Captain Obvious

Awesome. I'm jealous!

Beautiful car, and mostly original. Do not fear the flat tops. Keep it original. There are those on the forum who can help if needed. On a related note... With the flat tops, there is just one idle speed control screw, not two. So if you're looking at two similar looking screws thinking they're the idle speed control, then you're looking at the wrong thing. I suspect you're looking at the synchronization screws, not idle speed. The idle speed control is on the balance tube between the big arse bolt you're using to plug where the anti-backfire system is supposed to connect and the EGR control diaphragm. Hidden below the black hose that connects your valve cover to the air cleaner backing plate. Do not fear the idle control screw either. It's predicable and is reversible. Same cannot be said, however, if you start screwing with the sync screws. However, I doubt the cause of your idle issues is simply that the idle speed control screw is out too far. I bet you've got rotten air tubes, leaky gaskets, vacuum leaks, etc. You know... 40 years of being a Z.

Could you? Sure. No problem. Should you? Probably not.

Haha! Good idea. Anyone who wants more detail will have to come to the laboratory at my flat.

I love that movie. I throw out quotes every now and then, and the best I can hope for is blank stares of "no idea what you're talking about". Worst that happens is I wizz someone off... So is it there yet?????

Blue, I guess I haven't seen the appropriate thread? Haha! Is there such a thing as an appropriate thread for that? Maybe I should make a second? Those kind of things usually run in pairs, right? You're welcome anytime. I can't promise any genius, but the shop is still there!

madkaw Absolutely! I'd love it! Moorestown is probably 45 minutes from me. You know you really should see your parents more often... :classic:

Haha!! Seems everyone is telling me that now that I look like that guy. I first heard that a couple months ago and didn't even know what they were talking about. Then I saw one of the commercials. Now I gotta grow the full beard back and buy one of those red Captain's uniforms. siteunseen, So you're thinking that you can lure Blue to your place by taking down the cell infrastructure in your area? Have you tried putting out a plate of yogurt and Labatts? That's what worked for me. PS - Blue, Notice I'm rockin' my Atlantic Z hat!!!

rossiz, The pleasure was all mine! I had a great time and I think it's wonderful to be able to put faces with the names. A "non-relative" diversion from the typical. It was great fun! I'm glad you thought my car handled so well. I did put a lot of effort into it, but remember... All I did was make it work "right", or "as designed". It's all freshly installed and done with great care, but it's nothing fancy. Rubber bushings, KYB struts, stock springs. I just fixed what was wrong and made it perform like it SHOULD. What I'm trying to say is... You got an example of (what I hope is) a well done stock setup. I have to imagine lowered with performance struts, springs, and sway bars would be that much better. So thanks again for letting me distract you for a couple hours! PS - You haven't sliced carbs open, have you? That would be too scary. :paranoid:

Glad that it's working, but you know the problem will come back, right? Were you able to determine if it's a mechanical "needle sticking" or if it's an electrical problem?

Sounds great! What seats are those?

Haha! Maybe next year!

So any post show reports? I had to leave early because of competing car shows, but I was able to hook up with Sean240Z while there. We figured out that we were both forum members, but that was the only confirmed link I made. I did also talk a bunch with two owners with white interiors, but didn't figure out if they were forum members or not. Next year we need nametags or something... "Hello - My Name Is Captain Obvious" Haha! :laugh:

:love: Let it be known that I was Captain Obvious long before that imposter started using my name on TV.

Well the important thing to figure out is if it's a mechanical issue inside the tach itself, or if the tach is picking up some electrical noise from the ignition system and responding to it. In other words, the problem may not be inside the tach at all, but might be a problem with something like a condenser somewhere that's dried out over the last 40 years. Keep us posted!

Well despite the warnings, I'm planning to convert some of my 77 interior to white(ish), but the stuff from the 72 is different and won't fit anyway. The most interesting man in the world is my cousin. "Look, a finger!" "That's unsettling." "Ya think?" "All the time. Except when I sleep."

Sorry. All I can say is that I used that tach in my car for a year and never had any issues. The classic line "It didn't do it while I had it!" When it sticks... Does it only stick when the engine is running, or is it stuck now with the car sitting OFF. In other words, is it clearly mechanical only, or is there the chance that it's an electromechanical issue that might not be inside the tach at all? Don't go cracking your dashboard, but does the tach fall to zero if you thump the dashboard or steering wheel?

I think I'd swap my 77 black interior for white... What year is your white? Is that the 77 or the 72?

I hope that's not the tach you got from me... Is a refund in order? :bulb:

FastW, I find the above very well said. I sold my new Z so I could buy my old one. For all the reasons you listed above.

And a little off topic, but about battery cables... Last year, I switched to VW battery cables. They're fantastic. Best design I've ever seen. They've got great top hardware clamps and four taps for auxiliary wires. Room for zero to four additional wires on each post. I've got my FI power connected to one each +/- and I've got plans for some others. If you don't know what I'm talking about, let me know and I'll snap some pics.

Thanks again for the input guys. I've been thinking about it some more and I've come up with a problem with using the positive battery terminal... You don't ever want the sense wire connected on the far side of any fuse or link. In the event that the safety device opens up, the alternator will go full bore on trying to bring the sense wire voltage up. Problem is that the sense wire has been disconnected from the alternator output and the feedback loop is broken. I think I'll connect it close to the fusible link but on the same side as the alternator output. Like the 1995 diagram Zed posted. That'll account for the drop on the wires between the alternator and the link. Essentially it will regulate the alternator side of that fusible link.

Sent you a PM with some pics of the headlight covers. LMK what you think?

Thanks guys. Well at least it seems I'm asking the question in a reasonable way. You guys are talking the same thing I am. My timing on this is that I'm planning some electrical changes on my car and as long as I was in there, I was gonna take the opportunity to switch over to the internally regulated alternator at the same time. And I'm planning to go in pretty deep and have the opportunity to do the swap a little more elegantly than the traditional commonly used method of just yanking the voltage regulator and jumpering a few wires. That method, by the way, effectively just DOES connect the sense wire right to the alternator output right there at the alternator. It'll regulate the alternator output right there at the alternator, but doesn't account for load drops in the wires beyond the alternator. So nobody has actually found the other end of that sense wire in an original system? I'm guessing they buried a splice in the white/red wire just before that white/red gets to the fusible link block. You can tell from the wiring diagrams that the two are joined on the same side of the fusible link, so it's not originally connected to the starter or directly to the battery. Considering the above, I'm thinking the two locations that would make the most sense are right before the fusible link or at the fuse box. Would be nice to know what they originally did.

The internally regulated alternators (used on the 78 and beyond) use a sense wire to control the alternator output. If the voltage on the sense wire is too low, it bumps the voltage up, and if it's too high, it cuts the alternator output down. Question is... On the cars that came native with the internally regulated alternator, where did they connect the far end of that sense wire? My engineering sense tells me that it would be best to connect the sense feedback wire right to the "+" terminal on the battery, but that's not what they did. And unfortunately this isn't the kind of info you can glean from a wiring diagram. According to the wiring diagram, it's connected right to the alternator output wire, but in reality, it's not. It should be on the other side of whatever voltage drops are expected along the wires under load. Is any of this making sense? Does anyone have any idea what I'm talking about?? :paranoid: