thefastestz

A week!!! You must be running those flooding 73' SUsLOL You know what guys? I have never even seen snow.

Another thing, listen to bambikiller240. He is most definitely right about not buying the first cars you see. If I were buying a Z right now, I would take a digital camera with me, and take pics of the car. I would look for rust or anything questionable and post the pics to get advice from the more experienced people on this board. If you are new you're going to find out there is a vast amout of knowlege from the members here. I know I did. good luck!

I'm 23 now but I've been driving Z's since I was 16. I live in texas, around here I haven't paid too much for insurance. $80-120 a month. Liability onlly though.

What kind of Z are you hoping for?

Definitely jet hot coat or coat any header you put on your car or you'll regret it later. Plus it looks great.

They were fine when i got the car. The su carbs would flood. I could turn the distributor by hand. The tranny shifted smoothly. I used to drive it aroud for fun until the brakes froze up. I haven't started it in about 2 months cause the battery died. My brother (6th grader) took off the plug wires. Then i noticed that you can actually lift the distributor up. maybe it will need a new distributor. I stared it one day and with the carbs flooding i somtimes had to crank it quite a bit get it back on. I noticed the lead that goes to the starter off the battery was hot and the connection was loose. I wonder if i burned the starter but i haven't started it since. I think with a little work it can be made into a good engine. The exhaust system has holes but I have a replacement you can have with the engine that is complete from the manifold back. Even with all these conditions present the car was running and the only reason I don't fix it is cause the rust is very bad on the body. I just keep it for the glass and the lighs and when I take those off I will get rid of the car. I would feel very bad if that 73' dash had to go with it. The only reason i don't get rid if it now is cause i know there is a reasonably good L24 and four speed in it. Plus I have an extra set of slotted mags on it .

Does the car look decent, is there and interior or is everything gone except the tires and suspension? If so i'll see if i can get it. If I can't get it, I'll give away an L24 and a 4 speed tranny off my 73 240z parts car to someone in this list if they come here(taft, tx 110miles from S.A.)amd pull the engine. I would just really like to see this get done cause i have never pulled an engine. I'd like to learn. If the car needs it i'll even let you take the dash and seats for a trade of a timing light gun and/or weber dgv syncro tool. i will look for a trailer but i don't know if i'll find some one to tow it. That is where i will find my problem.

Thanx 2many, will I know if it is the hub bearing if only the wheel moves? Well what I mean by move is that I can move the wheel towards the differentail and away in an in/out motion. I think last i checked the rear control arm was moving also, if it does move That would mean the rear stub bearing, right? Thanx again, I will probably check it out again in a little while.

He didn't use a kit, i think he made it all by himself. That is one creative man. That looks great.

Thanx! I found these pics on one of my friends disks, yesterday. He lent it to me and I really wanted to know where it came from. He couldn't remember. he thought the disk was blank.

In my 240z I drive with my brights on all the time. I don't think anyone notices, no one flashed me. I think it is cause the Z is so low, that the hight beams don't bother those big SUV's or trucks(the majorityof whats on the road down here), and The other cars are probably already used to having big SUV light s in thier face all the time. I had to get used to having those SUV lights in my face when driving my Z's I just looked away at the line on the side of the road for the brief second they passed me. I think bright tail lights on a Z will not bother most drivers. Maybe another Z or sports car because they will be at a simular hieght. But then aren't they the only ones that mattter. just my .02

To get mine off i got a very long cheater bar. I had an easy time with the 4+ft bar. Without it they wouldn't budge. That cause I'm 23 and I am not very weak( i bench press 375lbs.) How ever I was lucky that i didn't break a bolt, and it may not be such a good idea. I was also using a craftsman socket set and it held up fine.

Another angle.

Where did this come from?

It think it is the wheel bearings in the drive shaft that turns the passenger rear tire. The reason I think so is cause when i jacked the car up the rear passenger wheel can move back and forth quite a bit. Or am I wrong?

Whoa! thanks for the warning I ran out and checked my car immeidiatly. NO white stuff yet. Scared me there. The problem just started and I didn't want to drive it that way. You can replace just the built in regulator, right? Or do I have to buy a new alternator?

My name is Ernie Hiracheta and I'm from TX. I am 23 years old and a college student. My first car was a N/A 81' 280zx, I was 16 and bought it for $500. I didn't really know too much about cars then, much less Zs. The car ran good when i got it, the exterior needed lots of help(heck it needed its own charity foundation), but the interior was nice and the a/c worked. The previous owner gave me a hanes manual with the car. Well I learned a little over the 2 years it ran. My first job was replaceing the water pump. The satisfaction of completing this job successfully felt great. Then later on i replaced the fuel injectors on my own. Then i figured out i had a sports car cause my car went fast(well... to me then) and when i felt this rush i started reading up on Z's and that's all I have ever bought. I caught Z fever. 2 weeks before I left for college I was leaving town and before I made it out I heard a real loud clunk when i shifted to 5th. I got the car into a parking lot and my transmission was pouring(not leaking) fluid in the parking lot. ( i was always abusing that tranny on the backroad twisties, and peeling out in the high school parking lot. Ah........16 kinda wish i was there again) Well i couldn't fix my Z, cause i quit my job in prep for college. I ended up giving it to my uncle. When I finished my first two years in school first thing i did was go out and buy another 280zx, this time with t-tops. My band was going on tour and I traded it for a guitar amp. (The mistake i regret most in my life.) When i got back I went out and bought my 240z, I learned what Z was all about as i was driving it. The backroads didn't seem as twisty, and I just loved the feel. Recently I bought a 78 280z, I have plans for a performance resto on my 240z. I figure I needed another daily driver, so i started looking for another Z, and found this 280 for a grand. I will probably have 6 or 7 Zcars within a few years or so. I have Z fever.

I guess my suspicions are probably true and I need a new altermator. I don't think my 78 280z has a voltage regulator. Unless it is in a different location than the other early Zs. As far as the car starting problems I took out my spark plugs and they were all fouled up. My ignition coil looked bad, and my distrubutor cap looked questionable. I replaced the plug wires and coil. I ran out of time, i still wanted to check my rotor and stuff. I need a tune up. This car has been sitting for a year so i'll probably be replacing alot of things. thanx, Ernie H.

I don't even smoke and that happened to me before on the highway. It dawned on me that when i bought my car i never checked if the lighter worked. Well I found out when it fell on me and the floor. Scary!!!

That happened to me in my 280zx the alarm wouldn''t go off. I was in a hurry to get the car home. Pretty embarrassing when the alarm won't go off. Well there just happened to be this little old lady driving so sllloooow in her crown vic(they are always in front of me when i am in a hurry) and i guess i was tailgating. I guess she thought i was a cop cause she pulled over to the side of the road. I felt bad but at least i was able to speed past her. Alot of girls I know like to ride in my Z. When I recently bought my 280z everyone wanted a ride homeor to thier boyfriends house(shucks). It is clear thought that it is the car they like and not me.(I think.)I am also under par, and i've grown up with these people so i guess it doesn't count. Around where I live it is very rare to see a Z. I've only seen 3 real 240s in front of my face. one at a nissan dealership, the other two are in my drive way. I only Know of two other guys with really nice running and looking early Zs. My other Z freinds have 280zxs or Z31s, whoa I type too much. sorry for boring you. :cross-eye

I didn't see he was from AUS. I'm from TX, you know. The part with long wide highways, and twisty farm roads that don't see policemen but maybe once a year. I am 23 and only pay $120 for insurance on both my cars. Yeah I guess it would be a bad idea for him to get 2 cars. I should have seen his location.:stupid:

I really like both cars. I enjoy my 240z far better, but the 280zxs were more confortable. If you have 6k then get both. 4k can still get you a decent 240 and 2k can get you a decent ZX. If you are going to use it as a daily driver, you can switch days and have 2 cars so if one needs service you can simply take the other. I got a 240Z and I use it on weekends and will be using the 280z as a daily driver. I plan to do a performance restoration of my 240z, and drive my 280z and use the 240 as back up. I am also planning on buying a 280zx turbo in the future so I can cut my miles in half between the z and zx. Plus i miss that 280zx feel, they feel different but good. Maybe i sound crazy. I already have 2 240z's(one for parts) and one 280z, and I still will be looking for a fourth Z. I guess i have Z fever. The only known cure for Z fever is MORE Z!

My 1978 280Z is acting funny. It is reading that when the car is on the battery is charged to 16 volts. When I turn on the fan or a/c the volt meter pegs to the top. The instrumentation lights get brighter for a brief moment. Then my clock works, but then like 45 min after the car is off it stops. Still the car used to start right up. it ran rough. This monning I went to start it. it started and turned off, I didn't give it any gas. I did this twice. Now the starter cranks but the engine won't start. Maybe the car needs a tune up. The battery doesn't seem low but is it possible for a alternator to overcharge a battery, or put too more than 12V into the system? Thanx, Ernie H

The first pic, In the hanes manual they call it a flow guide valve. There is a picture of it on pg. 66. (fig. 3.74) one hose comes from the fuel tank, and then there are two hoses that face the engine. One of those hoses goes to the crankcase and the other to the air cleaner. It is part of an evaporative emission control system. It says that when the engin e is not operating, the fuel tank evaporation makes a vapor pressure. When the vapor pressure gets to a certain point it passes the vapors into the crankcase. When the engine is started the vapors pass into the combustion chamber and are ignited. When there is low fuel there can be a vacuum in the system. When there is the flow guide valve will open and draw air from the air cleaner. I think the middle pic is the transistor ingnition unit. There is a diagram on pg.74 of the hanes manual showing what it connects to. (fig.4.2) also there is a diagram on pg. 79 (fig. 4.22) showing its location on the fire wall. the last picture is your voltage regulator. A pic of it in the hanes manual is on page 149. and there is a diagram on the same page in Fig,10.14. There is also other info on that same page. It hooks up to your wiring harness.

TKR514 I don't think poppalance was talking about a 280Z 2+2, Nor was he inferring towards 2+2's. I assume he meant the 2-seaters. I have a friend who feels the same way as poppalance, and only likes the 70-78 & 90-95 2-seaters. I have owned two 81 ZX's in the past and I like the body styles. I don't like the Z31 body styles too much, but i drove my friends Z31 and it was fun. I still see the 280zx as a Z, and even the Z31 as part of the Z linage. I agree your 79 2-seater bodystyle looks better than any 2+2 body style. There will always be those people who don't think 78+ is a Z, Who cares. I still like them and I enjoy them. Then again I don't have my ZXs anymore. Now i have a 240Z and a 280Z.