tanny

Is it possible that through some odd aerodynamic eddying that the fumes could creep up along side the body and get sucked into the open window, or has that been definitely eliminated as a source? Doesn't sound likely, but...... Victor.

I just bought a pair of door seals for my 73 from MSA and I noticed that they have no metal clip as has been described in previous posts. All there is is the rubber seal, and I don't see a good way to attach it to the body. Do you have to scrape the old rubber off the old clip and and use it to attach the new seal, or is there a clip that I'm supposed to order to use with the new seal. I don't really see a good way to attach the new seal without a clip so that the headliner vinyl and rubber are both held tightly to the body. Any advice here would be appreciated. Thanks, Victor.

Alan, the fuel goes from the tank, to an inline filter, to the stock electric fuel pump, to the stock filter on the passenger side fender, to the stock mechanical fuel pump, to a fuel pressure regulator, then serialy into each of the three Webers starting with the most forward carb.. The return line is not hooked up and I did cap it off. Yesterday I insulated all of the fuel line from the front passenger side wheel well to the last carb inlet, and tomorrow I will fabricate and install a metal heat shield between the header and the intake/carbs. If that doesn't work, I'll probably have to invest the $80 and try the header blanket. I hate shotgunning this thing, but unless I have a revelation(the gray matter is way to ossified for that to happen), I'll just keep trying stuff. Thanks Alan. Victor. ps I think I'll order some of those carb gaskets and washers.

Thanks Victor. I'll check out that website. I did put the zx coil on and bypassed the resistor. I was just wondering if there was a capacitor associated with the ZX ignition for any reason. I also was wondering: what function does the capacitor serve that is bolted to the voltage regulator and connects into the wire harness on the passenger side wheel well? Thanks, Victor.

Alan, thanks for all the suggestions. I'm afraid I can't give up on the Webers because it is now a battle of wills, and also my only other cheap option is my 73 boat anchors. I did have an excellent mechanic( Jeff Winter of Rally/Sport) in Denver give it a spin and he suggested richer idle jets, which did cure my bogging problem accelerating from a stop. Unfortunately he is 350 miles away and I can't get to him easily. I did rebuild these Webers(thorough disassembly, cleaning, new gaskets, and new inlet valves) and I adjusted float levels as per specs. The floats are the older brass type but are not perforated and weigh exactly what they are supposed to. I really don't think it's electrical. I've run two different coils with no change in the problem and I have cleaned all the connections I can get at in the ignition system. I also tested for spark at all the plugs immediately after it cut out on me the last time and they were firing perfectly. That's when I put some gas directly into the carbs and it started right up and ran find. I don't believe it is a float sticking because if only one float were sticking(more than one sticking at exactly the same time would be almost an impossibility), I think the engine would still run, although badly. I'm almost certain it is fuel related due to the way it dies and then can be restarted after a certain period of time. One thing I am wondering: are the Webers supposed to have an insulator between the carbs and the manifold? Mine just have a normal gasket. Thanks, Victor.

I recently converted my 73 to a 1980 ZX electronic distributor. Has been working well. I assume since there are no points that these electronic distributors have no need for a capacitor. Is that correct, because I didn't notice a capacitor when I took it off the ZX? Thanks, Victor.

Looks like a small amount of effort and money has been put into that engine compartment. Beautiful. Thanks, Victor.

I did insulate a portion of the fuel lines, but not all. Any suggestions on insulating material? I think you're right about it being vapor lock. I'll try insulating all of the engine compartment gas line first, then try the header wrap. Those wraps are pretty expensive, but if it works would be worth it. Victor. The stall has been around since I got the car running. Cool and hot weather makes no difference. Happens while driving around town and while on highway.

I've read where the header wraps can be harmful to the headers. Myth or fact? Thanks, Victor.

No, the engine runs really well up until the moment it dies(it doesn't die immediately as in an electrical fault, but acts like it's running out of gas a couple seconds before it quits.). It sometimes will restart for a few seconds, but then quits for about an hour. I don't believe it's the coil because it did the same thing with two different coils. Thanks, Victor.

On my 73 240 I have triple Webers and headers, and no heat shield. I have been having problems with the engine stalling occasionally and not able to be restarted for approximately one hour. The fuel pumps(electric and mechanical) both work well, the fuel filters(including the one in the electric pump are all new and fine. No obstructions in gas line or tank. There is good spark to all plugs(I am certain the problem is not electrical in nature). The cooling system is clean and working well. The last time it stalled, I popped off a fuel line and there was plenty of fuel pressure so I fed a little fuel into the top of two of the Webers and it started up and kept running. There doesn't seem to be any correlation to outside temperature(happens on hot days, cool nights, etc.) What might be the problem? If fuel is getting up to the carbs, could it somehow still be vapor lock? It would seem that if fuel was getting up to the carbs and the floats are working properly(which they apparently are because the car runs fine the rest of the time), vapor lock wouldn't be an issue. Or would it? Any ideas would be appreciated. Thanks, Victor.

I put the 1980 ZX distributor into my 1973 240. I used this schematic and used the zx coil. www.zhome.com/ZCMnL/tech/ZXPertronix.htm Victor.

Royce is correct. Tonight I just replaced my points distributor with a 1980 electonic distributor. Very easy, and tach works fine. Victor.

I fixed it by forming a pad of JB Weld about 1/4 inch thick where the bolts hold the choke assembly(the plastic was totally disintegrated where the bolts had screwed in), then redrilled the holes and fitted bolts and nuts. Used aluminum foil as a form to hold in the epoxy. Seems to be holding well, and I really abuse it because my cables are so long(triple Weber carbs require adding an extra cable and routing it around the radiator to the front of the carbs) that they bind and I'm working three chokes. Victor.

I put my 6x9 speakers into a couple of speaker boxes I bought at walmart($14.00 each). Used vinyl and carpet paint to paint the carpet on the boxes black to match interior. The boxes have handles so are very easy to move around in the back of the car and easy to pull out if I need space. A little funky, but practical. I finished fabricating the "Immobilizer" and it seems to work really well, but the tach has coincidentally(or not) started reading high, so I'm wondering if the heavy duty auto relay in the ignition circuit has changed the circuit resistance and affected the tach. Oh well, always something. Victor.

Yes, their sole mission as a business is to charge you as much as possible and give you back as little as possible. That's why they use the tin foil aftermarket body panels and used parts when they fix your car after a crash. To be helpful and honest, they really need to issue an elephant dildo and vaseline with every insurance policy. Oops. Victor.

I spoke with just about everyone in the store and have been periodically calling to see if anything turned up. I'll give it a couple more days, then order a new faceplate. Thanks, Victor

Put in a nice $300 Alpine stereo last week and was continually warning my son to lock the doors and hatch, lower the antenna, and detach the stereo face every time he left the car. So night before last at about 11:00 pm I went to Walmart and even took the faceplate in with me. I put it in the basket I was carrying and got my stuff and checked out at the self check-out register. Went out to the car when I realised I had left the faceplate in the basket in the store. Ran back(gone approximately one to two minutes), but basket had been put away and nobody had seen the faceplate. Amazingly, my son was not very amused when I related the story(since he bought the stereo). Looks like the worst security risk is the senile old man. Oh well, it's only a $300(choke, choke) brain fart. I'm still wondering though, what good will just the faceplate do anyone without the rest of the stereo? Cracking walnuts? Stirring paint? If the thief would just tell me where he buys the rest of the stereo, I could buy the left over faceplate. Victor.

Sounds almost sexual. Good description. Victor.

Thanks for all the info everyone. I went ahead and hooked the antenna up with the standard manual switch. Victor.

I recently finished rebuilding a 73 z that had sat for 20 years. I rebuilt the engine(fortunately you already have that done), put in new brake and clutch master and slave cylinders, rebuilt front brakes, new rear brake hardware, new rubber brake lines, rebuilt and jetted triple webers, cleaned gas tank and lines(tried to get away with rinsing out gas tank but ended up puting 3/4" gravel and in the tank and rattling it around to get the gunk out. Worked really well so far: no more clogged fuel filters. Fortunately no sparks to blow myself up. If I could have found someone able to clean it out using a less primitive method in this small town, I definitely would have. Don't skip this one.), new strut cartridges, bump stops and strut bellows, new heater and radiator hoses, radiator and heater unit cleaned and pressure tested, new belt, new endlink and steering rack bushings(should have replaced all bushings on car), new seals on tranny, synthetic oil in tranny and diff, new tires, new battery, repaired rust(bumpers, pan, strut well), and paint job. Many other small odd jobs on both the interior and exterior too numerous to mention. Still needs front seat upholstery. Good luck, Victor. I guess it is possible your rings could be stuck in their grooves. Not really sure how to check for that other than maybe a compression check or examining them directly. The valve seals and front and rear crank seals may need replacing. Time and use will tell.

peterc: I think I'll build that immobilizer. Thanks. Victor.

I worked too fast. It's already wired with the small stuff. I kind of thought that wire was too scrawny, but put it in anyway. Does sound good anyway though, and with all the high frequency squeaks and rattles this old z has, I probably couldn't tell any difference except when parked with a wench on Lover's Lane listening to Johnny Mathis(maybe 30 years ago if I'm lucky). Thanks for the advice. Victor.

Speaking of which, what recommendations for an alarm system for the z? Preferably something reasonably priced, if such exists. Any experience with alarm systems would be informative. Thanks, Victor.

Thanks for the info. Zed240au: if you hook the antenna up to the ignition, how do you get the antenna to stop trying to continually extend(in other words, you'd have to shut off the ignition power) and then how do you switch the power to the other wire to get the antenna to retract? This same problem would occur with the antenna power wire from the cd player. I think I'll just hook up the manual switch for now and maybe mess with the automatic antenna later. The only real reason I was going to try the automatic route was so that I wouldn't forget to lower the antenna when parked. There always seems to be someone who gets a great deal of stimulation by pretzeling extended antennas. Victor.