This is why you don’t let old cars sit...

[charleswrivers]

So I just got back from sea a couple days of days ago. My 300zx had a problem I didn’t have time to track down right before I left that turned out to be one of the wastegates that got tweaked and was supposedly tip top. A few hundred bucks my old lady spent on it and getting it back and forth from a shop that specialized in older cars and exotics. Figure it was money well spent.

So I went to go for a joy ride and as soon as I started the car I was frowning. It was just off and rough and figured it was down a cylinder. I did run it around the block to confirm my suspicion and do the ole “pull a plug wire and find out” trick. Yep. One was down. I see then there’s a little smoke coming from behind the dash. FML I think... shut off the car and pull a battery cable. Pull the center dash out... as I figure it’s the aftermarket radio... though it smells
more musty than an electrical smell. I pull everything out radio-wise but with it all out, reconnect the battery to see how it goes. Nothing. Crank the car to give up and pull it in the garage... starter won’t engage with the flywheel on my first try or two. Finally get it to fire up and pull it into the garage, pull the battery cable, curse at the car... walk away.

Three individual gremlins. That’s a new record for me.

That is all! ?

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[TypeSiR]

Sorry to learn that, Senior. Reminds me to startup my project car that’s left idle for months (battery disconnected) due to lack of desire to drive it.

 

[charleswrivers]

Sorry to learn that, Senior. Reminds me to startup my project car that’s left idle for months (battery disconnected) due to lack of desire to drive it.

Yeah... it was more me of those, “Well why the hell have I kept you all these years!?” moments. I’ve changed a plug connector before and I stuck a multimeter on the coil packs for a comparison so it should be a $5-10 new hardness... the dash is 1/2 pulled so I’ll track down the smoker. I have some slop in the transmission and it needs a rebuild. I’ve seen Z1 motor sports sells them for about $2k... and I’ve been quoted about $1500 or so for a full rebuild andthey could sort the starter. It’s actually the 3rd starter in 5 years and I’m starting to wonder if the starter failing to engage is related... though I still can’t see it. It’s that or just bad luck.

I do have an auto port available on base to do work and I have some wrenching skills and have thought of just getting a tranny and swapping myself. Never done the shimming/adjusting side though. Eh. Just not sure. I’ll be going out again too soon to get deep in a project. I could also burn $5k-10k and have the car taken to the other side of Atlanta to Z1 and have them pull the engine, take 2 good turbos with one with a so-so wastegate... throw them in the trash, replace them, replace the transmission, tune this archaic pre-OBDII thing and just give it back. The idea of burning that kind of coin isn’t too appealing. I think I’ll just keep piddling around with it. I’ve had it for 7 or 8 years now I think. What’s a few more?

 

[SichuanHot]

Do you have an old German car or a Nissan ?

Electrical gremlins like those are what you'd hear on something like a E36 or E38 BMW. Hope you're able to address the things these old beauties need. I'd imagine all your rubbers like bushings and vacuum lines need to be refreshed too. I bet you just have some corrosion on the wires going from the starter to alternator and battery.

 

[racerguy180]

I feel you on that man,

I love old(er) cars and won't sell the ones I have and am always looking for something new. But yeah starting up something that hasn't for a while.

My race car sat for like 2.5yrs and went to start her up and stupid little connectors needed replacing, had to re-do Throttle linkage & more stupid little shit.

Hope you can get it figured out.

 

[dellyjoughnut]

I say it depends on where vehicle was stored and maintenance before storing. It’s completely different between my Dad’s Cadillac with the carburetor and the 1950s GM truck with a 1990s LT1 engine. Both stores in the same garage yet the Cadillac takes longer to start up than the truck.

 

[jtrader]

Your tale describes the exact reason why I hate older cars. I've been there, done that. Never again!

~12 years old is my new limit.

 

[charleswrivers]

Do you have an old German car or a Nissan ?

Electrical gremlins like those are what you'd hear on something like a E36 or E38 BMW. Hope you're able to address the things these old beauties need. I'd imagine all your rubbers like bushings and vacuum lines need to be refreshed too. I bet you just have some corrosion on the wires going from the starter to alternator and battery.

Everything you’ve mentioned has been replaced since I’ve owned the car. The suspension components down to the control arms… all replaced since I’ve had the car. I found some NOS Nissan adjustable dampers to retain the stock functionality. All the rubber bits in the mounts are new. Starter… battery… wiring… it’s all fine and also been replaced since I have had it… a few times over on the battery and starter.

Just an old car that doesn’t like to sit undriven. As it is… it’s kept out of the weather in the garage. It has been for the 7 or 8 years I’ve owned it.

My old lady said I ought to buy a new 300z(x) (some call it a 400z… but unless it has a 4L engine, they’re misspeaking) when they come out. She is still is onboard with keeping this one. I’m becoming indifferent to it though. I just got my new plug harnesses in the mail yesterday to get it back up and running on all 6. The other couple things… meh. I haven’t touched it since I put it back in the garage. I’m sure I’ll screw around with it eventually. It may well sit around for a few months until I have more time to devote to it. By then, there’ll be other new and exciting gremlins.

 

[charleswrivers]

Your tale describes the exact reason why I hate older cars. I've been there, done that. Never again!

~12 years old is my new limit.

Ive had a lot of older cars. This is the 5th Z I’ve owned. Still… the ‘86 in ‘99 was kind of just an old car. The ‘90 in ‘00… technically newer still. I had another ‘86 for several years around ‘04… then the ‘77 in ‘13… but I barely got into it. This ‘94 in ‘21 is starting to get where the actual age is telling.

I’ve kept buying and trying to maintain a range of cars that are within a 1 decade range… but a couple decades has passed since I started. It’s getting harder and harder to do as they age, the junkyards have dried up and parts, both new and used, are disappearing. I had to pay a pretty penny to get some parts fabricated that were no longer made some years ago on this ‘94. It’s just getting harder and harder. There may come a day I’ll just pass it along to a person whose more interested in collecting than me just liking the old car for what it is… a fun sports car I think looks good and just go with a more modern car. In the end, most modern sports/muscle cars would run circles around this one. I just still kind of like the old 300zxs.

 

[SichuanHot]

Everything you’ve mentioned has been replaced since I’ve owned the car. The suspension components down to the control arms… all replaced since I’ve had the car. I found some NOS Nissan adjustable dampers to retain the stock functionality. All the rubber bits in the mounts are new. Starter… battery… wiring… it’s all fine and also been replaced since I have had it… a few times over on the battery and starter.

Just an old car that doesn’t like to sit undriven. As it is… it’s kept out of the weather in the garage. It has been for the 7 or 8 years I’ve owned it.

My old lady said I ought to buy a new 300z(x) (some call it a 400z… but unless it has a 4L engine, they’re misspeaking) when they come out. She is still is onboard with keeping this one. I’m becoming indifferent to it though. I just got my new plug harnesses in the mail yesterday to get it back up and running on all 6. The other couple things… meh. I haven’t touched it since I put it back in the garage. I’m sure I’ll screw around with it eventually. It may well sit around for a few months until I have more time to devote to it. By then, there’ll be other new and exciting gremlins.

Wow sounds like it has been refreshed quite comprehensively. It's strange you're having problems like that despite it being maintained. Do you keep the car on a battery tender during periods of hibernation? I have a 1999 740iL that I let sit during the winter outside, albeit on a battery tender and it started right up after a few months of sitting. On the flip side at least you don't have to worry about window regulators.

 

[NukeKS14]

So I just got back from sea a couple days of days ago. My 300zx had a problem I didn’t have time to track down right before I left that turned out to be one of the wastegates that got tweaked and was supposedly tip top. A few hundred bucks my old lady spent on it and getting it back and forth from a shop that specialized in older cars and exotics. Figure it was money well spent.

So I went to go for a joy ride and as soon as I started the car I was frowning. It was just off and rough and figured it was down a cylinder. I did run it around the block to confirm my suspicion and do the ole “pull a plug wire and find out” trick. Yep. One was down. I see then there’s a little smoke coming from behind the dash. FML I think... shut off the car and pull a battery cable. Pull the center dash out... as I figure it’s the aftermarket radio... though it smells
more musty than an electrical smell. I pull everything out radio-wise but with it all out, reconnect the battery to see how it goes. Nothing. Crank the car to give up and pull it in the garage... starter won’t engage with the flywheel on my first try or two. Finally get it to fire up and pull it into the garage, pull the battery cable, curse at the car... walk away.

Three individual gremlins. That’s a new record for me.

That is all! ?

As a fellow Nissan owner (S14 after a slew of S13s,) it sounds like what you're describing is the standard legacy Nissan owner experience. My S14 spends more time on jackstands than on its own 4 wheels. When it runs, though, maan. I hate to see a fellow sailor get rid of another well kept Nissan classic but, now seems to be the time to sell. Best of luck either way.

(Here's a link to all of the Nissan/Datsun FSMs if you need one btw.
https://www.nicoclub.com/archives/use-nicoclub-coms-factory-service-manual-database.html )

 

[charleswrivers]

As a fellow Nissan owner (S14 after a slew of S13s,) it sounds like what you're describing is the standard legacy Nissan owner experience. My S14 spends more time on jackstands than on its own 4 wheels. When it runs, though, maan. I hate to see a fellow sailor get rid of another well kept Nissan classic but, now seems to be the time to sell. Best of luck either way.

(Here's a link to all of the Nissan/Datsun FSMs if you need one btw.
https://www.nicoclub.com/archives/use-nicoclub-coms-factory-service-manual-database.html )

Yeah... I have one and one on my phone. I changed my coil pack connector to no avail. It's something further upstream... the wiring itself (I was told the shop 'checked my plugs') the power transistor module... something. I swapped coil packs to idiot check myself and repulled the coil pack wiring but pulling the wire off the one cylinder does nothing... it starts dead on that one. I just looked up what a new harness would run ($500) but in looking, it appears that running a full new EFI harness is another item that is recommending an engine pull. I've done a few coil pack harnesses over the years... along with the CAS harness. They always came back until now. It's a bummer. I've been studying the FSM... and my bank account. I've got a good chunk of change in my account right now but I wasn't planning on dumping it all into the Z. Once I starting thinking about my rabbit-hole scenarios, then the sky starts becoming the limit with repair if it's not DITY.

Yet to find my smoker. I've cranked the car a dozen or more times and the starter has been fat, dumb and happy each time. I've been contemplating a tranny drop and engine pull late this year. I'm eyeing the 98+ tranny for about 2k, putting adjustable wastegates on the existing turbos and redoing the EFI harness. The one I've had is well loved and had a couple of splices here and there. I've done most of what you can do to cars engine-in, setting timing, replacing heads... never messed with the bottom on a large engine though and never pulled one and starting off with an old VG holds little appeal. I've got to ask around with the new group of guys on the boat I just showed up too and see who might be willing to swing by and assist. My 2 car garage is empty, except for the Z so I'd rather just do it here rather than do it in an autoport and leave it in a bay for days and be obligated to keep going back day after day.

With the new Z looming, I also am torn about dumping cash into this thing vs buying Z #6. The (dreamer) plan my wife and I had was keep this one and she was going to give me a pass on our 4-car-limit and get car #5 in the new Z and I'd be a 2-Z household again. I'd had the '77 and the '94 for a year or two at the same time and it was kind of neat. She's pretty excited for it. I've never dropped big coin on a new car like that as it's kind of an utter waste, but if I can swing it while still having my TSP maxed and not be house/car poor... it may be in the cards. Unfortunately, dumping a pile of money in the 300zx won't lend itself to getting the new one. It's going to have to be one or the other in the short-term. Decisions, decisions! I know once I rid myself of the Z32... I'll never get another. After having had 2 Z32s and 2 Z31s... they're getting to be a real PITA to source parts for and the Z32s were always hard to work on. Virtually no one around will touch them if I wanted to outsource the work. They flat out refuse. ?

 

[racerguy180]

I'm intrigued by the new z as well and am strongly considering it when I'm done paying for my fc1.

My buddy worked at a z shop and loved/hated the VG Z's.

 

[charleswrivers]

Yeah. I do kind of like it. My old lady *loves* it. She liked Porsche Caymans forever and is even more wild about this. I thought about getting her a used Cayman S one of these days but I’ve contemplated getting the new Z and sharing it. I wouldn’t drive it much right now as I’m going out to sea pretty regular so it’s be her fun car while the kids are in school and she’s playing single parent.

I think I’m going to spring for a used PTM in the off chance it’s bad. I see them on eBay for about $50-70 and there’s a single Z32 in the junkyard in Jacksonville. You can actually still see it attached the the front of the engine in the picture. I’m kind of at a loss on this one. I need to pull everything from the ECU and PTM and start doing continuity checks. It’s foolish to consider replacing the harness w/o doing so. I just jumped on the connector immediately since it’d of been the 3rd or 4th I’ve replaced and fixed a problem since I’ve had it. It’s been a frustrating night of fooling around, soldering in a new connector and mostly reading through the FSM.

 

[NukeKS14]

I can't decide on the new Z. I was impatient and got my 2020 FC3 for a daily-upgrade (from a 2010 corolla) but I was strongly considering holding off and just buying the Z when I can get a test drive in, if I like it. I was hyped about the latest Supra until I saw one up close. I am not so hyped anymore. Sure they're a great car, I guess, but I'll stick with my other cars. I just don't like the lines at all. Will see how I feel about a Z when I can see it in person. So far I like the pictures.

Wiring gremlins can be a real PITA. Get one of the RC div homies to borrow a Fluke 289 off the boat and help you chase it down (guessing you're sub from the GA loc.) Otherwise grab a decent DMM and start back-probing. I'd have to dig through the Z32 fsm but most coils have a constant 12v, a ground, and a swiched 5v for trigger. if you've got ground and 12v constant, it's going to be trigger wire so start by disconnecting the negative battery terminal, grab the FSM pinout for the trigger wire to that coil, and verify continuity between ECU and coil-plug. if you're missing 12V then do the same for that instead. The 12v usually is branch-connected at some point though

I had a broken CAS wire in one of my S13's that was inside the insulation. It'd come loose over a bump and kill the car then when it sat/settled would reconect enough to let me get it started. Took me forever to find. I did a continuity test and figured out the resistance between ECU and dizzy plug was strangely high and started jiggling harness from A-B until I could get it to actually go open and cut/replaced the wire in that section.

Almost sounds like a goddamn mouse was in your shit chewing on wires while you were on tour.

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