SteveJ

Actually the location is shown in Figure BE-1. I don't think it's the thermotine relay. The FSM says that is located on the driver side fender well.

@Mike - This user, Grudge, may need to get the ban hammer. No posts and apparently came on this site to scam people. https://www.classiczcars.com/profile/34926-grudge/ Care to defend yourself, @grudge?

The black fusible link carries the current from the alternator to the battery. If you haven't done so already, download the EL chapter of the FSM: http://xenonzcar.com/s130/FSM/1982/EL.php Also check the resistance from the battery negative post to the ground post on the alternator. Bad grounding can cause lots of problems.

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What do you need done?

How old is the battery? Can you post photos of the fusible links?

Start by swapping out the incandescent bulbs for LEDs. Here is some trivia I documented on this site, and no one seemed to notice. The bulb spec in the FSM calls out bulbs that appear to be NLA. Pretty much all of the BA-15 bulbs these days are 1156 and 1157. They are a slightly higher wattage (and more current draw) than the 1034, 1073, and 67 bulbs called out in the 74-78 FSMs. The added current draw is not enough to blow the fuse, but it is enough to warm up all of the areas where some corrosion might have built up over 40+ years. Adding to that, IMHO, that circuit does not have the proper gauge wire. It's protected by a 20A fuse! In the control circuitry that my company manufactures, we never go above 10A fuses for 14AWG wire. After you swap out for LEDs, you might need electronic flashers. I have been using this type for many years: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07F1M9579 Also change out the parking light fuse from 20A to 10A. The current draw with LEDs is a small fraction of where it was before. The 10A fuse will protect the wiring better. (This is experience talking here.) Here's the link to my post on current draw for the parking lights:

Actually, I think leaving the coil wire off caused a flood condition. Because I kept smelling the gas, I thought I still had fuel. I'm not sure whether or not I had a bad ignition module, but I did find the erratic spark while troubleshooting. The stator in the replacement distributor was in better shape than the one I had in the car. After seeing the strong spark with the replacement distributor, I started wondering if I had a fuel problem. That is when I found out about the "flood code" generated from the TPS signal. I also wanted to verify injector function, but I didn't have a noid light handy. I should have that by Wednesday. I cleared the "flood code" by unplugging the TPS with the key in ON. I also have a new battery on order for the Windows 7 notebook computer so I can have WinALDL software handy for the next round of troubleshooting. It's not fun to run diagnostics when you don't have the right tools on hand.

It works well as long as I don't do something stupid like leave the coil wire off the distributor. The up-side is that I found some good diagnostic info on the GM TBI system to help me if I have problems in the future.

In the drawings of the system I downloaded, I found two injector signals. Having said that, there are photos on the Patton Machine website showing triple TBI setups.

The throttle bodies are SU carburetors. The domes and float bowls have been removed, and the nozzle is plugged. The injectors sit in adapter plates that replaced the domes. The kit is from Patton Machine (http://www.pattonmachine.com/) using a GM ECU from Affordable Fuel Injection (https://affordable-fuel-injection.com/). I used -6AN fittings and hose in the engine bay and selected a Walbro fuel pump because it fit better on the fuel pump mounting bracket on the 260Z. I had to run a tap into the throttle linkage for the shaft that operates the TPS. The headers already had an O2 bung hole courtesy of the gentleman I purchased them from. I was able to tuck the ECU on the firewall in the passenger footwell on the firewall. I utilized many factory connections in the wiring, so it ended up being fairly clean. The GM TBI also runs at low pressure (<15PSI), so you don't have to swap everything over to high pressure hoses. Another benefit is that there are TONS of GM TBI parts available along with plenty of information online. I believe you could also work with Rick Patton to integrate a MegaSquirt ECU into the system to give better flexibility in tuning. I totaled up the cost of swapping in 280Z FI parts and MS. It was more than this kit. This kit is also different from what you'll typically see in Z cars. Only a handful of people have done this kit. I am tempted to do this on the 240Z when I make it a priority to get it running again.

Ye Yep, it's still WinALDL. Now you have to have the right driver to do the USB to serial cable. Unplugging the TPS while the car was on did the clear flood mode. I'm not sure if WinALDL could have cleared it. The car really did flood, so I smelled the gas in the garage. That got me believing I was still getting fuel when I wasn't. It just made it where I also dug around and found the lurking issue with the distributor that would probably have caused me problems in the future. It was a frustrating day, but it got me to learn more about the system I installed, so that is a good thing.

I don't have Windows 7 Pro on the two laptops with Windows 7. The software does run in compatibility mode. I probably just need to see if replacement batteries are still available for the laptops. They are Toshibas, so that improves the chances. When I make it a priority, it could happen.

Yep, I'm getting tired after fighting that problem all day. OBD-I does use the flashing lights after you put the paper clip in the right terminals of the ECU. There is software that allows a PC to read the codes, too, without having to count blinks. Unfortunately that software barely runs right on Windows 7, and you can forget about using it on a later computer. I still have a couple of Windows 7 laptops around, though. I'm not sure how good their batteries are. I can datalog with this setup, too, and even get Affordable Fuel Injection to create a new map. At least I have some idea of what happened, and I know more about diagnosing the system. That should make future issues less problematic...I hope.

The thing is with LEDs is that you MUST have relays. I have not come across an LED headlight that can use 2 negative wires and 1 positive wire. I actually did come up with a "no splice" method of integrating the relays for the 72 and 73. I did a proof of concept on a friend's car. It is similar to what Dave Irwin (@Zs-ondabrain) did in the kits sold by MSA. I just get the headlight power from the fuse box. I just need to inspect the wiring in person for a 70 and 71 to design those because some things aren't lining up in the wiring diagrams. Now it's a different story for the 260Z and 280Z. I have laid out a general design, but the challenge is that with the 260Z, they switched the dash to engine harness plugs to a Yazaki design that I haven't been able to track down. @Captain Obvioushelped me some with developing my ideas in another thread. What doesn't help is that the only source I can find for Yazaki connectors and terminals is Eastern Beaver in Japan. (http://easternbeaver.com/Main/Elec__Products/Connectors/Sealed/YPC/ypc.html) I would need to back out the wires from the connectors at the dash-to-engine harnesses and do my re-wiring there. It is feasible, but I haven't done it, yet.

I didn't try to pull the codes because I didn't want to break out my ancient laptop. It's an ODB-I system that runs at a blazing 140 baud. What I speculate is that when I was trying to start without the coil wire connected this morning, the TPS triggered a flooded signal in the ECU. The car started to fire AFTER I unplugged the TPS with the key in ON. I think that cleared the code for that problem. (My rambling in the previous post doesn't emphasize this point.) Typically when I start the car, as soon as I hear it fire, I give it a little gas. This time I was outside the car, looking at the engine bay, so I wasn't adding fuel after firing. Now, the key is for me to try starting the car tomorrow and see if it behaves. I need to fine-tune the timing with the replacement distributor anyway.

LED bulbs in H4 housings are next on my list to try. I have the bulbs. I have an extra set of H4 housings. I just have to move it up the priority list.

Follow up: It is running now. As I mentioned previously, I found some good diagnostics on the TBI. I checked for 12VDC at the injectors - Good. I unplugged the TPS to clear codes in case the ECU locked in that it was flooded. I tried using an ohmmeter to look for a grounding pulse on the injector with the meter...As I cranked, it sounded like the engine wanted to fire, so I kept cranking until it fired. The engine ran briefly on one injector, dying soon after I stopped cranking. I plugged in the rear injector lead and tried again. No start. I unplugged the rear injector again and got the engine to run briefly, but it died again when I plugged the rear injector lead back in. I unplugged the front injector lead and got the engine to run. I played with the throttle to keep it running while I plugged in the front injector lead, and it kept running with both injectors. My stress level dropped significantly. I should probably invest in a noid light kit. Anyway, I attached a document I created that has the images of the pinouts for the ECU and some of the diagnostics I was trying when I got the car to run. @Zed Head, I thought it might pique your curiosity. TBI Diagnostics.docx

There is plenty online on the GM TBI. One site had the pinouts for the ECU and different threads on diagnosing "no pulse" conditions. It gives me a place to start.

So I swapped out the distributor. The spark is stronger and more consistent, but still no start. It started to catch when I was dumping a lot of starting fluid into the throttle bodies while holding the throttle open, so now I'm suspecting a lack of fuel. I'm going to see about the diagnostics on the GM TBI system.

There might be someone who lives in about an hour away from you who knows about installing relays.

And I went down to the car to check the stator. In the 260Z, it moves around with not much force. I'm going to swap it with another ZX distributor I have on hand. Thanks for your help, guys.

Well, maybe that will show up in further diagnostics, but I agree with you about the trigger problem. The spark looks great WHEN IT HAPPENS! It's a rebuilt distributor installed within the last 5 years or so. You never know what they replaced during the rebuild. I have another distributor I can throw in if needed. @Patcon I don't think that is possible in this case. The problem started without pulling the distributor or rotor. Only the cap was removed without pulling wires and put back in place.

Unless you have relays in the headlight circuit, the issue is that your voltage is too low. I have played around with different types of headlights. I have standard H4 lights at the moment, but the stock wiring is now controlling relays, and I have power for the lights going through the relays instead of the headlight switch. Just a couple of volts increase can make a world of difference in lighting. You'll find that you won't get much more light from the higher wattage bulbs until you address the voltage problem. By the way, I hope that is a typo and you ordered 7" housings.

So to investigate the spark more, I shot some video of the #1 plug wire pulled, #2 plug wire pulled, and coil wire pulled. When I was looking at the spark from the coil wire earlier I was sitting in the car. This time I was able to see it up close. It looks like I'm not getting a good spark. (and that's with the replacement ignition module) Not dead, but not as alive as it should be.