Zombie-Cakes

Hello!

I recently bought myself an 86 N/A 300zx 2+2 automatic near the end of March. It has a good amount of miles on it (122,564) and needs quite a bit of tending to. The car sat for awhile and was neglected by its owner so here I am trying to get it back to par with the help from some friends.
It's come along a bit since I brought it home, already running happier after installing some new sensors, spark plugs/wires, new distributor w/ cap and rotor, and getting it a new fuel pressure regulator and long awaited valve cover gaskets. It will be going in for a much needed timing belt/water pump and brake line replacement this approaching weekend and after, I plan on getting it a needed transmission flush and then doing a fresh oil change.
Coolant flush will follow close behind.

I have a few photos, but not too many as I haven't really had a chance to snap any while the car was getting worked on. I'm hoping to do a quick "photo shoot" with it once I feel safe taking it on the road.
All these photos where taken with my cell phone, so I apologize for the quality.

Here's when I initially picked it up back in March. Snowy, cold day.



Washed it/vaccumed the very next day. Paint isn't immaculate but it'll be getting a fresh coat probably next year





Two shots of the interior and cluster




The interior needs a bit of TLC. The leather seats are ripped and the headliner is half missing. I also have an issue with one of the t-tops leaking and I believe there is a problem with the same top's drain as I have this constant damp floor on the driver's side (does not smell like coolant but does smell like wet dog). I am really hoping I can tend to that ASAP or get the car garaged/covered in the mean time to help with drying up the water until I do address the issue after the mechanical repairs have been made.

I also learned the hard way who Bitchin' Betty was after I took it out on the initial test drive. Because the door bumpers where so worn down, Betty assumed the doors where open (when they where not) and would not shut up about the door being ajar. Thus that was the first quick fix done on the Z.

Other than that, that's mostly it for this little project car. I'm excited to get it proper for the upcoming summer time and I do hope I can enjoy it a bit before I start doing any major work on it aside from the body/interior. I am planning on, maybe, doing an engine swap but I will read more into that aspect in the future.

Thanks for looking/reading

rogerz

actually 122K isn't that much for a z31. All mine had more. Here's some stuff you will want to do after the immediate problems. Most z31 have leaky t tops. also the triangle windows in the rear are prone to leakage. the seats were leather vinyl and usually toast by now. think Recaro or find cloth seats in a junkyard. if you take out that useless compass and accelorometer you can fit some nice useful gages in there like fuel pressure and vacuum. three screws an it is out then you can use the carrier for the new gages.
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. Usually on a rainy night around Oh Dark Thirty.

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. DON'T USE DIELECTRIC GREASE.

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. Get new boots for power steering. 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. You need to get the car realigned after messing with the front. Have your tires in good shape and rebalance. 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.

88z31guy

I was wandering if maybe you knew how to replace the throttle cable? I could do it but I would most likely butcher it to hell. I wanna be able to do it right. If you could explain it in steps. It would be much appreciated

rogerz

make a separate post when you want details on a particular item

Zombie-Cakes

Hay there,

Thanks for this helpful and in depth response! I do appreciate it especially being a newbie with these vehicles. I'm pretty relieved 122k is pretty good for the car as I've seen a lot out there with 87k and a few lower.
I did actually "fix" the battery area as the battery was installed backwards from the previous owner and the terminals where completely shot. The negative cable was also not bolted to the frame as you said it should be and the battery itself was resting directly on the metal of the car. Thanks for the tip on the gauges and what to do about the seats, as well!

As soon as I get the brakes and belts sorted out, I will be doing a major cleaning under the hood and will do as you recommended. I do want to get the bulk of repairs out of the way, especially the front end and leaking/potential leaking areas as the car won't be garaged for awhile.

Again, thank you for taking the time to write this response.