Mark Maras

Hi Sarah Good hearing from you even if the news could be better. These setbacks in our lives always seem, at the time, to be totally negative. However, in all negatives there are positives. At first, it's a stretch to find them and frequently it takes a while but at the very least they can bring out the best in us. The caring, nurturing part of us that gets shelved when we deal with ourselves to excess. Glad your friend has the love and support that she needs. My prayers for strength and healing will be headed your way. Not to make light of your probable EFI problem but I couldn't help but relate it to a Urologist with a bladder infection. This problem should be easy for an Ace like you. Best wishes Mark

Update on the disassembly. The topside is done. Underhood, interior (except for the two rusted rear bolts on the driver's seat), dash, heater box, foot pedals, hatch, doors, fender, glass (windshield is not avail. oops!) & wire harnesses are out. Quite a pile of goodys. Got a start on the bottom. Dropped the tank. I expected to see solid rust, but instead it has some shiny bare steel very splattered with something that resembles tar. The bit of liquid (varnish) in the bottom is black and has some flat chunks of a lighter color something floating on it. Like the skin on an open paint can. I wonder if someone treated this tank in the past and the coating went bad. I don't know how else there could be any shiny steel visible. I'll get a pic and we can all guess what it is. Next, pull fuel and brake lines, a few odds and ends, then the suspension.

At some point in time you're going to have to run her below half full to see if the problem arises again. As I recall, we never did pinpoint an internal tank leak as the definitive problem. Or is my memory getting as poor as my back?

The third link in the 1st post, just above the mirror pic shows them mounted.

In a PM, S30Driver has called her " Deliverance Z" ! Not bad as a temporary name. Kind of adds to the mystique.

Not seeing it would be one of the clues to use. Next step would be to see when & where it does leak.

Ah C,mon. I could challenge him with a harmonica. I'd definitely run if I heard someone calling, Here piggy, Here, piggy!!!

Yup, The 8/71 parts car I'm taking apart has the vent in the c pillar, not the hatch. Interestingly, it has the vert. defogger rear glass. When dealing with Zs, the year has little relevance. Build date is everything.

I first asked them if they were interested in getting it back on the road & offered my services and access to parts to help them. (Not a likely scenario, but I will do it) In lieu of that, I asked them if they were interested in selling it, & could I come and take a better look at it. Gave them my phone # and email address. If I end up MIA after the weekend, Zed Head knows where to look.

I've never seen a set of mirrors on a Z that look like they belong there. Oh Yeah, there are some beautiful mirrors out there, most at a hefty price but they all look like an afterthought, just stuck on the door or fender. Chevy did the same thing with their small round tail lights in the 60s. These mirrors blend in with the body. The price is right too. I think Mr. K would give these a thumbs up.

Jai I've found that many gas pump nozzles will over fill? the tank because of the large diameter Z gas cap and hose. You may want to try shutting off the gas before it clicks off. My 71 datsun pick up had a bad hose from the cap to the tank. Everytime I let the pump shut off on its own, I left a puddle of gas on the pavement at the station. I was not very popular until it was repaired. If making snow angels behind and under RedBird is not to your liking, (YouTube $?) you could tape a small mirror to a stick and take a look at the bottom of the tank and the sides if the light is good. Most of the fittings that leak are on the right side. If the wet spot is in the center it will surround the drain plug. Clearly visible in poor light.

Age? I didn't get too close to it. I'd guess a 76. Not only was the shed falling on top of it but the residence looks kinda like it might be a shoot first and ask questions later type of place. Any way, If someone was home I didn't want to pi$$ them of before I had a chance to talk with them. IMO, The place has some bad vibes. I'm not very comfortable even being there but I've been wrong before, so we'll see how the first meeting goes. Hopefully it will be this Saturday. It's been about 24 hrs. since I left the note. No contact yet. In Portland, Google uses a Prius. Easy to spot. I swear one time I saw it, there was no driver. Only got a glance at it but it left me wondering if it truly was driverless or a new senior moment. In my neighborhood, it caught an accident involving a friend of mine. He was able to use a few of the pics to verify his side of the story. I love the old Japanese cars and trucks. Simple to work on. We recently sold my oldest son's 84 Camry college car. Paid $200.00 for it. We put in a clutch and he drove it for years back and forth from Eugene to Portland. About a 100 mile trip, one way. It had 334,000 miles and it still sailed thru DEQ when we sold it.

I found the derelict Z today. No one home at the time. I didn't get a close look at it. Some danger involved in getting close to it. The shed has partially collapsed on the hatch but I think the nose is still uncovered. I suspect that it was protected for many years by the shed until it fell in. Usually when a car sits out in the weather around this part of the country it starts to accumulate moss around the windows. I saw little of that. The little that I could see looked pretty good. It's yellow, the color of my first Z. I left a note asking for some info about it but I think I'll have to go back this weekend and try to find someone home.

MY US Indy center caps were held on with screws.

The way the old US Indy wheels were designed it would be impossible to wear out the lug hole. The lugs were not conical. they were long & straight and fit very snug in the wheel to the point that they were a PITA to R & R. If you need more info on the lugs I have some stashed away with my orig. wheels.

OH NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!! THE VOICES HAVE RETURNED. PM me.

Nice job. I like the color. It looks similar to the old VW bug color, polar blue.

I believe all early Zs came with steel wheels and hub caps. In the PacNW nearly all of the Zs had slotted alum. wheels added at the dealer. My 71 had US Indy wheels on it when I bought it in 73. They also had the lug nuts with the non-removable washers. I wonder if all the early Zs had US Indy wheels. Anyone know about early Z wheel supplier contracts?

Excellent advice above. I'd also verify the float level and the needle height are correct. I've never understood why you had the nozzle adjustment so far down. (rich) How does the engine respond to normal mixture adj. 2 1/2 - 3 turns down? Backfire out the carbs?

IMO, Check the drive shaft u-joints first. I've experienced the rattle induced by deceleration in an RX7. It was caused by a front u-joint that had a TINY bit of end play in it. The clunks? A really bad u-joint will do it but trans. and or rear end mounts are probably the culprit. I think if the clunk was coming from the ring and pinion, you'd have worse symptoms than a clunk.

I think I'd put it back in the CLR for a longer soak. I had to soak my fuel tank sending unit 24 hrs to remove the rust on it. I thought the CLR would probably destroy the the very small wires on it. But what the hell, it was unusable as it was. To my surprise, the unit looks fantastic after a 24 hr. soak. No damage to it at all.

I don't remember which thread it was but as I recall the last pump installed was a 4 psi. That's more pressure than needed or advised. Not saying the needle and seat wouldn't handle it, for a while, but why push it?

If it's not under coating and the paint is actually stained, I'd guess brake fluid. Possibly got there during a brake job. You know, master cylinder cap off, push the caliper pistons back, hear something odd. Oh crap! Now there is a mess all over the left side fender well & shock tower. Just a guess.

Bad news and good news. The bad? Worked most of the weekend clearing shop space and dealing with power outages caused by the wind. (Jai (RedBird) has christened the 71 "Parti Girl".) Late Sunday afternoon we finally got the last piece of equipment moved. By then snow and freezing rain had set in. Probably won't get her into the shop until this coming Sunday. It's the only day my friend has off and he has the truck to move the trailer with "PG" on it . The good news. The same friend with the shop has a 120v plasma cutter. He has cut 1/8"+ sheet metal with it. I think it will work just fine. If all goes according to the new plan, I'll start undressing "PG" next week.

One more thing to add. Always mark the shaft and yokes before you remove the u-joints. If the yoke and shaft are installed 180` out from the orig. position you may have a balance problem. Especially on the prop. shaft. It spins 3 1/2-4 times faster than the axles.