Bread-Man280

I completely understand, I would not be helping the clutch out any by continuing to drive on it. But, at the moment I really have no choice, I suppose I will just have to take it easy... I did fiddle with adjusting the pedal today, but there was absolutely no difference. I gradually took the linkage adjustment all the way out to its extreme and all I got was grinding in reverse (not that I forced it), or not able to push it in gear. Adjusting it in some, made for a very short pedal engagement, but no change when I test drove it. She still revs up at speed, so I returned the linkage to my original setting, it engages about 2-3 inches off the floor. I don't really think I need a performance clutch, but could it really make that much difference over stock; if it is a little grippier, why would that be such a bad thing (but I think this is where my ignorance kicks in, performance clutch=faster car:devious:. Just Kidding, but that is the mentality of most of my peers anyway, it sounds fast). And, I read on here that high performance clutches are not good for the street. A friend of mine suggested that I bleed the clutch, and since I haven't done that since the last time the tranny was off, it may also be worth a shot. If that turns out to resolve the problem, I'll be feeling just a lil more foolish at the end of the day and everyone can get their laughs in, I know i will. Maybe this is just one way of keeping me from burning gas this weekend... Edit: I just read the New Slave...No Result thread, it explained the clutch system very well, perhaps my friend is on to something with this; will have to apply that information tomorrow.

Thanks sblake, I had not considered adjusting the pedal, I'm not sure if its going to help much, but I will give it a go tomorrow. Once again, the search will help me with this. I have been talking with my father about it, and he can't seem to understand why the spacer will cause the clutch to slip, and to be truthful I can't really explain it that well either. So now he wants to get another brand new clutch pack (it sounds like he is going for a performance clutch) but also wants to swap the 4speed for a 5spd (junkyard buy, 150$). He too cannot recall if the spacer was removed, the thin one, and will not waste time with a standard clutch any more, as this will be the 3rd time removal. Perhaps the 3rd times the charm... Will it be OK to continue driving, so long as I don't kick it much? It may take a lil while till the tranny can be picked up. I got to say, though, this car is the greatest thing ever; it is so much fun to drive. Now I know why people fall in love with these cars for more than just their looks. They really do have a soul all their own.

Hi, First, I'd like to thank everyone here for the help that you have given, without you all I would never have gotten this far and probably not even out of the garage. This site and the people on it have provided me with so much information over the past few years. I feel a great deal of respect toward everyone here. I have finally finished my 76' 280Z (at least for now) that I began restoring about 3 years ago. I will try to get pictures up as soon as I can. But, all may not be as well as I think. When I first started the project, one of the first things I did was swap from a automatic to a manual tranny. I had not been able to drive it for a long while, until about last spring. When I drove it for the first time, the clutch was very slippery; although it was brand new, it would not bite very well. Thinking I may have gotten a lousy clutch pack, My father and I replaced it with a new one in about 3 hours and since it was under warranty, it came at no cost; in no time, I was testing it again on the local roads. It was considerably better, and I tried a few hard pulls from a stop (without trying to peel out:finger:) and it performed fine. Flash forward to this weekend, I trail my father to the inspection station and feel her out. Drives fine, no bad tendencies. I get up to about 40 mph and start to push it a little harder to get up to 55 and the revs pick up very very quickly, and not exponentially with speed. I watch the speedo climb slowly, more slowly than I would think with the kind of rpms I've got. Now, it was raining that day and the clutch was new, so I know that clutches sometimes need to get an easy break-in. I have been driving it all weekend (no rain) and it does not seem to be improving yet. But, it got me thinking, "Did I remove the spacers on the crankshaft when I swapped the transmission?" From what I have read, I must have removed one of them, because the pilot bearing won't go on with it in the way. But did I (for some silly reason:stupid:) leave/reinstall the thinner one on. I cannot remember how many came out, nor did I really research the process (which was probably one of the first things I should have done), so I probably did not know the spacer existed. This brings me to my question, does anybody know if this spacer will cause the symptoms I have described? Or, am I just experiencing a normal part of Z driving phenomenon? I really don't want to take the whole thing apart to find out that its not the problem, as I'm sure everyone can understand. I will drive it the rest of this week to give it a chance, but if it does not get better I guess I will bite the bullet and tear it down. I am trying to keep things rational, I don't need to rush, three years is long enough to build this beauty, I can take some more time get this done right. Again, thankyou all and I appreciate any help you guys can give.

I think the cartoonish proportions could be dealt with by using some realistic size wheels to ditch those low pros. and raking the windscreen back a few degrees, so it looks less like the 350. The headlights (and the surrounding area ) look a lot like that other concept Z-car, where there is too much PLASTIC in that area. I like the body, but without the vents and side skirts, I even like the GT-R grille and especially the power bulge. I'd like to see a full side/rear view. This one might have a little more potential for resurrecting the Datsun name than the "X-link" concept or the 370 for that matter. But I cannot see Nissan slapping a Datsun tag on it and expecting people to remember what Datsun means. Why did they stop using the Datsun name anyhow? My $.02

If you want to stay N/A http://datsunzgarage.com/. has a lot of advice about getting power out of your L28. Its a great read with plenty of info covering just about everything.

I think the problem with mileage is a mechanical one. If I understand correctly, don't you need higher compression to run ethanol, or any type of alcohol? If that is so, I wonder what the c/r of the average modern engine is? It is likely that ethanol will be the only fuel left to run in our vehicles in the future. But I give it another 25-50 years before we see cars come with engines that run exclusively ethanol. These cars will be adequately equipped. Not long ago I watched a show about the future of oil. It was a kind of run-on story line where the oil was gone, we went to war, people burned wood in homes, and bikers brewed moonshine on rooftops because the bikes would be easier to modify to run alcohol. Gives me an idea, why can't the same thing be done for my Z:cheeky: I had to do a research paper for a college class (I'm in high school) about alternative fuels. I was amused by what I found. Alcohols were actually destined to be the standard fuel for most of the 19th century, until the Civil war. The feds put taxes on it to pay for the war and only repealed them in around 1910. Around that time inventors were experimenting with gas vs. alcohol engines. Basically they found that the two were practically the same in potential energy and mileage. Interestingly, alcohol combustion has less harmful byproducts. If my memory serves me correctly, the formation of NO2 gases does not occur at high c/r? Not to mention alcohol burns cooler. (I think I remember this right? I'll have to check) We can blame our dependence on oil in general because of propaganda from oil companies who were in competition with alcohol producers a hundred years ago. Gasoline won out because of the prices for alcohol were higher. Gasoline is here in the way it is now because it WAS cheaper then. I agree completely with 26th. We are only just starting to use flex fuels, while others have already been using it for years Well, sorry for the long write-up. FWIW Bread

You can see a Zed in an old mythbusters episode. They drive to the abandoned naval base, probably to blow something up:geek:, the person is swerving around a whole lot; it's kinda dark, but there's no mistaking that front end. You see it later from the back near the storage container, white, with hatch louvers (240, right?). Maybe it was the chicken gun or the pigs ina vette' myth:smoke:. Never seen it again after that and the toy car myth.... On Saturdays and Sundays, if you watch the car shows on Spike, there is a Wyotech commercial with a brown 280ZX in a lot of cars inside a shop.

I found a nice brushed steel nissan travel mug wedged under, the usual coinage, an ice scraper, and a toothpick from Bonvechio's Restaurant, still in the wrapper. there was a name plate on the heater console "this car made specially for Ping Bonvechio". Appparently the restaurant was his uncle's. Later on, somebody lost that mug before I could ever use it. In a parts car I found two playboy air fresheners, playboy seat covers, playboy bunnies etched onto the windows, a strip club "business card", a plate frame that said "I'm just chillin", coins and a lot of old chewed up carpet. Guy must have thought he was hot-shnit.

I shoulda went to to MSA! I was warned the 1/4s from tabco (the ones they had currently) would have problems. Great looking repair job!

The bolts apply pressure to the aluminum not the fiberglass. the aluminum is attached to the foam in the spoiler and the fiberglass, so now the spoiler is semisolid with three sides to it instead of only two. you drop the bolts thru the top of the spoiler into the hatch area, only the spoiler has holes big enough to fit the bolt head thru not the aluminum, you will need to drill the holes yourself. hold a nut between the sheets of metal behind the cover and screw the bolt into the nut your holding there. the bolt does not protrude thru both sheets of metal. I know the area is tight but that is why you cut the bolt to a custom length. If you still don't understand then give me the dimensions of it, maybe I think it is bigger than in the pictures.

Reworking is almost mandatory, I did get lucky on a set of fender patches though. They fit real well and were cheap enough. The 1/4s were not so, the curve at the back was way off and so was the wheel arch. The only way I could make it look somewhat close to original was to cut wedges into and out of it. Tabco said that the patches would not come out of the presses w/o trouble and that would explain the wrinkles but the other areas were like a mis-sized die? I was able to get a LH rocker panel, but it too seemed too long in some areas and too short in others, I made it work. I wonder why Black Dragon doesn't have a RH rocker? I see tabco doesn't have fenders either.

I know I am late to this, but... If it were me, I would measure a piece of aluminum to fit inside the hollow portion of the spoiler. Bevel the edges if I had to, to make it fit inside flush with the hatch, but not force it and distort the fiberglass. Then I would find a good location on the hatch itself, somewhere thats easily accessible (like right behind the vinyl cover, inside). Next, I would match up the aluminum to the location I chose, and drill those babies. Now, I don't know what the size of the spoiler in question is, but I have pretty good idea so I would use maybe a 1/2" long bolt and cut it if needed. I would also match the holes up on top of the spoiler and drill that large enough to fit the bolt head into. I like the spray-foam idea. Fill it up, sand it down, and leave a nice hole bored thru the top. Epoxy on the aluminum. Epoxy works well for this if the aluminum is prepped right - I would sand it with something like 30grit. Slather that stuff all over the one side and put it in the spoiler, let it cure for a day or so. Clean up the excess pox. and bolt it on (after paint of course). I have in mind making the piece removable so, it is up to you if you would rather fill in the holes on top or whatever, I would just smear some epoxy on the wall holes so the foam doesn't soak up water, maybe a little caulk around the hole in the hatch. If anybody has done this and found it was a total waste of time, then please, tell me to shut up:stupid:. But it sounds good don't it?

Black-Dragon gets their patch panels and other replacement body parts from Tabco. Go to Tabcobodyparts.com, they should have them. I have not checked out the site in a while so I could be wrong. In the case of quarter patches though, I just installed a pair on my 76' and they were cut very....rough.... but I had been waiting so long to get them, I made them work.:devious:

I know what ya mean about the marks, my brother has a TSi Conquest and it used to have a hatch louver. It marked the glass up and collected alot of leaves. He ditched the thing. IMO, the louvers only look good with the right accents, like a black airdam or those side molding strips. I know the tailpipe extension works pretty well. My father drives an older celica, he also complained of exhaust fumes, so he had me weld some longer tips onto the muffler. Took care of the fumes and it looks waay better than the stock slash-cut tips. Bread

I know this thread is kind of old, but I wanted to ask a question (without making yet another fumes thread). Has any body experimented with using a hatch louver to break up the airflow. I looked around the site in almost every related thread and nothing turned up. The closest thing on the subject only mentioned "high speed" aerodynamics. I was hoping that I could get some answers from the aero-experts on the site. Thanks, Bread