Arne

I'm going to cruise the salvage yards soon, looking for an E12-80 ignition module to replace the E12-93 that was on the '83 ZX engine a PO put in my 240Z. Seems to me that this module came on '79-80 280ZXs, some Maximas and maybe some 210s as well. Any other Datsun models I should look for? Since many of the local yards aren't pick-n-pull, any particular years I should ask for? (Yards around here seem to ask a higher price for Z parts than they do 210 parts.)

Yup. Bad ground connection at the rear of the car. Track the black wires from the lights and see where they connect to the body.

Jay, if I add this to the other electrical problems that I recall seeing you post, I think it's possible that your Z has a serious overcharging issue. I suspect that it is putting out so much voltage that all your electrical parts are overheating or burning out. You need to get the charging system tested professionally, including (especially?) the voltage regulator.

Sounds like it could be the regulator to me.

I performed some quick and dirty readjustment on my carbs last weekend. And it's all good, starts quickly, idles smoothly at about 800 rpm, and for the first time since I bought it - it doesn't miss! Still probably needs some fine-tuning, but for a car that isn't yet ready for the road, it's running pretty dang good. Re: the not shutting off with the key - that is fixed too. My car has a 280ZX alternator on it (that I wasn't aware of). And whoever did the swap didn't know not to connect the external regulator. With the diode and jumpers, that's all good as well. Tach now works and is accurate. (Or as accurate as an early 240Z tach ever was. )

I understand your concern with the gray not complimenting the orange, but I've yet to see a 240Z with any color tail panel other than factory that looks right, regardless what color the car itself is. Black looks too harsh, color matched always looks cheap to me. I'll also vote for the factory color.

Lenses only. No back reflector part, no chrome strip. I'm happy for having the lenses, but I need the chrome far worse.

! Professional Japanese magazine gets the image reversed? Take a look at the bottom right picture in the second scan. Spark plugs on the left and intake on the right - on an L28 engine?

So let's clarify - You hear it with the engine running in neutral, with the clutch pedal out (released). When you depress the clutch pedal, the noise goes away. If I have this right, I suspect either the input shaft bearing, or the needle bearings between the input shaft and the mainshaft. Can you hear the noise while driving? If so, it's characteristics under certain conditions can help us determine which bearings are bad. But either one means a transmission removal and teardown.

Exhaust looks like stock cast iron manifold, complete with the pre-heater tube. Not a header.

The first auction ended on the 20th of this month - how you gonna get it to London that fast?

I capped both of those off when I removed the injection from my car, Kendall. I did not hook up the coolant lines to my manifolds.

I've been slowly removing/correcting/fixing the things inflicted on my poor Series I ever since I got it. Making progress, but still have a ways to go. Once I get the previous owners' issues dealt with, then I can start on the rust...

No sealant or adhesive should be needed on a manifold gasket. The carbs are on mine now, and working well so far. Details on the car's web site, linked in the signature below.

Yeah, when I do buy my spook, I will get it from Les, even if it does cost more. Gotta support those people who still make parts for our cars, you know.

Looks like we are talking about two different vendors here. I had assumed that all these lenses were coming from the same place, but that is apparently not so. The ones in the eBay link are from Too Intense, a normal Datsun supplier who actually tooled up new molds for these lenses. The Klearz.com lenses are stated as being "hand made, and while the surface of the lens will always be perfect, sometimes the tabs and parts of the lens that are not visible might not be as polished and perfect but will always be fully functional." The picture in the first post is not from Klearz.com but is actually from Too Intense's web site of their newly reproduced lenses. The ones from Too Intense are more money, but sounds like they might be better quality.

You called it. Here is the original auction.Datsun 280Z V8

Hard to say without a closer look. That style wheel was made by many different companies. But the center caps look like they might be Appliance. Do they have a big stylized "A" in the middle?

Different versions of Chevy V8 engines. You'll need a Chevy book to keep track of them all.

Are you sure? On a 240Z? (260 and 280's are different.)

Have the alternator (and voltage regulator if external) tested by an automotive electrical shop, preferably while it's in the car. Not just AutoZone or similar, but a real electrical specialist. I'm wondering if your system is being wildly overcharged and it is frying all your stuff.

No, the wiring itself is not all that hard, nor is it difficult to figure out what is needed. But building the harness so that the project is totally reversible (no cuts or splices to the original wiring) and making it so that it simply plugs into the factory harness (rather than splicing existing wiring) is more involved. Not difficult, but it requires a lot more parts - especially the OE-type plastic connectors.

Well, various studies have shown that there may be some safety improvements to separating the various rear lighting elements. The largest safety improvements are found when the tail lights and brake lights are on separate elements, however, which these lenses do not address. So having the turn signals amber (or even red, but separate) <b>MAY</b> help other drivers following you be more aware of your intentions. But the difference may only be theoretical, so any "advantage" other than appearance is quite minor. Some people do prefer the looks of the JDM/Euro rear lights, though.But note that there are wiring changes necessary to use these lenses. A stock 240Z treats all three bright filaments in the red sections the same - they are all three used as brake lights and turn signals. With these lenses, you need to separate the brake lights from the turn signals the same as the 260/280Z's did. This requires wiring changes in the areas of the turn signal switch, hazard switch, the lights themselves and at least one additional wire running from under the dash to the rear of the car. I have been considering building a harness adapter that would make the necessary changes as a plug-n-play operation - i.e. no permanent changes to the car would be needed. If you wanted to go back to stock, you would simply unplug and remove the adapter harness. While the wiring changes themselves are pretty straightforward, building it as a reversible plug-n-play harness is a bit more complex, requiring numerous OE-type connectors and therefore the cost of this adapter harness wouldn't be cheap. But I really doubt there is enough demand for this to justify gearing up to build them.

Out of a wrecked 280ZX Turbo in a wrecking yard. Should be the cheapest way to start.

All early Z cars have rust. Even here in the Pacific Northwest where we don't suffer from road salt, 240Z's in particular are rusty. Later Z cars (280Z's mostly) are less rust-prone than the early cars, but if road salt is used in your area, expect rust.