2ManyZs

The biggest rule is "caveat emptor", or let the buyer beware. If they know how to use a computer to bid on Ebay, they should obviously be able to find somewhere to ask if what they are bidding on is what it is claimed to be. There have been a few people who have asked our opinion on a car on Ebay, but, sadly, those are in the minority. I e-mailed the seller of the so called BSR "race car" about it not being as advertised, or would need documentation to prove his claim. He wasn't the seller, only a Ebay Listing agent, who was more than happy to change the auction to protect his reputation. He asked me many questions, and I referred him to other people who could vouch for what I had told him. He then asked me in numerous e-mails more questions about the car and what I thought it would bring as far as a price. The last time I saw it listed, it was getting bids, and the high bid was almost exactly in the middle of the price range I told him it should bring. Not every seller is going to accept advice like that, nor do I think we should give it. When we discuss a cars shortcomings here, the info is out there for anyone to look at it. If it is not seen or heeded, then the buyer is getting exactly what they deserve. The whole idea behind a free market society is an educated consumer, and for those who choose not to educate themselves, then they are only hurting themselves.

I don't know that I've ever seen an aluminum slot in anything larger than a 15 inch rim. At one time, every wheel manufacturer sold at least one model of aluminum slotted wheel, today, I doubt if you could find more than one or two that still make them, if that. There are a couple manufacturers that are making reproductions of classic wheels they discontinued years ago, in modern sizes, but so far, I haven't seen a slot.

Your best bet is probably going to be Ebay... I've seen quite a few center caps on there lately. Unless someone here happens to have a set they don't need.

Powder coating wouldn't work as it will scratch and flake off just like paint would, and it can't be touched up like paint can. Eastwoods has a kit called Golden Cad you could try. It's a 3 parts aerosol paint kit that sells for 37 bucks. It's part number 10331Z in their catalog. I tried to open their webs-site and post the link to the kit, but for some reason I can't get their site to open... www.eastwood.com

Actually, that's a good thing...:devious: No wheel spin means the diff is doing it's job. If it's really noisy, try the LSD additive from GM and drive it around for a few days and see if it quiets down. If not, you may want to find out if the guy who installed it shimmed the friction plates or if it was left at it's factory setting. If he shimmed it, he may want to back off just a bit for a little more slippage, for a street car a little more slippage is better.

Looks more like a 73 with an early rear bumper.

Most likely the "gear noises" you are hearing are in the ring and pinion because of LSD plates not slipping as they should. Either the LSD has been set up a little too tight, or the plates are "chattering". There are no gears in a LSD only friction plates very similar to a clutch disc. They are set to slip on turns so that the outside wheel can turn faster than the inside wheel when you make a turn as the outside wheel travels in a longer arc while turning. Shimming of the friction plates will allow less slippage, thereby creating a more "locked" differential and because of the difference in the speed of the wheels in the arc while turning, they driveline must absorb the shock of that which will cause a lot of noise. The more slip you have, the less noise you will hear, but, the diff won't lock up both drive wheels as well. On a street car, you want a little more slippage, as you will want it to slip so that it doesn't affect the handling. On a track car, you want less slippage and a quicker lock up, and less slippage means less heat caused by the friction plates as well. If the LSD has not been shimmed, I'd say that the friction plates aren't slipping as they should. You could try a LSD additive which will allow them to slip and then cause less noise. GM has a pretty good additive that you can get at any GM dealer, and it's pretty cheap too. I've used it in a couple of my Dodge pickups as the LSD's in them were a bit "clunky" and the noise was much less noticeable after adding the GM additive.

A 10 psi jump by putting a small amount of oil in the cylinders is a fairly significant jump showing that your rings and/or cylinder bores are worn. The valves and/or associated hardware are probably contributing the most as far as compression loss. It could be the valves themselves, valve seats, weak valve springs, adjustments way off or any combination of the above..... 130 dry is getting pretty close to what I would consider time for a rebuild. You could do a compression leakdown test to determine where the worst of the loss is. Pressurizing the cylinder and listening to the air trying to escape and where it is coming from will tell you where the worst area is, either rings/cylinders or valve/head related. Air loss will be most noticeable through the intake/carbs/throttle body if the major damage is in the head/valves and air escaping through the rings/cylinders will be heard by listening to the oil fill on the valve cover.

Sounds like either the master cylinder needs to be replaced, or you have air trapped in the master cylinder. How low was the fluid level before you re-filled it? Does the master cylinder reservoir have a lot of black "crud" in the bottom of the reservoir? If so , did you remove the screen (small needle nose will get it out)and clean it before you filled it with fluid? There is no provision to bleed the master cylinders independantly of the rest of the system, so this is how I do it. Break loose the bleeder on the slave cylinder, fit a plastic hose onto the bleeder and put it in a bottle of some type with a little fluid in the bottom with the end of the hose in the fluid. With your fingers, lightly close the bleeder so that it is barely open and then depress the clutch pedal 4-6 times. By opening the bleeder only slightly like this will put a little "backpressure" in the system and help force any air out of the master cylinder. If you open the bleeder on the slave it will bleed by gravity, but it won't force out any trapped air. Make sure the master cylinder reservoir stays at least half full during this process. If you still have no clutch after this 20 minute job, you need a new master cylinder.

I was thinking the same thing. To be honest, you can usually buy a Touch Up Gun for a lot less than a good quality airbrush. I think I got mine for about 50-60 bucks FWIW.

There's a few sequential transmissions on the market that will work on a Z, if you've got the big bucks.....:cross-eye Quaiffe, Houseman and I think Taylor offer them, for about 5K and up.... Paddle shifts I think are pretty much a fantasy as far as retrofitting on an older car, unless you've got a ton of money to invest.:disappoin

It's not far from the GM blue...guess it's somewhere in between a blue and turquoise. Classic Datsun Motorsports has the correct color in spray cans if you want the original color.

I was going to ask him why the engine had been out of the car with only 4400+ miles and the block re-painted, then I realized it would be a total waste of time.....

Must be the thin air that has him acting so confused.... I noticed the first couple times it was listed, it did get a bid at 25K, yet they either didn't like the bidders feedback or lack of it, or the bidder retracted his bid. He wants "Ebay-ers" to pay what a collector paid at a collector car auction? Oh well, hope they have been keeping it in the dealership showroom.

Hmm, claims it only has 4484 miles, yet the block isn't the original color.... carbs not original, hacked up air cleaner. 280 seat covers.... those must have been 4484 hard miles or someone didn't like their tail sweating... http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=2470423486&category=6187

It's been re-listed yet again....now the starting bid is 28K.... I wouldn't buy it for the simple reason the seller has no idea what they are doing..... http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=2470239118&category=6187

There's a huge difference between buying because you have to buy one, and buying one because you want to. Someday you'll learn all about resale value and depreciation when you buy your first new vehicle.

The spring rates would be too high for a street car, but, the springs are easy to change and there are almost limitless rate options to set the car up the way you want.

I'd try it one more time, starting with the master, and if that doesn't help, it's almost assuredly a weak master cylinder that is causing the trouble.

I've bought 5 new Dodge trucks in the last 11 years, and they don't invite me... Shoot, I'd be happy to get the chance to wring out one of those new Neon SRT-4's......:devious: But, I guess I could deal with a Viper...:cheeky:

This might be one of those :stupid: kinda things, but does the tool have an adjustable torque setting on it? Should be near the air inlet in the handle if it does. A shorter hose should help some, especially with the smaller compressor.

Oops, must have missed this one in all the new posts. With a stock cam I think I'd stick with the lower compression. If you plan on upgrading the cam in the future, either one will work. With 9.9:1 you'd want to run at least 91 octane, and that could run into a bit of change with the way the gas prices keep going up.

Before you tinker with the carbs, I'd highly recommend the video from ZTherapy. You'll learn a lot more with less trial and error by spending the 20 bucks for the video, and you'll have it to refresh your memory if you need to tinker with them later. http://www.ztherapy.com/

If the cylinders can be bored .040, there's no reason to go any further unless you have to. You could probably get away with .060, but, if you do that now, and have a problem that require another boring at a later time, you'll be looking for another block instead of just boring it again. Now sure what the limit is on the F54, but it's probably a bit more than .060, but, if you take the block to its limit, you may want to get another block as a spare just in case.

Chloe at MidwestZ has a complete kit for the spindle pins with pins, nuts, washers, and the lock pins for about 80 bucks last time I looked.