Oddmanout84

Bah... Thanks fo the correction. Well i guess I might have mixed those two up when it comes to windex... But if memory serves me right, alcohol based substances will also degrade plastics.

This fix is a no-brainer. So I had this problem recently, and since it technically does deal with your fuel delivery system, I'll post it here. This is for any fuel injected Z that has the old flap style Air Flow Meter, not a MAF... The last time my Z ran, about a year ago, I was puzzled as to why the engine would not rev above 2500. Everything else in my system seemed to check out right, and I even removed the nice little nest some mice had constructed in my intake. I could stomp on the pedal and still the engine would falter at 2500, almost as if it had a rev limiter on it. I didn't have time to fix it then, as i was only visiting family and had to go back to the west coast for work. This year I started taking the car apart, and when I came to the air flow meter I found that the flap was halfway open. sticking my fingers in to push it, it seemed like the flap would overcome whatever obstruction and work normally. But when pushed back the opposing direction, it again met resistance at a certain point. Not to debunk the advice that Wizardblack provided me with, but I had already tried spraying PB blaster to try and break up the gunk on the hinge, and even worked it back and forth for about a half hour with no progress! The back plate screws were all very tight and painted in to the surface, so warily i used my dremel to cut slots in them so I could use a flathead screwdriver. This is what I found. a closer look See that little bright spot in the center? that's where my flap was catching. The upper portion of the flap as you can see runs very close to the casing of the unit. Somehow the metal had deformed and was ever so slightly bulging in and catching the flap. The method I used to find the exact area was to shine a small surefire flashlight behind the flap as I moved it. So I got out my favorite toy: The dremel. For this I used one of the standard cylinder shaped sanding tubes and a steel wire rotary brush. I did not have an extra hand for taking in progress pictures of my sanding (I don't even have a vice) but the method I used was simple. I set the dremel to 15000rpm and made even flowing motions to sand out the problem area in the direction of the flap's travel. Don't go too slow or linger in one area too long, or you'll end up with an uneven surface. This is the finished product I then used the wire brush tool to smooth things out a bit more. Then I got carried away and commenced making everything shinier. End product: one worn sanding drum and a scraggly looking wire brush. I highly suggest wearing goggles during this operation, as little wire bits will be flying at high velocity in all directions. For that reason you also shouldn't operate the little dremel brushes above 10000rpm. This is why the next step is picking the wire bits out of your arm... Use some air to blow out all the metal particles and you're done! Test the flap to see that it moves freely, and repeat sanding if necessary. Try to limit the amount you shave off to just the right amount of clearance for the flap. The process should take about 15 minutes with a dremel, a bit longer if you were feeling froggy and did it by hand. Now wouldn't you feel silly if you went out and bought a refurbished unit?

Something I forgot to add: regardless of what company makes it, never use a ratcheting tool to break torque. This will severely reduce the life of the ratchet, and those things are damn expensive. Also, these rules apply to using chemicals. Never use a cleaning chemical on a component without first researching what kind of effect it has. As the FSM states, if you use mineral oils to clean out your brake system, you will have to replace all the rubber seals inside your MBC etc. Mineral oil breaks down rubber. I'm also not sure, but I believe those nice little headlight covers that you can get for early model Z's are made of plexiglass. If you care about their long term life, don't use alcohol based substances (like windex) to clean them. Alcohol will actually dry out the plastic, eventually causing hairline cracks. A product called Plexus will do the job on any plastic glass. The stuff works wonders.

Looks like the motor I've got in there is an N42 block with a N47 head. After searching around for a while, it looks like since I'm on a budget my best bet would be to source an L28ET from somewhere for an economical turbo setup. The problem is sourcing one! The junkyards around here have not been helpful at all, in fact I wasn't even able to walk around and find anything. They just guided me to a parts office where a man at a computer asked me what I wanted. When I mentioned that I was looking for a motor out of an 81-83 zxT he scoffed and said no one carries those old cars anymore. So much for that. Ebay had nothing. Craigslist didn't either. I guess tomorrow I'll head over to the local Nissan dealership and see if i can talk to one of their mechanics who's knowlegable about the old Zs. They have a classic Z meet every year so maybe I'll get lucky.

Thanks for the help! You know, I had been wondering if this had a zx motor in it, I'll get my inspection mirror in there and check it out. Either that, or I'm guessing maybe the dealership put it there as a component upgrade? As for the AFM (another interesting fact: there is blue paint marker on its side that is barely visible in the picture; it reads "280ZX"), I think that's a little easier said than done. All the screws on the back plate are stuck to the plate, almost as if they were painted over. I tried a few and got really close to stripping them completely. As much as I hate to do it, I think that I might dremel them out. I find more and more strange and annoying little things on this car every day. Rewiring is going to be a nightmare, much of the connections in this car have been carelessly cut and spliced. Oh, and I thought earlier that I was lucky not to have rusted out floorpans? WRONG! today while cleaning out the interior I found a hidden rust patch on the passenger side and easily punched my finger through it. Well, looks like I'll have to find a service manual for this engine, if it really is a zx motor. I'll make an update later, right now its food time!

Ok, I know I'm probably beating a dead horse with this one, but sometimes the horse just isn't quite dead yet... If you're like myself and are working on a project car (or anything in general) and have decided on the do it yourself method, at least do it right. One of the best ways to reduce your margin of error is to use the right tools for the right job. I'll keep this thread short, but at least it should give a general idea. First, if you're going to do things yourself and have the pride of doing so, one of your greatest investments is a set of quality tools. I understand that a lot of us are on a budget, but there's no use going out and getting yourself a cheap set of tools that's going to break on you the first time you use it. Case in point: Grandma was very kind in giving me the toolset that this came in several years ago, so I'm not going to knock on her. But if you're the one spending the money, get something that at least has a good name. This 17mm socket was practically brand new when I first used it to remove the nuts on my transverse link. I hadn't even applied very much torque on the breaker bar before it shattered. Not only did this suck because I would have to buy a replacement socket, but I was lucky that the shrapnel that flew off didn't go in my direction. After stomping around and cursing I let anger get the better of me and applied a 17mm wrench to the same nut, then stomped it to break torque. The wrench was from a small higher quality duralast set and did not break or deform. I understand that not everyone (including myself) can afford to go out and buy a craftsman or snapon set, but the least you can do is buy something from a reputable hardware store (or if you're lucky, borrow some tools from someone you know who has a good set). I firmly believe that a good toolset is your greatest asset, and it will save you money and frustration in the long run. Next, for the sake of your project, use the right tools for the right job. This means using them for the jobs they were intended for. Use wrenches and sockets for bolts and nuts. Using a set of vice grips or channel locks is fine when you have no other option, but unless you want to strip and replace every piece of hardware you work on, use sparingly. Don't substitute this for the right sized wrench or socket just because you don't have one... If you're working on your brake system, this will be one of your best friends. It's usually called a flare nut wrench. When I started on my brake system the other week, I was working out of a Haynes manual. After having a hell of a time removing the fittings for the ridged lines I took a break and found a Factory Service Manual online (This will also be one of your greatest assets. Get one). In it is displayed a note that states clearly "DO NOT USE OPEN FACED WRENCHES ON BRAKE LINES." Had I seen this before, I wouldn't have almost stripped my fittings. Back to the transverse link. See the threads on the pivot bolt? As you'll find in some other threads the S30 spindle pins are one of the least fun things to remove. I tried to take this on without searching around to see why it wouldn't budge (yes, I removed the lockpin first). I started off mildly enough but once again I let frustration take hold of me and ended up hitting the ends with a hammer. Now I have a mushroom that I cannot eat. The FSM and Haynes manual both show this picture for the removal process: Yeah, right. Once again I searched the forums after the fact and found there's an interesting device that someone fabricated called a spindle pin puller. Its expensive, but from what I gather several users from this website or zcar.com have them and loan them out. I'll have one too, shortly. Two more bonus links for a couple of people removing coil springs off of their struts. The first one is impressive, but I'd have to say its an isolated case that shouldn't be reattempted: Hopefully those links work. I know a lot of this info may seem pretty redundant for most people here, but it can't hurt to repeat useful information. Especially for relatively new mechanics such as myself. The bottom line? Use common sense, and do things the right way.

As in, when I first bought the car 4 years ago. At least it ran back then. Holy crap it has T-tops! Wait, wouldn't you really just consider this thing a split moonroof? I think its gross, but removing it would cause even more problems methinks. I didn't even know these came on my model year. Note the top notch security system sticker. Engine bay, before I ripped mystery component B out. If you can see any sawdust looking deposits, its from the radiator stopleak that was spraying from the old cracked unit. After my professionally home-done rattlecan paint job. The idea was to block out rust before I drove the car across the states to store it. That and I couldn't stand the nasty brown color anymore. Check it out! Bumper bent courtesy of my good friend. If those ugly things are good for something, its cutting through new Impalas and preventing pesky small animals from denting the body.

The interior... I tore out all the old mildewed carpeting which fell apart in my hands. Someone had replaced the original carpet with what looked like shag. Eww... Driver's side. I put the nifty steering wheel and shift nob there. The originals were crumbling apart. Center console. I had to glue the two halves together in order to get the radio to stay in.

Mystery Component B: used to be mounted on the engine block and draped over the valve cover. Looks like some sort of blower fan, did not find it in any of my 240-280 documentation, but I have seen it on later 280zx models MC B mount. The engine block used to be blue! As with a few other mystery components and other "uneeded" components, its wiring was cut when I bought the car by the previous owners Image shows the sorry state of the shock boots... All of them are dryrotted like this one. Rear shocks completely bottom out when going over small bumps, causing the tire to rub on the wheel well. Spare tire well. This is AFTER I cleaned out the rats nests and assorted junk in there. Anyone ever had to use that tire? Its junk... mine fell apart during the 3/4 of a mile to the gas station. Note the white mystery wire.

In the garage finally after pushing it out of the yard The Engine needs a little love (read: money) to get back up to step Fusable Links... broken. I plan to replace them with a Maxi Fuse unit Air Flow Meter: The flap is stuck halfway and requires a little push to go the rest... so THAT'S why it wouldn't rev above 2500 last year.. Mystery componant A: left side of the engine compartment, single wire going to it is cut by previous owner/mechanics. If you can tell me what it is, you're a better man than I

Oh yeah, and I severely SEVERELY regret not getting the engine for it while I was in Okinawa... I had connections and everything! I could have saved tons worth of shipping costs from what I'll now likely spend.

Ok, here's a somewhat better description... 4 years ago I picked this car up in california. I didn't care about the somewhat ratty appearance and poo brown color, the price was right and I wanted to own a Z! The interior was a little worn, there was a lot of dry rotting and sun damage, but the exterior had no rust on it at all. About a month later my "friend" wanted to borrow the car to look at apartments out in town. 25 minutes later he plowed into the back of a brand new '03 impala. The impala was totaled, but my Z survived with a cracked radiator and a slightly bent bumper. I guess those ugly things are good for something! I had to drive this thing with a few gallons of water in the trunk for a couple months until I could find time out of my job to get the radiator fixed. After she had the new radiator dropped in, I got orders to Okinawa where I was to be stationed for 2 years. So I drove the car across the states to Connecticut so I could store in my parents' yard while I was away. Well, that 2 years turned into about 4 years away. I was lucky to come home once a year where I would unwrap it and fire it up. Even after all the sitting, she always started. Flash forward to a few weeks ago, I'm out of the military and I'm taking a vacation to work on the car... vacation is the nice way to say temporarily unemployed... The car has since accumulated very little surface rust, which is suprising, but it does have a couple spots of cancer that have developed. I still have my floor pans though! Also, this time it didn't start. It cranked for all it was worth, but not even starting fluid could get it to fire up. So ended up having to push i to the garage where it sits on jacks today. Most likely the engine won't start due to aged and clogged fuel injectors or a bad control unit. The pump still makes pressure, as i found out when i tried to remove the old fuel filter (which looks like its been there since '78) and residual pressure exploded in my face. When I removed the sparkplugs and looked in the holes I saw nothing but black oily crud all over the pistons, so I'm going to take it out and rebuild it myself. The engine has anywhere from 68000 to 168000 to 268000 miles on it with what looks like no real maintenance done (i can't tell... the odometer doesn't go above 5 digits). But I'm not concerning myself with that until I fully refurbish the brake and suspension system. I'm also not going to have anything professionally done that I can easily do with available tools (although I'd really like to strip the whole car down and dip it in a acid bath/ then paint it). Future goals: I want to have this car both comfortable to drive on the street, as well as the autocross. Maybe eventually get it on the Limerock track a few times. I'd like to drop an RB20DET engine into it, and gradually squeeze more performance out of it as my budget allows. I'm more concerned with handling than absolute power though, so I may use an SR20DET engine instead. 350 hp would be the max i realistically plan to get, with a top speed of 150mph that I rarely expect I'll be at. The new struts drop the ride height about an inch, or so they advertise... I don't really need to go much lower, if at all. As for the rest of the suspension, I will replace things as time goes on, but for now all that is planned is some strut bars and maybe some stronger swaybars. Brakes will stay stock until I get to the point where i'm pushing more power out of my engine and I will buy higher performance units for the front. I'd also like the car to shed a few pounds, but until it fits in my budget I'll have to do with removing the seats and other unecessary equiptment. More updates soon...

With photo documentation, so you can see my failures!