Jump to content
HybridZ

Oddmanout84

Members
 View Profile  See their activity

  • Posts

    658

  • Joined

  • Last visited

 Content Type 

Posts posted by Oddmanout84

    Interior overhaul

    in Interior

    Posted

    On the subject. How do you remove the interior panel that covers the gas filler, without breaking it?

     

     

    You need to take off the nut that holds the right hand gas strut bracket to the body. Its hard to get to, but once you get it off, you can prop the hatch up with your head and slide the bracket off. Once you do that the panel is easy to take out while you hold the hatch, then you can slip the bracket back in to hold the hatch up again. A very convoluted description, but hopefully you get my gist. :)

    Help!! 1978 280Z barely idles

    in S30 Series - 240z, 260z, 280z

    Posted

    have you run checks on the Auxiliary Air Regulator? That's a possibility, as well as any other sort of area where you may have a vacuum leak. A couple weeks ago when I ran my z for a while, it was fine on startup but as time progressed and the car warmed up, it started idling really rough, and would completely shut off if I wasn't there to give it a little gas. Turns out it was a vacuum leak at the EGR. I'm not saying its the same for you, but anywhere that its possible for you to have a leak, check it.

     

    Most of your seemingly complex problems will have the stupidest simple solutions. Happens to all of us.

    Youngins: How'd you end up with a Z?

    in Non Tech Board

    Posted

    When I got my first car, I had little to no knowledge of early Z's from what I can remember. Not that it would have mattered, for my first car was limited to FWD (parents wouldn't allow me to buy a RWD or a motorcycle, regardless if it was my money or not). So I ended up getting a nice deal on a 3000GT SL. Awesome car for a teenager, but looking back I wish I could have started with more of a beater, haha. That car was TOO nice for me.

     

    My first memory of the early Z was from childhood. There was a "mom and pop" gas station near our house, and there was always an old white car standing outside it, in various states of restoration every time we drove by it. I remember one time years before I could drive asking my mother what that old car was, as I had never seen one before (typical New England kid). From the age of four I was adept at identifying a car's make/model by its taillights, and I was stumped for the first time.

     

    "Oh, that looks like a Datsun"

     

    "A Datsun? Like the dog?" I replied.

     

    Suprisingly my mother knew more about cars than I did for once. It wouldn't be another several years before I saw what an S30Z should look like, at a Z car show at the Bob Sharp Nissan Dealership. The looks of the older Z's instantly replaced the Z32's looks in my mind as "optimal".

     

    Several years later, and I was in the military, stationed in SoCal, halfway through the flight portion of my training. I was a couple months away from turning 20. I needed a cheap car to drive to the squadron and out in town to cause trouble. Since I can't stand "normal" cars, I went through the current Autotrader mag and looked up all the cheap japanese sportscars. There were a few Rx7's, was kinda interested in those, but none in the price range were running. So I then came to the Z's. There was a perfect comprimise; $1600 for a well running '78 280Z, original poo-brown metallic paint, no bodywork. Stock. I bit, and it was mine. Originally intended as a beater, I quickly grew to love it even though the shocks were busted and it leaked when it rained.

     

    When I graduated and got my wings, I was slated to be stationed in Okinawa, Japan for the next 2+ years. Since I had a months leave before I shipped out, and because I had decided I couldn't part with the Z, I drove it from CA to CT to store at my parent's house until I returned. I'm now 24 years young, out of the military, and 7 months deep in my Z project. I don't regret any of it. :)

    I need a MASTER bushing kit

    in Brakes, Wheels, Suspension and Chassis

    Posted

    Mosto f these kits dont say anything about the tension rod bushings- Is there something im missing or do they not include these?

     

    Mine came with them. But be warned, they've been known to snap T/C rods so most people don't use them, or go for the set with the ball joint instead. Personally, I didn't have the option of using my old rubber T/C bushings because they were shot, so I drilled the urethane ones full of holes on one side.

    High-flying rear end

    in Brakes, Wheels, Suspension and Chassis

    Posted

    I'd really like to know why the rear of my 280Z seems so much higher than everyone else's. Even after installing a new suspension setup with tokico shocks and Eibach progressive lowering springs, the rear of the car is still flying up there, and to me it looks way more pronounced than any other 280's I've seen. This picture was taken after ensuring the springs were properly in their perches, the suspension torqued while loaded, and the car had been driven around a bit to make sure it was settled.

    Zproj037.jpg

     

    I've even jumped a little on the back of the car to no effect. My Z has never sat this high on the rear end before, and back then the struts/shocks were bone stock and shot! Tires are 195/75/R14's all around. The front end of the Z looks normal, and slightly lowered, as it should. I have not done anything drastic enough to affect my F/R weight ratio. This is really killing me, and throwing me off with my ZG flare install. So much so that I can't tell if I screwed up the placement of the rear flare. I need to drop this thing, now.

    Zproj044.jpg

    Zproj045.jpg

    Zproj046.jpg

     

    I doubt even the bigger set of 16" wheels+ slightly beefier tires is going to reduce this hideous gap to an acceptable level. I'm not looking for a slammed look, but at least reduce that gap by half.

     

    From what I've read before, the early strut tower insulators on the 240z are shorter, so this is my main consideration now. The only thing holding me back is a comment made in another thread stating that it would, "make the car look like it was dragging its ass". This seems like the most viable option, I'm just hoping it won't drop the car too much. $100 is a lot to spend for a pair of these from motorsport auto, I can't afford that costly a mistake at this stage. None on ebay. If someone has a pair they'd like to sell, let me know. I can't see what else could help, besides coilovers, those are out of the question for now.

    My HID instillation

    in Fabrication / Welding

    Posted

    People seem to knock on blackdragon a lot, saying their products are crap. I just installed my headlight harness from them today without a hitch, WITHOUT cutting wires on ANYTHING, and it works just fine. I also have their MSR "Euro" light housings installed, and they work GREAT. They direct the light exactly where I need it in a concentrated beam in front of the car, and when I move to the sides there's no glare. Next best thing to projectors. And my highbeams work just as well. I'll be writing a thread on how I did my install soon.

    *New* Z project!

    in S30 Series - 240z, 260z, 280z

    Posted

    Ha! Yeah, I was completely sarcastic about that comment. Although I despise them, its easier and quicker for me to use them for small stuff like brake cleaner, fiberglass resin, fuses and nic nacs. For everything else, there's Autozone, and the internet. Like I've stated before, all the junkyards around here really suck and none are pick and pull. I've even tried going in there covered in grime wearing a local garage shirt (where I used to work) and they STILL won't let me past the service counter to the yard. Too many idiots around here like to sue for hurting themselves, so I guess they don't trust anyone.

    *New* Z project!

    in S30 Series - 240z, 260z, 280z

    Posted

    Yeah, that's right, you fusible links... You're GONE FOR GOOD!!!

     

    I'm so proud of myself. Several months ago I made a trip to walmart and picked up two maxi fuse blocks to get rid of my fusible links which were an utter embarrassment to the rest of the car. Only now did I get around to installing them, but from the limited tests I've done they work perfectly. Very easy to install, and I have much more confidence in the wiring than the HACK JOB factory wiring. The writeup on AtlanticZ was totally correct. I can't believe the splices on the wiring to the links (from the starter) were actually factory. Those are now GONE and replaced with a single piece of 6 gauge battery cable.

    Zproj040.jpg

    Maybe even Daeron will be proud... This is such a cheap, effective no-brainer that I'm shocked its not more widespread than it already is. I'm a terrible electrician and it took less than an hour to do everything. Granted, my mounting for the boxes is a little bit of a hack job, but I can fix that later. I just wanted to make sure everything worked.

     

     

    Oh yeah... and I did do a little bit of trimming and fitting for the new carpet recently...

    Zproj038.jpg

    Considering a 73 240, help needed

    in S30 Series - 240z, 260z, 280z

    Posted

    My '78 280z was purchased in SoCal 5 years ago for $1600. It was in good, running condition (minus the AC) with no rust. The suspension also needed an overhaul, but overall the car was way cleaner than the pictures you posted. I think 2200 is a bit too much for a car that's been sitting for years, especially since you're going to need to dump money to fix a bunch of stuff.

     

    Edit: It also looks like the door panels were redone, and done nicely, which is a plus. Places to check for rust; Floorboards, wheelwells, battery tray, front lip of hood, spare tire recess, fuel tank, framerails, under the cowl panel, radiator supports. Maybe its a trick of photography but the drivers side tail light looks a little burnt... those are difficult to get your hands on at a decent price. If it really even matters to you, those side stripe rubber "ding guards" have dried out and shrunk, you'll be able to tell when you look at them in person. But I'd be more worried about the weatherstripping in the car. Anything rubber in a california/southwest US car is usually dryrotted by now since its been exposed to the sun. Many of my plastic parts, and pieces of rubber weatherstrip, even my STEERING wheel, would crumble to dust when touched.

     

    I'm not discouraging you from getting the car, looks like a great project candidate, just giving you ideas on stuff to complain about so you can lower the price. :)

×
×
  • Create New...