Mark Maras

I doubt that he will get anywhere near that in Portland but who knows he may find a (insert your own description here) who will part with that kind of cash for this car. I doubt he will be very busy giving test rides though. Mark in Portland

Heat is resistance-poor connection. Sounds to me like you've found the problem. Clean everything, charge the battery. Test the battery with a volt meter, it should read about 12+ volts or so at rest and 13+volts running. The fact that you have good running voltage now, tells me that you opened the circuit when the engine shut off & closed the circuit & made a beter connection than it had before. Mark in Portland

I couldn't access your photo. We will need photos of all six or a description of each. Keep the plugs in order so we know which cylinder they came from. The reason being that each carb runs 3 cylinders. 1 plug will only tell us about 1 carb. Just when you thought the list couldn't get any longer, as long as the plugs are out a compression test would be a good idea too. Mark in Portland

Eurodat is correct. Fortunately the Ace in Portland carrys O-rings in both material. Go with the nitrile. It's always a good idea to do it right. No worrys later. Mark in Portland

We have a large ACE Hardware store in Portland that stocks a large selection of O-rings in different thicknesses and diameters. If I remember correctly. they're in the plumbing section. You might find them there. Mark in Portland

Easy check. Pull the distributor cap & the vacuum line that runs to the diaphram on the side of the distributor. Suck on the vacuum line & watch the base plate that the points are mounted on. It should rotate a few degrees as you apply vacuum & should return after the vacuum is released. I'd still like to know what color your plugs are. That will tell us if your air-fuel mixture is close. Mark In Portland

This still sounds like a possible combination of timing & mixture but Stanley is correct. Check for vacuum leaks. Easy to find with a piece of hose held to your ear. What color are your plugs. Also have you checked the other items on my rather lengthy list? Mark in Portland

More info needed. How loud is the backfire? Has it recently had a good tune-up? Plugs & wires, valve adjustment, timing, points, condensor , advance diaphram & base plate functioning, carbs tuned & float levels checked? What color are your sparkplugs? Whew, I think I got it all. Oh Yeah, Confirm that your carbs are round top SUs. My uneducated guess is, it's caused by either wrong timing or rich mixture or both but you have to rule out everything else to be sure. I vaguely remember my 71 stumbling at idle now & then but I don't remember it being a backfire or at least a loud one. How strong does your engine run from 700RPM-5000RPM? Any stumbling, low power, backfiring on or off the throttle? OK I'm done. I think. Mark in Portland

Nice find! Welcome to the club. Tell us more about it. Year, mileage, history if known, rust issues[if you aren't aware of rust issues in Zs, it's time to find out], any modifications, future plans & lots of pics, Not too much to ask but don't let it interupt your seat time. Enjoy your new toy. Mark in Portland

Mac's Radiator Shop here in Portland. They're not cheap, but they are good. I would trust a rebuild from them more than a replacement.

My son discovered that the car is on the way to Canada. This was the trucking firm that he talked to. No word on where it was from or a firm destination. Any of you Canadians in the club expecting a Z that you haven't told us about. My guess is it will end up somewhere in B.C. Mark in Portland

Welcome Shawn Prepare to meet your fate. Owning a Z is like the "Hotel California" most of us couldn't leave them if we wanted to. Your chances of findind a good "rust-free" 70-71 are probably good in Ariz. Keep us posted of your progress and good luck. Mark in Portland

Look at what I spotted on the way home from work today. This was sitting in a car lot. It appears to be a 72 or 73. This was as close as I could get. It looks, to be stock height or even a little higher. Probably tires. I couldn't see any visible rust from 150' away. The place was closed, left a note on the gate begging them to call me. I'm worried, the car lot is not a sales lot. It appears to be a holding yard that moves cars in and out every few days & open the gate only when car-haulers are coming and going. Tomorrow, my son is going to "camp-out" there and try to talk to someone. The chances of getting our hands on this are probably slim to none but we'll take those odds. No regrets if you give it your best shot and still come up short. That said, sleep is going to be tough tonight and work tomorrow is going to be even tougher. I'll give you all an up-date tomorrow. Mark in Portland

Key off.Pull your positive battery cable & with a volt meter see if you have current flowing between the cable & battery pole. Should be little to none. The little bit will be the clock or maybe a few more items on a later Z. A bad diode in the alternator can drain a battery with the key off.You can determine which circuit it is by pulling fuses one by one until you lose the current flow between the battery & cable. Mark in Portland

Back to combustion basics. Fuel, air, ignition source. A lack of voltage can effect any of these especially in a F.I. engine. If you think the battery is low, check it with a volt meter. it should be a little above 12volts with the engine off. Engine running voltage should rise to 13 + volts if the alternator is charging. While on the road, if you think the voltage is down, turn on everything electrical; lights, heater fan, etc. If voltage is already down, this will make the engine run worse. Mark in Portland

Nice to see that energy going to a deserving project. learn as you go. We all do it. Let us know how it went, ask questions & show us pics please. On a more serious note, not knowing your prior experience with cars, for at least the first six months of driving your Z, take it easy, you have a bit to learn about the behavior of these cars under many different conditions and an old car to limber up, Should you have the desire to go fast, what are the chances?, run to your nearest Z club that is involved in club racing and take a driving course. Fun! Fun! Fun! and you'll learn the car that much faster. That was the father of 3 & Z driver of 22 years in me talking. I got my Z at age 24, in 1973. Remembering myself at 19, neither the Z or myself would have had much of a chance of survival. Hope you and yours enjoy each other for years to come. Mark in Portland

Lots more info needed. Year? Method of lowering? How was the rear done?

A circuit breaker, got mine at NAPA less than $10.00, that replaces the fuse in the circuit being powered up will ensure there will be no over heated wiring issues. They are usually too tall to use the fuse block cover but they are great insurance while you're testing. Mark in Portland

The first thing I do when a new piece of vintage tin shows up, is to get a service-repair manual & start reading. Should you choose to have a mech. do the work, your new knowledge will help both of you. You may also find that many of these upcoming repairs, even the electrical, are very easy to understand and can be done at home. These early Zs were not a complex car at all & most repairs are doable with basic tools. The manuals will also warn you when you're getting in over your head. As always, you have this incredible group of knowledgable well wishers to help in any way possible. Enjoy your toy. Mark in Portland

Hi Dan I'm curious about the chrome that had been replaced by rust on the ashtray. Do you have a method for restoring it? Great job on your Z. After hearing about the problems in your dash, I'm going to pull mine and go through it. Got my L26 running but the only power I have to the dash is the map light & it's dim. Electrical is next. Mark in Portland

The symptoms point to trouble in the trans tail-shaft & possibly the reverse idler gear if the u-joints look good. Since you already want a 5-speed this would be an excellant time for one. Otherwise you'll be opening up your 4-speed to find the trouble. Mark in Portland

A couple of questions; Has the clunk gotten worse over time? Is there any high speed vibration? Is it difficult to shift into reverse? I don't recall any movement in mine but it has been close to 40 years since I had one apart. Mark in Portland

The question that arises in my mind is, how much does it cost to ship a Z to NZ? I imagine a left hand drive there would be as desirable as a right hand drive here.

Dennis How about some pics. of you and your Z in the nice weather? Then we all can be envious of your location. Rain & snow predicted for this weekend in Portland. At least we can look forward to nice weather here about mid June. It usually shows up right after our Rose Festival ends! Mark in Portland

Do you still have vibrations? I realize that most of them were eliminated with the diff. change but it sounds as if you still have some remaining. If you discover the reason for the driveline vibration, we'd all appreciate knowing for future reference. Mark in Portland