Z Excellence

I,m thinking about putting in some sylvania silver star sealed beamed headlights on my1976 280Z. I still have the original headlights on it and the deer are getting too close before I see them! Does the headlight harness upgrade that VB sells still give you control of your headlights on the stock controlsON/ OFF Hi low beam? I called them and they said they would get back to me. It looks very similiar to the ones that were selling on this site. Thanks.

When I did mine last year I took the hatch off because it helped get to the upper wheatherstrip better. Once you get it glued on dont close the hatch for a day or two or the weather strip will get pulled out of place on the lower edge. Also loosen your latch on the frame just a tad to allow more space for the new weatherstrip. Hope this helps.

Now that I have some new gaskets for my front blinkers on my 280Z is there any product that I can put on to replace that dull reflective mirror paper behind the lens? Is there a name for that stuff? Its about an inch wide four inches long and needs to tolerate the heat from the bulb. Thanks

Can anyone tell me if the door armrest/pull handle on a 1978 Z will fit on my 1976 280Z? Thanks

Where mine was leaking was the windshield rubber molding. Take those 3 or 4 screws out that hold the finishing strip over the rubber. Then put some water on it. I ended up using a flashlight during a rain storm in my driveway to fine this.It would only leak when the car was not moving.Also check the rubber diverter strip on the top front edge of your passenger door.Hope this helps.

I know the 280s had carpet not vinyl on the tunnel. The replacement carpets never seem to have the snaps installed. Maybe to allow you a little leeway in installing the carpet.

The only way I could get the light to go off on my 76Z after I found the leak was to replace the switch on the pressure dif block under the master cylinder. I bought a used one and it has worked fine.Hope this helps.This all hapened a year ago and it has been fine ever since.

I was looking to buy a new center console for my 76Z and MSA has them for $350.00. Nissan is out of them for good. MSA does have new ones for $128.00 but they are for a 1977. Does anyone know if these will fit on the same mounts? The only difference I know of by looking at them is they have a cover for an elbow rest.Thanks

On my 76 280Z when I have the AC fan on #4 which is high, after about 10 minutes the motor starts whining. If I hit a bump in the road or turn it down to #3 it will stop whining for awhile.Does this sound like the bearings in the motor going out? If so should I stick to a Nissan replacement or an aftermarket. I don't even know if I can still find a new Nissan. Thanks

My 76Z had a crack about where you speak of and I took it to a welding shop and had it repaired. That was 15 years ago and has never leaked a drop since. Just another option if you didn't want to bo the Z barn route.

On my 76Z the injector wiring was too old and any little movement of the wiring would make the engine miss. The way to figure this out is to move the injector wiring around and notice if you hear any change in the miss. The fix is to splice in new wiring.

I'll second the motion for Awesome Z. I've had my 280Z there twice and Doug did an excellent job. I would highly recommend him.He knows his Z's.

The light is turned on by the switch located on the drivers side under the hood where the brake lines connect to.You can't buy a new one, but I got a used one from Z barn and it fixed my problem of the light coming on.The light indicates a malfunction in the brake system but in my case it was the actual malfunction switch that was inop. I can't remember the name of the unit and I'm at work. Hope this helps.

Thanks for the info on the red line water wetter Carl. In the summer Texas heat during long traffic lights my 76Z doesn't overheat but the temp guage swings to the rignt of the middle of the guage with the A/C on and this sounds like it might help.

What is red line water?

I got my Tokico struts installed, new bump stops, strut insulators, ball joints, outer tie rods, all new bushings front and rear and boy the ride is really nice!Now I don't have to look in my rear view mirror to see what I lost when I drive over a railroad track crossing. At 250,000 miles my 1/2 shaft u joints were making a noise when I took off from a standing start so I had them replaced while I was at it.Awesome Z in houston did an outstanding job.

you might have a bad check valve. On a 76z its about 8 inches from your vacuum canister, a little valve about 1/2 in thick and about the diameter of a nickel.That was my problem along with loose clamps on the cannister itself. Good luck

Take it to a good locksmith. I took mine and it was 25.00 to rekey a new clyinder to my old key and took about 20 minutes. No marks that you can see once it is reinstalled on the steering column.

their web site is american-stitches.com

OOOPS, sorry I put this in the wrong forum when I submitted it the 1st time. Anyway I sent my 76 280Z steering wheel to american stitches and they repainted my old wheel put on new padding which I requested to be thicker than the old, put on new leather and it turned out great.Turnaround time was about 2 weeks and the cost was $ 250.00. The reason I had it done because all the new wheels were a smaller diameter and for a tall person they block the view of the speedo and tach.

I was going to buy a new steering wheel for my Z but the newer ones are smaller diameter and for a tall person they block the speedo and tach. So I sent my old wheel to american-stitches and they restored it to better than new shape, with a little more thickness for padding that I asked for.Stripped it and repainted it also.Turned out great!

You might need a new set of fuel injectors. I replaced mine on my 76 280Z at about 200,000 miles and my hiway gas mileage increased from 19 mpg to 24 mpg.

on my 76 280z it is just a black blank off plate. that is the way it was from the dealer when I purchased it new

check out american-stitches.com, they will fatten up your old wheel and make it like new or even better.

I was going to replace my old cracked steering wheel with a Momo from MSA. The only problem is the new wheels are smaller and fatter and block the speedo and tach for some one who is tall like me. Has anyone had dealings with american-stitches.com on recovering their old steering wheel. Their web site looks impressive. I already did the MSA wheelskins and don't like the look. Tkanks