EScanlon

Alaskans would like to remind their fellow Texan Americans, that if by some freak occurrence of nature, Alaska were to be split in half.....Texas would become our THIRD largest state. E

Rick: In rereading my posts, I can see why you would get that impression. I was an NCO in the U.S. Air Force, which required me to take various "Leadership" classes. The longest of those classes was a 30 day course which was a compressed 8 week course available to middle level managers at civilian companies. Additionally, I have close to 30 years experience in Customer Service and Sales. You learn how to mediate and negotiate when trying to calm an irate customer. V12: I disagree with your third sentence. I don't think that you should have kept your opinion to yourself. Without your interaction, especially because it was an opposing view is EXACTLY what this site is all about. Remember the fable about the Emperor's new clothes? Without criticism none of us would examine our motives nor our results, except for our internal "conscience" regarding peer acceptance. The key to criticizing is in your second sentence. Vicky: I like the way you think! :devious: Enrique

REMEMBER THE CAR IN PIC,IS NOT MINE BUT IT IS CLOSE Hmmm, how does this differ from "Sight Unseen"? Enrique

Carl; No argument here. If I didn't express it overtly was due more to my not wanting to add fuel to the fire than because I saw it differently. Again, no argument. As what you mention is exactly what we do. Whether the troll was meant to be an intentional slur / insult.... I don't know, I'd rather give the benefit of the doubt and presume that it was benign. As for the treatment the folks at HybridZ shell out, I don't know and frankly, I don't care. I don't visit the site because I'm not interested in the details of modifying the Z, since I don't ever plan on doing that to either one of mine. That said, I respect their right to their opinion, no matter how different it is from mine. As to whether an apology is necessary, like you stated we each have our own opinion. The reason I feel an apology was necessary is that he DID in fact reverse his position and has put the car up for auction as is. To me that says that we did in fact work with him and convinced him that it was the best thing to do. When you win an argument the best thing you can do, sometimes, is apologize. It allows both of you to put the sour feelings behind and grow a new friendship. He may, in time, decide to acquire a pristine ORIGINAL Z, and come back and be a regular member of this site. 23¢ Enrique

I've been keeping up with this post, and haven't chimed in because it had all the flavor of a flame war brewing. First of, to LS1240Z, I'll apologize for the rude remarks made to you. Sadly, in our enjoyment of the Z, we tend to lambaste those owners who have chosen to modify their own vehicles past a certain level. Not to say that we don't eventually admire a good converted car, but that, because of the difficulty we have had in trying to restore our own vehicles to a more ~original~ state, we drool after these rare hidden treasures that are like time capsules. Then to discover that your intent was to ...ugh, shudder... modify her...... Can you understand why as a group we freaked? Now, as to your original intent of changing the engine in order to make the car into a rocket. That, in and of itself, is a worthy endeavour. It will take a lot of time, effort and money in order to pull it off properly. You mention that you want to insert a roll bar and other mods in order to strengthen the car to accept the new acceleration, torque and steering twist. All that will need some intense body work in order to tie in properly. I just recently acquired a 72 240Z, AT that has a blown engine. One of the pistons has a hole in it, and the PO has removed the head, allowing the pistons and block to have rust on them. The rest of the car, is pristine. Yes, there are the door dinghies, a dash of rust on the passenger door rear and on the passenger rocker panel. If you are interested in a trade, I'm willing to discuss it. However, I am in the Portland, Oregon / Vancouver, Washington area and it might be difficult for us to exchange them, especially since both of them are non-driveable. But it CAN be done. Lastly, with regards to our initial responses, and the "dare" from the other site. That he got "dared" to post here is probably due more to the fact that we tend to be a bit fanatical regarding CLASSIC 240Z's. Whether it be because of our lack of knowledge regarding what tranny from what car and year or because the modifications are anathema to our mores. The truth of the matter is that usually when someone mentions that he wants to modify his Z, we instantly chime in to go to the Hybrid Z site. In this case, due to the unusualness of the find, and the fact that it is in extremely good condition, we reacted as we ALL knew the membership of this site would. With outrage, vehemence and, sadly, rudeness. All of these are valid emotions and responses. However, we must take note that, as a group, in order to gain the recognition and respect of others, we must also offer them the same recognition and respect. That is to say, just because a person modifies his Z, does not make him an evil person. In fact, done properly, a modification can actually result in a very admireable car. So, let's promote that e-Bay auction to everyone we know that is looking to buy a car, let's get his reserve met and we can bask in the knowledge that we saved a good time capsule car and that we also helped the seller to achieve his dream of a rocket Z. 2¢ Enrique Scanlon

The cheapest and easiest solution is to find another steering wheel. Trying to grind in a woodruff key groove into both the wheel and the spline will surely cost more than the replacement, and having an insert machined ..... Well, if you go that route, I have some beach front property in New Mexico. Enrique

Will: I hope you did not take my diatribe as a personal insult as it was not meant that way. I will apologize to anyone that may have thought that was my intent. I'm all for cheap fixes. Remember my cowl drain fix; or the shower curtain for the vapor barrier behind the door panels; or using POR-15 along with their Power Mesh to reinforce rusted metal? All of these are cheap when compared to the "correct/OEM" fix. It is for those cheap alternatives that this forum and it's members are such an excellent source for. Let's continue to find those alternatives, let's discuss them, and best of all, let's keep them safe. I'm counting on getting a decade or two out of my Z yet. Enrique

I'm not trying to come down on the ingenuity and creativity that we have to have in order to fashion repairs and / or replacements. That is what sometimes makes the difference between a car you can drive and one that sits in the driveway because the parts are falling apart and won't stay together. BUT When it comes to safety items, there ARE viable alternatives, but they aren't cheap. The true cheap alternatives are rare and need careful evaluation, before applying. Sometimes the cheap alternative is simply NOT the way to go. Think about it, would you patch the tube with duct tape and hope for the best? The biggest problem with trying to manufacture an alternative is that there are not that many substances available to the home mechanic that will not only be impervious to fuel but also flexible after curing. The $100 may seem to NOT be the question but it is in fact, the central point of this whole discussion. If the $100 did not seem expensive he would have just replaced the piece and never posted about it. The search for cheaper alternatives, although normally a worthwhile and possibly profitable venture for all of us, is not the answer here. Would you manufacture your own brake pads just because you can mold High Temp Epoxy with metal shavings? As far as the too-graphic reminders of what can go wrong, sadly, even with that there will be people who ignore all sorts of graphic warnings and become victims themselves. Bambi's post speaks volumes. Most of us are hoping to find easier and cheaper solutions but unfortunately those "cheap" solutions are sometimes achieved only after years of experience and procurement of tools, materials etc.. And let's not forget that there are THOUSANDS of cases where what seemed to work, was in fact the Achille's Heel that caused a failure. So, let's find those cheaper alternatives where they are indeed cheap. A cheap fix that ends in catastrophic loss was expensive in my view. Enrique

I don't want to over-react and act like a 500 hairy ape going ape-sh!t for the lack of banana's, but ARE YOU OUT OF YOUR FRIGGING MIND????? Ok, back to reality. That $100 may be steep, in fact it is and unfortunately for us, that's the current going price. In a few years it may be twice or three times that. Next, that is a VITAL, as in CRITICALLY VITAL part of the fuel system. Don't think so? Try leaving a gas station with a one gallon can WITHOUT the cap on it. That hose is what allows you to carry the fuel in a closed system. If you go around a corner, it accepts the sloshing around of the fuel without allowing it to flow out. Additionally, it has the hoses to finish your fuel vapor system. Then again, you would rather drive a molotov coctail around. The reason that hose is flexible is to allow the tank and the body to flex. The reason it is in ONE piece is so that the stress of flexing doesn't separate them and allow the fuel to escape. Frankly, I would want to know if someone had monkeyed with the fuel inlet hose, BEFORE I got in that car. Now, if you want, chop out the lower third of your right rear fender, and put an end of metal tube cap, like those used on the late 50's pick-ups, or on the necks of the tractor trailer diesel tanks, but don't skimp here. Heck, even a used one is better than someone's Rube Goldberg Fix. 3¢ Enrique

If you remove the hatch from the vehicle to do work in and around the hatch jamb area, be careful when you remove the hinges from the body. That is if you don't just remove the hatch from the hinges. The hinges have a rubber "sock" that fits around them and into the cavity in the roof. Those rubber "socks" are NLA from just about anyone. In fact, if anyone can help out, there are at least 2 of us here who could use a good pair. Now, the main reason for pointing this out is that that pocket into which the hinge swings in and out of, CAN be a problem if it doesn't have the rubber boot. That section of the sheet metal dumps right into the dome light area and the two rear fender wells. 2¢ Enrique

I did a lot of work on my car and another in that area, and I too could find no reason for it. However, due to the construction of the car in that area, I believe it may have been used as a jig holder for all the sheet metal below. If I recall there are 3-4 sheets of metal that join in that area. Just a thought. Enrique

Mike: Thanks for putting the site back up. I have a question for you though. Why is it that on the Z site I have both the right and left columns bunching up on TOP of the center column, yet on the Roadster site, they align themselves properly and nothing gets overlapped? Could you check? It might be a simple setting that is giving me, SBlake and others the same problem. Thanks Enrique

The ROOM / DEF lever ONLY has a function when the AIR lever is set to HEAT. To stop the fresh air from coming through the center and side vents you have to close the fresh air flapper valve by selecting OFF. The system is real basic, the only thing to know before refurbishing it is that the flapper valves and the heater core are outfitted with gasketing to make a tight seal and ensure air flow through the system. Hope this helps Enrique

The top lever, AIR, operates TWO levers. The middle lever, TEMP and the bottom one, DEF, operate one lever each. The AIR connects to the Fresh Air Vent Flapper Valve at the firewall to allow or not allow the entrance of fresh air. This is the longest of the 4 cables. The attachment point should be behind the fan and on a LHD car to the RIGHT of the valve. ( I don't know if on a RHD car the Fresh Air Valve would be reversed, but I doubt it.) AIR also connects to the Heater Box Plenum to actuate the diverter flap that sends the fresh air either to the heater core or to the vents. This is on the upper right side of the plenum. TEMP connects to the Heater Valve on the right of the plenum. It regulates the amount of water going to the heater core. DEF connects to the lever on the left hand side of the plenum and actuates the doors on the bottom of the plenum that open to allow the heated air to escape. Note, FRESH COLD air is the only air you'll get out of the Center Console Vent and the "Eyeball" vents on either side of the dash. When the controls are placed on HEAT the air is diverted to either the Defrost tubes just below the windshield or to the floor, depending on whether you have Defrost or Room selected. That's it, hope it helps. By the way, if you haven't already done so, add a drop of light mineral oil to the wires inside the housing and operate them several times to lubricate the inside of the wire housing. Also check to make sure that the internal flapper valves of the heater box are not frayed or unglued. Enrique Scanlon

You don't mention whether the fan is working when you have it on AC, but presuming it is, and that the air IS being moved then it must be going out of the system somewhere. That sounds very trite, but in fact should allow you to figure out the problem. However, I would like to point out what the AC instruction manual says: "Note: Slide Bar Switches must be to left when operating A/C." as well as : "240Z Custom: Air is tducted into the fresh air duct system and is directed from the dash louvers at the extreme sides and center of the vehicle." That tells you that you must put the controls in the OFF position, which for most folks is NOT the way you would set it. Then, you only get air out the center and eyeball vents. Hope this helps. Enrique

I resent that remark! I owned a 76 Capri II with a V6 2800 4spd and it was simply put...a rocket. Although I will admit that even during those happy years (79-89) I still harkened for the Z. But, nonetheless the Capri was a fast, comfortable and very much a rocket. Enrique

The shower curtain material IS a bit thicker than the standard door liner, but since I figured I would ~never~ (yeah, right) again have to get inside the door, I figured what the heck. Actually, many of us myself included, will probably diassemble and re-assemble our doors in order to adjust locks, etc many more times than most people. I wanted somthing that was durable enough to accept being removed and replaced several times. Rope caulk is one way to hold it on, or you can duct tape it. (remember the intent is to be able to remove it months or years down the road. Thanks for the kind words! Enrique

Good ideas to check with the rechromer. They have a wealth of experience that should play in your favor. The biggest problem with a hit of this type is that when you re-stress the metal back into shape, sometimes the chrome cracks and begins to peel. That's why a rechromer would know how to best straighten, rechrome and polish to make it look the best. However, having seen this hit on several Z's, I would have you check the hatch area floor to ensure that there has been NO buckliing (lifting, bowing, no longer level). The bumpers are mounted onto the rear valance which has L brackets welded to it and tacked to the floor of the hatch. With the hit you have (apparently a forward and downward smack, essentially the last of the nose down of braking), the force to those L brackets has been UP and to the FRONT. After checking the hatch area, crawl underneath with a flashlight and look at the back of the valance. What appears as no damage in the hatch, may be a crumpled bumper support below. Just my 2¢ Enrique

I've got one to beat all of that. Go to your local hardware store or home furnishings store and buy one of the cheapest shower curtains you can find. It should be a milky white or white plastic. Total Cost for enough material to do both doors, behind the rear area dog legs as well as behind the cargo area plastic panels (bet you hadn't thought of those areas!) (just make sure you don't cover up the true VENT holes above the struts, nor the holes into the plenum behind the plastic, so that the vents will still operate)===$3.00 plus glue which I already had on hand. Enrique

Don't forget that the mechanism was also designed to NOT let the doors open from the inside when the doors are locked. Although it sounds foolish, remember back in those days, they were more concerned with people accidentally opening the door when the car was moving. Any of you recall the old style handles used to open the door? Some of those were as massive and protruded AS MUCH or MORE than a window crank. I remember one car, either the '65 Galaxie 500 or the '61 Impala, that had a FLAT handle in front of the armrest. If you pulled up on the flat handle the door would open. Great, except that it was real easy to hit it with your knee. Does anyone recall what year seat belts became mandatory in vehicles in the USA? I'm not positive, but 68 is what I recall. So, although there were changes in the MANNER in which the door lock mechanism was OPERATED, the basic FUNCTION was not. That would explain why some of us were still stuck with the old mechanisms which would not allow the door to be latched before closing. 2¢ Enrique

Your Hood Latch Pin is either mis-aligned with the Receiver OR it has been shortened too much and will not allow the secondary latch work. All you are latching to is to the SAFETY latch. Granted, if it's working properly at this point, you won't have the hood suddenly want to open, but it isn't as secure, safe or aerodynamic, and it doesn't look worth a damn. Compare how deep the pin has to enter the mechanism, with how far it raises from the hood to see if it is a short pin that is the problem. If it's an alignment problem, easy fast fix: Loosen the receiver plate, push the hood down so it will move it to where it needs to be, open hood carefully so as not to move the plate, tighten. Last item it could be: The hood release cable, is it free from binding, kinks and has NOT been shortened in a jury-rigged repair? If yes to any of these, then fix, or replace. 2¢ Enrique

I'll wager that it's the flap gasket inside the heater box that has come loose from the flap and is now flopping around and closing off those two vents. Fast explanation of the system: The Vent Flap located at the firewall either allows air in from the vent in the Cowling bucket or not. If not, it recirculates from the cabin. This then feeds into the fan motor housing which sends the volume of air into the plenum of the heater. Inside the heater there is a second flapper valve that either directs the air THROUGH the heater core, or out the top to the center and eyeball vents. (Note, this is why it is impossible to get warm air out the center or eyeball vents.) There is a third set of flapper valves that either release the now warmed air out into the "room" or cabin, or allow it to be forced out the defrost tubes. Both flapper valves have a foam backed "leatherette" gasket pad that is glued to the face of the metal flap. When in the closed position, the flanges of the opening push against the foam gasket and seal off the air. After 30 years, either the foam backing or the adhesive holding it down will have corroded off the leatherette gasket. The two "doors" at the bottom of the heater box usually only had foam insulation which died very soon, so not too many people have seen them. In your case, I think it may be that the gasket has separated completely and flops around closing the two openings you mentioned. The fix? Well, there are those that claim that they can remove the heater control box without removing the dash, and those of us who think they're either 2 ft tall, or are triple jointed. Since I am not a slim slender ballerina, I have to remove the dash. Once the dash is out, pinch off the Water Lines in and out, being careful not to spill and remove the heater box, disassemble and glue down the gasket or repair as needed. Sorry, this is the ONLY way I know to fix something inside the heater box. One note, if you do remove the dash, do yourself a HUGE favor and do the following: Take the time to disconnect, and reconnect electrical connectors. Just this simple act can sometimes eliminate potential circuitry problems. Remove, inspect and replace any and all instrument illumination bulbs. Why not? It's a bear to get to them otherwise, and if any of them look dark, now's the time to replace and get brighter gauges out of it. Wash out all the HVAC tubes with some grease cutting soap, if in the U.S. I recommend DAWN. Inspect for cracks and repair accordingly. Just this step alone will make your car smell 1000% better. Before replacing the dash, take a look at the firewall. Just below the windshield you'll note two rubber plugs. One on either side of the center line. Make sure those plugs are there and in good condition. Believe it or not, lack of these will cause you to get intermittent splashes of water into the cabin, and they are one of the hardest to diagnose as the culprit of the strange puddle that shows up after driving hard in a rain storm. Take a look at your Fresh Air Vents. They should operate cleanly and with no major effort on your part. Lastly, take a look at the condition of the rubber elbows and kick panel rubber bushings they go through. You might just find a leak about to happen. Remember, these tubes DRAIN the cowl bucket area. If the hose leading to the exterior is shot, the water just flows onto your feet. Anyhow, hope some of this helps. Enrique Scanlon

First off, welcome to the club. You mention that the left "eyeball" looses the air to it when the fan is on medium, I presume on High as well. What about the center vent? A note of explanation here: The 240Z ventilation system, when on the VENT position, will only blow air through the two "eyeball" and the center vent. In order to get air out through the defrost or floor vents the heater must be set to HEAT. I'm not sure about the A/C operation, but I presume that it would do it in the VENT position. (I've never owned one.) Now, that you are hearing a noise and then the left vent is cut off, I think points directly to something loose inside the heater box that is in turn blocking the left tube. Either that or something in the left tube. That is the reason I am asking about the center vent. You should almost be able to see directly into the plenum that divides the air between the center and side vents. 2¢ Enrique

That bolt hole is what secures the bottom outside edge of your dash to the car's frame. That you have a "scuff" mark roughly rectangular in shape that surrounds that bolt hole tells me that the support that you can just start to see through the bolt hole, should be BELOW the dash and not above it. As far as the fresh air vents, they are held to the kick panel (way up there closest to the firewall and cowl bucket corner by three screws. It is easiest to reach them with the dash out, but it isn't totally impossible to do it with the dash in place, just be ready for some yoga calisthenics. Once out of the car you can check to make sure the plastic sleeve is still intact and not broken, and that the cable that operates the flap is operational. Enrique

Unfotunately they are "Flat Tops". For the most part, they are disdained due to the difficulty in getting them properly tuned. Enrique