JimmyZ

Sticks out an inch??? Oh boy! If I'm reading right you removed the MC and found that the pushrod was protruding an inch above the face of the MasterVac. There is definitely something wrong with that. Is the brake pedal adjusted right? It might be that when you put the new master vac in that the clevis was out too far. Arne would have the right dimensions but I believe you want to have 8" between pedal and floor when at rest. Can't find my manual but I think that the pushrod should be recessed 3mm or so. If pedal height is adjusted right and you are STILL protruding one inch there's something amiss inside the mastervac. If this is the case it would be easier to return/exchange it than take it apart. IF you do decide to take it apart, I used a two pieces of plywood (W/ holes drilled for studs in MV) as the tool to unscrew the housing. Haynes manual has a picture of the real tool in use. Just approximate it with wood. Mark the alignment of the housing before you take it apart. I had to make a plunger for mine out of 1" stainless steel as the sealing surfaces on the old one had rusted. (Have a lathe) The plunger's cross section is a "T" shape and it can only be removed when you take apart the MV You'll get there! Jim

Check tranny fluid level/drain fluid and check for crunchies. Once hit half a truck tire at 700 miles on a 3000 mile trip. By the time I was at the halfway point my tranny had pumped enough oil out to damage the bearings and cause the thing to become an efficient metal grinder. As I limped it into Oklahoma City to visit a junkyard it was popping out of gear and I had completely lost the use of 5th gear. It was beggining to bog down as I reached a realtive's house where I could do the swap. Laughter, amazement ensued when the dead tranny was shook and sounded like a hardware scrap bin inside. It was incredible that it still turned.. A testament to the durability of the 5 speed. Maybe you ran low on tranny fluid too?

After re-reading the origninal post... I'm not sure I understand the bit about the RPM jump. The car was in gear with no actual acceleration and decided to rev freely right? Might have a broken/bent shift fork in the tranny??? (Gear might be engaging and disengaging) Any noises/vibes from the tranny during this loss of power. Could it rev freely with the clutch depressed? If you isolate the tranny from the engine which is causing things to bog down? Curious Jim

It is remotely possible that your POR15 detached and is blocking your pickup tube in the gas tank during movement. (Kind of like a floating garbage bag) Another fuel pincher is a possible grain of sand/etc in your return line from your SU's. There is a restrictive opening in the return end of the fuel rail. (about the size of a pin) I wouldn't even want to imagine a safe way to test fuel flow under operating conditions. A pressure guage could be rigged to where you could read it perhaps. (Drive with hood open to read guage possibly.) 2c Jim

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Arne you're too fast! You got the post in just before me:) The calipers are your first suspects. How much resistance do you get when the pads are off and you have to compress a piston? If you have to use any force when using a C-clamp style compressor for the pistons then it's time for new rubbers as their elasticity causes the pads to retract a bit after the hydraulic pressure is off. I'd get a rebuild kit for them or exchange for rebuilt. If you can afford it, new is best of course. Make sure that the exchange calipers have good threads where the brake line attaches. I got a stripped caliper once. Something might be amiss w/ the master vac. I just rebuilt mine and got to study it's inner workings. Basically it is a chamber with vaccum applied to both sides until you press the pedal. Moving the pedal causes the back side to go to atmospheric pressure which allows it to push via vaccum the master rod. It returns to neutral when vaccum is restored to the back side. Did you get the height on the M-Vac's pushrod right before the MC went back on? A quick, simple way to rule out your master vac's valve would be unplug the vaccum line and drive in safe, non-congested area. Your braking will not be too effective with the vaccum removed but it will work. This would not indicate a pushrod misadjustment though. It' very rare, but sometimes a flexible line ruptures internally and prevents/restricts fluid from flowing in one direction. (Like a flap valve) I'm sure that's not the case here. Worth considering though should all else fail. Jim

Thanks xray I got the avatar from HybridZ and used it for the car crush post. I agree that you are better off taking the tank to a radiator shop. Might as well have them get the rust out while they're at it. Just thought I'd make a page for those of us who don't trust others to work on our cars. My radiator shop admitted that the Renu process was the "cadillac" of tank repair. Definitely the way to go if U can swing it. Bought a used tank once and changed fuel filters every few miles becuase there was soooo much rust in it. Finally threw it away. FWIW Jim

Aren't we all just one happy S30 family here? Not taking sides here. Just wanted to share a conversation I had at the parts store. When buying parts I was told by the clerk that he had a friend who sold an early VIN '69 240Z for $60,000. The fellow was at a car show and was approached by the buyer who asked what his price was. Stunned, the Z owner scribbled $60K on a sheet of paper and a few days later he was richer for it. The clerk (older guy) had no reason to embelish or lie. This was a real parts store and not one of the garden style variety McDonalds dropout parts stores. Seems to me it's more a matter of getting lucky and finding a good buyer. FWIW Jim

Firstly, be careful with gas. I once had second and third degree burns over half my body from a gas fire. Have a fire extinguisher nearby and wear your best protective clothing when working on anything which might ignite/flash. Work outdoors in a good breeze so that fumes don't build. Should the gas flash, exposed skin turns to ash and/or melts off. (Ask me how I know these things) Both Escanlon and Arne's suggestions are quite possible. (Hope Arne's is the case) It would take a lot to undo the seam although there was quite a bit of interior rust around my seams. (link below) My tank ('71 240 ) had a leak due to a solder joint failing where the tube entered the tank. Rust inside the tank caused me to take corrective measure later. As a temporary patch I cleaned up the area around the solder joint and applied JB weld which made for a decent repair. It lasted 10 years before I did this... http://warbuddies.homestead.com/gastank.html (Good pictures towards bottom of page) My 2c

Like good little cellmates they complain a little at first then just roll over. They must smoke some really good Sh$t to come up with some of the things they do. Drove from Vegas to the Grand C. What an awesome drive! The smog at the Canyon was a real bummer. At least it helped me realize why they have stricter emmision laws in Kali. Later Jim

For us, getting that right serial numbered makes a diff. Sure, people should get an option to reclaim their property. Some property can be sentimental and ought to be returned to the PO. The vast majority of the things stolen in this case would be intangible to the PO however. Most new Acura owners etc don't want to be bothered with getting the serials right. They just want a functional car and no bothering with trucking an engine into their studio apartment. Once you've been stolen from your memories are tarnished to a place/item. There's no taking it back. Getting an out of crate engine for your three year old Acura may not be such a bad deal tho. As mentioned before it is wacky Cali laws that we are dealing with here. This sort of thing should be reserved for specific cases IMO. Remember that driving privs are not a right. They could just as easily take them away for life. Then you're really screwed.

Z train I think I know why this topic bums you. You live in AZ which is an AWESOME place to drive. Wide open spaces are a great place to open up and see how fast it goes. You might be viewing this in the context of your situation and not where it's occuring. If you want to get pissed off about wrongful property seizure... http://boortz.com/nuze/alabaster.html Great stuff... great radio show. Would you rather they suspend their license for life?

:stupid:What good would returning them be once the PO has replaced them to regain functionality. I guess the property could be sold and the proceeds used to compensate the PO/victim and/or insurance company. They don't have to crush cars but the psychological effect is greater than simply taking them away. This sort of action should only be used in cases where it would "benefeit" the offender in this way. The more you lay hands on a car the more you love it. Taking something you love out of existence rather than letting your "dream" live on in someone else's hands has effect. Lastly, look at what state it's in. California has a way of passing laws which are simply whacky. I've heard in Oregon you can't fill your own car at the pump. West coasters:stupid: (No offense to you poor souls on the WC) Years ago they tried to pass laws that forbid a car owner to work on his own vehicle. It would effectively shut down parts stores and force you to take your car to a shop. They were trying to do away with pollution etc..:stupid: I'm sure that eventually each state will adopt sticter methods for dealing with such crimes if the problem worsens. This type of justice will prob stay in Cali tho.

What should happen to this guy?? http://videos.streetfire.net/video/9805626c-0ce6-46dd-8f55-993300f2d6a9.htm Yeah, he's having fun and making a great video but what about the mom and kids in the Volvo. If Clint Eastwood was chief it would be worse but this seems fair... First time =Hefty tickets lots O points 2nd Susp lic & possible jail 3rd offense Items 1&2 and then some PLUS Crushing Beemer seems fair to me. 2c Do you agree? If street was empty and there was no property to damage (barracades, people, etc) then the guy would be kind of OK to do this.

Oops! My picture was wrong. Now that I recall the start wheel can be turned via a hole in the front side of the drum. I'm thinking of some american cars backplates. Sorry. Just turn the drum 'til the hole is roughly at 6:30 and use a flashlight to find/observe the starwheel as you turn it. The posts above mention something common which is rust. Soak with hub protrusion with parts blaster and use a soft hammer (rubber/wood etc) to hit the outside face of the drum to unsettle it. If you see movement between the hub and drum but the drum is still stuck you have a lip inside the drum. If the drum is worn and has a lip it is a matter of turning the start wheel enough to slacken your shoes so it will come off. In extreme cases I've cut a large hole in the drum (trashing the drum) to adjust the start wheel and/or cut the drum off. This is rare though.

just checked to photo on prev post. You can only read it when it's maximized. Forgot to mention that the Haynes manual has a picture/instuctions like mine.

It can be a PITA but the only thing keeping you from freeing your drum is the star wheel adjuster. Undoing the screws might loosen things but will not allow you to remove the drum. There should be a rubber covered slot in the lower part of the backing plate. (directly below strut) You pop off the rubber and use a flat heaed screwdriver to turn the star wheel. This causes the shoes to adjust inward and eventually allows easy removal of the drum. The HARD part is when you have drums which are worn and have a lip that holds them to the shoes. You simply have to turn the adjusting wheel a LOT more. The wheel in question is a sawtoothed wheel. To tighten (spread) the shoes farther apart you pry the wheel the "easy" way. This means prying the wheel up. The screwdriver engages the wheel easily because it is catching tooth side of the saw. To loosen, (what you need to do) you turn the wheel against the saw tooth pattern. See picture. Use a flashlight to verify that you are actually turning the wheel. Check the drum every few turns to see if it is loose enough to come off. There is a technique using a second screwdriver (small one) to hold the adjuster bar away when you get the first side off play with this technique so you can see how to do it. 2c Jim

Disregard my last post. I couldn't delete/edit it because of a five min deal. I was replying to Ztrains earlier post. Is that Ztrain as in CraZy train? (One of my fav Ozzy albums) You're right Mike. Only the court transcripts could give a clear idea of justice. We don't have 'em so why are we debating. I think we are all on the same page regarding freedoms and property and the need to retain them. Like the framers of the Constitution there are a few "minor" diffs of opinion. We all want the same thing though... To keep our Z's when we blow the little Honda childrens doors off.

First off I'm sorry about your parents. To loose both in that way is tragic. My wife had to see her father slowly succumb to brain cancer and it is very sad to see anyone waste away from cancer. I agree with you. I LIKE to be able to own full auto weapons and smoke lucky strike or cloves if I choose. It pisses me off to no end when someone tries to tell us what lyrics we can have in our music... How much T&A we get to see on TV/movies and how that T&A can be used in said entertainment. The problem is that not everyone is smart enough or not able to exercise foresight when going down a path of action. Parents wonder why their kids are parents at 12-16 but fail to see the connection with what they expose the kids to. (Ref the T&A above) I used to live in a place where you could shoot in any direction and be 95% sure that you weren't going to hit person or property when doing so. To be responsible we chose to shoot at trajectories which made it a 99% certainty. (Berms, hills etc) Where I live now it's off to jail for discharging a firearm unless you have a really good reason... Even with a reason you might still be given a date with the judge. Everyone screws up from time to time and society must pay for their ignorance. To keep this in check we have laws. An unemployed chain smoker living on welfare/handouts should not smoke drink excessively or do anything else which may cause undue expeneses from others. Why? Because each of us should pull our own weight. This is why my state has a no-helmet requirement for motorcycles if you are properly insured. You might still cost the taxpayers something but at least the edge is taken off the bill. (I won't ride with a helmet. Always have hated them.) The issue is freedom and how some persons irresponsibility can deprive an innocent person of their freedom to use honest hard earned wages. Seizing property such as the cars in question under the circumstances mentioned is a stretch of gov powers. Sometimes extreme problems require extreme measures. This is one of those battles which you simply don't fight because there's no solid justification given the circumstances. If they crushed a passerby's car who did have legit parts etc then that's a whole other story. It's OK to torch the city then. 2c

I agree completely BUT... As society becomes more crowded social responsibility must increase or we have chaos, anarchy etc. Laws that force people to be responsible for their actions and effects on others are an unfortunate by-product. It is unfortunate that we are forced to live under the "oppression" of our current system. There really is no escaping it. The growth of law and government doesn't seem to have any end in sight. All of this won't matter if Mexico and Canada have their way. There is talk of eventually making the US one nation with our neighbors and becoming a North American version of the EU. (Heard this from Neal Boortz Am radio. Take with grain of salt.)

I think it's wrong that they are taxing cigarettes to the point of near extortion. I also think it's wrong to deprive someone of their property in certain cases. (Cars, imminent domain/condemnation, inheritance tax, etc) The issue here is social reponsibility and people's need to be aware of it. How to do teach an irresponsible kid such a thing when tickets/accidents are paid for by mom and dad? The only justifiable way I can see them crushing a car is if it is a repeat offender. We've all driven like we stole it at one time or another. Many of us are lucky to still be alive. As the world's population gets crowded social responsibility becomes imperative. Look at NYC and what it took to make it what it is today. I don't like zero tolerance laws but look at what the effect was. The way things are going, crushing cars and overpriced cigs might be here to stay. 2c Jim

It looks nice using the same color but I'd prefer to have original color on back. Contrast is good.

Here's a link to some pictures inside my tank... http://warbuddies.homestead.com/gastank.html

There is a baffle between the pickup and filler. The baffle is directly underneath the termination of the tank's "hump". FWIW. I used a hair dyer to heat my filler neck so that it became pliable. You have to keep the plastic warm/hot as it becomes rigid quickly when the heat is removed. Use a fan to blow the fumes away from the hair dryer as you can imagine a remote possibility of the gas fumes igniting.