Jeff G 78

I have had all years from '75 thru '78. The earlier 280's have a different fuel tank shape which allow the spare to fit under a hardboard circle that spans the tire well. The later 280's have a collapsable spare which sticks up well above the sheet metal. They added stanchions which are about 3" tall to support a full wooden floor to cover the tire as well as hide the tools and jack. The wood is very heavy, but does a great job of hiding stereo equipment. If not for that, I would ditch the wood and spare tire and go with an inflator kit only.

I sent an email and will post the answers when they reply. Like I said, I don't mind supporting the cause, but $85 is a lot to spend for attending only the show.

For a follow-up question, do we even need to register if we are only going to view the car show? I don't mind supporting the event, but if it turns out that I can only make it for the show, I'd rather not pay the registration fee for the opening and closing ceremonies. I'll buy a few shirts and such while I'm there. If it turns out I can make it on Monday, I will gladly register.

My car has the right parts to be a track star someday, but I have a bunch of work to do before I would try it. I still have heavy tire rub under hard cornering or full wheel travel, my brake pads and shoes are close to 25 years old :paranoid: and I have a driveline vibration under acceleration that I can't seem to fix. I haven't replaced the rear wheel bearings yet either, so that is another good reason to wait before tracking it. My car sat for five years before I bought it way back in 1990 and I just got it on the road for the first time last year. Even though I have rebuilt or replaced nearly everything on it, there are still weak or unknown parts. For example, I can drive in slow traffic all day and it stays cool, but it runs a bit warm (on the gauge at least) at speeds above 80mph. I'm guessing that I am building up a layer of stale air in front of the radiator. With some close-out panels and proper sealing, the airflow should improve. I wish I had the time and money to fix everything at once, but there are too many other things emptying my wallet. :disappoin

Hey Tomohawk, Is there additional info somewhere about the schedule of events? I can't find any additional info on the poker run other than the start and end times. Also, on the registration form, I'm a bit confused about the car show. Are the fees only required for car registration? I will likely only be able to be there for a few days, unfortunately. I think I can make the opening banquet and car show. I'd love to do Mid-O, but my car isn't quite track worthy yet. I still need to sort a few things.

Since I have not attended any national meets, I always wondered how people figure out who is who. There are certain members with recognizable cars, but most are not and everybody is wandering around anyways rather than hanging around by their car. Is there a nickname/nametag system in place? Between the IZCC, zcar and this site, I have been online for over ten years, but I have never met any of the people I consider my friends. I would hate to attend the meet only to miss meeting everybody. Even at our local club events, it is tough to figure out who is who when many people are only known by an obscure online nickname. :bandit:

I am going to try to make it. I have to make sure the schedule works out, but I think I can do it.

I had a crack in mine about 1-1/2" long that started at the ashtray opening. I scuffed it up and used JB Weld on the backside and it has held well. There is a tiny hairline showing on the top, but you have to be looking for it to see it. You could probably strengthen it more by adding a piece of cloth in the epoxy.

Thanks Ron, that cleared it right up!

Stephen, That might just be the worst picture I've ever seen. Any chance of getting a clearer one? On my '78, I have just enough room to fit an open end wrench on the plug, but with the car on jackstands, I don't have enough height to fit a cheater bar. I think it would be easy with the car on a hoist. I still haven't had the time to apply heat like Tony suggested. One of these days...

Jack the car up and slide under it. With a long screwdriver you can pop the latch. It won't be easy to see, but you can get it that way.

I am in the same boat. I bought new Redline gear oil and tried to remove the fill plug. With the car on jackstands, there was no way I could get enough leverage to remove the plug. The 17mm wrench wasn't long enough to loosen it while laying on my back. I tried to use an adjustable wrench that was longer, but it was too thick to sit completely square on the plug and wanted to slip. Since the wrench had to be pointed downward, I couldn't add a cheater as there wasn't enough clearance to the ground. I posted the question on another forum and Tony D replied that HEAT is the answer. The plug is coated with thread sealer from the factory which bonds it together making it hard to break loose. I haven't had the time to try it yet, but he said to heat it with MAPP gas to break the sealer down. He also suggested to replace the fill plug with another female drive plug like the drain plug for easier removal in the future. Teflon tape should be used to reseal the threads of both plugs. As soon as I get some free time, I will try heat and see if I can get it off. If I still can't get it, I will take it to my friend's house and put the car on his hoist. That will give me the height for a cheater to be used.

It looks like a good deal to me. I bought six new injectors from Marren and they had a heck of a time finding six that flowed the same. They told me that they had to mix and match several sets to get me a matched set. If you buy MSA injectors, I'm not so sure they would be matched. A non-matched set could lead to lean/rich conditions in some cylinders.

Yep, I had to rewind the DVR to confirm, but it was there for sure.

Yes, I think it was an '85+ unit they sold me.

I went with a mid 80's Maxima alternator. It bolts right up other than the pulley. I got it from an alternator/starter rebuilder. They swapped the pulley and gave me the proper Maxima electrical connector. It tested at 105 amps and cost me around $125 with core cost. Once installed, it looks exactly like the stock alternator and works great. The only thing I had to do was splice in the Maxima connector. In my case, my alternator was bad, so I had to buy one anyway. Upgrading was a no-brainer. I have a decent stereo in my car and will upgrade the headlights someday. Of course, my car is a '78 so it already had an internally regulated alternator. You would have to convert from external. Luckily, that is easily done.

I'd need to see pics, but the body is probably not as good as you think (no offense, but they never are). If there is one visible rust hole, then there are others hiding. It is likely a $2500 car. It will probably need floors, doglegs, bushings, bearings, re-chroming and certainly paint work. A very nice Z can be purchased for ~$8000. A paintjob with bodywork alone will run you $3000+. Add all the nickel and dime stuff and you will have another several thousand in it. As you can see, you are at or above the price of a completed car in very nice shape. A friend of mine sold his beautiful '72 with no rust and a very nice paintjob along with triple Webers, 17" wheels/tires, new suspension, perfect interior, etc, etc. He got just over $8000 for it. Good luck!

I going to try to make it as well. I am from Akron, and now live in Michigan, so the trip to Berea will be easy.

Yes, stock dished pistons are 86mm. Of course you should measure just to be sure the engine wasn't bored out prior to buying anything.

He also has to remove and block off the trans cooler lines to the radiator. I remember doing the neutral switch, but can't remember if it was just connecting the two harness wires together. The last time I did an A to M swap it was 22 years ago, so the details are a bit fuzzy.

Purdy, purdy, purdy. It is going to be a real beauty! It looks fantastic so far.

Yes, the flat top piston/N47(or N42) combo works great and should be kept. This is a very common and simple way to increase your power output. SU's can be used, but I don't have a lot of experience with them. I have had triple Webers on a Z, SU's on another that I never messed with, and FI on many others. FI works great if it is all in working order. If yours has issues or known bad parts, then swapping isn't a bad idea. Another option is to go with Megasquirt FI. Swapping from FI to unknown condition SU's could cause problems as well. Others here can tell you what you need for the swap to carbs. I know the fuel pump will have to be swapped out for a low pressure unit, but beyond that, I'm not sure. I would take your N47 to a competent engine shop and have it measured for thickness and flatness before you go any farther. Since the engine has been worked on with suspect knowledge and assembly procedures, it's hard to say what condition the head is in. The original thickness from the top surface to the bottom surface is 108mm, I believe (do a search to verify). If it has been milled, it's possible that it's either too thin for flat tops (CR too high) or was warped and is now only flat on the bottom. Make sure they check both surfaces for flatness. I had one head that was apparently milled flat by a PO, but the head itself was badly warped causing the cam to be in a bind. My machine shop didn't catch the problem and I had major issues as soon as I installed it. I had to throw the head away and start over. I was young and dumb and didn't clay the pistons to check clearances prior to final assembly. The results were two damaged pistons, four bent valves, and a freshly machined lump of aluminum that was completely useless. :mad::mad: That was when I decided to go with flat top pistons. With the stock FI, stock exhaust pipe diameter, a header and flat top pintons, I get 23-25mpg on 93 octane gas. After I go with a 2-1/4" or 2-1/2" exhaust system and install my performance cam, I expect the mileage to go up a bit. I wanted to break my motor in with the stock cam to eliminate a tuning variable. I now have about 2500 miles on my motor and will install the cam and associated parts this summer.

Looks great. No reason to go nuts on a DD.

You will also need the inner boot and outer boot as well as the pleather boot. While you are at it, replace the shifter bushings. They are shot in most old Z cars.

On more thing, if only one piston was bad, you need to check the fuel injectors to make sure they are all firing and have a good spray pattern. There is a chance that you have one partially firing giving you a dangerously lean condition in that cylinder.