Pop's Z

Snowing here today...70 this weekend. Ah, Spring in Colorado...cheers, Mike

David, I have no personal experience with this shop, but he rebuilds harmonic balancers for Zs and Corvairs. www.dalemfg.com/daley_001.htm He was talked about on another site and they all had good things to say about him. Much cheaper than a new one from MSA. Just my 2cents. Cheers, Mike

Welcome Tim, There's getting to be more of us Colorado guys here all the time. Enjoy the ride. Cheers, Mike

Hi Jacob, Z Therapy is the real deal! Not only are they great to deal with, but their carbs work as advertised...best $600 bucks I have spent on my Z. Bruce Palmer is a regular contributor here and Steve is the MAN when it comes to these carbs. Because I live at 5000 ft. and do the majority of my driving at that altitdue and higher they put special jets and needles in the carbs at no extra charge. My car runs really well and has power right up thru 6,500 rpms. They were a snap to tune (get a "uni-syn") and came with a video explaining everything you ever wanted to know about these carbs. Most of the carbs you will find on these cars are OLD and the shafts are worn making it impossible to tune them. When you get Z Therapy carbs they are better than new. So, are they worth it? An emphatic YES from me. You won't be sorry if you use their services. Cheers, Mike PS: Get their first video on how to tune up your Z. It will save you tons of aggro. And if you decide to upgrade your suspension, their video on that subject made the job much more understandable and easier.

GROANNNNN! Have you been sick? (worse than usual, I mean) No jokes from Rick for more than a week........Mike

FWIW, you might try calling Z-Therapy. 1-503-587-9800 (at least it was last time I called). They are really easy to deal with and they are THE source for S.U.(Hitachi) knowledge. Bruce Palmer is on here sometimes...actually I'm sort of surprised he hasn't chimed in here yet. Also they are usually at the MSA show on the last week in April. Very knowledgable people and very helpful. I know, I bought a pair of their carbs and they set them up specially for my altitude (5000 ft and up). Cheers, Mike

Rick, Now we know you're back....GROAN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! M.

Rick, You were gone? Maybe that's why there's been no jokes for a while. We are all really sorry that you saw no zeds on your walkabout. There aren't any here either...it's still Winter ya know (although it is going to be 70 here on Saturday, followed by snow on Sunday...ah, Colorado, if you don't like the weather today just wait 24 hours). But it makes you appreciate your "Precious" all the more. Hugs and kisses, mate. Mike

I put Z32 (Nissan 300ZX 1990) seats in my '73. Big improvement in comfort and support. Also not too hard to install. PM me for pics (I took a lot and I seem to have problems reducing them to fit on this site). Cheers, Mike

Dave, You should also check out www.hotrodair.com. They are similar to Vintage air, but appear to be a bit less expensive. Derek, Please do a sticky on your install of the Vintage Air A/C system. There are a few of us who would be very interested in what you did and any pics that you took. Thanks, Mike

Hi Arne, Yeah, I hooked that up first, but because I did not want the antenna up when listening to the tape player, I went with the buttons for more control options. I could never figure out how to keep the antenna down when the tape deck was on. Mike

Arne, That's the exact same tape deck I had in my '73 in '74. It had real good sound IIRC. I rigged up two small push-buttons to raise and lower the antenna. I had them mounted just above the unit on each side. I wasn't jealous of your car before, but now I am. I have real nice JVC tape deck in my current '73. It's mounted in a marine housing behind the passenger seat. I've got JVC 6X9s in a MSA box. It sounds real good. At least good enough for these old ears. Cheers, Mike

Hi Samshot240, The short answer is yes those carbs are prone to vapor-lock. When I had my first '73 in '74 it had the problem so bad that the dealer installed a "fix" kit consisting of an electric fuel pump and some insulation on all the engine compartment fuel lines (it's that silvery stuff). To make a long story shorter...it didn't work and by really complaining the dealer installed "round-top" carbs from an earlier Z (71-72). That worked great and I was happy. Fast forward to now...I have a '73 that the previous owner installed '71 carbs on a long time ago. I couldn't get them to balance very well so I sent the carbs to Z Therapy in Oregon. For $600 I got completely rebuilt carbs that balanced right out of the package and have worked flawlessly ever since...no vapor- lock, no backfires, no farting, etc. One of our members (Bruce Palmer of Z Therapy) is the Hitachi (S.U.) roundtop guru here. I'm hoping he will chime in here and share with you his knowledge. Try the search feature and you will find more than you ever wanted to know about this subject. FWIW the flat-top carbs are known as "boat anchors" around here. Change over to "round-top" carbs, tune them properly, and your vapor-lock problems will disappear. Cheers, Mike

Your "new Z" is absolutely gorgeous! You can be justifiably proud of your accomplishment. Enjoy the ride. Cheers, Mike

Hi Arne, If you are bone stock, do you really need mandrel bends? The reason I ask is I had my system re-done by a local (not national) shop and I paid $258 for a 2 1/4" system: flange on the down pipe, squash tube bends (actually a lot less squashed than I had expected), an 18" glass pac (subsequently removed as not necessary), a Walker round Dyno muffler #17741, and a chrome tip. I had them reuse my Nissan mounts and rubber parts and they tucked it up nicely exactly the way I wanted it. I also got to stand there and watch/supervise. It was a tremendous improvement over the stock system and it was so quiet that I had them remove the glass pac and replace it with a section of pipe. It's still pretty quiet with NO drone in the 2,000-3,000 rpm range, or any range for that matter which is OK with my older sensibilities. FWIWIMHO I really think that mandrel bends are for aesthetics and not really necessary on a stock 2.4litre. Everything I've read tells me that the smooth pipes are for that last bit of HP from a seriously modified system, both intake and exhaust. I found my shop by chatting up the local hot rod guys at the car shows, same way I found my body/paint guy. Cheers, Mike ps: the system is all aluminized. I have pics I can send to your email.

Hi Juan, I don't know about the engine, but the seats will fit. I put the seats from a 90 300ZX in my '73. They don't just fall in, but are a pretty close fit. You remove the seat brackets from your 240, and the seat brackets from the Z32 and swap the S30 for the Z32 (you can toss the sliders from the Z32, but save the mounting hardware). They don't fit perfectly, but with a little hole enlargement they will go right on. Remove the short bolts from the S30 brackets and use the Z32 mounting hardware. Save the short bolts from the S30 seats and use them in place of the long bolts on the S30 seat sliders. You will thank me for that tip as the long bolts make it really hard to get your fingers in there to put the nuts and washers on...especially the rear ones (I found this out the hard way, of course). You will have to drill new holes in your floor mounts in the car about 1/2" out from the original holes. Test fit before you drill...I tried to get the seats pretty well centered in the car and made a template out of a piece of wood to mark the new hole locations. Also you can't use any of the plastic seat raisers(?) from your car. The seats fit flat on the floor mounts. I have been really pleased with the support and the comfort of these seats. They are much improved over the old seats. PM me if you have more questions. I actually took a bunch of pictures of the install and would be happy to send them to you. Cheers, Mike

I've said it before, and I'll say it again...Dave, you are Da' MAN!!!!!!!!!! Happy wiping, Mike

Don't forget there is a fuel filter INSIDE the electric fuel pump, also. Take the pump off and twist the bottom off. New filters are available at any auto parts store or mail order...ie: Rockauto, MSA, Black Dragon, etc. Remember, it's usually never just one thing that causes your problem. Use the "search" feature and you will become enlightened. Be happy in your work....Cheers, Mike

Hi all, FWIW I tried to order that Suspension Techniques rear bar from Summit Racing earlier this year and after several delays was told that they did not know when and if they would get it in stock. After waiting for 6 months I ordered the bars from MSA. I have a late build (6-73) '73 and it has the mounts on the chassis for the rear bar to be mounted in front of the diff. I got the mounting brackets for the 260 and have been very satisfied with the results. Of course this only works if you have the chassis mounts. Cheers, Mike

Hi Will, I think you are truly insane, however you will be a true Z Hero for this that you are attempting to do, and I hope yopu make a lot of $$$ doing it. Another item that you might consider would be the covers (R&L) for the reclining seat mechanisms. I got a new one for the right side, but the left one is NLA. I would be happy to send you the right one if needed. Let me know and I'll have it in the mail as soon as I can. The left one I have is partly damaged and there are no more mounting ears on it (which is the problem with those pieces), but I can send it along also. Cheers, Mike

Dave, As usual...YOU ARE DA' MAN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Mike

Hi Aiden, There are quite a few members here from Colorado. They will all tell you that now you have been infected with the Z virus. There is no cure so enjoy the ride. We are fortunate to have a lot of Z car roads on which to enjoy our addiction (Boulder Canyon, Poudre Canyon, Big Thompson Canyon, N.& S. St. Vrain Canyons, Peak-to-Peak etc.). You will find a lot of helpful advice on this site. Be sure to use the search feature. It will help you avoid newbeitis (asking questions that have been answered a few thousand times). Also be sure to check out the photo galleries. There are some really great pics. You might also consider going to MSA's West Coast Z Car Show at the end of April. It will truly knock your socks off. I've been the last 3 years and never get tired of it. They are a site sponser and you get a discount on parts from them by being a member of our site. www.zcarparts.com. Cheers, Mike

Here's the final answer to the question...will it work without this part? YES. Because all the air emission stuff had been removed including the E.G.R. this part (the "what is this?" of this thread) is no longer necessary. I finished the cooling system rebuild with a MSA 3-core radiator, new hoses, fan shroud, new thermostat cover (from the earlier model), new 160 degree thermostat, and new water intake. I thoroughly flushed the block, put it all back together, and added new anti-freeze in a 50/50 mix with distilled water. Took it out for a test drive today and: no leaks, no drips, no errors. It stays cool with the guage needle to the left of center. The heater works. I am a happy camper. Cheers, Mike

Lonny, Thanks for the pic. Mine looks just like that. I found out it was a temp. control for the E.G.R. Not used any more so I'm going to leave it off. I've already wire-tied the wires back to the hareness and taped them up. I have a new thermostat cover (70-3/73) coming from MSA and it has no threaded opening for the temp control. I'll post when the cooling system re-do is all done so there will be an answer to the question "will it work without this temp controll device". Cheers, Mike

Nice Car!!! For those who are wondering, here is my car with a "BRE" type Spook from MSA. Cheers, Mike