Major problems!!!!!

[brutesque]

My '83 280 zx nonturbo has been having some problems lately.

Within the past couple of weeks, at lights, my car will act like it wants top turn off in a pulsing motion. But when I drive, this doesnt happen. It has only happened twice.

Also, my voltage meeter has been going crazy. The needle just goes in and out of the red area, over the 14 volt range. I have a leak somewhere in my antifreeze lines or heater core or something, and I was wondering if the antifreeze leaking on wires could cause this.

Also, I have been haing issues with my brakes. Occationally, it wont catch, and I stop, I just have to go much farther down on the break pedal. My dad said I would probably need a new master cylinder. Could this be anything else?

Id apreciate anyones input into my situation. I have already replaced the radiator, rotors, and other misc things. My parents dont think its a good idea that I have this car, and if I can fix these problems myself, theyre fine with me keeping her, but if I have to keep taking her to the shop, theyre going to make me sell her. And that is the last thing I want.

[zbane]

These are nothing more than thoughts:

The pulsing issue, where the car wants to die on you might be

a. signs of a dying battery

b. signs of a malfunctioning alternator or loose belt

c. poorly functioning fuel pump, fuel pressure regulator, fuel damper, or clogged fuel filter

The voltmeter issue shouldn't be related to your leaking antifreeze, but could well be related to a and b above.

Find that leak, it could be an easy fix like tightening a connection or replacing a heater hose. Then again, it could be that your water pump is giving up the ghost. Since the pump is connected to the alternator, this could in turn be the cause of the wacky voltmeter, but these are just guesses

[boktx]

When my Master Vac went out, I had similar issues. Every time I'd hit the brakes, my car would stutter and want to die.

The faulty Master Vac caused such a disruption in the vacuum that the engine had trouble running.

Given that your brakes are having trouble too and that you have to press harder to actually stop the car, could it be that your Master Vac is failing?

I'm not sure how you'd go about checking it. Mine failed over 10 years ago and I don't really remember what I did to troubleshoot.

[brutesque]

zbane--

I just bought a new battery a few months ago. And my water pump was what caused me to have to get a new radoator .

Would I have to replace the alternator, or is it repairable?

boktx--

I have only had the pulsing issue twice, not every time I brake. When it happened to you, did it start out not very often and gradually get worse?

[KDMatt]

The voltage thing, to me, speaks alternator.

I had this problem on my '76, it ended up just being my voltage regulator (however, on the '83 model the voltage regulator and alternator are together in one unit, so to replace one is to replace the other)

In terms of a pulsing idle, there are lots of possible reasons... it's either fuel supply, or it's electrical...

You may also want to check the AFM connections, I've known a bad AFM signal to cause some pretty serious revving/pulsing.

The brake thing sounds like a failing master to me... but I know the least about brakes... It's probably not a bad idea to inspect all of your brake lines and hoses either.