SteveJ

Having done what I hope is enough research, I have started down the road on my next off-beat modification. I decided to pull the trigger to go with the Patton Machine fuel injection kit on my 260Z. I still think I'm going a little lean at times at the top end with my current SU setup, and I hope this will remedy that situation. The cost appears to be less than sourcing a non-egr FI intake, AFM, MS setup, etc., and it seems to be nicely sorted out. I'll try to remember to take a lot of photos for posting. I hope to get the setup in March.

From first glance, I would agree that it looks like a 280ZX distributor.

Those are blanket statements and not really accurate. The ammeter is designed to indicate charge/discharge of the battery. The ammeter is situated between the battery and alternator, and most loads are on the alternator side of the ammeter. If the ammeter is on the positive side, the alternator is charging the battery and/or your brake lights/hazard lights are drawing current. Make sure you have a good battery. The specified alternator and the wiring harness are not designed to charge a dead battery. If the ammeter has failed completely, typically the car will not start since current will not flow through the ammeter. For starting the car, power goes from the battery, through the fusible link and ammeter, and to the ignition switch. If the alternator has failed, the electrical system is relying solely upon the battery, and the battery will discharge. If the voltage regulator has failed, typically the battery will reverse power the alternator when the car is off, and the battery will discharge. The FSM describes alternator and voltage regulator testing. See EE-18 for the alternator test and EE-22 for the start of the regulator testing. Of course, you can purchase a clamp DC ammeter to place over the battery cable to simplify testing. (This means you don't need to use the resistor shown in figure EE-55 if you use the clamp DC ammeter.) The voltage reading of 14.5 would be at 2500 RPM, and that is not a go/no-go voltage. A voltage between 14 and 15 VDC at 2500 RPM should be fine. As the FSM states, the alternator should show 12.5 or higher at 1000 RPM when doing the test as described in the manual.

It would have to stay solid at high heat. I would not want the mount to get soft at speed.

Try these two sources: https://zcarsource.com/distributor-mounting-block-280zx-79-83-non-turbo-used http://zspecialties.com/

The weather gave me one more opportunity to drive the Z this year, so I took it to a show at Gateway Classic Cars. This is what parked next to me. The owner is also restoring #30.

Thanks for providing an update. It always helps to hear the resolution for us to calibrate our suggestions.

I took my Z out today to visit a friend's new warehouse. It might be the last night driving day of the year, so I wanted to take advantage of it. As several of us sat around swapping stories, photos and videos, I admired the view in front of me and decided to take a photo.

Before installing it, I suggest testing it with an ohmmeter.

The 260Z ballast resistor is NLA. You might be able to get away with a 240Z ballast resistor. You would have to move the start wire over to the same terminal as the coil wire. The problem with that is that I don't know why they introduced a small amount of resistance in the starting circuit. If you're worried about that, there is a kludge I could describe to you, but it's not very elegant.

Yes, I've had that happen before. Sometimes parts are NLA, but they don't show up in the online searches as such.

Well, if the 1/2 x 20 is correct, this would probably work: https://www.amazon.com/Needa-Parts-652036-Drain-Plug/dp/B000CHL58M Or this: https://www.summitracing.com/parts/sdk-d1az-6730-a/overview/

For the last couple of years, I've been playing around with action cameras. Most of the ones I have purchased can double as a dash cam, though without some of the extra features. For instance, you can have it record with a time and date stamp and loop record in 3 or 5 minute intervals. Most of the "4K" action cameras can accept a 64GB mini SD card. You can choose settings to turn on/off when plugged/unplugged into external power, and many have a setting to start recording on a shock sensor. A lot of them have stabilization settings to reduce the effects of vibration. Most of these cameras have wifi connectivity so you can connect it to your smart phone...Oh, never mind, @Captain Obvious? I have two of these and use one as a dash cam in my daily driver: https://www.amazon.com/DBPOWER-DB0923-Underwater-Rechargeable-Accessories/dp/B07314N12V. For that price, you could get two and have cameras front & rear. You would also probably want a windshield mount like this: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00DW9UBDM to attach it to your windshield

They look to be in good shape. You might be able to get some good coin via ebay. Just make sure if you go that route, that you state in your ad that they are for a 77 or 78 only.

Sarah, Keep in mind that if you decide to get back into the Z world, the door is open, and there is a place for you at the table. Between you, @Arne, and @sblake01 (to name just a few), it's always sad to hear about a good contributor to the forum moving away from Z cars. While we know you guys still visit, it's not as much fun as when you were hanging out here all of the time.

There was a hint in my first reply if you look again...

Thank you @qz16. I made a PDF of your post so I can contemplate doing it myself in the next couple of years.

It depends upon what you're trying to do. If there were only someone who lived not that far away from you who understands S30 wiring...

Try buying a genuine original splash pan...

And I think both of you have seen my garage...

Oh, you can find a copy of the wiring diagram in the first link in my signature. Just look for the electrical section. You can also find a copy of the factory service manual in the second link in my signature. Good luck.

You may need a new relay for the hazard lights. If the car is stock, you should see to relays that look the same. They are under the driver's side of the dash. They look similar to the relay in this picture: One is for the turn signals, and the other is for the hazard lights. Try swapping the two relays, and see if the hazard lights work. If it is bad, you could get a flasher relay like this one: https://www.amazon.com/DOCA-Flasher-Electronic-Compatible-Warning/dp/B07DF94B66.

Get at least a test light. Turn the key to On. Clip the wire on the test light to chassis ground. A common point is one of the bolts on the shock tower. There are three wires on the ballast resistor: white/black, black/blue, and black white. With the key in the On position, you should have voltage at the black/white wire. It has the arrow next to it in the picture Lift the cap on the black/white wire and touch the pointer of the test light to the wire. If the test light lights up, lift the cap on the white/black wire (opposite side of the resistor from the arrow) and touch the test light to that wire. If you didn't have a light on the black/white wire, you have a loose/bad connection or bad ignition switch. You might want to talk to me on the phone about tracking that down. If you have a light on the black/white but not on the white/black, you have a bad ballast resistor. You can move the black/white wire to the same terminal as the white/black, but you shouldn't run it long that way.

With a multimeter or test light it would be easier to check at the ballast resistor first.

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