charliekwin

I used Red Kote on the inside of mine. I spent a HUGE amount of time reading all kinds of posts about what to use on the outside and have since decided that it probably doesn't make that much of a difference. If I were doing it again, I think I'd just clean up the outside, spray on epoxy primer, and hit it with whatever catalyzed black paint I could find. (For the record, I ended up using this stuff: https://nomorerust.com/store/home/14-mastercoat-super-special-chassis-kit.html)

Forgot to mention that I left the CSV disconnected too. That and the idle screw adjustment are the only things different.

Of course, but it wouldn't fire. I think it was flooded, but that's just me guessing. Sent from my SM-G950U1 using Tapatalk

Car runs! I put the rail back on, opened up the idle screw one full turn and it fired right up. Tried to turn it back a bit and it died. Looks like it had been turned in too far to compensate for the stuck AAR. Air, fuel, spark. In retrospect, I got too hung up on it running once after removing the AAR. And took for granted that it was getting air. On the plus side, I saved a trip on a tow truck with the burst hose. And it's idling better, so I'm ahead of where I was at the beginning. That's what got this started to begin with. And yes Capt, that mess of wiring has been on my to-do list since forever. It keeps working and passing smog, so it never moves up. Many thanks to all for their help. Sent from my SM-G950U1 using Tapatalk

I don't know if you guys are Simpsons fans, but there's an episode where a doctor tells Mr. Burns he's alive because all of his ailments are fighting each other and staying in balance. I think back on things done by POs that I've fixed in the past (throttle position switch, missing thermostat, bad coolant temp sensor) and it reminds me of that scene. Sent from my SM-G950U1 using Tapatalk

I tried searching for CSV videos and found nothing, so was just making assumptions about the CSV based on the other injectors. It seems like a lot of fuel to me, but that's just me guessing. And you know what they say about assumptions. I have tried holding the gas down a bit while cranking, but I think it's flooding before it can start. With your and Zed's help, I have a game plan for tomorrow.

There's some overlapping timelines in the posts. I tried starting fluid early on and it never fired with that. The almost-starts happened later on. With the amount of fuel in there, it's no surprise starting fluid didn't help. And the cups from the cylinder injectors had maybe 1/4tsp of fuel. The CSV spit out a tablespoon or two. Now to figure out why...

Here's what the CSV is doing: Won't open/fire if the connector is disconnected, so it's not stuck open. I can at least try putting it back together and leaving the CSV disconnected to see what happens, then try to track down the cause.

Well, I think I have a good lead here. The source of my fuel pump leak...that was obvious. The other houses around the pump and damper look good, but the are some that I haven't replaced and will do the rest of them soon enough. Anyway, when I fixed the pump, the same one-fire situation happened again. It really seems fuel related, so I pulled off the fuel rail to check the injectors. I've wanted to do this eventually, so this just forced the issue a bit. Anyway, a couple of cranks later, I got this much fuel in each of the cups for the cylinders. And I got this much from the cold start valve. Sent from my SM-G950U1 using Tapatalk

Here's a picture of the engine as it sits right now. I have the AAR heater plate there just for the vacuum line at the BPT, but removing it doesn't make a difference. Connecting or disconnecting the electrical connector for the AAR doesn't matter either. Last time it ran was Friday two weeks ago; other than having the coolant lines still connected to the heater plate, it was set up like this. FWIW, here's my AAR. It doesn't move. I've never had a fast idle since I bought the car, but the weather we have here in SoCal hasn't made that an issue. I also took a quick video before the pump leak appeared. Here is the car trying to turn over. If I let it sit for a day or two with the plugs removed, the first time cranking, it'll do this. Then nothing. It's done this fire-once-after-sitting-without-plugs-for-a-day thing three times, which at least is repeatable. Busy week, but hopefully should have some time Friday to get to the leak.

Should be, right?! No new update yet. It's been raining here in Los Angeles and that's kept me from looking for the fuel pump leak but the weather finally cleared up last night. The ground wire that Zed marked is connected as well, but Pin 1 and the blue wire I hadn't heard about before. That''ll be on the list after fixing the pump.

Continued from above... Cleaning things and polishing the shiny bits All the nuts, bolts, and other miscellaneous hardware pieces were cleaned up as much as I reasonably could with a red scuff pad, wire wheel, or buffing bad. One day, when I run out of projects, I think I'll try re-plating some of the hardware. Meguiar's 105 did a great job buffing up the stainless trim pieces. My old Black Dragon order also included a new set of outer door window trims. Can't say I'm super happy with them: the tips were bent in transit, the protective film was cut badly and super glued on, and to top it off, don't seem to fit very well. Power Locks The power lock kit has a soft zinc block that connects the actuator rod to the door rod via set screws. It would always fall off. Never more. Please don't judge my welds. Lights The marker lights were all filthy, but mostly just needed a good cleaning Three out of four are passable, but the front lens on one is a mess. Alt least it's only $30 for a pair of replacement lights. Headlights were cleaned up too. The turn signals needed more attention. The reflectors were rusted, the housings were dirty, and the paint on the surrounds was coming off. I still had material left from the paint job, so everything was cleaned, sprayed with adhesion promoter, epoxy, then rattle can white on the housing, and metallic gray on the surrounds. White is still plenty bright, so rather than trying to repair the reflectors, I left them out entirely. Badges The only badges I've left on the car are on the vents. Mine were pretty rough. Replacements aren't terribly expensive, but I'll salvage what I can. Removed as much of the old paint as I could, then sprayed with some Rustoleum, and scraped off everything that should be shiny. This'll do; I'll save the hundred bucks for something else. Hood and front end issues deserve their own post, but I think there's a football game about to start.

Going back in time a little bit for a recap of some of the things that happened in December and January trying to get the car back on the road. Interior The only new thing on the interior (so far) was re-doing the trim around the sides of the roof. I remember going home on a Friday afternoon and thinking "this shouldn't take more than an hour or so." Then I screwed up the windshield piece three times. I didn't get anything else done that weekend. The first time my brain short circuited and I stuck the piece on backwards. The second time, I cut it too small. The third time had too many wrinkles. The fourth time was good enough. The trim along the doors, at least, went on easier. I still need to do something about the sun visors. Rubber and Seals When Black Dragon closed down their Z store a few years ago, I bought everything I thought I might need one day. It's been sitting in a box in my office since then, and finally that decision paid off. Good thing, too, because almost every part that wasn't missing outright was long perished. Off the top of my head: there's new seals for quarter windows (body seal and door) hatch glass outer hatch weatherstrip upper door trim window glass door to fender door to sill windshield fender (these weren't even on my car before, and I ended up installing them wrong and having to cut them. Oops.) hood to cowl headlights Side Mirrors One of my Christmas presents: a new set of side mirrors from Z Car Depot. Drilling holes in my newly painted doors that I spent hours fixing...that's nerve-wracking. Measure five times, then once more. The mirrors come with sheet metal screws. That doesn't seem particularly robust, and I think contributed to my driver side door getting torn up over the years, so I thought nuts and bolts would be better. Since I could reach through the back, I again thought "this shouldn't take more than an hour or so." I'm a slow learner. Being able to reach an area and threading on nuts and washers are totally different things. If I knew exactly how long it took to get those mirrors mounted, I would be embarrassed to share it. Because they have a long base, they don't fit quite as tight against the door as I'd like, but at least they look good, even if the passenger side mirror (being flat) is basically useless. Windshield Wipers and cowl The wiper linkage was a dirty mess and tough to move. Everything was taken apart, cleaned thoroughly, and re-greased. I cut some new washers from leftover felt that I've been holding on to for about a decade (I knew I might need it some time!). While I was at it, I brushed some black Rustoleum on the cowl and the wiper motor bag.

Thanks Dave, that's all good advice. While I've replaced some things in the past (2-3 years ago, before doing body and paint) that either looked especially dodgy or gave out on me, I was lucky enough to buy a car that's always started and run reliably. Right until I pulled off the AAR last week, anyway. That point of failure is what I'm trying to find. It might not be related to the AAR, but the timing is hard to overlook. The new fuel pump leak might (or might not -- it was no-starting for a week before the leak) be related to the no-start issue, but I obviously can't look at anything until I fix it.

Well. My fuel pump just puked gas all over the floor. Guess I'll deal with that first, once the weather improves.

A couple of the plugs were wet earlier in the week, others dry. The new ones are dry, but I only tried cranking a couple times. Plenty of gas smell in the garage too, FWIW. (I doubt the gas is bad; I filled up after getting the car back on the road a couple weeks back.) Resistance measured at the ECU connector, yes. The other EFI bible checks were good, but that doesn't mean the ECU isn't bad. Are there any tests that can be performed on the ECU itself? It's hard for me to imagine that I did something to kill it dead by removing the AAR, but I'm not in a position to be ignoring possibilities right now. Used real starting fluid, didn't get even a pop out of it. I'll be honest, I'm not really sure what the spark should look like, so I'll shoot a video this weekend.

An update/renewed call for help. Earlier in the week, after letting things sit for a couple days without the plugs, on the first crank it tried --very briefly-- to fire one time. That was it, then back to cranking only. The resistance on the coolant temp sensor circuit is right where it should be. I have a potentiometer wired in, and it's set to zero. This afternoon I put a pressure gauge back in. I don't have the right sized hoses, but it read about 30 PSI before it started to leak, so I don't think that's my problem. I could also hear injectors clicking when my wife cranked it. Bought a new set of plugs today. After installing those, it did the same thing as earlier in the week: tried to fire once on the first crank, then nothing. Haven't had any real hard-start or no-start problems before; all this came after taking off the AAR and heating plate under it. I've tried putting them back too (excluding the coolant lines on the plate), but it doesn't make a difference.

My 78 was starting and running...until yesterday. I just passed smog on Friday afternoon, but have an occasional misfire and slightly high idle that I was trying to track down. I took off the AAR, and when I tried to start the car again it cranks, but won't start. Not even a sputter. So far I have: Pulled the plugs; they look good Checked for spark at one of the plugs; that also looked good. Ran the voltage and continuity checks at the ECU connector; also good. Fusible links are good. Fuel pump runs. I haven't checked the pressure yet. But: This morning I shot starting fluid into the manifold. Did nothing at all. That makes me think the problem is spark, but I have a spark when the plug is out and grounded. Any suggestions on where to go from here? ETA: I just pulled out all plugs again and a couple are a bit wet now. Going to leave them out and let everything sit for a while to dry out and see if that helps.

Interesting. I got a quote from Rooney/Bumper Classic in late December for $750 shipped.

They're usually removed to add an aftermarket air dam.

21 gallon and 10 gallon Harbor Freight compressors joined together with a T-fitting and check valves. I used two guns: Devilbiss Finishline FLG-4, for the sealer and color. I didn't want to spend big money on a gun, and at $200, it seemed to be one of the better values out there. The other gun was from the two-piece kit from HF (https://www.harborfreight.com/2-pc-professional-automotive-hvlp-air-spray-gun-kit-61472.html) to shoot high fill. That's why I bought it, but the small detail gun turned out to be surprisingly useful. I've used it a bunch of times on small parts.

Miller's Sport and Imports in Pasadena does Datsuns. I had him look over mine when I bought it. Just one guy, and he's always busy. There's Mike's Z Shop in Whittier and Z Expert in Santa Monica. Haven't dealt with either, but they seem to have good reputations.

Progress updates later, but this weekend I finally (finally!) got the car beyond the driveway. Just a couple trips to the gym. Two people at the gas station came up to ask about the car. Gym member with a 70s 911s parked by me and we talked for a bit. All three asked or remarked about the color. I still see all the flaws in my work, but the comments from strangers were awfully gratifying. Good weekend.

Where in LA? There's some well-regarded Z shops down here if you need a shop (though I agree with Zed, especially at the price you're asking).

He's dropped the price already. I think it was originally posted for $11 or $12k.