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Thanks so much for the complete story on emissions testing. My car is presently insured as a daily driver, so I will need to go back to collector car insurance which I have used in the past but did not like the use restrictions. I have joined the Desert Z Association, so that was a step in the right direction to get in touch with local owners.

Hey there, I need some contacts in the Phoenix area, having just relocated from Sacramento, CA. I have a '72 240Z in pretty good shape (but no AC)! Any advice on registration and especially emissions testing would be greatly appreciated! Happy to be here! Gary

I am helping a friend revive a 1970 240Z that had been sitting in a barn for 22 years. It is a bit of a mess, but we got it started without much drama using gas from a gas can. The problem is a blockage in the hard line coming out of the gas tank. We drained about 2 gallons of amber colored and very stinky gas out of the tank, but the hard line in the tank is blocked. We have tried using a flexible wire to clear it as well as compressed air without luck. Is this a common problem with cars that have been sitting for a long time? The blockage appears to be maybe a mix of rust and hardened varnish, although it is hard to tell. Thanks!

I have a 1972 Z with the typical "waving speedometer problem". I tried cleaning and lubing the cable, but it was just too far gone. The problem was getting worse and then the speedometer started reading about 15 mph low. I replaced the cable and the waving problem went away immediately, but the speedo now reads too slow. I read a great post from a while back how a speedometer needle can get moved from its correct position. Should I try removing the speedometer and resetting the needle position? I know the speedo pinion gear in the transmission is correct for the read end of the car, so unless it has been damaged I don't think that is the problem. Thanks and Happy Fathers Day!

The stud welder and slide hammer worked great! Patcon's advice above was spot-on. After I got the metal pretty close with the stud welder, I used a body hammer to shrink a couple of areas and shape the leading edge. It did not really take that much filler. The blackboard hood got rolled out for artists at the Sacramento Datsun monthly pizza night (last night). Thanks for the advice!

Ok, I should be getting together with a buddy (recently retired, so the best kind of buddy) who has a stud welder. So far I have the hood stripped and mounted on the car so we have a good anchor to pull against. On the bad side, I am taking more abuse than usual at work for the appearance of my car. Will return with details soon I hope and will work from the outside of the dent toward the center.

I bought a hood to use as an art project on my car. I should explain that my car has a hood in decent shape already so this is an extra hood. My plan is to straighten and prep the art project hood for painting with blackboard paint with the idea that people can draw on it with chalk at get togethers and events. I was thinking I would remove it from the car and set it up on a stand of some kind so kids can access it too. So the art hood has a pretty big dent and a much smaller dent on the front edge. Since the front edge of the hood skin has a reinforcing panel behind it, there is no access to bump the dents back out. I have access to a stud welder, but I am not sure that would be able to pop the dents back out. As an alternative, I could drill out the spot welds holding the reinforcing panel to the skin of the hood. This would maybe allow the reinforcing panel to be bent out of the way to get at the back side of the skin for straightening. This does not have to be perfect, but I want to repair it if possible. Your thoughts are welcome regarding how to move forward!

I might as well come clean and admit that I took apart the turn signal switch not too long ago. Judging from some other posts, maybe that is that problem and not a ground. I have also noticed lately that sometimes the turn signal switch does not actually turn on the signals, another sign of switch problems. Hope I can figure this out soon!

I have a '72 with a brake light problem on the driver's side. It does not do it all the time, but sometimes it will not light up when the brakes are applied. I know the bulb is fine. Oddly, it seems to fix itself after I turn on the emergency flashers. I suspect a poor ground, but have not been able to find where the ground to the body is located so I can clean it up. The circuit diagram shows the ground somewhere in the passenger side rear of the car. Anybody have any thoughts on this? Thanks so much!

Just to follow up, I took the car to a muffler shop and they adjusted the exhaust hangers to lower the system a bit. They did not get it quite right though because the exhaust tip was lower, but was not centered where it should be. The next day I loosened the hangers and the clamp on the inlet to the muffler so I could rotate it a little. Since it has the inlet a the center and the offset at the outlet, a little rotation centered the outlet on the opening in the sheet metal. Now all is well, except maybe too loud. I still think it is too hot back there, but I need to take some additional readings.

I checked the Dynomax website and the 17733 model is reversible with regard to inlet and outlet. Most of their mufflers are reversible with the exception of those with one inlet and two outlets. So the issue is fit and heat only at this point. Here is a picture of the install with a center inlet and offset outlet. I like the fit, but not the heat. Some options: 1. Reverse the muffler and see how it looks and if it reduces the heat. This will only require a new rear hanger since it had to trim the one provided in the kit. 2. Have a muffler shop bend the pipe before the muffler to drop it an inch or so. This would still look fine and may reduce the heat. 3. Shop for a new muffler. 4. Install heat shielding on the car or strap it directly to muffler (Thermo-Tec heat shield). Thanks for listening!

Here is an update on the situation. I installed a 2.5" diameter MSA exhaust system (stock exhaust manifold) with the supplied Super Turbo Muffler. That eliminated the exhaust leak just upstream from the old muffler. The muffler is installed with the center pipe as the inlet and the offset pipe as the outlet. It really tucks up into the space provided nicely, you can't see the muffler at all looking at the back of the car. The final outlet pipe nearly touches the sheet metal, it is really close. Unfortunately the temperature on the interior of the car right back in the corner is now as much as 168 degrees F! I suppose I could reverse the muffler (offset pipe as inlet and center pipe as outlet), but that would seem to make the outlet way too low below the rear sheet metal. All this work and not only is the heat problem probably worse, but the car is way too loud! Any thoughts?

I have a 1972 and the left rear interior plastic panel is missing. I have the right panel, but it is in pretty bad condition. I found two panels reportedly from a 260Z that are of a heavier and more durable plastic. The right panel fits just great, just like the original. I can't seem to get the left panel past the hatch support fitting, which cannot be removed. Does anyone know if the left 260Z panel will fit? I don't have an original panel to compare it to. If it will fit, is there a trick to fitting it? Thanks so much for your input, I don't want to break the panel or anything.

Wow, I was loading some groceries in my '72 Z and the trunk floor on the exhaust side was over 130 degrees F! The previous owner said it was always hot back there, but is this normal? Maybe I am missing a heat sheild or something. I dropped the exhaust system to install a new transmission and did not see anything notable. Thanks for your input!

The new, larger booster is installed. I had to relocate all four holes out 1 cm and everything bolted up fine. It is a very tight fit between the clutch master cylinder and the bracket for the accelerator linkage with only about a couple of mm clearance on each side. You have to be very precise in drilling the holds, but they all landed on the pedal box interior to the firewall. I used some fender washers to hide the old holes on the inside. On the outside, the old holes are covered up by the larger booster.