ea6driver

I'm thinking about giving myself one of these sets of wheels in 15X7, 0 offset for Christmas. A couple questions I have are: What are the advantages/disadvantages of the VTO's vs the Panasports? I know the Panasports are considerably more expensive, but just looking at the online photos of both wheels they look nearly identical to me (except for the "VTO" or "Panasport" emblem in the center cap). The wheels will be used exclusively for street driving, and my suspension is all stock. Does anyone know if there is any significant difference in the weights of the two brands? Strength? Materials used in construction? Color? Finish? Also, futofab.com is offering a 20% discount on the VTO's this week (black friday promotion), but I've not had much luck finding any deals on the panasports. I see MSA no longer sells them. Who is a good source for those? Any advice is much appreciated.

I recently gave myself a set of KYB shocks for Christmas. My 78Z currently has stock springs, but I recently saw a set of used Arizona Z Car springs for sale and was considering installing them along with the KYBs. So I started searching, but didn't find anything about this combo in an otherwise stock 280. Lots of folks commented about them with regard to the 240s, but not the 280s. Their website says these springs will lower the 280 1.5 inches. So my question is will the KYBs work OK with the AZ springs on a 280? My car is a weekend, fair-weather-only driver. Never raced, but wouldn't mind a slightly "sportier" ride over stock. Will also be installing urethane bushings all around at the same time I replace the shocks (and springs, depending on your responses). Thanks in advance.

Arne, Any chance you would post some contact info for that store that still carries this product in the great NW? I'd like to give them a call and ask if they'd consider letting me purchase the product from them with a credit card and then ship it to my house. I tried the link Bart posted and didn't have any luck making a purchase from that vendor - meaning that the webpage appears to be outdated. If you go to the sellers store and try to locate the product there that particular item doesnt come up as being for sale now. Thanks for your help. Bob

Looks like you're retracing all the same steps I had already taken earlier. The $7 link you posted (picclick.com) points you to an ebay listing that has already ended, and when you search through the seller's online store the VersaChem product is no longer listed there. The other link is a canadian retailer. When you try to purchase it from there the total costs exceed $40 once international shipping/customs charges are figured in. Certainly an option, however, if I can't find anyone that sells it in the US. Again, thanks for trying, but, like I said, I've searched pretty hard to find this item and it certainly doesn't seem to be widely available in the US anymore.

Well, after 2 days of online searching and numerous telephone calls, I'm reasonabley sure the VersaChem defogger repair kit is NLA, at least not anywhere on the west coast anyway. Bart: I saw the link you posted and when you click on the link to find a local store it simply takes you to a webpage where you have to put in your zip code to locate the store nearest you. No map or anything that shows you where they have stores in the US. After much weaping and gnashing of teeth I finally found some stores in the eastern central US but they'd already closed for the day when I called them. I'll try again in the next day or two, but the best I can hope for is that they'd take a credit card order over the phone and ship the product to me if they have it - not the way most auto parts stores generally do business, but, hey, you never know. Nothing available via the usual online puchase methods (ebay, amazon, etc.). If I'm missing something here and anyone finds a way to purchase this item in a more conventional manner then I'm all ears (and very appreciative).

Arne, It's now been almost three years since you repaired your rear window defogger with the Versa-Chem product. I'm about to take on the same repair and was wondering if you have any additional thoughts on the subject. One reason I ask is that I'm having a fair amount of difficulty locating the Versa-Chem repair kit and just wanted to know if it would be worth the extra effort to get this particular product, or would the Permatex product that seems to be widely available likely be just as effective. Any thoughts, particularly with the benefit of the passage of time, would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks Jan. I'd actually already read that webpage - excellent info by the way. He makes it sound like the clutches would all be the same (at least in terms of size - 225 mm) for all 70-83 non turbo coup Zs and ZXs. Thats fine except when you go to buy one, say from Blackdragon, Motorsport Auto, or even an aftermarket one from an autoparts store they all seem to have different part numbers depending on what year Z you have. So in my example, I'd need to know whether I should tell them 78 or 83. The webpage you cited didn't answer that question I don't believe. Anyone else?

So I'm thinking ahead now that the weather is starting to change and my Z will likely be spending much of the next seveal months in the garage. It's a 78Z, 4 speed manual (original stock set up). This summer I bought a 5 speed (and the 3.90 diffy) from an 83ZX and plan on installing it in the next few months. And I thought that this would be an excellent time to go ahead and replace the clutch. I've read alot of stories on this and other forums about the importance of matching up the t/o bearing, fork, pressure plate and disc from either the original set up or from the donor car. Here's my questions: 1. When buying the new clutch, should I buy one for an 83ZX (since that's the tranny I'll have in the car) or one for a 78Z? Also, with the new clutch should I use the fork and t/o bearing from the 83ZX or the 78Z? 2. What would be your recommendations on a clutch purchase? Brand? Cost really isn't an issue. The car is usually driven by a 50 year old man for scenic drives through the Cascade mountains, ie, highway driving and light driving around town. No real hard driving. Thanks in advance!

Did the window sticker that you were gonna post photos of go with her, or are you still planning on posting it?

Hi WingZro, Any chance I could get you to post a printable photo of your original window sticker? I'd be really interested in seeing the window sticker from a Z that was only a few VIN numbers different than my own Z. I'd like to print it off and stick it in my folder of interesting Z stuff. Thanks in advance! Bob

WingZro, I'd be especially interested in seeing a scan of your window sticker since I also have a 78Z. My VIN is a little newer than yours but I'm sure the costs would have been similar.

Please add one more for the Great Northwest! Bob in Oak Harbor, WA. About midway down Whidbey Island. Thanks!

Thanks. I found it. Buried under the aft part of the intake manifold and close by the exhuast downpipe. Sure would have been easier to get to if it were on the other side. 22mm on my 78. Now to try and unscrew it tomorrow after going out to buy a 22mm socket.

Reading straight from my 78 FSM: "To drain the cooling system remove radiator cap, release drain **** at the bottom of radiator and drain plug on side of cylinder block." Could someone please tell me exactly where this drain plug on the side of the cylinder block is? Left side/right side? Forward/rear end of the block? What does the drain plug look like? etc. Thanks for your help.

My last post got pushed down in the pack before anyone chimed in with specific ideas/techniques for polishing the intake manifold, so I thought I'd repost the request. I've polished a valve cover with good success using the multi-grade sandpaper technique, but an intake manifold is obviously a much more complex part (multiple curves, rounded surfaces, etc.) and I'm hoping there are some "secrets" that can make the process less painful. Again, thanks in advance

I recently bought a set of four brand new braided steel brake hoses/lines from someone who sold them to me because he'd sold his Z and no longer needed them. When they arrived today I was quite excited to install them, but when I opened the packaging I noticed a label attached to each hose that read "For off road use only. Do not use on public highways." Well, I emailed him to ask why he had failed to mention this to me when he was describing the hoses and he said: "I didn't mention it because its an industry wide standard warning. All performance parts for any car have that warning on them so the manufacturer isn't liable. They are perfectly fine for street use, there are no restrictions on their use, ask anyone." OK. So I'm asking - are these brake lines OK to use on an otherwise stock street Z? The brand name of the hoses is Earl's Performance Plumbing. Thanks in advance.

280~master, In post #4 of this thread you posted some photographs of various types of Z intake manifolds. The first photo shows a polished manifold. Would you mind sharing with us specifically HOW you got that manifold looking so good? Please be as specific as possible. I'd like to copy whatever you did to a T! Sanding by hand? Buffing wheels? I'd appreciate your willingness to share the secret! Additionally, if others have achieved similar results with their polished manifolds, please chime in with your secrets as well. I'm familiar with the hand sanding process of polishing valve covers, but it just seems that intake manifolds don't lend themselves as easily to the same process because of all their curves/irregular surfaces. Thanks in advance.

Update. I pulled the stock intake manifold off a non-California 77 Z today. It did not have the "webbing" referred to earlier in this thread. Can I safely assume then that the 78 was likely the first year model Z to incorporate this webbing into the intake manifold? Just an interesting "factoid" I guess. Now to begin the polishing!

Thanks Stephen, My Z is a non-California late model 78 (5/78) and it has the webbing. From your discussion, it sounds like the 77 year models probably do not have webbing, but all the connections should be the same as long as it has the EGR. When I go look at this car Saturday I'll probalbly go ahead and buy his intake manifold and polish it up (even if it does not have webbing). Without webbing, it won't be an exact replacement, but sounds like it will do the job all the same. Worst case, I'll end up with 2 polished manifolds and just put the original one back on! By the way, what are the advantages/disadvantages of the webbing? Thanks again for your insight.

My head is an N47. While I haven't had a chance to inspect/compare his intake manifold to mine (that will happen this Saturday), I've noticed that other intakes sold on this website (and on ebay) had separate or individual "tubes" extending from the main manifold body into the head intake ports. On my 78 manifold, these tubes appear to be "connected" to each other with an aluminum fillament. You can't see in between each of the intake tubes like others I've seen for sale. I know this setup is kinda hard to explain. It's like a duck's webbed feet - picture it's individual "toes" as the intake tubes and the "webbed" portion as this fillament I'm talking about. Not sure if this setup was changed from earlier models for added strength or for "thermal" reasons. Additionally I've heard others refer to EGR and non-EGR intake manifolds. I reckon I'll have a better idea on their compatibility when I see it in person this weekend. Thanks sblake01. If any others have any thoughts on this I'm "all ears."

So after polishing up my valve cover with (seems like) about ten different grades of sandpaper and installing it, I'm hooked. It looks great. Now I'm thinking that doing the same thing to the intake manifold is the next logical step in beautifying my engine compartment. A guy who lives nearby is parting out his 77 Z. Mine is a 78, totally stock. What I want to know is, can I buy his intake manifold, take a month or so to polish it up - just doing a little at a time in my time off - and bolt it right on. In other words, are the intake manifolds on these two year models totally interchangeable, or were there differences between them? The obvious advantage to this idea is that my Z would still be driveable while I took my time polishing up the replacement manifold. Thanks in advance for any advice.

Whoa. Lots of options on that website. Would you mind posting exactly which check valve you went with. Thanks.

OK. Thanks for the responses. So the fuel pump shouldn't begin operating until I begin cranking the engine (key in "start" position). Sounds like that's what mine is doing. Now it seems to me that this would imply that the fuel system should maintain pressure even after the engine is turned off. However, in my car that is not the case (I have a fuel pressure guage installed downstream of the fuel filter). Additionally, when I try to start the engine it doesn't start up immediately. I usually need to crank the engine 3 or 4 seconds (or maybe 2 or 3 seconds, haven't actually timed it) before it fires up. To me it seems like this delay is due to the fuel system repressurizing once I begin cranking. What might be the most likely causes of the fuel system losing pressure when the engine is turned off? I was thinking fuel could be leaking past the cold start valve. The only real "problem" I'm having here is the additional cranking required to start the engine. But, hey, if it ain't right I'd like to try and fix it. Thanks again for your ideas.

78 280Z. Fuel and electrical systems are totally stock. Car runs fine. Should I be able to hear the fuel pump working when the key is turned to "on" or just when it's turned to "start"? Currently the fuel pump does not operate until I turn the key all the way to "start" (starter motor engaged). Search function revealed conflicting answers - perhaps the answer is different depending on year model. It seems to me that I used to could hear the pump come on when placing the key to "on" (years ago) and so I'm wondering if something has happened that only allows it to operate when engaging the starter ("start" position of key). Any help is most appreciated.

Thanks for the info gentlemen. Looks like I'll give it a try. Is this a DIY job, or would you recommend simply taking it by my local muffler shop and asking them to install it? I've got lots of tools - just never really worked with exhaust systems. How does the forward end of the "turbo tip" couple with the existing pipe? Is any welding required/recommended? Thanks again.