Captain Obvious

Hi Tamo, Looks better. Two small issues on the 77 diagram: 1) The white wire going to the ignition relay should be white/red instead of just white. 2) The black/blue wire you have going to the coil doesn't go directly to the coil. It goes to the ballast resistor. Other than those, the 77 version looks good. I didn't review the 75 version.

I was talking to a local buddy who put LEDs in his dash gauges and he says the dimmer works fine for him. I looked at him like he was nuts, but he swears it's true. I'll verify with my own two beady eyes when I get a chance. I don't know what lights he used, but maybe some of them are dimmable? Failing that, I think one of the PWM dimmers we were talking about before in your ding-dong thread ought to work. Let me get some details from my local guy first. If he's got a dimmable option, that would certainly be the easiest.

That's crazy talk!!

That would be awesome. I'm not sure what time I'll get there or have to leave, but if we can swing it, trading seats for few minutes would be great. I've got a recently refreshed suspension as well and would love to compare. Mine feels good to me, but I've got nothing to compare it to.

Out of curiosity, who did the roll bar? Was it a professional shop?

"I'm working on their cars, I won't do it if they won't help. They can walk, I have a car that runs." I hear ya loud and clear and am planning to do the same thing here. Unfortunately I bet this is something that SWMBO will disagree with... Maybe she'll fix the car for the kid?

You didn't get any current flow beep on the circled link because that one is for your headlights. Nothing flows through that link unless the headlights are turned on. Also, something to keep in mind. Just because it's black doesn't mean it's ground. The largest black link for example... Neither end of that link goes to ground. One side goes to your alternator and the other side goes to your battery. No grounds there at all. I'm not sure you're using the circuit checker properly. Where are you located? Anywhere near Philadelphia?

I'm looking forward to catching up too! Not sure what time I'll get there as I've always had good intentions of getting there early, but I never seem to get it to actually happen. I'll be there as soon as I can. Saw your other thread about the suspension work you just completed. I'd love to take your car out for a spin!

Sounds like the alternator is fine. As for the rest of it, welcome to the world of old car electrical systems. A lot of that stuff in your list could be related to dirty electrical connections. I'd disconnect the battery and then using the wiring diagram, I'd trace the items that are giving you problems and clean all the involved connectors. For example... I had troubles with my turn signals and traced the issue to one of the connectors by the passenger's left foot that made connection to the center console. The turn signal connections go into the center console because that's where the hazard switch is located. based on some staining in the area, it looked like my previous owner had a heater core leak sometime in the past and the liquid dripped down onto the wiring in that area and dirtied up some of the connections. Your issue might be different, but that's the kind of thing you're looking for. And about the brake warning lamp... I respectfully disagree with S30Driver above. The connection from the parking brake CLOSES to light the lamp, so if the wire is off, the bulb will stay out regardless of the handle position. It's a lot harder to get the light to stay ON due to a problem at the handle. For the brake light, first thing I would check is make sure you have the two wires that go to the underhood inspection lamp and the brake warning switch going to the right places. Those two items are up by your brake master cylinder and your windshield washer bottle. If you switch those two wires around, the wander lamp won't work and the brake warning light will be lit all the time. Not that I've ever done that or anything...... The wires are probably dirty and difficult to determine the colors, but if you can, the wire to the lamp should be blue/white and the wire to the brake warning switch should be green/yellow.

Haha! That's a great road trip when the "questionable" vehicle does better than the chase vehicle! Glad you made it OK and I hope you enjoy the new digs.

How were you measuring that 6V on the coil? Where were the meter leads and was the engine running at the time? But in the meantime... your issues could be either fuel or spark. If your plugs are black after ten minutes of running, I'd fix that first. There may not be anything wrong with your ignition.

Nom! Nom! Nom! Nom!

Well I'm registered. DId it over the phone with a credit card. So at least I get to stand in the SHORTER of the lines when I get there. Still a line, but usually better than the one for the people who register the day of the show. So hopefully all of us ClassicZ club members get a chance to meet up and chat. And the smiley face above? It comes from the fact that the forum software interprets a letter "B" followed by a close parenthesis ")" as the keyword for a smiley. I didn't intend to put a smiley there, the software did that for me. Kinda like when you try to do an ordered list: a) c) d)

" I am going out to get a voltmeter and delve into learning things electrical" Let me be the first to welcome you to the dark side. We have cookies.

Forgot to mention... Since they went to the distributor mounted ignition module with the ZX in 79, it appears that the 78 module is unique to that year. So in your hunt for a dead module, I'm thinking it would be easier to find one from a 75-77 than a 78. You might end up having better luck getting an older module and cutting the connector off your harness or building a little breakout connector cable to adapt to an earlier module.

Cool. There's some ignition module trivia I didn't know. It looks like they changed the connection scheme between 77 and 78. I, like you, would assume the functionality is the same, they just change the connecter scheme. So it should be a pretty simple matter of mapping the connector pins between the two designs.

I'm not sure I'm understanding your comment about the 280Z ignition box not having screw terminals, but I can tell you that the one from my 77 280 looks just like the one that Chas posted on the previous page. In other words, my 77 module has the screw terminals on it.

Twalrich, I don't know what kind of parts you're looking for, but there has been a strong presence of Z-car parts at the show for a long time in the form of our own cbuczesk (Chuck . He's had a vendor tent of Datsun parts. I don't think he's got body kits or new fiberglass, but he's got lots of stuff!

Well I'm not usually good at spontaneous plans, but I'll try. On the good side, my car is together and running. Up until recently it was torn down a little for some electrical work, but I put the finishing touches on the project(s) a few days ago. Did "my version" of: 1) the headlight relay upgrade. 2) installing an internally regulated alternator. 3) adding a starter relay to take the solenoid current stress off the ignition switch. I say "my version" because like most other things I do, it differs somewhat from the typical approach. I just can't leave well enough alone. Anyway, those electrical projects are done and they work great. I'll try to make it. One thing I really hate is standing in the long line of "the unwashed" of people who didn't pre-register...

Well shoot... This has snuck up on me. Isn't there usually some chatter about the show weeks before it happens? I don't remember seeing any chatter this year. (Not saying it didn't happen... Just saying I don't remember it!) I usually go, but I'm not sure I'm prepared. I guess I'll try?

Haha! Good. Glad you got a laugh out of that. I got a laugh out of your kid watching you burn through the harness. I know it's not funny, but it's good that you can at least make light of it now. Good luck with the project! What am I gonna do when I have to work on the kids cars... I already can't keep up with my own projects let alone those they'll need help on!

Gone all megajolt on us. I'm sure you'll take lots of pics. I've been considering such a mod, but I've still got bigger fish to fry.

The downdraft two barrel? Cobwebs that make it clear you don't drive the Z often enough? Seriously though. If your points are visibly arcing, I suspect your condenser is toast.

I know it's a step backwards in technology, but what are the chances you can go back to a good ol' simple points system? Just long enough to make sure everything is working properly? And then you can start modifying again?

Haha! Yes, I did!