Weasel73240Z

So just to close this out, the fuel pump relay was definitely the problem. I charged the battery, drove around a bunch yesterday, parked it over night, and no battery drain at all. Obviously this is a much more difficult problem if you are still using the electric fuel pump, but thanks again for pointing me in the right direction guys!

Okay....I think I found it! I found one very warm relay on the passenger side. I disconnected it and it was getting 12 volts with the key off. The number on the wiring harness was 24034-N3300. Since I don;t use the electric fuel pump, I disconnected it. I'm now charging the battery and hope I found my problem. Thanks again to everyone for the wisdom.

I only run the mechanical fuel pump anyway, so it seems like eliminating the FP relay is a simple solution. The car had both when I bought it, but after some reading, I decided I didn't need the electric pump. I have never had any problems running the mechanical pump alone. I felt around for the fuel pump relay last night after work (looking for a "warm" one), but I had some things to do so I was never really able to locate it. I'll get back at it today. Thanks again everyone for the help.

LOLLOLLOLLOL I'd search all day, but for some reason my boss considers it a waste of my time! Thanks again...

Thanks Steve! You saved me several more hours of searching. I'll check out the FP relay when I get home.

And thanks Steve! I figured it had to be something to do with the upgrade, but again, electrical is not my bag. Maybe the best work around is just to install a battery cut-off switch, which I've been planning to do anyway?

I did search for a while before asking. But with any search, you need the right keywords to get the right answer. I got 7 pages of answers, and read for over an hour without finding the info I needed. I guess I'll just have to keep reading until I stumble upon it, unless someone can guide me to the correct post.

I recently installed my 60-amp, internally regulated alternator. After driving the car a few times, now my battery has died, and doesn't want to take a charge. I charge it, start the car a few times, then park it over night, dead. I have tried diagnosing, but I am pretty useless when it comes to electrical issues. I am wondering if there could be some type of drain on the battery, possibly related to the plug that I inserted when eliminating the voltage regulator? Or is it just a coincidence, and my battery just happened to be dying as I was making the upgrade. I have never had to charge the battery before, except after the Winter hibernation. The battery is about 4 years old. Thoughts? Thanks for all the wisdom......

My 73 came from the original owner, sat in a garage for about 12 years before I got it, and the current mileage is 29,355 (titled and documented - hasn't clocked over). I usually drive around 1,200 - 1,500 miles a year. It's gonna kill me this year when I turn over 30K.

Thanks everyone for the ideas. I am going to try a few different things, starting with ATF (thanks Bruce) and see what I feel. Ive always thought the fork oil just seemed too thick. Doing my internally regulated 60 amp alternator upgrade this weekend, I plan to get to the carbs too. Just to be clear, the Z Therapy carbs are great, and the car has run really excellent since I fine tuned them. I just cant resist constantly playing with fuel, timing.....really everything, in my quest for more power! Thats the fun, right? :laugh:

As I continue to learn the many joys of tuning and balancing SU's, I got the thinking about my dashpot oil. I have always used straight 20W motorcycle fork oil. It seems way too difficult to lift the dashpots (enough force that my wife couldn't lift them) when the engine is cold. My most recent tuning/tweaking attempts have me running very strong right through the powerband, up to about 5,500 rpm, but I have the slightest bit of hesitation when I back off the gas (for cornering, etc.), then get back on it. Could this relate to the viscosity of my dashpot oil? I have read recently about some people using a combination of 20W or 30W oil cut down 50% with light oil. Constantly tweaking is fun, but I am so close, I'm wondering if I should try a different oil mix before I try anything else. I plan to get the car on a dyno soon, and I'd like to make sure I am using the best possible dashpot oil viscosity for the cold MA climate before I do. Thoughts?

I'm putting urethane in the front end link bushings. All of the other mounts are stock rubber. My springs are all stock, 38 years old. Also, my Z only has 29,000 miles on it, 26,000 of them put on by one owner, a very nice old lady from Hopkinton, MA. The other 3,000 were me. Before I started changing things, everything was 100% stock, down to the radio. So it hasn't really been stressed at all, and I have a pretty good idea about how a "stock" Z rides. It certainly isn't a beatup old Z! If my Z had 129,000 miles I'd be concerned about over-stressing it, but this car is barely even broken in, so I think the unibody can handle it. And I don't drive it crazy, just like to push it occasionally. Once I replace the front end link bushings, I hope I'm done with the suspension changes. Thanks for the input.

Nothing is binding, I can move the rear end by hand, by pressing up and down on the bumper. But if you look at the end links, they are leaning, and as Gnose pointed out, that's not good. I suspect the leaning end links could be restricting the rear end from settling all the way down, which may be why it is 3/8" higher now. I bet when I put in the spacers, the 3/8" will be gone.

It only lifted it about 3/8" (from 24 5/8" to the wheel arch to 25" after the job), but it does make sense, I think. This is after a 2 mile drive, so everything was settled into place. I always thought my Z had a slight sag in the tail. Now it has to extra strength of the rear sway bar factored into the mix, so I expected the rear would lift up slightly. Just one more rigid member holding the arse end up, or so I assume. The clearance is spooky, but since everything moves in concert (the sway bar end links and half-shafts are both connected to the lower A-arm), I think the clearance is pretty much a constant.

I though it seemed like the end link was leaning a bit forward, but I figured it was engineered that way. So you put spacers between the new suspension hangers and the sway bar brackets? I see how that would take the leak out of the end link. Did you have a problem with them, or did you just do it because the angle of the end link concerned you? I have some time, since I have to wait for my new front end link bushing kit to arrive. I guess I should mock up some spacers. Thanks for the input.