New: Help me get this car running again!

[Blue260Z]

Hello,

I am the owner of a 1974 260Z. Back in 1986 I no longer had time for the car and put it into storage. Unfortunatly I left it in storage and never started it or anything. Please note that when this car was put away, it was in perfect running order.

Well, recently with the help of my son, we replaced all belts and hoses, all fluids, clutch master cylinder and line. New battery, new air filter and some other odds and ends. With the new battery, everything came to life electronically.

Here is the problem, today we tried to turn her over and got nothing but a click, click, click from the starter. Now, I was afraid that after having sat for so long, the engine may be a little siezed, so we put a breaker bar on the crank sprocket and slowly tried to turn the engine by hand. Well it wouldnt budge. Should we even be trying to do this? Or is this probably just a case of a bad starter?

Any help would be appreciated, thanks guys.

p.s. We are located in Rochester N.H

[zman525]

Well on my 240z when i first tried getting it running it did the same clicking noise. Try clearing all corosion and grease and dirt ETC from the starter (where the wires attatch to it) You may just be gettin a bad connection to it. After i did this it turned over no problem. Also you may want to clean the gas tank and blow compressed air through the lines so you can clear it all of gunk and grime.

[Blue260Z]

Well, I took the lines off and they were really dirty ect, cleaned them up and tried again, unfortunatly with the same results. I am leaning towards a bad starter. Where can I get one?

As far as fuel lines go, what is the deal with them. How many run from the tank forward? Is it just one and then they split somewhere in the engine bay ect? Sorry for the silly question, I just see many lines there.

( I thought about blowing them through also. I'll just need an air compressor. )

TIA

[MikeW]

Now, I was afraid that after having sat for so long, the engine may be a little siezed, so we put a breaker bar on the crank sprocket and slowly tried to turn the engine by hand. Well it wouldnt budge. Should we even be trying to do this? Or is this probably just a case of a bad starter?

I would say that if it won't even budge with the breaker bar then don't even bother trying to use the starter as you'll risk doing more damage. I've seen people recommend squirting penetrating fluid in each cylinder and letting it soak in before trying to turn the engine over.

[Blue260Z]

Ah yes, this was recommended to me by a friend earlier. Interesting it came up here also. I will give this a try.

Once I let it sit in there for a little bit, should I then try and break it free with the breaker bar again?

Thanks

[MikeW]

Once I let it sit in there for a little bit, should I then try and break it free with the breaker bar again?

Yes. The engine should turn over fairly easily by hand with the breaker bar, especially if the spark plugs are out.

[Zthing]

Ever hear of Marvel Mystery Oil? Comes in a can with a screw top if I remember correctly. Get some type of spray bottle if possible and mist an ounce into each cylinder thru the plug hole. Let sit for a couple of days. You may want to remove the valve cover also and pour a bit of your favorite motor oil across the cam and inner workings, since they are probably pretty dry from storage. Leaving the plugs out while using the breaker bar is a good idea, as mentioned earlier. Try to keep any excess crud around the spark plug holes from falling into the cylinder. Good luck. BTW.....if you break something......I never left this message.

[kenz240z]

If spraying penetrating fluid into the cylinders works and you are successful in turning the engine over with a breaker bar on the crank pulley bolt be sure to change the oil before you attempt to start the engine. The penetrating fluid will thin out the oil in the pan and could cause problems if the engine was started.

[seerex]

Ok I know you said you replaced all fluids but just to be sure , you did drain the gas tank? Because if you do get the engine to turn over you will be sucking up bad fuel if you can bring fuel up < fuel filter was replaced as well i hope>. Also just remove the air filters at this point and make sure your needles are not suck open. But again first thing is to get the car to turn over with the starter. Most shops will check your starter for free once you get the cylinders loosened. Good luck and there are lots of threads on this sort of things, hope to hear back that you got it running