70 Cam Guy

Simple things right? I am freakin stoked I have a dimmer for my dim dash lights I saw that on the wiring diagram of all things and was thinking, hey! what's that?? Omg I was so happy that my stupid car had a dash light dimmer Now if only I could accidentally find some steering wheel controls like my Civic has... that would be cool!

Another reason why they are on the to-do list. As I always say, more ideas than my bank account can handle :paranoid:

You know it's funny because I figured that out but I didn't see the other knob. A former QC inspector... some inspector :stupid: If it works, cool, if it doesn't, maybe someone can use it. It's only fair right? You really should see that letter soon, the bay area to Washington shouldn't take very long at all

Awesome, thanks! Why would I ruin the fun by telling anyone's wife? :stupid::tapemouth The interior on this car was the main reason why I was so drawn to the car. When someone tells you the car sat for 10+ years in the garage you think, "great, everything is rotted". Obviously that is not the case. My Z was this guy's father's car before the father passed away. I know when I take it back to show him and give him a ride, he'll appreciate the work I've done and appreciate that someone else will give the car the love it deserves. When I was thinking about Z's, the last thing I wanted was a brown car with some funky tan interior but I tell you, it's grown on me and I love it now. The butterscotch is near unobtanium now, which is why I'm thinking of storing the seats while I drive with some alternative Porsche seats.

Hey happy to help! I'd rather see you try again than spend money unnecessarily. It may not work and I have to believe there's enough variation in our cars one thing may not work for everyone exactly the same. It doesn't cost anything but a little time to try and it sounds like you'd like to be able to use the stock air cleaner again. Case in point, 16x8 et0 wheels. I can't count how many times I've seen them look perfect in one picture with no complaints but see someone else having so much trouble with rubbing. Obviously there are many factors but tolerances have to stack somewhere

Thanks! I actually wish that coil were available in black... it would look much better than red or chrome. I was actually happy to cover up the Blaster 2 sticker. I do think it's sleep time, half this weekend I spent under that dashboard in awkward positions. I'm sure I'll be moving pretty slow tomorrow It sure was nice the blow the cob webs out the tail pipe on my test drive. There's something satisfying about letting it wind up on the on-ramps and enjoying the twisty roads. My tach is still funny but I hear that's normal for the stock 240 tachs

I used a 1/2" pipe plug in the thermostat housing IIRC. It's an allen head plug (socket head plug?) so it sits flush in the housing. I capped the heater T on the passenger side and completely removed the tubing routed behind the head. It's much cleaner without all the extra cooling lines. That's good information about the thermostat housing, I'll keep that in mind if/when I need to change the t-stat

Honestly I don't know if there is a difference. Do the modules control dwell too? Maybe that can change but I wouldn't be surprised if they are all functionally the same. I was just highlighting how cheap you can get the modules for and you found one for super cheap! I really would carry a spare though. They don't normally give you any symptoms of impending failure. The engine cuts out and you're stuck. My dad carried a spare for years and never needed it until a few months ago. His tool truck cut out in the Caldecot tunnel and he coasted to the exit and pulled off. He replaced it and was on his way like nothing happened.

On the older cars, that's pretty common. Even my buddy's Ranger did that when he installed his stereo. You could even see the dash lights dim when the turn signals were on. He eventually installed a high output alternator and a 1 farad capacitor on the stereo system. Most of the time it's just a matter of low alternator output at idle. Do you ever notice your headlights dim at idle and brighten as you accelerate away? Our stock alternators are rated at 40-60 amps output depending on the year. They just don't have much juice at idle. Part of the problem also is that our cars have very few relays. Power for the lights go through the switches instead of using the switch to control a relay. It makes the fluctuations much more noticeable in the gauges Dave, do your turn signal and headlight harnesses help with that? I imagine this is a major reason to do the mod, aside from taking the big current out of the dash and switches.

On my 240, I'm running a ZX distributor and installed a Blaster 2 coil today. I was stranded by my points once, and after the engine cut out in the driveway I wanted to update the ignition. I was looking at the pertronix but found a ZX dizzy at a wrecking yard for $75. I bought the MSD coil yesterday for $40 after reading many people say the original coil should not be run without the resistor. I love that the car starts on the first crank (after its 1st start in the morning) and the engine definitely revs more freely compared to the points distributor. I imagine the spark is hot enough to handle pretty much any plans I have at this point. If I really want to invest more on the ignition at this point, I'm going with wasted spark for more precision and tuning ability. My friends have a module on their Toyota race car that lets them adjust the timing with a pocket screwdriver. Tune it on the dyno, done. On my old Camaro I ran a Proform billet HEI dizzy and a 6AL box. I wanted the reliability of the electronic ignition, the hot spark for my compression and cam, and the soft limiter from the 6AL. It ran hard and started easy, I'll take a Demon carb and HEI any time.

Hey Sarah, I don't want to send you on a wild goose chase but I thought I've read you can adjust/calibrate the volt meter on your 280. I don't know if that means looking at another meter or actually adjusting the needle. Zen is a great way to put or maybe the Tao of Datsun? Today's end brought a car that is put back together with working lights, fuel pump, heater, and map light (I popped the fuse when I put the test light on the glove box bulb socket). I also installed the Blaster 2 coil in place of the stock one. I'm not sure if it made a big difference but it's nice knowing this coil doesn't need to be run with a resistor. It is smaller than the stock coil so I wrapped it with a rubber strip. It's not going anywhere and who knows, maybe it's getting a little vibration dampening. One thing that still isn't perfect and I'm not sure why. It seems my radio has little to barely audible output. I'm not sure if something is toast internally or if I'm missing something. Here are some before and after... I was listening to my tunes courtesy of my old computer speakers and iphone

I took some more pictures tonight before it got too dark. They are just iphone shots but it should make my description above more clear. I didn't have a ruler so I used my finger. That's about 1.5", and yes, I have measured that section on each of my fingers . You wouldn't believe how handy that is... I got the idea from an old time machinist I know the horns are pretty black, I never got around to cleaning those. It's an ebay air cleaner

Right on, I figured you could make use of it. It's too bad the MSD box didn't work. Just think though that if your HEI module ever fails, every parts house in the country will have it in stock. I'm sure you can make it a clean install so it doesn't look like it doesn't belong there. Plus, when you can get a spare by Proform for $22, you just can't beat that http://www.summitracing.com/parts/PRO-66944C/ I had a Proform HEI billet distributor in my old Camaro. It ran like a top with that distributor and the 6AL box. The Summit module is 40 bucks, still not bad http://www.summitracing.com/parts/SUM-850100/

Sarah, I'm glad someone noticed After lots of projects on this car, I try to keep a clear head and the best way for me to do that is to stay positive. Never think it won't get fixed or that I won't find a solution (whether it be help from others or dumb luck). When I get frustrated, my diagnosing ideas and ability fall off a cliff. Heck, I even had the battery on the Z explode in my face last month (why I had the new optima). Without getting too cheesy, I just try to roll with it, keep my eyes forward, and remember these old cars are going to throw us some wicked curve balls. I also try to keep in mind that I love cars and I am suppose to be enjoying this experience. I hope this thread can help others like so many have helped me with my car. It's good message board karma Voltage protection would be fantastic. I am not sure what would be needed to have that kind of logic in a circuit. I'll ask around, there has to be something available. Sh*t they power conditioners available for my guitar amp (i don't use a power conditioner), someone must have come up with something for a car. My friends just told me I should add a voltage gauge :stupid:

That would be super cool of you! I actually did a poor man's repair on my relay but a proper replacement would be much better. I used my old points file to clear the melted insulator and a razor to clean it up some more. The actuator arm makes contact like it should but I think the coil took a beating when it saw the over voltage. Today's end of work brought a working heater again . Getting the blower and blower housing back in went faster than I thought. Before it got too cold I replaced the dash bulb sockets so I have my indicators again. Where's that dancing banana smiley when you need it? Tomorrow I'll finish buttoning up the instrument controls and I have a Baster 2 coil I picked up today to install. After all the ignition talk the last few days I figure I better update my coil since I upgraded to a ZX dizzy a while back. At the time I didn't update the coil with it, just bypassed the resistor.

I spent a good amount of time today chasing wires under my dash and testing wires. I found my problem to be a melted ACC Relay (accessory relay?) It actually still functions but some of the insulator melted and blocks the actuator arm. I didn't suspect the relay at first because my fuel pump relay didn't suffer a failure like this. There is light at the end of this tunnel, I probably have a solid couple hours work before I can call it done. Reassembly and a couple bulb sockets to replace but it's certainly satisfying finding the cause

These are the essentially unchanged directions since I had the Sanderson's on my Camaro. It's true, the finish will dull and the coating cracked on my headers. It has more to do with a Mallory distributor with a bad advance curve. High egt's from too much advance really damaged the coating on my headers. http://www.sandersonheaders.com/tech_header_installation.php They have a quick section on new engines and fresh rebuilds. It also says to be careful after performance mods so a drastic enough change can affect exhaust temps I did an afternoon restore on my Clifford headers using high temp VHT black header paint. I prepped with naval jelly and a good cleaning (the paint is self priming). I have actually been pleasantly surprised by how durable the finish is. I've had a couple clumsy moments with my wrenches and the paint didn't chip

I put a new master on my car after I bought it because all the seals were shot. The hard lines are on the fender side like yours and the new master has bleeders on the other side. The only way I can get my (stock) air cleaner lid installed is by installing the filter in the lid before putting the lid on the base. I also need to have the thumb bolts in the lid otherwise there isn't enough clearance to get them in the holes. Here is a picture of mine, is yours similar? I have just enough room to get the lid with filter past the bleeders. Do you have a picture of yours by chance?

If you think your ignition module is weak, is this something that can work for you? The article is really meant for a 240z retrofit but you seem pretty savvy with electrical so maybe it will give you some ideas or another direction to try. http://www.zhome.com/ZCMnL/tech/gmhei.html

There is certainly debate on pipe diameter but most of what I see settles on 2 1/4 or 2 1/2. I personally have 2.5" from the header back. If you replaced the 2" section with 2 1/4 or 2.5, it may help, but I don't know that you would notice a significant difference. Going to a larger diameter mid section could make it louder but that could be a pricey experiment. Going to a 2 1/4 mid pipe would certainly clean up the exhaust and it would all be the same size

I have always used anti sieze. If anything, I've heard it's more important to use on aluminum for dissimilar metals (ie spark plugs in the head, steel studs in the head, etc). Aluminum on aluminum can gall/tear as well (like stainless). I pulled the lugs off my Civic to rotate the tires, and the studs had a dab of anti sieze on the threads. Good stuff

Nice, the guys I got my Optima from hooked me up too like that. We never did paperwork on it so we put it on the reject shelf... wouldn't hold a charge for some reason :paranoid:

By mean people, you mean crack heads right? I think in Oregon, they can be called tweakers :stupid: Like spark plugs from a motorcycle, people make pipes with them. Driving my car in Oakland, I got into the habit of always lowering the antenna before leaving the car. I was going to say MSA has an antenna available but wow! http://www.thezstore.com/page/TZS/PROD/SEIC09A/12-1280 I'd run with Dave's suggestion if I had to replace my antenna. Knowing a regular part number certainly makes it easier to find an economical replacement

Wow, I had no idea you could use a different caliper as a core for the toy calipers :stupid: Great writeup so far, I'm following this one as well

Do you have the stock manifold? That makes a drastic difference. Everywhere I read a 40 series flow would be too loud, I'd need a resonator, etc. With the cast iron manifold, it sounded fantastic, sounded like a mild exhaust. I installed my header and it was suddenly a different beast altogether. I could no longer hear my stock radio on the freeway and I was suddenly worried about noise pollution tickets. I had to add a glass pack in the middle to tame it, and I consider myself pretty tolerant of noisy cars Point being, the big cast iron manifold really quiets down the exhaust. The other cars with Magnaflow's may have had headers. Also if you have a glass-wrapped perforated tube style muffler, it will get a little louder as it breaks in. Pipe diameter, wall thickness, material (SS or normal steel) can also influence but I have less personal experience with that.