Dave WM

no I was ready to give in on the ported boot with a plug until I found out it was a safety thing (I currently do NOT have the flame arrester). so then I figured if I can only get new ported boots may as well go all in and do the mod to use it.

wow that wagon reminds me of guys that used to do that to old vettes. sorry not a fan. the 2+2 are prob rare since even back in the day they were just not that nice, and besides is suppose to be a GT not a family car. Rare does not always translate to value. Its rare for good reason.

right and besides its slow low all the high SUV don't even see you while they are FBing or knocking back a starbucks/shaving/texting/makeup/sleeping... Don't want to discourage you but it is a fact of life you learn real quick when you find yourself staring UP at the tail pipe of the truck infront of you. I try to drive mine early Sunday before the dingbats get on the road. when I retire I am getting the heck out of central florida in exchange for a less crowded more driver friendly/fun area. what zed said about situational awareness, one reason why I don't even want a good expensive loud stereo, I prefer to keep the tunes down and my head on a swivel while in town.

Forget the back seats, I have had both, besides being pretty much useless, I think it really messes up the lines of the car. Let this be your car, get a mini van for the family JMHO. Beside if you are worried about the safety of the little ones (which you should be of course) then a 40 year old car is not a good idea. Modern cars are much safer, just another reason to make it your car only. I don't know this for a fact but I suspect a child seat may not work so well in the Z, the back seat is not very flat and may not provide a good base. Around here for a family car I use a suburban, its a tank and you need it to survive the distracted idiots on the roads of florida.

Ok the plot thickens. This all started when I noticed my portless boot had a crimp in the accordion. It looks like it must have been installed that way and over time it took a set as it would not stay popped out when I removed it and tried. Its prob not a big deal I suppose there could be some restriction or turbulence but I doubt it. Of course OCD kicks in so it must be made right. The search was fruitless for a un ported boot (new) and then that turns into how to make a ported boot work, bonus reduction if fire hazard. Fast forward to the score of the later model hoses and hardware. But now a complication, I found an old ported boot, completely rotten and cracked up, but inside I notice a spring steel circle with some loops on the end (to prevent puncture I am sure) that fits inside the boot accordion. I try that in my unported boot and if fixes the crimp perfectly. Perhaps this crimp was a common problem and the spring steel circle was a later mod? Anyway where the crimp had been I noticed some slight cracking just starting not all the way thru, more like rubber fatigue. I used some weather strip cement to coat this area, and reinstalled. So now the orig prob is fixed but I have something new to consider (the fire hazard of the orig design). I don't worry too much about that as I always have a fire extinguisher handy, but may still upgrade IF I come across a nice ported boot for a good price. In the mean time one more little detail I can check off.

I was able to rob hoses from a 78, will look into it. the idea of a fire under the hood is not pleasant.

I will prob just get the ported boot and plug it. The unported is NLA.

think this will work? http://www.ebay.com/itm/2-to-3-45-Degree-Reducer-Silicone-Coupler-Black-Red-/130520963545?pt=Motors_Car_Truck_Parts_Accessories&hash=item1e63a7d9d9&vxp=mtr&rmvSB=true there are other sizes as well need to confirm the IDs on the AFM and TB.

I am new to car work, good to know. I did see some oil on the rubber boot that covers the strut. I suppose that means the hydraulic oil has sprung a leak and I will have to work on that a some point. That being said the car suspension seems fine, damping seems good, no bounce.

while messing around on the z yesterday I noticed the lack of a dust cover on the tie rod. Looks like it just crumbled up and was gone. I know the standard course of action is to replace tie rods, but the car steers well and handled fine, and I did not want to mess that up, so... of to part store and I got some dust boots. There were the cheap looking dorman ones and then better looking urethane ones. I got both just to cover the bases. jack up front off comes the wheel, impact driver makes short work of the nut, then nothing. I do not have one of those forks used to separate tie rods, banging on the sides of the ball joint part did nothing. Then it hit me, chill it out. Using some dust off turned upside down I hit the tie rod end to freeze it (there by shrinking it some). It practically popped out on its own. I still plan to get a fork but its a nice stress free way of popping that loose. From there it went as expected, put on the boot, reinstalled pumped in some grease and good to go. I only got one done (learning curve will make the next go a lot faster). The rubber parts don't look too bad, and still had some give to them, but I did get some new TC bushings anyway, for when it gets cooler. I can only stand it about 1 hour now when its 95 feels like 105 in the garage.

Clearly I need to make a trip to Norway!

I am pretty near sited but your right age is making even that not what it used to be.

They can be fixed but next time I will invest in one of those large lighted standalone mag glass. I was using a monocle style and having the solder point about 2" from my nose was a bit much. The pads and tracks are quite small, not surface mount small but still pretty much impossible to do without some form of magnification.

Hopefully I got the intermittent worked out. I decided to bite the bullet and get at the tuner board. Pretty scary stuff digging into it that deep having to figure out the dial indicator/5 tuning slugs hardware to free up the board, but finally got there, touched up some iffy looking solder and put back together. Same deal. Take a break and try again, this time the learning curve let me get it apart a lot faster. found some more that I missed, touched those up (5x mag glass and solder station with a small chisel point). Time it worked right away with no prodding of the PCB, In fact prodding did not make it go away which is good since it took prodding to make it work before. So I will let it sit over night and bask in the glory for at least 12 hrs (JIC its not fixed at least I can get a good night sleep thinking it is). Funny thing is I have another after market brand push button AM/FM stereo that fits better (uses the old face plate with knobs that match the fuction) since I don't have an OE faceplate. The one on the AM/FM 8 track fits perfect. So I will prob just install that one and someday put the Datsun branded radio in if I ever get a decent face plate.

as long as you are doing the rad hoses, check the heater hoses as well. A pressure test is a good idea as well to find any pin leaks or other issues anytime you have major work done on a radiator. The pressure test consist of using a tool that has a PSI gauge built into a hand pump that fits on the top of the rad (where the cap goes) you pump it up to about 10 psi and see if it holds (it may drop some as the connections are not 100% leak proof) for at least several minutes. While is pressurized you get a bright shop light or flash light and look ALL around the engine esp the rad/holes/water pump to see if there is any coolant seeping out. I am sure Sam knows this as its a pretty common way to find leaks.

that sure is bright.

I doubt the one the PO had on was stock it was grafted on with a crimp connector.

double post

I was looking at the kind that has wire clip built inside the rubber cover that grips on the bullet. The ones that are on there seem to come off pretty easy. Perhaps what is on there is correct but just poorly built. something more like this http://www.repairconnector.com/products/GM-Ford-Chrysler-Universal-Stud-Socket-Pigtail-.html Has something like this on there now

I am sure this has come up before. I was taking the Z out on a road worthiness test (75 mph plus for extended time), when I got to my destination I could hear a chipping sound that came from the front of the car but did not sound like the engine. I popped the hood and it stopped. Closing the hood would let it start again. I Sherlocked it to something with the hood fitment from that. I could then see the hood had some noticeable vibration on one side near the back. Adjusted the rubber bumper using a dollar bill to test for contact and all good. Next up I noticed the water temp dropping and then becoming erratic, found the temp sending unit stud socket that had been replaced by the PO was loose just resting on the stud. It looked like a typical female bullet connector which I am pretty sure is not the right type for a high vibration environment like under the hood. I order up what I think it the correct. The PO used the same type of connector on the oil pressure sending unit and it has come off in the past as well. Needless to say I will fix that as well. Other than that it did the high speed test fine. I am trying to work up the nerve to take it on a 200 mile trip (highway speeds). I have replaced the hoses and belts, thermostat and fan clutch. I have NOT replaced the water pump, fear of breaking bolts. It does not leak and the bearing sounds good with no play. Pressure tested the rad (head fine at about 14lbs) and it runs pretty cool anyway (160f thermostat) stays right in the middle regardless of temps or speed.

got any before and after pictures?

changing the fuse should not allow smoke to come out of the radio, it should have just blown again to protect against more damage until the issue was corrected. Did you use the correct amperage fuse? what was the problem that needed to be fixed? I assume there was a repair ticket to explain the work that was done.

Yes, may deal with it again, just wanted to see how well if fit and see if it starts to rip again after some use before I dig into it. I can get the bottom part replaced using my old seat as a donor. I was actually at the shop but the guy left early so when I got home I just decided what the heck.

the orig was ripping in the pleated center panel. Got a replacement bottom from a member here that was doing a seat replacement.

Don't know if this has been covered but thought I would share. I had a crack thru the side of my center console (near ash tray), I used some scrap ABS from a donor piece of plastic (wanted to make sure it was the same stuff as used on my Z) and two products that I can say worked very well. ZAP brand "plasti-zap" medium CA glue, use this to rejoin broken pieces. just a tiny bit and careful alignment, hold together as tight as possible. in about 10-20 seconds it should hold fast. Plastruct brand "plastic weld" gen purpose solvent glue. this comes in a glass bottle with self contained brush on the cap. I swiped the back of the console and the front of the scrap scab piece with some acetone to clean, then applied this product and quickly backed up the prior joined area. held in place with some clamps (binding clips) and let set over night. This stuff is very thin, not like pipe glue, more like water. After setting up overnite I brushed some more at the edges and let it wick into the joint, keeping the binding clips in place. Care must be taken as you don't want it running out and messing up the exposed surface. Just brush some on and let it soak in. I did round the edges of the scrap backup piece to avoid any stress risers. When all done the break was nearly undetectable and was plenty strong. The combined use of the glues (one fast set to close up gap and hold fast and the other for backup strength) worked perfectly. I found these at a local radio control hobby shop (used in plastic model construction). One of my prior hobbies was RC modeling. One thing to be aware of is the CA type glues tend to have a shelf life, so I would recommend getting some that looks fresh and once opened don't expect it to be good for long, not worth taking a chance on the holding power so buy as small a container as possible ( I got a .33 oz container of the CA).