My '82 280zx...is probably shot
 

Well...my Z..started running bad on the weekend. I limped him to work for 2 days. He has no power...and dumping fuel in #2 and #3. So my brother came over. And we spent a few hours..doing process of elimination. Tried swapping AFM's...dizzy's plug wires etc... And no consistency in 2 and 3. With the spark. So we are at a loss. And it still running like crap. So after work tomorrow. My brother is coming over...and we are doing a compression test. If those cylinders show zero...or close to it. I know that the valves are stuck. And the engine is screwed. Meanwhile...I am borrowing my brother's '83 Celica GTS. Which used to be my car. I sold it to him over 2 years ago. And if my Z is shot. We will work on my slicktop. And try to get it on the road. I guess my Z is ready to be put down. And restored for the turbo conversion. He is tired...and wants to rest. :087:

So that is the status right now. I already miss my Z. :( I'm so stressed out and bummed. This just plain sucks.. :022:

Mother eff!!! Not cool. :s-chainsaw:

Turbo time!!!!!

second ^^^^


but if its dumping fuel in those cylinders it might not be a valve, it might've washed down the cylinder walls and fried the rings. now how to tell? if the compression test shows up very low squirt about a table spoon worth of oil in that cylinder quickly then stick the tester back on it and try the compression test again. if the number raises significantly then its the rings. this happened to my Z32, pretty depressing stuff

why have you ruled out just having two bad or stuck injectors? this is the first thing i think of when hearing "dumping fuel"

Well..did a compression test. The cylinders are better than I thought. And then I decided to turn the pressure regulator around. Well...low and behold...all the cylinders were going pretty much. So I got on the freeway with him. And he got up to 80..but was still missing a cylinder. So got back home..and 3,5 and 6. Decided not to work right. So I took the rail off..and we cleaned the 3 injectors. Nothing..still running on 3. My brother and I..are both at a loss right now. We are stumped..at this moment. What's crazy..is it was 2 and 3 the night before. Now it's 3, 5, and 6. Which makes absolutely no sense at all. :017: :075:

Maybe it needs a good tune up? Plugs, wires, cap, rotor, sensor & connector cleaning....

second^^^^ could have a wacky dizzy or ecu problem you dont know about though gotta check for injector signal and then actually check for flow maybe timing is goofed who knows. also what were the compression numbers?

check for breaks in the injector wires, and bad connections at the plug.
what do you mean all the cylinders were going? they all had equally low compression?

i always hear dizzy with this car. educate me. is this merely a different name for a distributor or something more specific?

thats it. dizzy=distributor cause its similar sounding and it spins and is shorter to spell

Here are the compression numbers. That we got the other night.

#1-175 psi
#2-175 psi
#3-175 psi
#4-180 psi
#5-175 psi
#6-180 psi

It is definately not the cylinders. My engine is stronger and healthier than I thought it was. Anyway I am going to spend all day Saturday on it. And take the fuel rail off. Clean it..and the injectors thoroughly. And I might try hooking up my after market regulator also. How do you hook that up? Because I think it is different....than the stock regulator. And also...clean check the sensors and such..real good. Anything I can think of..I wil check or clean. Or maybe even swap out with my other Z. Any tips would be greatly appreciated. So anyway hopefully next week. I will be driving my Z..to work again. I will keep you all updated. And keep the comments...tips..thoughts coming. And thanks again..:)

sounds like a good plan. i wouldn't bother with sensors and the like. just check all the connections between the battery and the injectors and spark plugs. if it seems to be dumping gas in those cylinders (i don't know what evidence you used to come to this conclusion), then the problem may be a lack of spark. so do the dizzy cap and plug wires too, like nismo said.

thanks for the clarification snw.

check your dizzy shaft, it may have play in it and causing some weird stuff, mine did that too. if not upgrade the injector plugs, or at least check them. its either spark or fuel control. the injectors are most likely fine.

Wildman when you take the rail off to clean the injectors do the fancy setup that I made based off of jfairladyz's example. Plug the return line, and run a line from the pump to filter, to rail. Feed the pump with a little container of fuel cleaner/fuel mix and use the car battery to operate the pump and run one injector at a time. This way the mixture has nowhere to go, but through the injector. When I did this it was surprising at how much the fuel injectors spray pattern cleaned up. Some of them were spraying, but very lightly and in patterns that did not match the others until the crap came out. I also got enough crap that it apparently clogged my fuel filter.

He's alive!!! :icon_super: :biggrin: :038: Details later.....:wink:

good to hear, ill wait for the details, at least you can drive it now

Thanks man..much appreciated. Anyway I decided to put the JSK rail back on. I also took all the fittings off the other rail. And re threaded them on the JSK..with the thread sealant. I also blew through all the fittings to make sure..there was no blockage. Then put it all together..and still was running horribly on 3 cylinders. (even after I cleaned and switched the injectors) Which determined..that my injectors were good. (Good ole' Beck/Arnleys..great products) So then I decided to swap the good cylinder plugs..with the bad ones. Sure enough...the cylinders traded places. So I went and bought all new NGK plugs. And low and behold..my Z..haule a$$!! I was so stoked..and thrilled to the max. Anyway so basically it was the plugs. He still is not idling like he should. But he runs and drives awesome. So I will take my time..in figuring out the idle problem..and miss. So anyway...I will bet that was what was wrong with my slicktop. So I will be working on that one here soon..:)

Well the other night...my Z had something else go wrong. I've had to start him with a screwdriver. Cause the ignition is jacked. So I started him the other night. Leaving my girlfriend's house. Then I was tucking it in the back of the stereo console. Where I had been doing for about a week. Well it touched metal. And the ignition was dead after that. I have juice everywhere else. Except anything to do with the ignition. I checked the fuses..and the fusible links. All good....so I am thinking it is the ignition relay. Any pointers..tips..suggestions...thoughts? Let me know..and thanks before hand. Also I will be working on him today. And hopefully get him running again.

well id start with a new ignition, those things kinda are the heart of the whole system for these things, at leat then you have something to start with, and test from. broken stuff sucks to test. then its to the wiring diagrams. i found that there is a wire that needs power, its tan in the engine bay, and runs from the front relay center, if there is no power there, then the start wire to the starter solinoid wont work. this was on an auto tranny, but the same may apply for yours.

heck, replacing the ignition isn't even a bad idea as if it hasn't been done semi-recently it's bound to be on it's way out anyway.

Well the ignition itself was okay. I used the screwdriver on the switch..not the starter. It is the tumbler that is screwed up. But I fried something. So that is why I think it is the ignition relay. I already have the dash area ripped apart everywhere. Thanks for the suggestions..keep 'em coming.

Okay....replaced all the fuses. And took the relays out of my '81. Which I know were good. (ignition and acc. relays) Anyway they are a little different. So I am taking the 2 relays out of my '83. And see if they are the same. So basically all I have is the interior lights..headlights...no wipers..blower fan...dash lights. turn signals...no windows...mirrors etc...basically anything to do with ignition and accsesary is dead. Any help would be greatly appreciated. I have never run into this before...:(

No change still nothing. So all I have is running and taillights...headlights and interior lights. Everything else is dead...nothing working. I would appreciate anything else you guys can help me with. I am going out there soon to tear apart the dash..And take it out...please help..:(

Well the dash is out...and it looks like a cyclone hit the inside of my car. I found some wires that were burnt. So I cut and respliced them. Still nothing....I am about ready to swap entire wiring harnesses. I am at a total loss.....this is really mind boggling..arghh!!! :017: :075: :armata_PDT_35: :102: :disgust:

yeah electrical problems usually do blow ass.

I hate that electrical burnt smell. When I had my 70 Charger I was on the freeway and the suddenly the inside of the car was filled with smoke...one harness had a bad day...very bad day. Good luck with that. Take Care.