kmack

That last post reminded me about the rear clunk. It's either the diff. mount as Jon said or it's going to be u-joints. And it could be any of the 6 u-joints in the car. There are 2 on the drive shaft, and 2 on each half-shaft going to the rear wheels.

Although, I've never done any brazing myself, I've seen lots of cars fixed using that method, including my 240. The dog legs had been repaired once before and at least the lower portions were brazed in place. It held well and still is. The bondo and paint stuck to it fine, so i would assume POR-15 to do the same. Just scuff it up good so it has something to stick to. If I understand the process right, brazing is used when replace sheet metal sections because there is less chance of warping the surrounding metal and causing bad distortions in the panel.

Oh boy! I just love red Z's! (that's why I own one!) First things to do. Get the brakes fixed! No fun in driving a car you can't stop. I'm presumming that there is air in the lines. Check/rebuild the rear brake cylinders. This is one of the first places that air gets into the lines. The seals usually blow out when they sit for too long. Rebuild kits are pretty cheap, but if you have to buy new cylinders, make sure you get the correct ones. They are are left/right specific. I'd get the suspension up to speed next. You have a new bushings set, new shocks, new springs, you now will have a new suspension, all thanks to the previous owner. Money-wise, the price is right! Those pieces you have will make this car handle like a true race car! You won't be disappointed. I wouldn't use the R200 diff. unless you plan to put some serious horsepower in front of it. The extra weight really isn't worth it. The R180's will handle the power from a stock L28 turbo just fine. Next, I'd focus on sealing the body up. Buy a weatherstrip kit from MSA or Victoria British. Price should be less than $200 and both companies sell the same kit. You might get catch one of them with a sale, but it's hit-n-miss. The only items that won't be in the kit will be the tail light gaskets. You'll need to but those separately. Make sure you get them. Also get a new shift boot (inner). Replacing all the seals will pretty much stop the exhaust fumes from getting into the car. The only other place left that will introduce a gas-like smell, will be the vapor lines running through the body to the gas tank. You can either replace these or do away with them entirely. There are threads discussing both options here. Just do a search. At this point, you should have not spent more than $1000 (even assuming you have to completely overhaul the entire brake system {new M/C, new cylinders, new calipers, new brake booster, etc.}). So now you should have a great stopping, great handling, non-smelling car that's a blast to drive! On to minor engine problems. The ticking could just be the valves needing to be adjusted. Or the oiling spray bar for the cam could be clogged up. Pull the valve cover off, adjust the valves to spec (that's where the factory service manual comes in handy) and pull the spray bar off and clean it out real good. Your cam will thank you. I tune up on the engine is also a good idea. Plugs, wires, points, cap and rotor, shouldn't be more than $100 tops. As for the rest of the car, you can drive the car without much of the interior in place. That you'll have to slowly piece together unless you buy a parts car with a complete interior. But at least you'll be able to drive a car that will be safe and reliable. Good luck and congrats on your beautiful red Z car! Now you just need to show us some pictures...

I'd buy that blue Skyline in a heart-beat! Just the way it sits. Besides, all I'd need would be the engine and tranny anyway!:classic:

Try this one.... www.wreckedexotics.com

Jeremiah, If you don't mind a little work and the trip to come get it, I know somebody that has a '77 280Z convertible project for sale here in San Antonio, Tx. Project is about 75% complete. All cutting nad shaping of the rear deck area has been done. Just the finish body work needs to be completed. If you're interested, let me know and I'll get you more info and contact numbers.

That lone wire (the one separate from the battery cables) is your fusible link. If that is disconnected, you will no power to the car. This now makes sense on why when you turned the key, there was nothing happening. I burned up my fusible link once and had this same senario. But you said you had heard a click when you turned the key, so I figured your link was still good. Must have been the mechanical click from the ignition switch... Glad you got the car up and running again.

If texasz backs out on this seat, I'll take it. Shipping would be about the same as I'm 70 miles south of him. Zip is 78249. I can have Paypal money sent in no time. Let me know, my original seats aren't taking to the harness very well.

Sounds like the battery has failed to me. I've had this same situation happen to me twice. Try to start car, nothing but a clicking sound from starter. Put battery on charger, same thing. Jump battery from running car, same thing. Sometimes when a battery looses a cell, then the battery will not take a charge. Even if you jump it, there is not enough current to make it through the cables. Two things I'd try: 1) use two sets of cables at the same time. Double up. I know it sounds wierd, but I have done this on a battery that absolutely would not take a charge (after days on a charger) and was completely dead. The second set of cables decreases the amount of resistance for the current coming from the running vehicle. 2) Go get a known good battery or a new one. Once you get it turning over, if it doesn't start, then you can look elsewhere to diagnose.

To my knowledge all the first generation Z cars (S30) have these mounting holes. Here in the US that includes cars up to '78.

Something else I just thought of.... New grills come with a piece of double-sided tape to help hold the center of the grill down to the hatch. Take that off and use a good piece of 3M double-sided tape. The stuff that comes on the grills now will let loose in about 2 months and then the center of your grills will be a little "springy." FYI from someone who's at that point and can't get the grills off to fix it w/o destroying them. :tapemouth

I have my grills attached using the C-clips and the barrel clips holding everything together.

Mark, If your vent grills have the nuts on them, then there is no way to attach them to the hatch with the vent duct box in place. So it appears that your grills were mounted w/o the duct boxes at some point. You have to attach the duct boxes first and pop the grills into place with the barrel clips. The grills go on last.

Hey, texasz, those hatch vents look kind of familiar.... 2Many, when i installed my hatch vent grills, I used the standard size barrel clips that are used for all the emblems. And they clipped into the hatch sheet metal. At least, that's the way I remember it.

If you're running your car in autoX, then the negative camber (first issue) is going to be somewhat of a good thing. You might want to leave that part alone. As for the 2nd issue, anytime you move, lower, or otherwise adjust the suspension, it will invariably effect your toe-in. The only way to correct this is to have the front end aligned. Most shops around here are charging about $40 for a front end alignment. Takes about 45 minutes to an hour. But it saves a lot in tires.

For you guys on *this* side of the Great Pond, hold Alan's picture up in a mirror. That way the wiper arms will be shown on the right side of the car.

FWIW, my car weighs in at the 2200 lbs mark. I run my car on the track fairly regularly so I do need a front strut bar. As for the use of this Hon-duh bar on my car, I still plan to get one. Even if I have to modify the height of the mounting brackets, it's still cheaper than buying one from MSA or VB, and still less time consuming than making my own. I have the capabilities to modify the brackets fairly quickly. Plus, it's cheap enough that it's not that much of a waste of money to try. As Carl said, "Different strokes for different folks." But this has become a good thread because now it has been tried and the facts about it have been stated. The decision now is left soley up to those that want to try it or not. Caveat emptor...

Thanks for all the info. Looks like I'll putting in an order for one in the next few weeks. But I have some other stuff to sell first...

Just thought of another question: Is this type of bar adjustable? I realized that I have my strut towers slotted on the front to give more camber adjustment. They are slotted about 3/8" max. The bar looks adjustable, but I can't quite tell for sure.

Thanks for photo, GaryZ240. Looks like it will be something I can use. And don't feel too bad about the welding class. I'm doing the same thing right now and I've been welding for the last 8 years!:stupid:

I understand the strength issues. In fact I made the bar I use in the rear of my car. Although it doesn't actually mount on the strut towers themselves, it bolts directly into the body just in front of the rear struts. And it's just as strong. http://www.geocities.com/vintagericeracing/Harness_Mount.html But I figure if I can get this Hon-duh bar to work for the front, all the better. I couldn't make one near this cheap! Just trying to find out for sure that it will work. But I tend to trust my eyes before I trust just a few person's words. No offense, GaryZ240.

This looks very interesting to me, but I'd like to see a picture of the set-up in the car. Does anybody have a pic showing the bar installed on an early Z? The price is right, but the shipping seems a little high. Any other thoughts on this?

The dustshields do a really good job of retaining heat in the rotors and pads. So if you're always hard on the brakes, it makes it easier for them to fade quicker! I've had mine off for almost 9 months now. Now noticable problems yet. Not that much extra dust on the wheels either. I say rip 'em off and use them for frisbees...

Here ya go...it's being done right now... http://hybridz.org/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=31085