant Z fest! I'm actually thinking of not bringing the black Z, but bringing my new yellow one just for fun to the show. Drop me a line and let me know whats up? got your motor back?.. project Z on the sideline while working on project RX?

ok so far so good. I moved the timing by ear, and now the air fuel is sitting at 12.5:1 a bit better. I can lean it out by adjusting the fpr, but am unsure about leaning it out even more once i drive it. the car drives better now, and no more fumes. i don't have a timing light on it yet. i saw the air fuel hit in the low 14's when i drove it at 14psi for a split second before i backed off. more to come on this i guess.. i need to sort out the timing better before i can figure what to do about going lean.. i don't think it is going that lean due to lack of fuel inj capacity or fuel pump.

Well i'm on my way out the door to adjust the ign timing.. I'm wondering if the dizzy is one tooth off or the timing belt, or the cap (cap is not really possible) or something mechanical. this would give the symptom of a nice smooth idle yet a timing light reading of 45 degrees.. Well.. I"m going to see what happens.. at least as long as the rain holds off. yeesh!

That's it.. if it ain't broke, I"m not touching it.. Problem.. turn car off. pull e brake (works great now) notice brake light is on.. I jiggle the wire to the switch, and i can make it go out.. no problem..except how does it have power with the key off? I don't need a warning light with the car turned off.. I thought it would only have power when the ign is in the on position..to warn me about the ebrake being on.. I"ll cut the wire if I have to, but am now unsure if I have some wiring grounding itself.. I gotta stop touching this damn thing..

THe car has been running great..so I decide to get fancy... So I have a wideband installed... and while he is there, check the timing and have a look at the air fuel ratios with the new gauge. I know I know..that was problem #1. Ok the timing was apparently set to 45 degrees. btdc (set by me last year by ear.) The car has been running strong all year. He resets it to 20 degrees btdc and adjusts the idle and fuel to get it to idle. Problem... After warm up, car idles at about 11.5:1.. cruising on the highway gets about the same. Accelerate to higher than normal highway, guage pegs out lower than 11:1. (it reads blank when higher than 16 or lower than 11) I get on the boost a bit on the highway, and very suddenly the air fuels will jump into the low teens!!! yikes!!! 5psi is no prob.. higher..I won't even try again.. The car has a more lopey idle, and I reak of gas while driving..I can still taste it as I write this.. yech!! It is even idleing at 1100rpm and it is wandering a bit.. air fuels range from 11.2-11.8 as it lopes. Awww.. whats up? Super rich while cruising or idleing.. goes lean when into boost? I think the timing is retarded ... regardless of what his timing light says... I thought of just adjusting the FPR, but that doesn't explain about the lean mixture at boost. any ideas?? help before I blow up this engine?????

Hehe. Pogue is my great uncle. He is still fighting his case from his death bed! Its a long and fasinating story.

Its a 1971 240. I traded it for my 82 280zx2+2. not a bad deal eh? It has a funny story to go with it..(I'll shorten it for ya) Last year I went to look at a 240. 600.00 bucks. Too much body work for me to tackle especially for a daily normal car. So I skip the car and move on to a sweet 82 280zx. I checked out the car and liked what I saw. I talk to the guy who owns it and he is a bit leary about selling it, as he has a guy coming from 4 hours away to take a look and maybe buy it... No problem I say. I'll buy right here and now. 1 in the hand is better than 2 in the bush right? So he takes the $ and quickly contacts the potential buyer to turn around and go home because the car is now sold. Fast forward just about 1 year later... I have my 82 280zx for sale most of the summer. I get a call one day asking if the car is still for sale, and if so would I be interested in a possible trade. A 240 or a 300zxt. We email pics back and forth, and I quickly recognize the 240 as the one that I looked at last year...except that it is drastically improved. I also find out where he is from, after talking with him. I also find out he had been looking at other 280zx's last year, and settled on another after missing out on other deals. The 240 was a quick deal he could not walk away from... See where this is headed? More conversations as we settle on an even swap if he delivers the car to me (he lives 4hrs of highway driving from me.) I ask if he was the guy who was trying to get another 280zx last year, and missed out after he had left the house to see the car, and he reply that it was him! wow.. talk about coincidence! He is now trading a 240 that I was interested in (previous PO said several were coming to look at it the same day I was.) He is trading for a 280zx that he missed out on! So he shows up this morning to drop off the 240, and he took my 280zx with him! Sign ownerships, write a couple of bills, and he was on his way in less than 30min! Now I have a nice little 240 to play with...or sell...or play with then sell..hehehehehe

to the song of "I can see clearly now the rain is gone" I can see clearly now that the exhaust is gone.. I agree with Pop n Wood. I can think better in the car as well.. I am getting better gas mileage (less throttle to maintain the same speed as before) , and no fumes in the car, except when I shift and the blow off valve lets out metered air, and the car goes rich for a second. hehehe John C. That is some funny "Sheeeeit"

As some have probably read from my other posts, that my 3" exhaust is on and working well. Exhaust smell is dramatically reduced. One quick question. since the exhaust change, my rpm's are now lower on the highway compared to before. ie 3000rpm came at 120kph. add the new exhaust, and 3000rpm now gets me 130kph (approx) and 2700rpm gets me 120kph. How is this possible? Scott.

except for the fire, I just had the same thing happen a couple of weeks ago. Hard corners, and the battery moved in its tray, and touched the pos terminal to the body... I couldn't figure out why I started blowing signal fuses??? It toasted the battery. 1 gelcell coming up. And for the twilight zone crowd, I had the same thing happen in my other 280 a few days later...I suppose I didn't tighten that one down enough either.. it only needed to move a bit... BTW now it doesn't matter. I have insulated the battery terminals from close by metal FIND a plastic cover for the battery terminals... VERY handy...

Set out some rough ideas on how you would like your life to progress towards. Get that education. Don't go crazy with spending money on the car.. Drive it, enjoy it. Wait for the decent career, then its balls to the wall with the car. (this was my plan.. worked pretty good too) Explain the importance of the Z in your life to your GF and family. Find out what exactly don't they like? Spending money on a car that sits?, spending money on a car that doesn't look like its worth anything? Spending money on a car that is a constant pain in the ***, unreliable? I would think that is the main problem..A hopped up car that is ghetto rigged, and looks crappy at less than 50ft, yet seems to receive lots of cash investment.. ie they don't see the return on the investment. Stop spending on the upgrades.. Fix dents, clean the car, make sure it is safe and driveable and reliable. Make it looke like you'd be proud to take the GF out to a nice evening on the town in it? (that last part was one of my problems. I made it too racer like, and then I felt ashamed to go out on a date in it.) I really doubt the $ figure on that.. I have an 82 280zx non turbo that I drive everyday, and I can't sell it for 2450.00 (posted price) 16" wheels new rubber, new brakes, new suspension, exhaust, etc.. You will likely have troubles selling it for a price that you want. The cars are rare, but so are the people that want to spend $ on a "fixerupper". Good luck with your decision.

Boa noite! Here I am sitting in a friends internet cafe along the coast of Portugal. My GF and I are having a fantastic time touring around.~ I´ve seen some pretty cool cars around, and I am keeping an eye out for a Z, but so far no luck. Found a few datsuns, but no early 240´s. Saw a new Mercedes Smart roadster.. very cool looking, centre exhaust, curved rear and flares like a Z3 or Z8. Well I´m going back into vacation mode.. see ya in 2 weeks!.. then its back to Zedding... ciao.~ Scott.

Ok old thread, but I might as well continue it for those with exhaust problems in their Z. If you have followed the thread, then you'll know all the changes and their effects on fumes getting in the car.. at least according to "MY" car. Well as stated much earlier, my "tip up" style muffler tips could be a contributor. Well I just replace the entire exhaust with a 3" ss system. I have the same brand of muffler, except instead of a 2.5" muffler, it is a 3" inlet and twin 2.5" outlets. The tips are now just straight out the back as well. This has so far made a significant difference in fumes in the car. I have only had the car back one day, and I need to drive it for a bit under different driving conditions and try with one window down, two windows down, partials etc to confirm. I just wanted to update this thread so others reading can see some answers instead of just questions and discussions. I'll updated this thread again as i get more information, and try other ideas.. Thanks, Scott.

Yea Yea another useless update post. I'm just soo happy to be Zedding again. I finally did it.. I have finally bit the bullet and spent some cash on a 3" mandrel bent exhaust down pipe all the way back. All stainless, and from the diff back its all polished. The installers didn't want to hide the rear part of the exhaust with my rear diffuser. On another note.. I should post this under the "exhaust getting in the cabin" threads My exhaust smell in the car has so far disappeared..I need to drive it under a few more conditions to confirm, but it has had a definate effect. The twin tips now exit straight out the back instead of the "tip up" look of my old muffler. My muffler is another Vibrant 3" in with twin 2.5" outs. Looks nice, not much louder at idle, much throatier sounding, and the turbo lag has comparitively become non-existant. Oh and the car feels as strong at 11psi as it did at 15psi. I turned the boost back before the exhaust change to play it safe until we saw the effect of the exhaust. Very torquey. I've been doing some minor rewiring lately, and have ordered a dry cell battery to replace my old one. I installed new antitheft switches as well. The only downer part is that I have found a few more items that need my attention, and I also have no more time to play with the car. I am officially on vacation, and am leaving for Portugal on Saturday with my GF. Two weeks of touring and relaxing on the beaches. My GF has friends and family there, and she knows of an internet cafe around the corner from where we are staying, so the next time you hear from me, I'll be across the world typing this up.. Seeya!

Yea I found a brouchure that they sent me. price lists, pics, etc.. I've kept it all these years as well... Some cool stuff...pretty old too.. mine dates back to 1989 prices I think.

Like the title says. Is it ok to spray our calipers? Does the paint actually hold? I imagine the calipers get pretty hot, and will it work on old calipers, or am I going to have to prep them like I would painting a car body? Or should I just save my money for another year or two for nice upgraded aluminum brakes that don't need painting..

I have heard the air nibbler is great for tight manouvering, but not ideal for straightline. I just bought an electric metal shear. It looks like a normal drill, but has metal scissors on the end. It will cut 14 guage steel, is as easy to steer as a jig saw and very easy to follow a straight line. It is very quiet..like a drill. I looked at the air powered models but they topped out at 16-18 guage steel. Never been happier now that I have one, and wish I had one years ago. Good luck with your project.

Well I seem to be back to my old ways.. wrenching on my Z. We are having some "inventory adjustments" going on where I work, and I have this week off. I've been wrenching on the ole Z on and off through the week. Feels pretty good to work on my cars again. Even though I don't have my own garage. I have my parents 2 car garage with all my air and power tools, jacks, ramps, welder, and my newest toy...An electric metal sheer. It looks like a corded drill, except it has scissors for cutting sheet metal.. IAM IN HEAVEN!! These things work great. I'm doing stuff that I used to have to pay my mechanic to build for me. Sheet metal/ aluminum sheilds, covers etc.. Ive been doing some minor sheet metal work under the car, painting, building nice covers in the engine bay, cleaning/painting the engine bay, electrical wiring cleanup, compounded and waxed the body, polished the ss muffler and tip etc etc.. I've been having fun, even more fun now that it isn't 35 degrees celsious (90 degrees F ++) Only one problem.. I'm not working on my black 280. I'm working on my Blue 280zx. I'm trying to sell it, and I want it to look as good as it runs so it sells quickly. No serious takers so far. Well at least I'm working on "A" Z. Its amazing how good you can feel when working on a Z, and fixing something yourself. I'll work on the black Z on the weekend instead. I wake up every morning with my GF, she goes to work @7, I go for a bike ride or rollerblade, then hit the local parts store and go over to the garage, crank on some tunes and work the afternoon away in peace on my own.."ZEN" like.. hehehe. Then it off in the evening for a cruise to the local car hangouts.. If this is what retirement is like, I can't wait to sign up in 20years... Enjoy your Z's, work on them, drive them, and if you drive them too hard, work on them some more..

Well.. lets see. 1978 280 12 point chromemoly cage. 16 point adj and not adj bracing (cold rolled steel mostly) subframe mods for turbo clearance steering mods for turbo clearance. 17x11 and 17x8 Simmons 3 piece wheels and large rubber to go with it. R200lsd plus bracing. 1.25" front sway bar 1" rear. Full interior VG30ET power nothing, no air etc hand made fibreglass body. All Aluminum front belly pan All aluminum rear diffuser Dual 4 point harnesses Stereo and speaker box. 2900 lbs even.

Been busy lately, but the black beast is out and about. I have not been driving it much because I want to get the oil changed, but went to 3 places who could not fit it on a hoist, or EVEN THEIR PIT!! The front air dam is less than 1.5 inches off the ground! I suppose I should fill in the blanks. The top coil on the front left and right springs are cut original 1978 springs. They finally started to sag 2 years ago, but was not fully discovered until last year, but because the car was being worked on more than it was on the street, I postponed the spring change till nicer weather this year. The top coil was fully resting on the coil beneath it. Handling and braking suffered, and I could not get in anyones driveway with out some scraping of the air dam. Well last weekend I pulled the front suspension, cleaned it up a bit.. I didn't get in the "while I'm at it syndrome" Therapy is paying off. So the suspension didn't get an upgrade..or even cleaned and painted or powder coated.. pretty good huh? Well at least the suspension works. I didn't even upgrade the springs. The cut springs held for almost 14 years of abuse. I am still running cut springs, but am running a spare set of rear springs, cut the same length, but with no sagging. They are actually in really good shape. The car is now sitting much higher in the front.. perfect actually. The old springs had been cut to "MY" perfect height, and the newer good condition springs put me right back where I wanted to be. Now don't give me any hassles about the cut stocko springs I've lots of experience with cut springs. With my engine setup, wide rear track, this setup works very very well. If I upgraded to coilovers, I'd have no idea what to buy anyways. I've regained that nimble feel, the steering is lighter, no more scraping in driveways, and that mid engine "feel" during corning is right back where I wanted it. I'd like to make it better someday, but do not have the expertise yet to take on this challenge. I've had several pro drivers, and experienced Z autocrossers drive the car, and all have commented over the last years, how surprisingly neutral, nimble and light the car feels. They have all told me to not mess with it, as long as it works. We'll see at the next track event.

I have a quick question. I understand the importance of not over adding oil, and that you can blow a main or rear seal, or if you really have too much oil in the crankcase, that the crank can hit the oil and cause damage etc.. But how much oil is too much for a VG30ET? or an L28 for that matter. Can you have an extra half litre or 1 full litre too much and be ok? I'm supposed to have 4.5 litres in the entire system including the oil filter and oil cooler. is 5 litres going to cause problems? I know its just easier to add the proper amount, but not always easy when you add other components ie larger filter, oil coolers.. longer lines, larger diameter lines... What is safe? Thanks, Scott

There are a couple of causes of off idle stumbling. First what is your jetting combos particuarly your accel pump jets and idle jets? 1 Does it stumble if your very slowly increase the rpms? 2 Or does it stumble only if you quickly stab the throttle..(not nessessarily WOT) 1 small idle jets. good smooth idle doesn't mean you have the proper jets. The mixture screw can mask improper idle jets. 2 accel pum jets too small. 3 this assumes that they are properly sync'd, mechanically in sound working order. Post more info if you need help. Thanks, Scott.

Yehaw. I get to feel like I know something here.. I bought the headlight covers from MSA, and as many of you have stated, they don't fit very well to the shape of the headlight bucket. There is a trick.. Heat. I used a hairdryer on the parts, and warmed them up till they were soft enough to bend a bit. Bolt them in place first ( used the screws.), use the hairdryer to soften them up, and have someone else hold them against the body, and let them cool.. Wala. Nice fit against the body. Hope it helps! Scott

Bump for others to see. Hey Ed. Did you ever attempt the rear diffuser?