akre28

It wasn't, I read the conversion post over on tech tips, non of the wires that lead to the regulator have been altered.

So here is what i got after testing the alternator today. Engine off at battery Running at alt At battery And just in-case it was of any help, i took some pictures of the original alternator wired up, and then some of how i wired it up, does this look right? And then my random wiring next to the battery, i know its not pretty, i really want to redo it, but im just showing it so you can tell me if you see some DISASTROUS issue going on in there. Ill just loop it, either way doesn't sound like an issue to me, plus the loop still maintains flow. And that's exactly what i meant when i said "don't know how reliable they are" when i was talking about the the voltage regulator, so ill take a look at the FSM and see what i'm looking for. She was built February 1977, so im assuming that means i have an external regulator. That looks WAY different from what im seeing under my dash. Here is what i am looking at EDIT: How do you know if the voltage regulator is bad? The FSM shows a way to adjust it and i just found mine in the super hidden location, and i see no obvious way for the cover to come off, Im going to order one in the mean time to get it here before the week is out, but here is hoping that its the problem. -Kyle

So a few months ago (august 2013 ish), my Dad bought a 1977 280Z, we really like it and has been fairly good so far, but recently things have been heading a little south. First, we started noticing that after driving it, the passenger side of the front window would fog up, my Dad and I never thought much of it, I had just assumed it was something old cars did. But upon further inspection after a tip off from one of my friends, I found that the carpet on the passenger side was SOAKED in coolant. Yes, I know, how we didn't notice is completely beyond my understanding. But, I got to work. I pulled off the center console, labeled everything for later, and plastic bagged all the hardware. Re-did some of the HORRIBLE wiring for the stereo the previous owner did, and pulled the blower unit, fairly easy to get access (other than having to stand on my head). But i'm starting to get get fairly fed up with this issue. :mad: I have replaced the two lower coolant hoses with better condition ones purchased from the junkyard, after getting it all together, it still leaked, this time I actually looked to see where it was leaking from, turns out it was the upper hose, so went to NAPA picked up the PERFECT heater line, cut it to length, and slapped her on (obvious this took about 3 hours to swearing and complaining to do all that). Also got rid of all the stupid Nissan ring tie things, and replaced them with new jubilee clips. So again, got her all back together, filled her back up with water, (cleaning the block out of really brown coolant) and for a little while, I thought I fixed her, got her up to temperature, it started smoking a little bit from the under the dash, I ignored it, and continued to warm her up (should I be worried? :paranoid:) and what do you know, after getting her all warmed up, I turned the HVAC temperature gauge on the center console from hot to cold, starts GUSHING hot water on to the floor, from the top of the plumping that controls the temperature inside the car. We have a rally coming, this Saturday actually, and we would really like to have heat (not a huge deal if we cant, but having it is preferred), but my question is, can I replace this assembly from Nissan? or can I replace the seal that has inevitably failed over time, or that I caused it to fail, during my swearing escapade. And if I cant get parts within my deadline, is there any issue to me putting bolts that fit into the coolant lines that feed the interior, making sure they don't leak of course, just as a temporary setup so it doesn't leak? My second issue, is we have had some kind of charging problem. Every time you start it, the "CHG" light comes on from the volts gauge, so I pulled the alternator, had it tested, failed, bought a re manufactured one from o'reilly's, (not ideal, but it will do the job). Surprise, surprise, it didn't fix it. I can rev it under no load, up to 5K ish and the light will turn off briefly, but come back on. Any ideas? The Volts read about 12ish volts. The car hasn't left me stranded, but its only started happening the last few times I've gone to drive it, within the last month, it is starting to sound a little different when I do go to start it, like its a little harder than it use to be, it has what looks to be a fairly new battery, but I have yet to check the actually health of the battery. One thing also worth mentioning, I think right around the same time the "brake" light stays on after lowering the e-brake, but eventually turns off after a little while of driving, weirdest thing. Just thought i'd mentioned it. The car just recently got all new suspension, Eibach Pro-kit progressive rate springs, and KYB shocks, and we also flushed new brake fluid while we had to bleed the car anyway. So any and all help well be greatly appreciated, ill be checking back regularly for any questions you guys have. Thank you for making it to the end of my massive post, hope there is someone who can help. Thanks -Kyle

Its really bad, like Racing coil over bad, The previous owner fitted some kind of spring kit to the rear only and im trying to get it leveled out. its sits really low, like the tire sir maybe an inch (if that) off the outer fender. Yes while it is a lowering kit, it will most likely lift the rear, and lower the front, which is what im looking for, but my dad wants a better ride, so this is my best combo i could find, i was thinking about doing the eibach's and KYB's, but i've heard the KYB's dont really work all that well on lowered cars and go out very quickly in some cases, so i looked into the Tokico HP's and illumia's, and found they run a little bit harder, but from where we are now, anything is going to be better. Am i on the right track? -Kyle

Shox.com looks good, little more expensive, but a reputable company, thanks for the suggestion. Its the type of ride that you get from what i assume are cut springs, original 174,00 mile old shocks that lug around, two alpine type R 12 inch sub woofers. (not my doing I promise) Just wondering if anyone has dealt with these guys, they have cheap big brake kits as well. Thanks for the info though. EDIT: What do i do with the Shock mounts (front and rear)? I know its probably recommended to replace them, i take it just hit up a dealer, or courtesy Nissan? (For OEM?) Sorry for the ignorance, still getting use to working on the Z verses my Pathfinder or some of the other "modern" cars, this Z has a couple of pieces that are throwing me off and i just dont want to go back in there if i dont have to (who doesn't really, ) I've been doing a lot of searching and im collecting info, little by little. so bare with me,

So this will be my first post on here. But my dad has a 77 280z, with a terrible ride, and were looking at replacing the suspension. After doing some searching, looking at eibach, tokico, etc etc. and after looking all over the internet, i stumbled across these awesome deal. Tokico - ILK Suspension Kit - Silver Mine Motors $650 for the Tokico ILK setup, seems really, really cheap, suspiciously cheap (hens why im here) My question is, has anyone had any experience with them, im going to call them, see if i can ease my concerns that way, but just looking for a little more reassurance. Thanks (sorry if this is in the wrong section) -Kyle