ramsesosirus

Unfortunately, after several hours of work, my H4 upgrade yielded less than desirable results. The Autopal E code housings are nice, have a slight convex face, no "nipples", and worked fine with the stock housing/retaining ring. That being said, I can already see that the relay upgrade is worth it, much more power to the lights (regardless of the bulb) But the Nokya 7000K 55/60W "Arctic white" H4 halogen bulbs have too much of a blue tint. The light itself is a great white, but the tint on the bulbs (blue) reflects in the housing and makes the lens look blue (even in the daytime). The CREE LED H4's have a "Casper shield", so I might try those. I'm also going to upgrade to LED bulbs for the signals, brakes, etc.. on payday. Z headlights are a pain to change. That's why, since I have the H4 replaceable bulbs now, I might just get a spare set and cut the hole larger. I just want some nice white light, without blinding anyone. I've seen older classics with "white" headlights, and it looks great. Especially if someone thinks it's a new BMW or something... but it's a 40 year old Z! I'm considering the: Philips Diamond Vision, the CREE LEDs, Osram Nightbreakes, and an LED flashlight from harbor freight tools duct taped into the housing. Or I could go real old school and install some candles and make a lantern setup. I might have to hop out at stoplights at re-light the candle, but we're talking no current draw from the vehicle.

Nice white light. You should do a pic from inside (or next to ) the car with the lights on a wall 20' away to see the cutoff and illumination. I am considering the CREE LED H4 bulbs, if they fit in the housing. If not, I'd have to cut the housing. Unfortunately, after several hours of work, my H4 upgrade yielded less than desirable results. The Autopal E code housings are nice, have a slight convex face, no "nipples", and worked fine with the stock housing/retaining ring. But the Nokya 7000K 55/60W "Arctic white" H4 halogen bulbs have too much of a blue tint. The light itself is a great white, but the tint on the bulbs (blue) reflects in the housing and makes the lens look blue (even in the daytime). The CREE LED H4's have a "Casper shield", so I might try those. I'm also going to upgrade to LED bulbs for the signals, brakes, etc.. on payday. Z headlights are a pain to change. That's why, since I have the H4 replaceable bulbs now, I might just get a spare set and cut the hole larger. I just want some nice white light, without blinding anyone. Did those just plug into the stock connectors?

Whatever you do, make sure the receiver has a "AUX" port, I'm sure most do today. This way you can use a Ipod or MP3 player and just plug it into the player. Even I rarely use CDs anymore Mine already had a CD player installed when I bought it. It's not properly mounted, it just kind of sits there. I've read mounting CD players in Z's isn't easy.

The pics aren't showing up for me, just a black box. For a quick/budget solution, there is always that exhaust "flex pipe". I've heard you don't want to use that kind of clamp though, supposedly the "band clamps" are far better.

There is a silver 280z 2+2 in "Bruce Almighty" And a red 240z in "Scorpion" Actually there is a search option on IMBD that has a big list, here is the link! http://www.imcdb.org/vehicles.php?make=&model=240z There are 1st gen Zs in Top Gun, Mission Impossible, Herbie, Criminal Minds, etc... There's like 7 pages there of Zs!

Cool, thanks. I just did some research and found that LEDs in the gauges actually don't usually brighten it up very much, since LEDs are directional and the Z gauges are set up to reflect the light (indirect). The parts stores actually have 1157 set of 2 for $20, so cheaper than ordering online and NO WAITING! What I did after I was disappointed with the "blue" tinted incandescent BA9 bulbs was install this to my cig lighter, and used the mounting tape to put them on the bottom of the speedo and tach, and on the left side of the oil and volts (too much glare if you put these on the bottom). These are the exact ones. There are only 4 lights, I didn't illuminate the clock since it doesn't work anyway. There is a similar set at walmart, but it only has 2 lights. They do light up very bright and blue. Might be an option for you if you have trouble seeing the gauges at night, as most do. Plus it looks pretty sweet from outside of the car to have blue gauges (mine have the white face so it's REALLY blue) And I just turned off the dash lights with the dimmer. Works for now and looks pretty cool. I plan to take pics later today when i do my headlights, which have been delivered according to FedEx.

Cool, thanks. I think this will be my next upgrade. With the cars reaching 40+ years old, I want to be as easy on the stock wiring and electrical components as possible. And the LEDs should last a very long time. Did all the bulbs from Super bright fit in behind the lens? It says some might not fit... @SteveJ where did you get your gauge LEDs? What color? I know stock ones are "BA9". Just plugged them right in the OE socket, no resistors/etc.. added? Is the light better? I've already removed the green filters on the gauges.

Which bulbs did you use for the dash lights and did you have to add anything else? Are they "Dimmable"? I would like to do this. You're right about not having to change the headlights ever again haha. Where did you get the electronic flashers? From what car? Did you just plug in the LED type bulbs into the stock socket? Does it look "stock", only brighter? I'm not a fan of seeing a bunch of LED dots like you see on some cars. I installed white face gauges last winter, and replaced the stock bulbs with blue tinted incandescent (basically colored stock bulbs) which I was disappointed with. I really wish I would've put some LED's in there while I was at it. Here's a write up I did about it. Not a very dirty or hard job, but it is tedious under the dash and whatnot.

Cool. Take some pictures when you have time, we'd like to see the setup. I also do minimal night driving, but am going to start driving with my lights on during the day for visibility. For the headlight bucket/housing (the part that the wire feeds through), some people with "holesaw" the rear to make it larger, and so that you can change the bulbs from the wheel well without removing the lens. Or the 280zx headlight bucket/housing already has a bigger cutout FYI. Is it all the stock wiring? Stock should be fine for LED's since they draw less current. I have a post in Electrical about my project, where I installed a "generic" harness with relays. Pretty easy and I'm getting nearly 12V at the lights now. If the color temp. really is 6000K, it should look great. 6000K should be pretty pure white light with minimal blue tint. Sometimes LEDs have issues (like you had with the anti flicker) since they draw so much less current. I wanted to use LED's in my dash gauges, but you have to add some kind of diode or something for this reason.

These Z cars (and most cars) route the 12V through the headlight system, which is not only inefficient, but wears the contacts of the switches. That is why I highly recommend the relay/harness upgrade. You can still use your sealed beams (switch the connector terminals if needed). The voltage comes directly from the battery.

I think I get it now. If you wanted to ONLY upgrade to include relays, while keeping the stock sealed beam setup, then you need to use the OEM type connectors or splice. BUT if you are using different headlights/bulbs/convrsion, THEN a generic harness plugged into the existing headlight will work. This makes sense. Yes, switching the 3 is weird... but I've seen some odd engineering decisions on before. Should be some kind of industry standard or something. Would make it easier. Not sure about it still, but a good reminder to check the polarity upon install. Don't want to be running the brights thinking they are the lows, and vice versa.

I'm not sure a NOS unit is available anywhere. If it were, it would be $$$. You could find original ones and have them cleaned/replated, or use one of the aftermarket options. Several vendors are now reproducing brand new ones, or fiberglass ones if you don't want/need the chrome. Mine are painted black since I'm not fiscally resourceful.

I think you need (or might not need) a pilot bearing for manual trans. Unless it's already there.

Hmm not sure. Mine is just the stock setup. But I get the "binding" described. Maybe cleaning the throttle plate cured it, I don't see how the stock ball system can bind up. Thanks

I started a topic not long ago in "electrical" where I upgraded the headlights and added a relay harness to my 280z. Great upgrade, check it out. Pretty simple and inexpensive too, to prevent further headlight problems.

I like them all, they are all the same basic design. I got a 280z and removed the bumpers. Replaced with 240z bumpers (pretty simple, made some brackets..) Got the FI system working right by cleaning the injectors/wiring connectors. The best one is the one with the least amount of rust, you should hear this time and time again. Mechanical parts can be found. Body work and rust sucks and isn't safe. FYI my 280z looks just like a 240z now, except for the emblems and tail lights.

I had an issue like this. Had to pull the gas tank and have it "boiled" out. they also cut out the OEM metal (nonreplacable) screen. No problems since. Common issue with Z's. Also install a Fram G3 filter between the tank and the stock filter.

I just did this upgrade, topic in "Electrical". Basically I got a generic H4 relay harness. had to lengthen one of the headlight leads. No cutting of stock wires, it plugs into (one of) your stock headlight sockets. I'm getting 11.8V at the socket, and have various H4 bulbs to try. Very easy actually.

Good post. Were any one you having trouble with the pedal returning to "idle" after accelerating? I have an odd issue of the car continuing to hold a slight accel pedal after acceleration, almost like cruise control. It's not bad, but I had to manually lift the accel pedal with my foot before braking to return it to idle. I cleaned the throttle plate last week but haven't driven it since. Does this upgrade give you "more throttle"?

That's a pretty good turnaround for you paid for the new car. Hondas and Toyotas are notorious for lasting a long time. I had 3 90's Camrys for this reason. One of them made it to 374,000 miles (not sure on km conversion). before I just swapped it's good parts to another Camry. Change oil and don't overheat. Good rules of thumb. Congrats

Pets are great. We had to "put down" our 15 year old beagle last year. Just as hard as losing a person. That dog and I were close, it never judged me, always happy to see me, always came around (especially if I had food). My personal belief is that animals (or any other living organism) is on the same level as we are. Why would they not be? There are so many stray cats here that the humane society gives them away for free.

Wow, this is great. I've only ever found 1 z (a 240z) at our local junkyard. I pulled everything I could afford off of it. I could spend days in yards like this. Some call it being a scavenger, some call it being "thrifty", some realize it's what you do if you own old cars.

What does he do for a living and how can I do that haha. I have an engineering degree and a 130 IQ and struggle to survive WTF am I doing incorrectly??

Good point. In my experience, he's right. Salvage doesn't necessarily mean the car is "gone", but that the cost of repairing the car is greater than it's value (or 80%). So if you "total" any older car, it's gonna be "salvage". A rear end will usually damage the bumper, bumper cover, tail lights, trunk, and possibly quarter panels and frame. So it doesn't take much in repair costs, really, to "salvage" a vehicle.

Whoa, at first I thought it was your Z rear ended! I just posted a topic about "Tail Gaters" not long ago... A z with 240 bumpers rear ended is in trouble... Insurance is sucky, you pay and pay and pay and then when it's time for your return, they fight and fight. I've had a few incidents like this... Gotta hold your ground and collect evidence/parts/similar vehicles. A good tip about salvage vehicles: It might vary by state, but here, if a car is over 10 (or 15?) years old, the salvage title just goes away, you don't have to get it on the title. "It's too old" they told me. So I took the "totaled" value, minus my deductible, fixed what I could myself, and drove on for a year or two. Hope you're alright, sometimes the soft tissue injuries (neck, back) don't show up until later. I could barely move my neck or hold a backpack a month after a rear end accident here (I was rear ended).