Ryan Fields

Well ill start off by saying this is my first z and im going to post a description of it and what i have done to it in my first paragraph and if you don't want to read all of that i will post the problems in my second paragraph. and even with the problems it has i phuking love it! also i live on Hawaii so getting parts is not the easiest or the cheapest. i bought my 86 300zx turbo at an abandoned vehicle auction a few months ago for $100. i was stoked. surprisingly i noticed that that the odometer was only at 39843 miles i got even more stoked! i found dmv paperwork backing this up in the glove box too!its super clean inside and out, could use a new paint job and new exhaust but its a 26 year old car that has lived near the ocean and in the hot sun for almost all of its life. i started working on it replaced spark plugs, battery, air filter, fuel filter, oil filter, going to replace tires this weekend, changed fluids, and i got it started. it now sounds great except i need to replace the exhaust cuz its a little rusty. but it runs smooth and idles perfect i haven't driven it except up my driveway because the tires are pretty old and i don't really trust them.

now onto the problems. i bought the chilton book for this car and it mentioned that if the lights for the adjustable suspension are blinking then there is a problem in the system somewhere. i also read on a forum that the different sequence of blinking lights means something different. im not sure about that but if its true on mine the setting that the switch is on stays on solid and the other two blink. if that means something specific then could someone please let me know what that is! also in my z i have the digital dash, unfortunately the gauges don't work! i am gonna post a picture of my dash cuz it is only the gauges and not the light indicators such as brake and security and what not! also the digital accelerometer and compass do work. im not sure if that makes a difference but i figured id mention it. on this matter i as well read on a forum that if you are have a problem like this it is normally the power supply and it is possible to just re-solder the connections. if this is the case that would be awesome as we all know how expensive those parts are!

these are the only problems i have come across so far so if anyone has any advice on these matters that would be grand!

rogerz

you one lucky son of a gun. you scored the best looking of the 31 class (my opinion). 38K miles is like a new car they last. scrap the adjustable suspension it is dead and not worth bothering with. download the fsm from xenonz31 free. chilton not always good. gages go to azbum website and check out sections on common problems may well be the power supplly. scrap the accelorometer and compass put in a boost gage and fuel pressure. what i did but you really want a boost gage because you are going to install a boost controller soon.
here is some general advice that will save time in the long run:
Get your battery load tested. Be sure you have clean, tight corrosion free terminals on both ends of your battery cables. Be sure the ground (negative) cable goes to a bolt into the frame before going to the starter. grounding through the starter is not a reliable connection. Z's don't like low voltage. causes the electronics to act funny. it is possible to have enough amps to crank but not enough voltage to run the electronics. If you have one size fit all cheapo clamp on terminals they are a problem waiting to happen.

Clean the connectors for the maf or afm, ecu and tps. Deoxit by CAIG is probably the best connector cleaner on the market. spray with CorrosionX after cleaning and before putting together this will help prevent any further corrosion.

Replace outer tie rod ends, and ball joints. replace the bushings with poly (don't forget to lube them as directed unless you like squeaky things). New shocks. all those things will make you think you are driving a different car. doing them piece meal is a waste you won't see a great improvement until you do the complete job. Rear bushings nice too but more work and you won't notice as great an improvement. Rear shocks also because if the fronts are gone so are the rears. if car squats when you jump on the gas the rears are gone. If you have the electro adjustable shocks they are DEFINITELY GONE.

If you are doing a turbo car shocks (electro adjust I think may be only on the turbos) then you need the adapter plates to fit modern shocks to the car. Easiest way is find an n/a at the junkyard and take the mounting plates. They may be available thru NAPA (listed) but I had the n/a plates.

get some redline mtl in the tranny, put some synthetic in the diffy. replace the clutch hydraulic master and slave they crap out at the most inopportune moments. they need a little TLC but they hold up. My 85 had 250K on when sold and my 86 is just turning 200. You might want to just go ahead and replace timing belt cause if it really is 38K probably the original timing belt. vacuum hoses for the climate control usually shot by now. bunch of other things but all I can think of for now.

Ryan Fields

thank you! thats a big help!

86tcoupe

Saying hey from another 86 turbo coupe 5sp owner

I luv my adjustable suspenion my frt. shock /strut were weak I rebuilt ,drained and put in new fluid and is like new

I agree with rogers the best looking year to me too

did your car have the fuel rail recall done ? ,as it is a potential fire hazard .
with it the left bank injectors fire and then the right

Ryan Fields

Do you think it would be more cost effective to rebuild them rather to buy new ones?

Im not sure if it had the recall, i imagine so. whoever owned it before me took pretty good care of it.

on another note, i finally got new tires on it and got it runnin!! at first it had a really bad throttle lag. definitely not as responsive as it should be. but it got up to speed with no problem. it drove smooth but just felt like it had no power till i got it up to like 40 mph and then after i parked it all of a sudden with no noise or warning it just wouldn't go at all. and then the dash gauges came on!! haha! one thing breaks one thing fixes itself! i have checked the transmission fluid and it is full and clean. any other ideas?

rogerz

working on the electro shocks is a waste they weren't all that good to begin with. 25 year old technology vs state of the art. might as well put carburetors and a point type ignition system on there while you are at it. is that an auto tranny? your lack of low speed power could be the kickdown solenoid is not working. if you get it working again try taking off in whatever low gear setting is and see if it zooms until you have to push it up a notch. wondered why my 83T was such a dog off the line and then zoom when you hit 45 or so. found the kickdown solenoid wire hanging loose under the dash (or somewhere). like trying to take off in third gear on a stick

Ryan Fields

Haha! Ya, i kinda figured that. i plan on replacing a lot of the suspension and steering parts! Yes, unfortunately it is an auto. i will look into the kickdown solenoid. Thanks

Ryan Fields

im having trouble finding any information on the kickdown solenoid for the z at all. any ideas?

rogerz

it is in the fsm. free download from xenon OR you could buy the $50 cd from courtesy nissan.

Ryan Fields

ahhhh... the one place i haven't checked yet!!! haha! now is it the kickdown switch or the downshift solenoid?

rogerz

probably be the same thing dude. did you say hello to our glorious leader whilst he was in paradise.

Ryan Fields

well i found both of them in the FSM. the downshift soleniod is on the transmission and the kickdown switch is by the gas pedal. and no, i did not haha

86tcoupe

Ryan
I would save the old ones shocks, if you do replace I really like having the adjustable selection. the oil in them is like water to start with and burns easily if the shaft is in good condition . I had a rear that showed it leaked up top I drilled a 1/8 then 3/16 hole to let out the old oil and syringed new in new motorcycle fork oil then a gromet plug to seal . a lot of the time the solinoid inop is wiring or connection and have had no trouble . mine is not a daily driver
yes as rogers said you lucky son of a ____ how about taking a picturesq background pic with your ride soon , it was -30 degrees here this week in Missuri. I was there in 83 , and almost was shark bait off Maui

Ryan Fields

So i have heard different theory's on what this could be, but overall it is sounding to me like my problem is my transmission. i have found a donor car, a 85 n/a 5 speed. would it be possible to swap my automatic on my 86 turbo for the 5 speed on the 85 n/a?

Ryan Fields

What i guess i should have asked is what would i need to buy to do this swap? The 85 has a little over 80000 miles on it. Are there things that i should buy new or do you think i should be able to pull everything off of the 85? Obviously you don't know the condition of the 85 but if i get super lucky and everything is in great shape are there parts that i should just buy new?

zxguy1986

You need the whole clutch assembly too... but there's more to the swap than you think. Just keep asking here until the pros reply with some detail. They're prolly thinking about it... Stuff takes time. But they know how to do it.

It isn't exactly "Take out A. Install B." If it were that easy, there would be ZERO autotrans turbos left on the planet. Every turbo wants a 5 speed tranny.

reddzx

I just picked up a black 86 turbo 5 speed a few weeks ago myself. Good luck with your build.

Ryan Fields

so i wes messing with my z the other day in it went into gear for a little bit. i drove it down the road where it then decided to stop working once more when i put it in reverse. i am starting to think that it might just be the transmission pump that is going out. are there any sure ways to test this and if this is the case and it is just the pump is it reasonable to replace just the transmission pump?

Donn144

I hate you! WOW! You are a lucky Dude!

Your car looks lot like the 84AE..the front scoop and all. The 84 has a the flairs over the back wheels..