ZIII

I have considered going with a 78-79 280 Alt and have read all the write-ups about converting to an internal regulated alt. The 78-79 stock alt is rated at 60 amps (LR160) and the 280 turbo is rated at 70 amps. According to all I have read using either one of these is apparently fine. In this case, Zspecialties has this 105 amp alternator that is a direct exchange for the 240 stock. You don’t have to change belts, pulley, insert diodes, change wiring etc. It’s easy, and a direct swap. I understand what TomoHawk is saying that it is not going to push current through the wires but rather it’s there to draw. I also just want to be sure that it will not do any harm…. George

Carl, My thoughts exactly.... I I don’t have equipment that requires such amperage… a small 35w power amp and a set of PIAA fog lamps on a separate relay is all I have. Perhaps one of these days I may go to stronger headlights but that is in the future. Two things come into play here. First, the original alt which I have is barely sufficient for the car as it stands. That is a given. It could do with a higher amp alt especially at idle. This amp from Zspecialties has a built in regulator, does not require a diode to properly shut off as that is built-in the wiring, and it uses the same belt and attachment. Second, while I think a somewhat larger alt would be nice to have this one is a plug and play that the seller; nice, informative, knowledgeable man named Oliver, says will not harm wiring or switches. His web site in case you want to take a look is: http://www.zspecialties.com/hotdeal.htm On the one hand, as you stated, I am nervous about it as the amp rate is so high, on the other hand I like the convenience of just switching alt’s. I am just not sure what this would do to the wiring….. George

Zspecialties is selling a 105 Amp alternator said to be a plug & play unit into a 70-73 Z. The stock voltage regulator is not used with this unit. So, it is either removed or bypassed. Was wondering if anyone has purchased this unit and what they thought of it. I am only concerned that I am going to burn up wires with all this amperage. Should I be concerned? Is 105 Amps too much? George

Battery acid will eat through most things with or without Ziebart…. Best thing to do is get your self an Optima Battery (Red) and that will go a LONG way in calming your fears of any battery leakage. They are more expensive than regular batteries but trust me, there isn’t a better commercial battery made and sold here. I got one on sale at car-quest for $89.00 but I would have been happy to pay retail. They are that good. Regarding Ziebarting your car… where are you taking it and where can you get it done? I am only concerned that if you Z-bart a car that is thirty years old and not relatively clean you are only going to mask your rust problems and perhaps create even bigger problems in the long run. Z-bart is not going to kill any rust that you have... it will only protect what is clean. I am not sure if Ziebart will even do the job on a thirty year old, unrestored car. As EScanlon suggests you need to look at the traditional rust trouble-spots, get them perfectly clean and of course all your inner seams, panels, doors, etc will also have to be cleaned.

I bought my Z new 32 years ago and the second day I owned it I had it Ziebarted. It has been back and forth to Europe four times, a good ten years in New Hampshire, driven in the snow, rain and salty roads as only the Germans know how to do and I can tell you that it would have never survived had it not been for Ziebart. IMHO Ziebarting is the single best thing you can have (or had) done to your Z…. (The other two on a 73 is, trash the carbs, smog pump all the related paraphernalia. Now, it was a must to get it Ziebart-inspected and re-sprayed if necessary every three years or so. I did this as I could and I know that helped a lot. Do I have rust? Sure and one has to constantly stay on top of it. However, it is small stuff, nothing major or even remotely serious. Driving in the conditions that I have subjected my car too, I would never had made it this far and have my car in the condition it is in without Ziebart.

Curtis, Got the horn working thanks to you..... Ran through all the checks you suggested. Turns out that I was not getting any hot connection through the Momo adapter. Didn't seem to matter what I bent or how far I bent it no hot was coming through. Therefore, armed with the info you provided, I re-wired the horn and now it's working..... Once again, Thanks, George

Thanks Curtis.....

A highway patrolman pulled alongside a speeding car on the freeway. Glancing at the car, he was astounded to see that the blonde behind the wheel was knitting! Realising that she was oblivious to his flashing lights and siren, the trooper cranked down his window, turned on his bullhorn and yelled , "PULL OVER!" "NO!" the blonde yelled back, "IT'S A SCARF!"

Never seen them.... but I do like it... if you find out what they are please let me know..... George

A blonde pushes her BMW into a gas station. She tells the >mechanic it died. After he works on it for a few minutes, it is idling >smoothly. She says, "What's the story?" He replies, "Just crap in the >carburetor" She asks, "How often do I have to do that?"

Ok, back to the Ebay car in question..... The guy who has it on Ebay now says that the reserve price was a mistake..... this is what he wrote me: "Thank you for your interest in our vehicle. The 1973 Datsun is available. The listing is incorrect. A lot of generic information was left on the ad such as power windows, and power ABS. It does not have any of those things. Also the price is completely wrong. Its supposed to selling for $7,950 not $24,900 - we dont know how this happened. I will make sure these issues are taken care of. Thanks again for your email." Ron Sandrock - Memorial 1 MotorCars (713)688-2277, " So far the issues are not "taken cared of".... its still on there for $29.4K

I neither felt nor assumed any argumentative tone whatsoever in your response. Rather, it was a clarification, elaboration and insights that needed to be said and I am sure are, or should be, appreciated by the person asking the question. Even I learned as I read and as you say that is what’s great about this forum. I have owned my Z for 32 years and there is not much that I have not seen, replaced, repaired or substituted at one time or another. Yet, I am learning almost every time I am on this forum. It’s great. Group hug back at you….. George

I don't know about it being nice, pictures are pretty bad, engine compartment certainly looked; well crowded.... and I was looking for the power steering???? I'd say way, way overpriced ......

Enrique, I agree with you completely and your advice is well stated. Myself, I would never confuse Mineral Spirits with Lacquer Thinner; they being two entirely different products. I have always used the rule of using the least abrasive product first and then moving up. There comes a time, however, when you have to stop and not try anything more abrasive, least you really ruin whatever you are trying to fix. That point becomes known after trial and error or experience or a combination of both. George

The original question centered around how to remove over spray paint which is totally different than removing paint. Thinners are way too radical, in my opinion. Prep Sol is a pre-sanding solvent more of a cleaner if you will. Now, it is harmless on plastic and rubber. I have used it around plastic light lenses to get the wax out. For instance, on the side marker lights there are serial numbers on the plastic and sometimes wax finds itself imbedded in there. A toothbrush and some Prep-Sol quickly solves that. For over spray I have used it on rubber…. Dab a piece of rubber with it, wait a minute or so, and then wipe it off with a clean cloth. Of course, if the over spray has been there awhile and has really baked itself on you may have to do this several times. But on plastic that is rarely the case. It should come right off. Rubber would be more difficult to work on as the rubber may have actually absorbed the paint. My point is, Prep-Sol will not harm your paint at least it hasn’t harmed mine and I use it all the time. Now, about thinners. I have used lacquer thinner to remove paint from plastic and I should say hard, colored, plastic. Painters use it to remove paint from house light fixtures, wall socket covers etc, and if you are concerned, just use a wet sponge immediately afterwards. In other words, do not do this on the car….. Clear plastic, like gauge covers, are another matter . There I would not use any thinner. However, any kind of polish, like brasso, or even a mag polish, usually will do the trick. Back to Prep-Sol…. My suggestion is to see if you can try it before buying it…. Most auto body shops that I know of use it and getting a dab of it should not be difficult. If it works on your particular problem that is great. Just do not worry that it will mar your paint; it won’t. George

Mike, I can assure you that prep-Sol will NOT harm the paint. I have used it for years without any problems at all. On my Vette which has a clear coat I use it to get the tar off the bottom rockers…. On the Z which is enamel it's no problem. I use it on plastic or rubber and have never had a problem. So, I am struck by your comment. Have you used it? Are you speaking from experience in using Prep-Sol? George

I have had great success with a Dupont product called Prep-Sol. It’s a solvent but unlike thinners of any kind this will not harm your paint even if you have a clear coat on it. It is great stuff and I use it instead of a bug & tar remover on all my cars. Using this on weathered or over-spray paint on rubber will loosen the paint enough that while being careful, you can easily scrape the paint off. It is particularly good on getting wax and crud off of wedged areas, bolts and screws and any little or narrow spaces like the headlight seam where it attaches to the body. There is a drawback, however. Isn’t there always? The stuff is pricey. About $17.00 a gallon but a gallon last me well over a year and a half. You can only buy this at Paint& Body supply stores. Forget trying to find it at Home Depot or Lowes. You might want to ask a friendly body shop if they have it. If you can try it, just dab a little on a towel (you only need a dab) let it sit for a 30 seconds to a minute and then carefully scrape your affected rubber part . Again, you need not worry at all about your paint. It will not harm it. HTH George

Zthing, I would definitely keep the 2400 VC…. They are getting hard to find and it would be well worth the fixing and polishing (if I may add). I get lots of compliments on mine simply because its different.

I'll take the wheel off tomorrow and give it another try.....

My Adaptor, which I purchased from MSA, does not have a wire at all.... The ground wire comes from the steering stalk.... there is a metal ring that came with the adapter and this ring has a tab which is where you attach the ground.... and this ring is placed between the adapter and the wheel. There were no instructions with the adapter.... only a two page write-up about tightening the bolt so your wheel doesn't fall off (which I found most helpful by the way.....)

Curtis & Christopher, Thanks for the info…. My Momo button has no connector and no spring on the button with which to make contact. It is entirely made of plastic with three small prongs which get pressue pushed into the center hole. The adaptor came with a separate ring that has a spade up at an angle where the ground connects too. When you push the horn button it is flat, does not move at all, as you would expect it would if it were spring loaded—it is just solidly in there. I am inclined to think that I do not have a horn button but rather just a plug with the emblem to cover up the hole. That’s great… as I paid for and thought I was getting a horn button…..I greatly appreciate the advice…. I guess I will now look for a real horn button and see what happens…. Once again, thanks, George

Today I installed a Momo steering wheel which came with a horn button. My problem is that the horn will not work. The adapter has a separate steel like rim that has a provision for the ground and the so called horn button is just a plastic piece that snaps into the center hole. To me, there does not appear to be any movement in the horn button itself and once installed it does not depress and seems pretty solid. I haven't a clue how this system might work since there is no movement in the cover and no metal to metal contact that I can tell. Does anyone know if this may be just a cover and not really a horn button? Or, do I have to make any other connections to get the horn to work? Appreciate any insights…… Thanks, George

Thanks, I am concerned with the additional extension and will not know until I try it…. With the Momo I have, it might make it harder to get in and out but may be ok once you do get in. I was hoping to hear from someone who already has a quick release mounted in a 240Z and what their thoughts are. George