chaseincats

Hi guys, My handbrake handle broke today. I've tried glueing it back on with superglue but to no avail. Anyone have any recommendations on what I can use to get these back together properly? -chase

Good to go. I checked continuity from the AFM housing to the plate welded to the car that the screw screws into. Is that good enough or do I need to check continuity between the plate and something else?

For me it is on regardless of fuel level

I don't believe so because here in TX it's been hot since before I installed it but an interesting theory anyhow.

I really wouldn't drive on that - its 40 year old rubber...

For what it's worth I got the same part from ZCD and had the same issue. They sent me out a replacement which I will swap in eventually. I also remember that this problem didn't start immediately - it manifested after a few months...

Ah ya, I definitely don't have that since it's not bolted to the bracket at all...

I don't see one attached to the bottom of my AFM. Is that why it runs fine? It sounds like a good idea to have one of those so should I try and add one of these?

I noticed that a lot of pictures show the AFM having a ground strap that goes to the bracket - mine doesnt have one and doesn't even touch the bracket...

Hi guys, I am going through the AtlanticZ contact cleaning checklist (http://www.atlanticz.ca/zclub/techtips/electricalconnections/index.html) and have finished all but the AFM ground which I can't find. Does the 78 with the 5-pin AFM not have a ground wire? Any ideas? -chase

Unfortunately I didn't think to take any but here is exactly what I did: Estimated time to completion: 1 hour Open up the Z clock and remove the hands (get some wire cutters or very thin pliers and pull up on the center of the clock arms). They will fight you, but eventually pop off. Now you can unbolt the 3 facebolts and pull the faceplate & mounting piece off of the old clock mechanism. The faceplate is held to the mounting piece by 3 tabs which you bend a bit to separate the pieces. The new clock's center arm mechanism isn't long enough to reach through the face and mounting plate as-is due to a bit of a spacer built into those 3 faceplate tabs. Thin the width of the tabs out a bit (I used wire cutters) so that the tabs can go further into the mounting plate's tabs and end up being flush with the plate - then bend the tabs in holding the faceplate to the mounting bracket. NOTE: The mounting plate's 3 bolt holes in the center protrude outward. Be sure to mount the faceplate on the side without the protrusions (mounting flush) - the clock mechanism will mount to these. Glue the clock mechanism to the 3 bumps on the back of the mounting plate (i used superglue but you can use whatever you prefer) Open the new clock and note that the clock has a variety of wires all of these can be snipped except for the 2 that go to the battery (the others are for a light, the alarm feature, a speaker, etc) Remove the hands by pulling them straight up and remove the mechanism - put the hands to the side as we will add those at the end Now the only physical activity you will need to do for this - get a small saw and saw through the plastic clock outer shell so you can remove the AA battery housing. Be sure to remove as much plastic around the battery housing as possible. The original Z clock's can does not have much spare space, so be sure to make it as small as possible while maintaining the area where the battery clips into. Place the AA battery housing into the can, reattach the clock hands by simply pushing them back on the center bit (leave the red hand off as that's for the old alarm feature) I wrote the above as detailed as possible, but it is much simpler when you actually have both clocks in front of you. NOTE: Everything will work but there are VERY small tolerances for everything (the clock hands hover about a half millimeter above the face for example. As long as you remove enough of the surrounding plastic for the AA battery housing, you will also be able to close the clock and everything will look factory.

https://www.walmart.com/ip/SHARP-Quartz-Analog-Alarm-Clock-in-Black/20554638 Rip the motor and battery casing out (will require brief plastic sawing for the battery casing) and cram it in behind the original faceplate (it will fit in the can with a little finagling). Just did it and looks awesome.

wow ya that is interesting weird

ok, I'll grab that. 2 quarts should fill a '78, right?

Hi guys, Going to change my transmission fluid today but can't find a definitive answer on what spec GL-4 fluid to use (75w-90 for example). Does anyone have a definitive answer? -chase

You really should check the engine for vacuum leaks. I found mine and it completely changed how the engine ran and only took 10 minutes to find/seal all the leaks. Here's how you're going to do it: - head to harbor freight and buy a hand "transfer" pump like this one: https://www.harborfreight.com/Multi-Use-Transfer-Pump-63144.html - get a rag and plug your air intake (otherwise the smoke will leak out here) - unplug your brake booster and plug the "out" side of the pump's hose in there - grab a pack of cigarettes from 711, light one and put its end into the "in" side of the pump and start pumping. After 2-3 cigarettes your engine should be full and you will see smoke start to sneak out. Cap/fix those leaks. NOTE: You must do this when your engine is cold and this is done with the engine off. I'd also check and make sure you are getting spark to all cylinders. Pull all the spark wires and stick a screwdriver (with a plastic or wood handle) into where the wire connects to the plug and then hold the metal of the screwdriver a centimeter or two above some body metal and crank the car. If you have spark to that plug you will see it arc to the car. The video sounds like the car possibly isnt running on all cylinders. If that is indeed the problem, don't stop there - seal your vacuum leaks too via the above method.

Agreed - MSA and especially James have awesome customer service

Hi guys, I found a battery hold-down bracket and J-hook in my box of parts but cannot find the bolt needed to secure it to the firewall. Does anyone know the size/pitch of this bolt and I'll head to Home Depot tomorrow? All I am able to find is the nissan part number which is 08360-61812 and the bolt is an M6 but I can't find the pitch anywhere... This is the bolt area I'm talking about:

TBH I didn't know there was supposed to be a gasket there either. The gasket seems to be NLA though...

For the record, you don't need a spare spark plug to test spark. Just unplug the center lead on the distributor cap and hold the metal spark plug connector next to the body metal. No need to find/buy a spark plug to test.

I didn't open it but there was no fluid in/around the brake booster also that master cylinder is less than a year old so it should be good

Update: The source of the vacuum leak (where the engine rpm would rise when the brake pedal was pressed) was the ends of the brake booster/check valve vacuum hoses. They were old/flayed so I snipped the ends off and put new hose clamps on em - worked like a charm. Thanks for your help, everyone!

It won't fully deplete the booster's vacuum if the pedal is held. The gauge will drop about 5lb of vacuum on pedal-in and 5lb on pedal-out regardless of how long I hold the pedal down. The interesting bit is there is a hiss sound on pedal-in/pedal-out if the vacuum gauge is below 4lbs of vacuum remaining in the booster.

Gotcha, thanks so much for your help. I'm guessing that the small increase in engine rpm when the brake pedal is held is probably coming from the stretched/hardened ends of the brake booster hoses. I clipped the ends and re-installed them. I will test the car in the next few days.

I'm using a hand pump and I've gotten it up to as high as 22lbs before my hand said enough. It's ok its depeleteing a set amount even though vacuum amounts are being detracted on pedal push in & the same when the pedal is returned (the gauge drops pounds on 2 different actions)?