sayitaintjonas Posted January 14, 2015 Share Posted January 14, 2015 I spent several days researching ways to improve the air output on my 76 280z and wasn't able to find a really nice walk through, so I thought I'd share what I did. It looks like most of the people who put 1988-1991 Honda Civic blowers in their Z weren't able to feel a big difference. I noticed some people also suggesting using 1993-2004 Kia Sportage blowers. So, off to my junk yard I went. I found both a Civic and Sportage blower. After comparing the two, the Kia blower seemed better built and had a larger cage so I bought it for $30 and proceeded to my Z. The nice thing about this upgrade is that the Kia blower is roughly the same size, it rotates the correct way, it uses the same wire harness, and it uses the same mounting holes. It just so happens that I have taken my dash out to install a dash cap and add LED instrument lights. I don't know if you could do this upgrade with the dash in place because the entire blower housing has to be removed. This is the guide I followed for removing my dash (PITA!) http://www.classiczcars.com/topic/5934-removing-dash-and-interior-for-paint/ Here is the blower housing location The original blower and cage are on the left. The Kia unit is on the right I removed the foam padding from the fan housing since the kia unit doesn't need the extra spacing. Next, I placed the Kia blower cage over the hole, lining up the bolt holes, and marked the area to widen. I highlighted this in red. Using some aviation snips, I cut out the excess metal. I cleaned up the hole with my Dremel later. I then placed the new Kia unit in the blower housing and secured it using the original bolts and washers. The unit spins free and has just enough clearance The original Z wire harness fits right into the new motor. I plugged it in to make sure it works and it really seems to put out some air. I'll post another update once I get the dash back in. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LLave Posted January 14, 2015 Share Posted January 14, 2015 True hybridz style right there. Let us know how it works out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ihavearustedz Posted January 14, 2015 Share Posted January 14, 2015 I did this upgrade last year. I love it. It's air output is great and is very silent compared to my original. Would recommend to anyone who wants to upgrade. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cgsheen Posted January 14, 2015 Share Posted January 14, 2015 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RPMS Posted January 15, 2015 Share Posted January 15, 2015 This is particularly timely information, since I was going to remove the blower this weekend anyway to pull out a dried leaf that steadfastly refuses to get chewed up and blown through the pipes. Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sayitaintjonas Posted January 15, 2015 Author Share Posted January 15, 2015 Oh man, the leaves....so many leaves. Working on this has kinda given me a bug to do something drastic. I'm looking at all these vacuum actuators and wondering what it might take to remove the entire vacuum system from the HVAC and replace it with an Arduino digital controlled system. Here is a mockup I did using the Tesla interface on an extra tablet I have laying around. I think I have the skills/friends to make this work, but I'm not sure if this might be a bit....much? I'm studying up on the FSM right now trying to figure out the different actuator and water cock positions for different settings. What do you guys think? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
socorob Posted January 16, 2015 Share Posted January 16, 2015 Before I went with vintage air I thought about doing this. Went to the junkyard and there were 5 or 6 sportages there. 1 was missing the blower and all the rest were bad. You may want to grab an extra motor since it appears they have a high failure rate. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RPMS Posted January 19, 2015 Share Posted January 19, 2015 ...or buy a brand new one for $40 from Car parts.com? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cgsheen Posted January 19, 2015 Share Posted January 19, 2015 Ya. Mine originally came from a pick-n-pull because I was there to "do the Honda blower swap". That's when I discovered the Kia blower. (I actually looked at every import in that yard because I thought the Honda blower looked kind of wimpy...) Mine has worked great lo these many years - but now that I know, I'd just buy a new one rather than go back to the junk yard... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sayitaintjonas Posted January 20, 2015 Author Share Posted January 20, 2015 You can get a new one for around $40, but they don't come with the cage. The first Sportage blower I pulled was defective. Just make sure that the motor spins freely or bring a small 12v battery. I put the dash back in the car this weekend and the blower does indeed put out much more air. It'll be put to its true test this summer Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tube80z Posted January 20, 2015 Share Posted January 20, 2015 Oh man, the leaves....so many leaves. tablet.jpg Working on this has kinda given me a bug to do something drastic. I'm looking at all these vacuum actuators and wondering what it might take to remove the entire vacuum system from the HVAC and replace it with an Arduino digital controlled system. Here is a mockup I did using the Tesla interface on an extra tablet I have laying around. I think I have the skills/friends to make this work, but I'm not sure if this might be a bit....much? Sounds like a great idea. I was looking to do the same thing. Converting to servo operation and using modern controls from a 350Z. Cary Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZackTX Posted July 4, 2015 Share Posted July 4, 2015 Is this upgrade worth it on a 280ZX? Do the plugs match, and does the unit still fit in the blower housing with similar modification? Thank you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cgsheen Posted July 5, 2015 Share Posted July 5, 2015 No. The 280ZX blower (and all other Nissans from then on) spin the opposite direction. The blower box is different due to the rotation. Nearly every other model import also. That was my conundrum while I was grazing thru the Pick-A-Part... The only blowers I found that were similar size and set up to spin the same direction as an early Z were the Honda Civic and the Kia... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
josephdaniel Posted July 13, 2015 Share Posted July 13, 2015 Hour big of an improvement its third blower exactly? Specifically I am wondering if you can feel the air cone out of the side vents. On my Z hardly any comes out and I have checked ask the houses and everything... I would like to actually feel these vents work! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sayitaintjonas Posted July 14, 2015 Author Share Posted July 14, 2015 I feel like its a pretty big improvement. Maybe 50% more air? Unfortunatley, I've blocked off my sidevents, so I can't speak to how much air comes out of them. My center vent does put out enough air to keep me from being completely miserable in the 100 degree Charleston heat. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
josephdaniel Posted July 15, 2015 Share Posted July 15, 2015 That's awesome. I'm definitely ordering one! Can you pull the blower box out without taking out the whole dash?Also is it true you can feel air coming out when the fan is on low speed?! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ferrariowner123 Posted July 15, 2015 Share Posted July 15, 2015 On my 280Z it's just a couple of bolts and a wire or two. Very easy. Definitely going to search for one next time I'm at a yard! -Kyle Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sayitaintjonas Posted July 16, 2015 Author Share Posted July 16, 2015 That's awesome. I'm definitely ordering one! Can you pull the blower box out without taking out the whole dash?Also is it true you can feel air coming out when the fan is on low speed?! You might be able to do it without removing the dash, but it would be a real PITA to get to some of the bolts. You might want to try loosening the dash bolts so you could at least move it a bit. And yes, I can feel some air at low speed I wish my A/C was charged so I could actually cool off. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Savage42 Posted July 16, 2015 Share Posted July 16, 2015 I purchased a new one (with cage) for $35 and was an easy install. I still have to install it and finish all of the A/C lines & charge, but when hooked up to direct power, it moves a good amount of air. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
josephdaniel Posted July 16, 2015 Share Posted July 16, 2015 I'll give it a try and see if I can install it without pulling the dash. I guess I could pull the dash dice I am doing a bunch of work on it right now. I have been looking for a good excuse to dynamat the fire wall! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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