geezer

Secret areas? Didn't know there were any. It would be very difficult to find another site that was set up as well, or as easy to navigate as this one. There is a vast amount of material here, but I think everything is self explanatory and easily found. A "new users" page is a good idea. I have noticed some new users unintentionally stepping on someone elses thread with a question, instead of searching or starting their own thread after a search. We have all been guilty of that at one time or another. Some useful protocall could be included into a "New User Page". On a side note, another thing I have gotten into the habit of doing, is scrolling to the bottom of the page and checking out the similar threads. It is sometimes helpful and always interesting reading. I don't think you are going to get a great deal of suggestions Mike, because of the hard work and careful thought you have already put into this site.

Well Chris, I think kids today are for the most part, more responsible and aware of the consequences of their actions than some of us were. The harsh realities of driving today make it so. The escalating cost of insurance in the event of an accident is a real threat hanging over a young driver today. All you can do is relay your knowledge and concerns to him and hope for the best. Wish him a Happy Birthday from us at the Classic Z Car Club.

Hey Hooj, do a search for a product that has been overwhelmingly recommended for cleaning electrical contacts, called Deoxit. I've been meaning to try it myself. After you have finished inspecting/cleaning/reconnecting, you can reconnect the (-)battery cable and do a systems check. Make note of anything not working or any intermittant conditions. Then you can track down the individual causes in each instance. Any device only needs a power & ground to operate. It becomes only a matter of finding what's missing and where the interuption is. Good luck and make sure to check back here with your full report. I for one look forward to finding out what you find.

This problem just recently came up. Maybe this will help. http://www.classiczcars.com/forums/showthread.php?t=29251&highlight=valve+compound

The best advise I can give you is this. Disconnect the negative battery cable and spend the better part of a day inspecting, cleaning and reconnecting every connector and electrical connection you can gain access to. Also try to find the locations of all the grounds, which are notorious for causing problems. An Intermittent or Temporary Power Outage can be one of the most frustrating electrical problems to encounter. You can't fix it if it's working at the time. I have fixed many TPOs by this inspection/cleaning/ground tightening process and never did find what the problem was. That's OK though because if you are having problems with dirty/loose connections causing some things not to work, the wiring harnesses should be maintained before other symptons arise.

You guys have echoed my feelings about the people who frequent and also those who maintain this club. The site is constantly being improved upon. A check of the Classifieds and the Photo Galleries is a part of my daily fix, as is a regular Search in the archives...what a valuable treasure and learning experience!

Stephen knows his ztuff, I just have a four foot tall stack of books that I smack up the side of my head in the hopes something will sink in. The Modification Plus Program was the "cure" for the sometimes troublesome flat tops. Since your flat tops are gone the only other parts other than the harnesses and relays that could have been added and still be intact would be the larger 15 3/8" diameter fan and a rubber radiator sealing strip. You say there is no electric pump. Maybe there never was one or it was removed. From what I understand, the presence of the relays and harnesses does not nessesarily mean the rest of the "Mod Plus" kit was ever installed. Measure the diameter of your rad fan, to see if it is the standard 15" or the larger one included in the kit. This is the parts list for the kit.

Since you don't have the flat tops any longer and if you find the click of the relay anoying, remove it. It's not doing anything but making noise.

Do you still have the original flat top carbs, or were they changed out. This is an exerpt from the "1973 Modification Plus" manual that shows the addition of the harness & relay for the control of an electric fuel pump. I think this may explain it, or put you on track to figure it out.

They become very pliable once heated evenly with a heat gun or hair blower.

I'm having trouble seeing how gunk in a fuel tank can cause an extremely rich condition to the point of choking out the engine and causing it to stall. The opposite seems more likely. It wouldn't hurt to check the condition of the tank. lines and filters but I wouldn't throw a lot of money at it without some further diagnosis. Take 240 Al up on his offer and get the information needed to logically narrow down the list of possible reasons this is happening. Better than needlessly throwing money at it.

Did the kids know who Speed Racer is? Congrats!!

I would first try to find a replacement seal. We have a business here that has a selection of seals & O-rings, etc. that has met most of my needs over the years. Look in the phone book, make some calls and then bring the old one with you. Tell them it is for fuel use.

On wiring diagrams diodes are typically shown as triangles or "arrow heads". The current travels in the direction the "arrow" is pointing. So, to answer the question, no the red wire will not be connected between the EGR Cut Solenoid and the diode. Direction of current is actually a decieving thing. A better way of looking at this is to visualize the voltage as being present and not able to pass through the pointed end of the "arrow head", but able to pass from the other direction. Here is another page from the same manual that does not show a diode in the circuit, but it is shown in the wiring diagrams. In the wiring diagram, there is a connector shown at the EGR Cut Solenoid, and if you follow the wire it shows another connector just before the diode. Continuing in this direction, the splice is made after the diode. It should be easy to find the diode & splice location in relation to this connector. PS - Sometimes the actual configuration of the wiring & components is different from what you will actually find when you work on the actual car. Good luck and let us know how you make out with it.

The Haynes I have actually covers 1970 thru 1978 and can be confusing as far as year/use goes sometimes, but touches on most subjects and has great illustrations. A Thread that will be worth watching as it develops in time is here: http://www.classiczcars.com/forums/showthread.php?threadid=28927

The description from Hayne's: Dropping resistors - Extract the two screws which secure the resistors to the fascia panel. Relay - Same description as above. Maybe the illustrations will help.

Good point Stephen, I never thought of that. srbigbutt, The wiring diagram I have for 1975 only shows this switch being used in conjunction with the EGR system. The other thing I can think of off hand, a water temperature switch could be used for other than a control device for an EGR valve would be a spark timing control system. You would have to look in the specific model year FSMs to find how else a water temp. switch could have been used for your car. It could be used for input parameters for a number of uses, that I'm not familiar with I suppose. You say the Ground wire is broken, where does the other wire run to?

I think you need to take a closer look at it. If it was cut by the cooling fan you should be able to find at what point on the harness it was cut from. Do a search to find where you can download a wiring diagram for a 1975. It's a lot easier for you to solve a mystery like this, having the car right in front of you, instead of playing guessing games.

No, it doesn't matter, other than to confuse the issue and the next guy that tries to decifer it. What does matter is what side of the diode you splice into on route to the solenoid.

Here's a link http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&viewitem=&ru=http%3A%2F%2Fsearch.ebay.com%3A80%2F130217212568_W0QQ_trksidZm37QQfromZR40QQfviZ1&item=130217212568

I am looking at a 1975 wiring diagram. You are correct, the black wire is shown going directly to Ground. The red wire for a California model is shown as being spliced into the red wire that runs to the EGR Cut Solenoid. If you have to connect this red wire, pay attention to the diode that is shown on the diagram. The diode allows the current to run in only one direction, so you have to splice in on the proper side of it. It is shown as a blacked out triangle that may be a little difficult to see, but is directly above the splice on the diagram. The second scan explains it's purpose & test proceedures.

Bill, you will have to confirm this for us. In Post #7, in the attachment Stephen provided titled Spark Timing Control System for Automatic Transmissions 1972, the ambient temperature of the passenger cabin is being used to trigger the Temperature Switch at 50 degrees and not a water temperature switch. I think because the Haynes manual referenced in Post #5 covers many model years that point was skewed and sent me down the wrong path. That's what happens when you don't have the car in front of you. Just a point of clarification.

One other thing needs to be pointed out here Bill. The information Stephen provided is more accurate for your car, as it is 1972 specific. The information I provided is from 1970 and references the earlier 3N71A transmission. I believe the methods of operation are identical with the only difference I noticed was the air temperature switch sense of 40 degrees which is measuring ambient air temperature in the 1970 example and the water temperature switch that Stephen noted for 1972, that measures water temperature (a definite improvement). I have seen the factory manuals that cover the newer 3N71B transmission up for auction on Ebay occasionally, which will most likely cover this in better detail.

I agree Stephen. Although I've never seen this particular relay in person, from what is shown in the drawing, there is nothing complicated about it, but I would heed the warning and test it while it is disconnected from the distributor. This is from late 1970 and is the only thing I've seen that explains the system.