SteveJ

I think my wife would have my hide if I paid more for a model of a Z than I paid for my actual Z cars.

I this this speedo cable might work for you: Datsun Bluebird 510 620 1200 1400 1600 240Z 260z 280z Speedometer Cable New | eBay.

I haven't been to Matt's shop, but I have seen his trailer and some of his cars. I guess I'll have to get myself invited over sometime.

Also, you can always find a fresh discount code here: http://www.retailmenot.com/view/rockauto.com

With that much rust, don't expect too much. $1500 running.

The colors of the wires on the choke switch do not matter. It's the colors of the wires from the body harness that matter. Keep in mind that the connector for the map light should also be red/blue and black. By the way, you can get some, if not all, of the connectors at OEM-Type Bullet & Spade Electrical Connectors for 1960's through 1970's Japanese Vehicles... Bridgestone, Datsun, Hodaka, Honda, Kawasaki, Landcruiser, Suzuki, Tohatsu, VW, & Yamaha. Which side is coming from the dash harness? I'm guessing it's the right side since it has red/black and black wires. I don't know at this time what the blue wire is, though it is some accessory function. If the wires both come from the dash harness, they won't connect together. Clean up the wires better and describe the colors. Edit: Look at BE-4 in the 1973 FSM. A couple of the connectors in the 72 manual on the corresponding page were lacking color descriptions. Those colors are listed in the 73 FSM, at least in my copy.

If I can remember to track it down, I'll look for my spare switch and take pictures for you, so you can see what you're missing.

Thanks for joining, Ed. I'm interested in hearing more, too.

That's easy to understand. It took me a while to realize that there were several different switches for the headlights.

Actually, according to the FSM, the standard 72 combo switch does switch the positive side on the headlight. The White/Red and Red wires going to the headlight side of the switch are positive. Also, the parts manual shows a change in part number starting in September 71. Now from what I understand, it wouldn't be unusual for Nissan to have put 1971 wiring harnesses and switches into 1972 models to use up stock. Do you have an early 72?

I can't tell if they are series or parallel. I looked more carefully at SuperBrightLEDs' website. They say whether or not their bulbs are polarized. Also consider that for applications like our cars, there won't be too much stress on the bulbs. After all, how often do you drive at night? By the way, with Amazon Prime, you can get them for $2 per bulb when you buy at least $25 worth of Amazon Prime merchandise. Edit: My bad. It's the white LEDs available for $2 per bulb.

I just bought some 5 LED bulbs through Amazon (Cutequeen LED Car Lights Bulb Green BA9 BA9s 5050 5-SMD BA9S, 53, 57, 182, 257, 1895, 6253, 64111, 64113 (pack of 2) : Amazon.com : Automotive). I had to remove the green filters in the gauges, but the light output is great. I'm going to buy some more to put in the speedometers and tachometers of my cars. There is one caveat, though. The polarity is reversed on these bulbs, so I had to reverse the positive and negative. IIRC some of the sockets ground on the gauge, so these bulbs would not be appropriate for those gauges.

One point of clarification: That description applies to 72 through 78 Z cars. The 70 and 71 are a little different. The headlight switch in those is not on the positive side of the circuit. It completes the ground between the high/low beam switch and chassis. There is no switch on the positive side of the circuit in those cars.

You aren't following it back to the high/low beam switch. That switch will connect either the RB or RW wire to ground. I have three comments on that diagram. 1. I would reverse the 30 and 87 pins. Bring the 12 VDC from the battery to the 87 pin. Most relays you find today are SPDT. That means there is a normally closed contact designated as 87a. When the coil is de-energized, 30 and 87a are connected. If the 87a comes into contact with ground, you'll blow the fuse. If you bring in 12 VDC to the 87 pin, it is just an open circuit when the coil is de-energized. 2. If you use this design, I would suggest a 12AWG wire for the wires going to the 87 and 30 pins. Match up the 12 AWG wire with a 20A fuse. 3. This is the way to wire it if you are considering LED headlights. Otherwise, it may be easier to go with Dave Irwin's design that you can purchase from MSA.

See, he beat me to it.

You have to get the switch knob off, and then you can loosen the ring that holds it on. Be careful. There are parts you can lose. Disconnecting isn't too bad. The challenging part IIRC is getting the optical fiber back in place for the light.

Excellent information. We can work with this. I'll take a look at the wiring diagrams and see if I can give you some more to look for. That is unless BeerManPete doesn't beat me to it.

Unfortunately that's too far for me.

What is the current rating on the fan? That will determine the wire size. The wire size will determine the fuse size. You will want a thermostatic switch for the fan. Wire an SPST relay to the ignition circuit. Pole 85 gets the 12VDC+. Pole 86 goes to ground. Pole 87 gets power from the battery (Put an inline fuse between the battery and the relay close to the battery.), and pole 30 goes to the positive on the fan. The negative side of the fan gets wired to the thermostatic switch, and the other side of the switch goes to ground.

There are plenty of parts links on my blog. Courtesy Nissan has been pretty good to me over the years.

Use resistance to test. Don't trust the beeping. Let's think about why fuses blow. They blow because they have too much current flowing through them for the timeframe they are designed for. The fuse blows to protect the wiring from burning up. Why was there too much current? Refer to Ohm's Law. I (current) = V (voltage) divided by R (resistance). Voltage is roughly constant at around 12 volts, give or take a couple of volts. For a 10A fuse, if the resistance on the circuit drops below 1.2 Ohms, you are getting to the limits of the fuse. (This is why I look at resistance and not continuity.) Beware of autoranging meters, too. All of the sudden the scale could change from Ohms to milliOhms. So, what causes the low resistance? Of course, the obvious is a dead short. Corrosion in bulb sockets can bridge the gap between positive and negative. Also, a relay coil's insulation could break down, bypassing windings and dropping the resistance. The ignition coil could fail in a similar manner. Abrasion in insulation could allow a small area to come into contact with the chassis ground. So, let's work on the diagnostics. (By the way, I spent about two hours today tracking down a short in control wiring for some electrical gear. Even with experience, it can take time.) Can you post pictures of the fuse and wiring in question? I'm tired right now and can't picture it in my mind. I especially want to see where the fuse is. Are you talking about the one in the fusebox? Look for any wiring that may not be factory. Look for splices, electrical tape, etc. Post pictures of those anomalies, and give a description of where you find them in the harness. Maybe Saturday, I can finally look at the wiring diagrams and give you some other points for testing. I hope this helps.

What part of Atlanta?

I believe Dorman 611-254 lug nuts or 611-174 lug nuts. If you need the studs, look for 12mm x 12.5, though I'm not sure of the length.

If you had of posted this a couple of weeks ago, I would have tried to help you when I was in LA.

Ztherapy Rockauto Rockauto Courtesyparts.com (get the part number from carpartsmanual.com) Amazon Blackdragon What part of the door locks? You'll probably have to go to ZCarSource or ZSpecialties ZSpecialties ZCarSource or ZSpecialties Courtesyparts.com (get the part number from carpartsmanual.com) Don't forget the O-ring gasket and locking ring. MSA (zcarparts.com) ZCarSource or ZSpecialties