zKars

My guess is your battery is not tied down properly and it moves, shorting out the + post to ground on the hood or the area around the post.

I don't believe there is a hazard relay. Test the switch contacts directly with a continuity checker. When in Off position, Pin 4 connected to 5, and 6 to 7. All others not connected to each other. When in ON position Pins 1,2,3 connected to each other, and pins 8 and 9 connected to each other.

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The problems are resolved and Tom junior is on his way. There were many contributing factors. Day one it was low fuel pressure and leaks. Today it was ignition. Put the timing light on all the plug wires, #2 was not firing at all, #1 was intermittent!! Changed plugs, wires, better, but still lots of intermittent die, go again, die, etc etc etc.. idling it would sitting there fine, then die. Instantaneously. Turns out the distributor or ignitor/control box was not firing consistently. It had an optical crane trigger in the dizzy and after market igniter box. Tossed in a zx E12-80 distributor, kept the crane coil, and what a difference!! Night and day. That thing sounds and runs real strong now. No hint of a miss or flat spot anywhere. Glad to help, Tom senior. Tom J. is safely on his way. Thanks to all for contributing ideas. Jim

Tom: Come on back if you like, we aren't done yet. I knew it didn't sound right when you drove away. Give me a call when you get a chance. Cell is best. Don't feel right about leaving you like this. Jim

Tom: I can help! Really! Betting its a plugged fuel filter, stuff in the tank, plugged line. Pressure may be up there, but bet the flow isn't. That or the coil is failing. I have parts for all of this. Call me in the morning after 8:00 Send me an email to z240@shaw.ca or pm here, and I'll send you the phone number! Jim

I have the parts you need. I can give the 240 firewall bracket or the shorter J hook that fits in the hollow bracket you have. PM me and we get it on the way. Jim

I am fairly certain that all the L engines (mayby not 83 P90a hydraulic) have 0.010/0.012 inch cold and 0.008/0.010 inch hot valve lash specs. Checked the 82 AND 71 FSM You are likely just getting the mm and inches specs confused. Common mistake. Remember that setting the cold spec is just to get close, but after running it up to temperature, set them to the hot spec to get them right. Jim

If you mean the plastic panel that covers the tail light wiring inside the hatch, you have it about right. Or is it the metal panel(s) on the outside that surround the tail lights? I have a few of the interior variety. What year Z are we talking about? Jim

Have you considered why this happened yet? If that valve is bent or stuck you have more problems than replacing a retainer. Search here for Valve seal replacement threads. They give techniques for holding the valve closed with the head on, but seriously, understand what is up with that valve before re-starting.

Ken: Jim down here in Calgary. Haven't been to Neerlandia lately, but I know where it is at least! There is nothing out there for fuse blocks. The stock fuse blocks are hardwired into the harness so there is no easy way to replace it. There are aftermarket fuse boxes out there (Painless and others), just takes time, solder shrink tubing and careful planning. I might have a fuse box cover if you need one. Let me know. Jim

16 x 1.5 mm thread. I think we did this already on hybridz... Lets play a game! What other thread(s) on an s30 are 16 x 1.5mm?

Definitely a 280z tach by the plug and mounting technique. Which year? I'm leaning toward 77-78 by the font on the face, but some else might chime in. Likely work on any 280z with a matching plug. The tach connections are the same for all 75-78 280z, +12v (blue), ground (Black) and a trigger (Blue/White, all harness side, not tach wires) from the negative side of the coil (via a 2.2K ohm resistor), so any 280 tach can be made to work if the plugs are not the same. Jim

I confirm the 2.2K ohm value. Easy to find. 1/2 watt is plenty. Jim

Other than the length of the pigtail, I believe yes. Each wire is easy to trace, you can match them up. The 73 block just can't be mounted in the stock location. I have a nearly perfect long tail fuse block if worse comes to worse. PM me for details. Jim

Bad news. The seller just decided not to sell the car. "Went out to take more pictures for us, then remembered why they bought it in the first place". Too bad for us, wise move on their part. Jim

Zed I have 92 Z32 seats in my 73. They mount too high for my 6 ft' dness and required that I cut down the body seat mounts. I replaced the floor crossmember with a 2 x 1" steel channel welded in, that bought me about 1.5" and removed the rear mount pads to mount the rear through the floor. I had to modify the seat rail mounts extensively, as stock, they mount to a non-flat floor in the Z32. Other than about 8 hours cut weld and fab work, they bolt right in! The power drivers seat is about 3x heavier than a stock Z seat, but man are they comfy on my aging butt, and they look good too! Best of all, the shape of the seat cushion where it meets the backrest pivot area fits well with the 240 shape floor pan shape behind the seats to allow the seats to be pushed nearly as far back as the stockers. PM your email and I'll send some pics. Jim

Do a search here on "gas tank" and/or "Vapor tank" and you will find great information. Has been discussed many times. There are great solutions including how to remove the vapor recovery tank and many of the related hoses. All the best. Jim

There are only two common sizes for wheel nuts. 3/4 and 13/16. They are likely 13/16. The wheel wrench may be in the car, in the storage bins behind the seats. Good luck in CO!

Head bolts are 10 x 1.5 mm Do NOT go cheap on a tap and die set. Excellent advice. Go buy a 10 x 1.25, 8 x 1.25 and 6 x 1.00 as well for 98% of the other bolts in the car. Jim

Nice work Jeffrey! Another option is to find a speedo from a Canadian 77/78 (for sure) 280Z. They already have a factory metric speedo face. Canada went metric in 77 'ish, and this spawned the requirement. I have done this swap to my 240. I also have the tach from the same car, so the fonts match. Wouldn't some over-seas Z's have metric gauges as well? Would be nice to get a scan of one of those faces. Next time I have mine out I'll do it. Jim

Sailor Shipping from Alberta is quicker. Let me know if you want one. I'll send for the price of the postage. Let me know at z240@shaw.ca Jim

What year you need? I have a few replacements. z240@shaw.ca Jim

Thanks Carl! Sound like pretty good shocks. Now I'm very tempted to try them. Anybody want a set of Illumina's? Jim

Everyone: I took apart a rusty sad example of a 73 the other day, and found what appear to be a decent set of Bilstein strut inserts waiting to be rescued. Part numbers are P 30 061 (front) in green and P 30 062 (rear) in yellow. The posts on Bilstein shocks for Z's are far and few between, but they seem (ed) well regarded. And as far as Bilstein themselves, they seem to be long since NLA from them. Their action feels smooth in both directions, nice and firm, there is no signs of rust or abuse, the strut gland nuts are clean and came out easily. There, that's everything nice about them that means absolutely nothing about how they might perform when actually in a car. Worth the risk to throw them in my car and see what they are like? I have illumina's and really don't need them, but if they are a bit softer, might be worth it. Anyone have any clue how they "rate" (a little shock humor there...) compared to their contemporary counterparts? Jim