Captain Obvious

Fiero!

Haha!! Excellent! I love the waft of smoke that comes up from behind after your burnout,

Yeah, I know. I've been meaning to take a look at it, but the real way I planned to fix it was to drop in a 280ZX motor instead. I keep putting it off because (in theory) the motor that's in my car currently won't be there for very much longer. In theory...

Thanks for the input. I put the "correct" non-projected plugs in my 280 (because that's the kind of guy I am) and I've just always wondered if I'm leaving any performance on the table by not running the projected tips like most of the other years. My car does not run lean and I'm in no danger of overheating my plugs. In fact, I think it could stand to run a little leaner. Something that I've been meaning to look into for a while but hasn't bubbled to the top of the priority list.

So all indications are that the projected tip plugs are better than the non-projected... Was there any indication as to why they ever went away from the projected tips in the first place? I'm still looking for the downside to the projected tips that made Datsun move away from them for a bunch of years.

There was some discussion about projected vs non-projected tipped plugs in the past, including this thread: http://www.classiczcars.com/topic/44600-spark-plugs-projected-tips-vs-standard/ And there is continued speculation as to why, in 75, they went away from the projected tip in the first place only to go back to them in 1980. Is there any info about that in the TSB? Have you got a copy?

Just remember that I'm no automotive expert. I'm just a guy with an opinion, and we all have one of those. And funny what John said about the C5 being light years ahead of the C4 as a street car... I was going to say the same thing about the C4 when compared to the C3! 280ZX 300ZX (Z31 or Z32) Mercedes Porsche Corvette C4 Del Sol Fiero What else...?

Hmmm.... Well I feel like I'm the wet blanket with all your ideas, but I've spent some seat time in many of the corvette generations including the C4 and I'm not sold on the idea. In fact, I spent a couple hours driving a '94 C4 and then jumped right from there into the seat of my '94 300ZX and it was like night and day. The cars were both ten years old at the time and both cars had been stored indoors, babied by their owners, and had similar mileage, but the difference in how they aged was astounding. Here's my most basic impression of the Corvette... It's a GM car. The ten year old Vette was creaky, squeaky, and rattly. The dashboard shook up and down over bumps. The ride was jarring and a little squirrely. Felt like the rear end just couldn't figure out where it wanted to be, especially when accelerating. Almost like the differential was shifting back and forth from one side to the other even while in a straight line. Interior colors had started to fade and craze cracking had started to appear at the stress points. Steering wheel had started to get mushy. You know... Like any other GM car. My 300ZX on the other hand, drove like your typical ten year old Japanese import. Fit and finish was still excellent. Interior was excellent. Ride had gone a little soft because the suspension was used, but it was predictable. It felt absolutely fantastic compared to Vette. No squeaks or rattles. It didn't feel NEW, but it felt RIGHT. So my bottom line is that while the Vette looks great and feels great when new, in the end it's just another GM vehicle with all the same crap that happens to any other GM vehicle. Interior foams turn to goo. interior panels squeak, suspension feels a little unpredictable, and the only reason it ever goes fast is because it's got a huge engine. Take a good look at your Saturn. Has it started to fade yet? And lastly if it isn't already bad. I've heard from some close friends who are Corvette owners that the Vette community is catty and snobbish. There is more competition than camaraderie and the people just aren't "nice". You know... Like we are. Boy do I feel like doggy downer...

Wow. Some engineer ought to get his butt kicked for that one.

I had a 1994 300ZX which is what I believe you are calling the second generation. So if you mean the 90-96 variety, then you saw what I was talking about with the engine compartment. It's packed. And mine wasn't even a TT (Twin Turbo). Sure is pretty though. Here's the short period where I had both of them at the same time: I know it's just a Civic with a different body on it, but how about a Del Sol? I walked past one in a parking lot this afternoon and I gotta imagine that driving around on a beautiful sunny fall day with the targa top out might jussssst be enough to make you forget that you're driving a Civic? Maybe?

Because it's cheaper, and you can do it yourself in a matter of minutes without any special equipment. Think of it as a prototyping / tuning exercise. Solder the jets closed, drill them out smaller than you think you'll need, and then work your way up from there by drilling them out larger, a little bit at a time, until you get the performance you desire. Then once you've got that size nailed down, buy (or make) real jets that are of the size you found works best. I suspect motorcycle, "jet kits" are much more common than on cars, and certainly cheaper. Or you could spent thousands of $$ on machining equipment and then spend a multitude hours of unpaid labor making your own....

I think that when you're making "upgrades" you should start with the largest contributors to performance and work down the priority list from there. The problem is that things like cold air intakes are almost always starting from the wrong end of the spectrum. Pulling warm engine compartment air is not a significant detriment to your Z cars performance. Neither is the pressure drop across your paper air filter. Not until you've spent lots of money on your engine first. After you've done a bunch of engine and carb upgrades, THEN maybe you might want to turn your attention to something like a cold air intake. But with a stock or mostly stock engine? Nothing to be gained. How much time do you spend at WOT anyway...???

I'm no brake expert, but I believe your impression is correct. The only significant difference between the earlier and later 240 wheel cylinders is the location of the brake hardline where it connects to the cylinder. However, I'll offer up one additional option... In 77 they changed from the single piston floating cylinder design (70-76) to a much more reliable dual piston fixed cylinder design (77-787). And by swapping the brake backing plates and E-brake hardware inside the drums, you can upgrade to the later design and use the 77-78 cylinders. What's the downside? (There's always a downside...) You have to pull the stub axles to get the backing plate off. So if you're doing wheel bearings or something and have the backing plate off anyway, it's a convenient time to upgrade to the newer design.

Goose Chase!!! Just kidding of course and I do hope you find the right vehicle. Have you come up with any other alternatives other than a 280ZX or a 300ZX? I've highlighted some of my perceived issues with the 300ZX prior, but one thing I can tell you is that it would probably be easier to find a 300 in much better shape than a 280. Just beware of the ricermobiles. Walk away from anything with painted interior parts, fiberglass aftermarket body kits, or anything that mentions "neon" in any context. But surely there must be some other sporty T-top cars that are of interest?

Resistance is futile.

FastWoman, I hear ya loud and clear!! However, from my experience, if you're only 0 for 2, your journey has just begun! I trolled casually for a Z car for at least two years before I finally caught one. Short story is that I was slowly working on rebuilding one but was always keeping my eyes open for one for sale that was less (or different kind of) work than what I already had. I must have looked at forty cars before I finally found one that truly WAS worth stepping away from what I was already working on. And even then, it wasn't that it didn't need work, it just needed a different KIND of work. Became almost a joke... See an ad. Looks promising. Get in touch with the owner and ask him a bunch of specific questions like "Do the floors have any holes in them?" and get favorable answers like "No, the floors look great." Go to see the car and the floors has holes in them. WTF??? "Yeah, but they're small holes. Easy to fix...." I would get home from an unsuccessful excursion and my response become"Goose Chase!!" Because that's what it seemed like. Every car I went to see was a wild goose chase. "Hey, how was that car you went to see?" And I would proclaim "Goose Chase!!" So I don't know what the deal is, but my experience paralleled yours exactly. it seems like the people selling Datsun Z cars are collectively the most misrepresenting group of used car sellers I've ever come across. Ever. I don't know it it's optimism, denial, or desperation, but I've never run across a wider chasm of "difference of opinion" than I did when looking to buy a Z car. All that said, if there's anything I can do from the Philadelphia area, let me know.

Amateurs...

Cool. Sounds like that was the issue. Wonder what fried your original voltage regulator... What's your battery voltage now when the engine is running? You got a meter to check that?

Exmark!

It's way cool, but honestly... Unless you're planning to do a whole lot of them and really need to save time, you don't need that magical whack-a-mole style tool for the Z car valves. Where that style of tool would really shine is on overhead cam direct contact tappet style valves where the whole spring is down inside the tappet guide hole and you can't get a grip on the spring coils because the clearance is too tight. Like the one in the demo video. How do I know? Because I spent last winter wrestling with the attached. Look at the upper left exhaust valve. That tool would have been a lot easier than the custom remover/installer that I made...

Haha! And I thought I was bad...

Seriously? That did NOT just happen!

It's not like I've done a lot of it, but I've used the third variety and it worked great: I think the second version works too and may be a little faster to use because you don't have to screw and unscrew it to compress the spring, but if you're not going to be doing a lot of these, it might not be worth the additional cost? What say ye with all the engine rebuilding experience?

Green coated copper, charred, fried and disconnected. I think we've found the smoking gun on your charging issues... Yes, I'm maybe ten miles north of Bala Cynwyd. Easy shot down Lincoln Dr. (assuming it's not rush hour...).

From what I've read (and as described by Zed Head above) the K&N filters are much less effective than the traditional paper alternatives. If that's the case, it would be a lot cheaper to replace your paper filter a whole bunch of times rather than pay for an engine rebuild because your rings or cylinder walls are worn. I'm no filter expert. Have you researched any effectiveness comparisons?