H4LIGHTS

Did the seller give you an asking price for the car?

For future reference: Remove and replace one wire at a time. It helps eliminate any errors, yours or the PO's out of synch distributor/drive gear, etc.

If you do play fast and loose you might have something to lose.

Noted. But since I do not know you it is hard to tell what part of your thread is sarcasm when you state you are using 25 cent relays and; "what can I really loose?" I went to a car event last evening and watched a car burn. Attempted to start, loud pop, profuse smoke everywhere. The owner after exiting the vehicle and standing by the old school Toyota four door with his wife, GF, significant other(?) finally realized after a few moments that it would probably be a good idea to remove the baby from the car seat in the rear.

Twisting wires together does not make for great connections. It's OK for breadboarding the project but for the final install proper crimping or nice hot solder joints would be the preference. And please, no masking tape! Electrical tape at the least and preferably cold shrink or hot shrink electrical tape on those joints. Wire gauge really depends on how much current you are planning on passing through the circuit. Actuating the relay should not require anything very heavy but if the bulbs you are planning on using are high wattage, erring on the side of safety is better than making a heater circuit out of your newl loom. Sorry if giving advice on how the job should be done correctly touches a nerve. Maybe others can use the information when they decide to upgrade.

(hopefully, only) Your headlights at night on an unlit winding road on a moonless night at speed. Think about at least using a weather resistant relay since I'm sure you are going to locate these outside of the passenger area. It's amazing what the relay portion internally looks like on a cheap versus a quality known good name brand relay. (Lucas is not included on my quality name brand list) Make sure you do a professional job, ( correct gauge wire, solid insulated mechanical connections throughout, routing and loom attachments as safely as necessary...) keep it weather tight and fuse the circuit. Most of the inquiries I get after the fact are from folks that have done a cheap half-arse'd job and complain about their results, but still want a cheap half-arse'd fix.

If the testing station will allow it go for a pretest if you are at all worried about failure. Better to fail in a pretest than to fail and be marked as a gross polluter in the Cali system. Remember: Visual and Performance inspections both count equally.

You may be reaching a point where a dyno facility may be helpful in narrowing down the culprit of the 'hesitation'. Gas analysis and the ignition pattern(s) revealed on a scope while running at the magic 4500 rpm. [i'm betting rich mixture and ignition advance allowing for after burn. I've been behind Z's with a bluish flame traveling in the muffler/tailpipe] But if it is truly missing the dyno will help in localizing the area needing repair or adjustment.

That may be OK with sealed beams but with an H4 / replaceable bulb assembly, not a great idea. Even with a later 280Z with the inner fender shield you still have the issue of dirt and moisture. Even with sealed beams make sure to use dielectric grease on the three prong connectors. Keep us updated on how that works out.

When I was around 6 years old I found a plain white envelope out in front of our house with money in it, around $40.00. I took it into my mother and she checked with the neighbors to see if anyone had lost it. Turned out it was my friends grandmother who walked her two grandchildren to the park and the local elementary school and went right by our house most every day. The mother of my friend thanked me, the grandmother accused me of theft. She was very old and the money she had lost was for her 'prescriptions'. That still never dissuaded me from doing the same thing, this time a found wallet many years later, and making sure it made it back to its owner. Karma. Let's hope I've built up a reserve over time.

My personal favorite is the Narva XB3 for street applications. Originally designed for motorcycle applications, 60/55 watt in H4.

You have installed them?

Nissan used to make big rubber plugs for the cars sold outside the US but still had the stock rear apron. I put them on a 260 that I removed the shock bumpers from to fill the oval-ish holes. They were sourced from Nissan in the UK. I'll try to find the part numbers.

Hella makes good housings. Make sure you are getting the optimal voltage to the H4 bulbs (a relay harness helps in this regard). Use a good quality bulb. I have my favorites but do not want to turn this into an infomercial. Check alignment of the headlights to get the best visibility and the least annoyance to other drivers sharing the road with you. FWIW: All HID 'kits' are illegal and really do not work well in a standard H4 housing. There is just way too much stray light. All of the current 'kits' are sourced from China and the quality of components plus the spurious base modifications to the tube show really low QC. Some of the components exhibit famous brands and DOT compliance. Big grains of salt here. I have in the past tested a few DOT HB2 legal fluted lens housings and the coarseness of the fluting along with the more enclosed shadow cap do make them a better candidate for such a 'conversion', but still not the best way to go. From aerial views of all 'kits' the beam is bright but not well disbursed nor have the depth (range) associated with a quality product. Do not misinterpret what I'm writing. I love HID's, in OE applications. I've driven a lot of cars with them and they are addictive, especially the bi-xenon applications on Mercedes and Porsche.Great coverage on the low beam and unbelievable range and visibility on high, Truly set up for Autobahn. Over driving your headlights? Unlikely. Good luck. If you find something that you think is good post pictures.

That engine picture looks questionable for such mileage to me.

The Fed's a cracking down again: By: Mark Rockwell Although their multi-million dollar seizures of illegal drug shipments get more headlines, Customs and Border Protection officers have been working to stem a flow of illegally-imported auto headlights that can have dangerous consequences for drivers in the U.S. CBP’s Import Safety Commercial Targeting and Analysis Center (CTAC) is on the lookout for illegal imports of noncompliant High Intensity Discharge (HID) conversion kits, light sources, and ballasts, said the agency. Since receiving a commercial allegation in December 2010, CBPS said it has identified hundreds of shipments for examination at various ports of entry across the U.S. including Los Angeles, Anchorage, Cleveland, San Juan, Miami, Detroit, Champlain, Orlando and Seattle. The agency said it has seized more than $5 million in illegal headlights and headlight components since 2009. On Sept.12 at the port of Newark, CBP officers working closely with the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT), seized a shipment of 10,740 imported HID conversion kits. The domestic value of the shipment was approximately $570,000, said the agency. The shipment from China had been targeted by the CTAC because of the potential safety threat to the American public, said CBP. CBP officers seized the shipment after it determined the equipment failed to meet DOT requirements that headlamp replaceable light sources be marked with the light source type, the light source manufacturer's name or trademark, and the DOT symbol indicating certification of compliance with governing regulations. Other DOT compliance issues exist as well. CBP officials have said the headlights pose hazards if they don’t meet regulatory standards. Automotive headlamps, and replacement light sources and ballasts for those lamps, are regulated by DOT’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, said CBP. HID conversion kits are custom light sources and ballasts manufactured to be installed into headlamps that were not designed to use them. When the kits are installed, they pose potential glare hazards to other roadway users. The street value for HID conversion kits can run anywhere from $150 to $500 per kit. Since October 2009, CBP said it has seized more than 400,000 HID conversion kits and components for violating DOT regulations, equaling a total combined domestic value of approximately $5 million. A significant portion of those shipments arrived into the United States via the air cargo or express mail environment, shipped from numerous southeast Asian countries, it said. http://www.gsnmagazine.com/node/24703?c=border_security

Because there are so many examples of the Z and they are available at a relatively affordable price the car lends itself to many owner modifications. IMO many are good, others not. But a difference of opinion allows for all types of personal representations of what a Z should be. This car was never an elitist type of sports vehicle, (Ferrari anyone?), and probably never will be. It's still my favorite and I've owned many as well as many other marques from all over the world. Buy what you like and do with it as you see fit. It's your car, your money, your opinion of taste. My neighbor drives a Bentley Continental GT with a "tuner" grille kit, with the required vinyl "tuner" decal on the front fenders, also an aftermarket exhaust that makes it now sound like a pick-up truck. (IMO) Personally, it looks / sounds hideous compared to the classic heavy mesh of the original grille and the distinctive exhaust note from the factory but he loves it and feels it adds a unique look and sound over the stock ones. If you find what people do personally to their Z's abhorrent you may want to go for a different marque where only the correct purists congregate. I can think of many of those types of car owners/clubs that cater to this view.

There are circumstances that require a smog inspection at a referee station. If you get stopped by a police officer and he feels your vehicle is not in compliance an inspection is necessary. If you get caught in a roadside check and fail, off to the smog dogs. If someone turns your license plate into 1-800-CUTSMOG off to a test / inspection with you. No exemption from compliance just biennial inspections. I know a sheriff who gets a kick out of writing emissions fix it tickets and knows what each vehicle is required to have from 1968 forward. Thankfully the state is broke and hopefully are busy with more pressing police matters...But this can generate revenue so ???

So now you know...

Folks make mistakes. I'm sure you really wanted to type The Car Show instead of "Ther Car Show". Minor typographical error, minor model error. Or, he was wearing his old prescription beer goggles from "Ther Man Show"

At least this post is in the Forum for Scarab -

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/1972-Datsun-240Z-Scarab-Rare-Find-/260851169625?pt=US_Cars_Trucks&hash=item3cbbf0f959

Until this is done all other advice is really superfluous to the issue. First find out what is and isn't working correctly and fix. Then after you have determined everything is OK, start upgrades one step at a time. This will give you less grief and aggravation, but probably fewer new "help" threads on this subject.

Due to an order cancellation I have 10 pair of the Bosch H4 housings in inventory for sale at $65.oo a pair, with 60/55 H4 bulbs, shipped USPS.

From a collectors standpoint the US 260Z may have future value. 2 styles for the transition from 240 to 280. Unique VIN (RLS30): HLS30 for the 240 and back to HLS30 for the 280 and since so many are gone because of the bad image, the few that remain may become desirable by collectors. But there are very few Yugo's around in the US and the 260Z may follow the same plight. I used to have a 260Z that I really enjoyed. Sold it off and I'm told it now resides in Bogota Colombia.