Mikes Z car

I really appreciate the terrific info and great pictures on the alignment tool and procedure for using it. I have a sticking piston I hope to unstick with this information. Thanks a lot! Ace hardware (now called Thriftway here I believe) didn't have the exact parts for the alignment tool but I used (their part number) 60604-D (hitch pin- 1/8" DIA) and 65784-D (nylon spacer) as a substitute. The nylon spacer available here has a slightly larger ID than what you listed but I wrapped a couple of inches of clear packing tape around the hitch pin to make the larger ID of the nylon spacer tighter on the pin. Mike

This might be a dumb question but in a return line setup is the fuel only returned to the tank if the pressure is above a certain limit? How is the fuel system setup to determine when the fuel should be returned? My car must be deadheaded because when I first got the car the electric pump would run and then shut off if I left the key in run but didn't start the engine. It has an emergency cutoff now so the pump turns off if the engine stops turning over. Mike

I had a horn button but no badge on it with the word "DATSUN" so I selected a font similar to a real badge and resized it to print at the right diameter to tape to the horn button. See below the asterisks for another print option using a scan of a real badge that I obtained after I originally wrote this. Continuing here, the font selection came out okay, see attached picture of result and the file I printed the word "DATSUN" with. Printing the label on photo paper if your printer supports that or having it printed at a kinkos type of print business might significantly improve print quality and make the background print blacker. I covered the printout badge with clear packing tape and cut out two round circles from a document protector plastic to put on both sides of the printout to keep the printout badge looking okay. I used a bench grinder and a flat abrasive tool to grind down the edges to a fairly round shape. I taped three little pieces of clear packing tape from the front outside edge around to the back to hold the assembly together. Then I rolled four pieces of clear packing tape around on itself with the sticky side out to tape the whole thing to the horn button. I may get a real badge someday but this printout will work until then. To make the size correct in print preview select 100% as the size or 72 DPI which mean the same thing in this case. If the print is the wrong size adjust the DPI to be different than 72 DPI, maybe try 80 or 65 or some other variation. Printing at 80 DPI will make the print a bit smaller, 65 will make it larger. Mike *************************************************************** Note that since I originally wrote this I obtained a horn button with the metal label Datsun on it. After I removed the metal label I scanned it in and it can be seen below. I touched up the scan to get rid of dust particles etc that were visible. It was scanned in at 400 DPI, using that resolution when printing should yield the correct size. Back of horn button and badge label dimension information: The mounting post is in a recessed rectangular area so that the length of the post and the thickness add up to more than the overall distance from the end of the post to the other side of the label if that makes any sense. Symbols on back of badge label:

I have been looking at the idea of using rubber molding replacement for household door thresholds as a possible make your own replacement rubber. Home Depot has one replacement that is enclosed and flat on one side so you could put a bolt with a flat washer in it to hold it on the bumper. I could cover the vinyl threshold with one strip (no seams) of aluminum duct tape and spray paint the aluminum black. It wouldn't look as good as original but it would be really cheap compared to prices I have seen for the real thing. Just an idea. Mike

Well yesterday I cut out a roof panel (not the roof skin) of a 240 Z to replace my sunroof with. I also got a rear bumper. I could only have desecrated a car like that if I knew it wasn't going to be restored and was just a parts car. Mike

Where is the 4 conductor connector on your Z with the red fried wire? Where do the wires on the non engine harness wire side of this connector go? No fuses blew? I am not sure I am interpreting your pictures correctly. I have a 1/'70 car and just looked and couldn't see a four conductor connector just behind the glove box near the right side of the car. Not sure this is worth looking at given the better advice you have already received. Though more expensive than an ohmmeter what has helped me enormously to identify wires is a wire tracker that injects a radio signal with a warbling sound into any wire you clip onto. There is a small pen sized receiver with a plastic point that can be held close to and waved around different wires to figure out where the other end is. The one I have is made by GB Instruments and is model GET-4110K. You can lower the receiver sensitivity VIA a volume control on the "pen" to allow for more precise identification of the wire you are looking for. The PO for my car made wiring changes. I used the wire tracker to put the wiring back closer to stock wiring and labeled them so he can't confuse me again. Mike

There is an HHO mileage improver that has been around for a while. It is nothing more than oxygen and hydrogen gas from electrolyzed water fed into the air intake. I know three people who claim to know someone who had one of these and two of them said they were getting 50% mileage improvement. I have read that it works better with carbureted cars rather than ones with O2 sensors. I ran across the owner of a local auto repair shop recently who says he saw an HHO device hooked up to a truck that was run on a dyno. I gather the usual dyno test is to run the RPMS up and back down to determine peak HP and torque. They observed a 20 HP increase with the HHO device though I don't know if that would translate to a mileage improvement. One of the reasons I bought my 240Z was to verify claims for the HHO device but I have been so busy rust proofing it and making it closer to stock I haven't done that yet. Anyone else tried the HHO device or have an opinion on it? Mike

I have wondered if there is a way to have a car protected for being outside with a cover that is at least partially made of overlapping sheet aluminum pieces (at least over the roof and partially down the sides) that folds up somehow or sheet metal that could be glued to a car cover with maybe rubber bumpers on the underside next to the glass. I have also wondered if an aluminum frame just bigger than a Z could be fabricated. Maybe two tubes clear over the car in both directions that rest on the ground in eight places; two in front and back with two on each side going to ground. I may lose the garage I have now and hope there might be something more permanent than cloth for a cover if such a thing exists. Does such a thing exist or can be made? Mike

This may be one of those hair brained ideas I can come up with (my wife would agree that I can do that) but I have wondered about the idea of taping streamers all over the back of an early z including some with a different color taped to perhaps a wire wrapped around the end of the tailpipe and then drive at various speeds while another car paces it with a video camera to get an idea of where the exhaust wants to go. Mike

What is used to protect surrounding areas from sparks given off by the welder? I am a rank beginner welder and last summer set a nearby box on fire and put a few small marks on the paint on the exterior on the lower hatch area from filling in holes using a brass plate on the backside as the PO had a wing mounted there. I tried aluminum foil to protect the paint but the sparks go through that like it wasn't there. Mike

The 71 240Z I used to have had terrible fumes in the cabin (loved it anyway) but the 70 240Z I have now has just noticeable fumes once in a while. The one I have now has two pipes side by side coming out of the muffler but I have suspected the difference might be the 71 I had had much smellier exhaust for some reason although the 71 did have rust damage and there might have been holes in the back in locations I did not know to look for.

Hi all, The ebrake switch retainer is missing on my car and I was wondering what does it look like? The attached picture points to the switch but I want to know if the L shaped bracket the switch is plugged into just slips over the tab on the non moving part of the ebrake assy or does it also go under a bolt to hold it on? If anyone just has the switch retainer (and switch too?) they want to sell me that would be terrific but understandably most want to sell the whole ebrake assy. I can get the switch off of eBay but not the retainer. I may have to make a retainer and was wondering how secure it needs to be. The PO did a nice thing and replaced the whole ebrake assy with what looks like a new one. Thanks for any info, Mike

I LOVE repairs like that!!

Arne, Does the tube of Versa Chem have enough in it to do a whole window? I bought a tube of repair paint that looks like it would only repair a foot or so of bad spot. Mike

I wonder if those replacement frame rails that go under the floor are strong enough to not bend when used as a jack point? It would take a brave soul to experiment with that I imagine. Mike

Here is the link to an old one I saved in 2009 that has the 240Zs in it. http://www.classiczcars.com/forums/blog_attachment.php?attachmentid=12&d=1267928156

FastWoman, Thanks for sharing the details on aging failure modes for ICs and transistors. I didn't know age would cause transistor gain to drop off and ICs would get further from the supply rails. That is a very nice insight I never ran across before. Mike.

I remember a wooden dowel guide of some kind I had to use to line up the clutch disk(?), some sort of specialty tool. I couldn't get the transmission back on without it.

To avoid the Bates Motel scenario I tried to think of a similar location that would do the same job but nothing came to mind only the bare truth would do. heh heh

I replaced the synchros and bearings in the 4 spd I had in my first 240z but I am no mechanic and knew that then so I took everything apart very carefully and laid it on newspaper in the same order it came apart. I also took a lot of pictures every step of the way as I wasn't sure I trusted myself to remember how everything fit. It worked fine after that with no spun bearing noise like it had before.

I somtimes take things apart in a plastic bag to keep springs from taking off to undisclosed locations. Also the shower can work if I close the door and put something over the drain.

Hard to believe a few minutes after the picture was taken you roared off the driveway into the street with that car...

I think Radio Shack used to sell dial string. I have restrung a few old radios as well.

FastWoman, That is a terrific idea of moving the shunt. It might be okay with the same shunt if I remember that in a worst case scenario with a dead battery it might peg showing over 40A for a while until it charges a little at least I assume that is worst case. Capturing all loads through the ammeter would mean I would have to relocate the power wire for the parking light relay mod to the starter post. I will have to ponder on doing that. Not sure I want to go with LEDs at least yet anyway. Mike

I wonder if ethanol needing a richer mixture could have an effect? This site has prominent headache making info for me anyway: http://members.rennlist.com/pbanders/ecu.htm#TL If ECUs tend to blow the power output devices this mod could greatly prolong their life I would think.