zbane

I know countries get different models at different times, but that looks to me like a ZX. This is probably no big deal-after all, the car looks great, just don't let them tell you that it's something it isn't and try to charge you more for it. That is a very early ZX- I'm positive, mine is HS130 150591 from April, 79; that one is HS130 001395! I'd buy it if I could!

but just in case, you have another area to check. Good Luck!

sorry, the real camera decided to give up for the night (I'm at work, no charger) so it's camera phone and bluetooth. again, I have a 1979 zx, but it should at least be similar.

after the battery is out, according to the manual, on the fender side, there should be an unscrewable panel. remove the panel, and it should be in the upper left corner of the opening.

If I have done this right, maybe the photo will show and it will be of some help.

from the FSM- Horn does not stop to sound-- 1. Short-circuited horn button and/or horn button lead wire.[when instrument harness is disconnected from combination switch, horn stops sounding] 2. Faulty horn relay. "Corrective Action" 1. Repair horn button or its wiring 2. Replace (the relay)

how do you post a photo in these messages? I shot one of the horn electrical system.

I found the diagram for the zx, I don't know if it will help, but here is where the wires go- horns (engine bay), engine room harness, horn relay (3 pin connector), combination switch connector (12 pins),line splits 1 line to main harness and on to fuse block, the other to another harness (10 pin) to combination switch, then on to the horn button and ground. I wish I had a scanner, this would be much easier.

I don't know if any of this will help, keep in mind that I have a 280zx, some differences will be the case. You may have a horn relay switch in the engine compartment, near the battery, perhaps behind a removable panel. I'm searching my FSM for the other electrical.

I think if it were a grounding issue, that the horn shouldn't sound when un-grounded. I think it's a problem with the connection, maybe the copper brushing IN the steering wheel is corroded. Then again, I'm no electrician.

When you were backing up, perhaps you tapped the horn, maybe the spring that breaks the connection has become a little gummed up from time and didn't release right away, who knows. Since it didn't start blaring after reconnecting the battery, I imagine it has something to do with the user connection, might be something simple, or so we can hope.

I just searched through my service manual- I've got a 280zx, I know it's different than your model, but the tranny fluid will definately be the same. Check your linkages for your ebrake, the problem might be there.

Just a guess on your tranny issue- I would imagine Dexron 3, not type F (type F is generally used on Fords, Dexron on GM products and most imports). If no one here can give you a difinitive answer, I would suggest contacting one of those restoratation places or a dealer (not sure about the dealer, though). E-Brake-I agree with the lube and tap method.

Not according to my service manual. According to it, I need to pull the steering wheel, everything attatched to it and the dash-all to get to two little screws on the underside of the cluster, what fun.

by the way, by unwind, I mean despoolling, unravelling, releasing energy. You can hear it spinning in its cable from inside the car, while driving (obviously). It's not so much that I need to see how fast I am going, I would just like to figure by gas mileage (and not get a speeding ticket). I am also not looking forward to pulling the dash-this is my daily driver and cannot be out of commision for very long due to a lack of dashboard.

I am having a reoccuring problem with my speedo cable. It keeps breaking at the pinion gear (tranny mount). I have a 1979 280zx with the 2pc cable setup. One cable, about 1 foot in length, goes from the rear of the instrument cluster to the firewall, where it is connected to another cable. It is the longer of the two that keeps breaking, but I think the problem lies in the cluster. Here is why. 1. when it works, there is a rattleing sound from the dash. 2. the trip odometer is VERY hard to reset. 3. When the cable invariably snaps (at the pinion), you can hear the cable unwind. (by unwind, I mean unravel-like a spring releasing tension) I think that if I were to pull the speedo cluster I could fix this by either cleaning and reinstalling, or simply replacing with a different unit. I wanted to get our club's sage advice, however, before pulling the dash-by the way, how long do you think pulling the dash might take and hwo difficult is it? Any Ideas? Thanks

Do you need just the light bulb, or the entire housing? Also, what year are you looking for? By the way, I think the map light is one of the coolest features inside my cabin-I also love the "work" light in the engine bay. ps-have some sopapillas and green chile for me

Are those new lights in there? An external light ring-similar to the newer BMW 6 series seems to be at work in there. Am I right, do I win a prize?

CARFAX won't work for you. They only track VIN's from 1981 up. I searched Tennessee Datsun Clubs, this one looks good, maybe a good place to start... http://www.middletennesseezclub.com good luck-

280's are metric as well. As for a nice selection of parts, Quality Nissan in TX is a good place to check out-Good job getting all those books, by the way!

Another idea would be to rig the lights to switch off automatically when the key goes into the off position. I had a 1975 Fiat Spider with this convenience. Just a idea. zbane

I had something like this happen with my old Accord-for the Honda it was a faulty starter switch (not where you put the key-don't check the wrong part) that had to be replaced. You may have a different problem, but the symptoms are identical to what I experienced. zbane

Southern, My guess is that you may be suffering from the dreaded VAPOR LOCK. My '79 squeels inside the cabin, but only when it is warm outside. Cool days, no noise. If the noise is audible from the outside of the car as well, but from the engine bay, you might want to check out your idler pulleys. I only mention the pulleys because the sounds are similar from inside-both very annoying. Be thankful that you didn't have both happening simultaniously on a 12 hour drive.