280~Master

I have the ability to make the lines myself I just need the fittings and I get the hose for free. I am just wondering if it was done before and what fittings are good for the set up. I figure a straight female end for the hard line with a 90 deg fitting and a banjo on the caliper side. I have plans for a complete brake up grade. 4 piston in the front and disks in the back.

Ok want to upgrade the brake lines for the 280. I know there are kits for replacing the rubber hose but what about replacing from the hard line all they way to the caliper. Has anyone done this? If so did you make them yourself or have them custom made? Any advice on what fittings to use or just advice in general would be great. I have thought about having lines made that connect straight up to the hard line and then have a banjo fitting that goes to the caliper. What does everyone think?

Mike, I have done a total diagnosis on the problem and it is the relay under the seat. It drives me crazy.

I will try and see if I can get it to comae apart.

can you get a picture on here for us to see?

So the brake light located in the speedo is constantly on :mad: even with the E-brake handle in the down possition. I am in need of the relay that sits under the passenger seat. Does anyone have one out there that is not being used. This would be for a 1976 280Z. I have one from a 1978 280 but they do not interchange. I know this is the problem due to the fact that if you tap it with a screw driver or something like that it will go off for a bit and then turn back on.

Vicki, Sorry to hear about your loss. Our prayers are with you.

I am just about to order an Energy Suspension kit for my 76 280. I am replacing all of the suspension bushings from front to rear. I would like to hear from those that have purchesed this kit, what else would be left for me to order, to replace all of the bushings on a Z? Or does this kit come complete with nothing left to buy.

Arne, I am in the same situation with my engine and head work. I have a local shop that has worked on Z engines for years. He even has a 78 Z turned into a drag car. I talked to MSA about my head and my engine. What they are probaly going to do is take your head to a local shop that they have a deal with and rebuild it and replace all that is needed. Its getting hard to find some of these parts for these heads and when you do they are costing a bunch due to limited quanities. MSA says exchange only for the E31 but I have a N42 and that is also by Exchange only. I am going to have the machine work done on my head and then assemble it myself with a little help from HLS30.com and a friend of his. Wish you luck.

34 and enjoying every minute in the Z.

Will, My wife sometimes does the same thing. She can make an object fly accross the room and hit me in the head with no warning and it has a chance of making me lose all mental capacity as well.

So how are we doing on all of this. Are we missing alot or just a few.

Last year I had a tread about what you got for christmas. This year lets start early and post our wish lists for our Z's and maybe even what we get after Christmas. I will start out with a new alternator for the 90TT that died on me after our local Z club meeting last night. :dead: I would also like a new set of shocks and some new poly bushings for the 76 280.

Here are a some that I have saved.

Bill, Don't be lazy Change the gas out! At least drain it and run it through a screan of some sort. Maybe ever cheese cloth from the paint store. Then mix it with a gallon or 2 of good gas. Just incase your wondering Gas can go bad.

Very true beandip. I have an inline filter before the pump on my 76 just for that purpose.

This could be more than just a simple fuel pump problem or filter problem. Are you sure it is not getting fuel at the higher RPMs Have you taken the hood off and let someone ride in the engine compartment to see if your second carb is getting fuel or not? No just kidding on that part Clean your fuel filter or get a new one and see if that helps. If not then run a fuel pressure test to see if you are getting the correct fuel pressure. What I would do is get some hoses from Home Depot that are long enough to run inside of the car. Then while driving it, check if the fuel pressure is reading in the correct range. If it is staying at 5 psi then you have another problem that would most likly be to electric. Could be distributor, points(if you still have them) or even the plug wires are not conducting right. It may run fine when cold but once heated up and spining at the RPMs you say it could be losing spark and not fuel. Just my 2 cents.

Gosh Will you really put us on the spot with this question. I would start with a nice chasse. It would weigh close to nothing like the 240Z does but be wider like the 90’s 300ZX. It would have disks on all 4’s. 16” tires that are 255 all the way around. All the suspension would be made of light weight super strong titanium. It would have ATTESA ETS all wheel drive and the HICAS 4 wheel steering. The engine well that’s not to hard I would put the RB26DETT under the hood. :laugh: When it comes to the inside She would get all the whistles and gadgets along with a nice leather package. It would resemble the older 240Z but still have the modern feel. Digital gauges, power seats, climate controlled interior ect. Last but not least it would have a nice 6 speed transmission to help out the RB26.

Sounds like you have a great dad. Wish mine had bought me a Z car to fix up. I got an old pick-up instead. Now on to your issues with your 76. Sensors, Vacuum, corrosion in the wires :devious: , the AFM, your dash pot, BCCD valve, not to keep going but all of these can and will cause problems on your Z someday. To fix the sticking throttle I would trace it from the pedal to the throttle body cleaning and relubricating every moving part. like stated above. Also check the spring located on the throttle body. If this does not have enough tension to return your throttle valve back to the closed position then you would also get the same problem. As for your car running rich and rough when cold. I would say it’s a reading problem. What I mean buy that is, the computer is getting an incorrect reading of the temperature so it is feeding to much fuel for the air mixture. This could be caused buy a couple of things. A bad air temp sensor in the AFM, A bad thermo time switch, a bad water temp sensor, your cold start valve could be sticking open, which I doubt; it would run rich all the time then. Or you could be getting a bad connection to one of these items. If your Z is like mine then wires are so old they are corroded all the way back to the computer which gives the wrong resistance/readings to the brain and it causes crazy problems here and there. Good luck with the Z and keep us posted on your progress.

You can try cleaning it out with a vinegar solution to help the deposits. Run straight distilled water for in it for a week. Then add just a bit of vinegar with water and run that for a week (no Longer than that or it could end up worse) Then run straight distilled water again for another week. Then add your usual antifreeze water combo. This will help get rid of the deposits in it. You can also buy a new radiator for about 170.00 from just about any parts store. You can also go with the JTR radiator conversion. I have this on my 280Z and it cools better than a stock radiator.

What about the work light is it there? I know it only has 1 wire and then there could be AC wires. Does your car aftermarket AC? I would like to see these wires just like Mike stated.

Try this out. Do a little trouble shooting using this EFI Bible. It has helped me more than once. http://www.atlanticz.ca/zclub/techtips/efisystem/280zfuelinjectionbook.pdf

Very good point on the "hardware store" wire. It is a bit stiff. Plus it is not as pretty as an AMP kit or the boobs thread but I say its under the carpet and not visable so it does not bother me. I used my "hardware store" setup on my 03 Xterra and my 76 280. Ran the wire inside of the frame on the Xterra and under the carpet on the 76 and have had no problems for 3 years now. I have two 12" MTX speakers along with a 1500W Competetion AMP in my Xterra and two 10" Pioneer 300W speakers with a Sony Explode 1000W AMP in the 76. I have no problems with fading/pulsating lights or any engine hum from the ground. I know the AMP draws quite a bit of power from the electrical system but if a wire can run 110/220Volts in an all-weather statethen it should be able to handle 12Volts. I'm not an electrician so I don't know all the specs that come with wires and stuff like I just give my 1/2 cent worth and try to learn from others.

Ed, I did not notice anyone saying anything about the ground wire from the AMP, the fuse on the AMP or the inline fuse to the AMP. When you hook up the ground wire place it on a solid point of the car chassis. Not to just any bolt. This will help keep any engine noise from exiting out of the speakers. I can't stand that high pitched hum that is there when the engine is revved. Make sure you have 1 or 2 fuses lying around just incase you happen to ground out and burn one up. Also place your inline fuse as close to the battery as possible. This helps with something but I forget :dead: but it does help something honest. I myself see no reason to go spend 50 to 70 dollars for an AMP installation kit that can be made for less than 15 dollars if you do it right. Buy a nice inline fuse that is rated according to the manufactures specs, should be 3 to 5 dollars. I did notice that the Amp install kits have multiple strands of wire and a fancy cover on it. I myself would go to your local hardware store and pick up the right length and gauge of a good all-weather wire and use it to power the AMP.