Another set of stupid Questions
 

I am not a tuner of any kind! I just bought my Z a couple of months ago and i am thoroughly pleased with the way my car handles and performs for a car that is 12 years old! i bought the car from a younger person who kept really good record of the years of service!and I think he only put on like 35k in 5 years which isnt bad. The engine now has 112k on the odometeri have put 4k of those! i know the 120k maintenance is coming and i wnated to begin the upcoming service ASAP! I was wondering if you guys guide me in the right direction for making this wonderful Z car of mine to run in TIP TOP shape after the service! Money is an issue to me I am kinda on a budget and i know these cars are notorious for mantenance costs! my dad has an extreme amount of car and fabrication experience but he is limited in his knowledge of foreign cars! He had never seen a coilpack before we spent 10 mins trying to find the spark plug wires! :D Any i know im rambling but i have searched and am learning about these wonderful cars known as the Z32 and look forward to giving her the proper maintenance and love as this machine deserves! now on to the stupid questions! first when i am driving at any speed and put my car in neutral the odometer then floats up and down between 7oo and 1200 rpms i would think in a finely tuned machine it would idle at a steady rate not fluctuate!...also is synthetic motor oil a good thing for these cars i here so much debate over changing a cars oil and would you recommend the higher priced oil like redline ?.....i have lots of stupied questions i know i have been searching about underdrive pulleys and does anyone know of one with a harmonic balancer i really dont want to have a bad case of crank walk and have to rebuild my engine over a few HP and a little quicker rev! if this thread keeps getting responses and i dont get tottaly flamed for lame questions i will have to ask more of them Im sure







93 Nissan 300ZX N/A
Stillen HI FLOW INTAKE
Stillen CAT BACK EXAUST......what next?....mods or swap :rolleyes:

There are no stupid questions............. :D

A little punctuation in your post will help us comprehend what your asking..... ;)

You can actually leave a line space between the end of one question and the beginning of the next question

We're here to help.

There are very detailed instructions around on doing things to our cars like changing the timing belt and associated parts. I just did mine for the first time a while back.

HmMmM?
 

Synthetic oil is actually a very good thing for your car. Studies shows that synthetic oil actually increases performance by up to 10% and maybe if your lucky about 1-10 hp on NA cars( keyword "UP TO") I'm talking about like F1 car that they be testing it on. But the bad thing is that its expensive and not worth using if your car is burning oil oviously. But anyways it don't matter much on street cars except keeping the life of the car longer.

Ok my question is what type things should i replace first when doing my 120k maintenance i am on a budget so doing a little at a time is best for me

I wanna start with the easiest stuff first and work my way to the timing belt

Should i replace all the sensors to?....what is an EGR and MAF and PTU i understand these get old and possibly need replacing!

Also are there any underdrive pulleys with harmonice balancers so i wont have to worry about crank walk if i decide on UDP's for my next mod?

I have noticed ppl getting away from Stillin's stage chart and if I'm not mistaken an Intake and UDP is stage 1 and exaust is stage 2 and so on i want performance but not at the expense of rebuilding the engine!

1993 300ZX Stage????
Stillen hi flow intake
Stillen cat back exaust

i dont think there is a ud pulley with a harmonic balancer in it for sale anymore

heres a list of your 120k service
http://www.courtesyparts.com/z32/z32..._nonturbo.html

everyone's stage chart will be different. it is more or less just used to show how many engine upgrades your have in your car

so how do i avoid crank walk with an UDP...or is it unavoidable and always a possibility?

The best thing to do is to read up on these forums. Buy a factory service manual and pretty much read it from cover to cover. You'll learn alot about your car and it will answer alot of questions. The FSM also calls out the regularly scheduled maintenance based on miles and/or time.

On most of your sensors, they generally either work or they don't. Don't replace any sensor without knowing for sure that it's bad. The FSM will describe how to check each one.

The easiest maintenance is the stuff like oil changes, new filters, cleaning electrical connections, etc...... start with the battery terminals. Change the tranny and rear end oil. Check the brakes, flush out the old fluid with new fluid.

Underdrive pullies are known to increase performance. I don't have any because I haven't justified the cost for the performance improvement. When I really need a pulley, I'll get a U/D. I think there are drawbacks to eliminating the harmonic balancer, but it might be the difference between getting 180,000 miles out of your motor versus 200,000 miles. I doubt that it'll kill your motor tomorrow. A cheapy ebay one might if it's really out of balance. I don't think the balancers have much impact on crank walk. That is determined by crank to bearing clearances inside the motor, ie: crank end play. Someone correct me if I'm wrong on thst.

On oils, I think it's pretty much a consensus to use full synthetic. The brand is a matter of preference........... I use mobil1. Switching to synthetics on higher mileage engines has been known to cause the engine to smoke a little. My opinion of that scenario is that it's worth a little smoke to have the protection of the synthetic oil.

Lastly, With your dad's knowledge of mechanics and the assumption that he has a decent set of tools, your well on your way to saving a ton of money by doing the work yourself. These cars can be intimidating when you stand there and look at them, but when you have some decent instructions on how to perform a task, these cars aren't that hard to work on.

Good luck........... :)

Somethin else to think about is if you are willing to to do all the work your self on your car. You need to have an exit stratgy/
You need to be either comfortable enough to ask a mechanic for help or be in a situaion to pay someone to help you if you get into a fix.
I m not sayin that your not a mechanic, but i have done timing belt swaps and water pumpes, split flange d pipes, tranny pulls, etc on my two cars and I am 18. But the thing is I was always willing to stop and call a buddy who is a mechanic and get help or visit Z1.
You need to be prepared bc on my TT, I thought I was goin to just perform a 60k sevice that later led to me replacin valve cover gaskets, cam seals, vtc springs, t belt tensioners, wiring harnesses tat were bad.
You ll need to have some money extra for any other probs you may come across.

thanx for all the excellent info!

As with any performance modification there are inherent risks. The concern that you have about crank walk is normal, but the crank shaft on the Z32 is so finely machined that there is really no need for a harmonic balance/dampner. The crank is already balanced. I have it on mine. No problems.

As for stages go,...I saw one that Z1 had up just the other day, but now I can't find it. I don't like Stillen's because it has the dua; ignition listed as #5 on the TT stage cahrt and lists NOS as a higher level upgrade. I don't like SGP's because it has NOS listed as an upgrade stage as well. When you get right down to it,...it really doesn't matter. You drive a legendary performance vehicle. Everyone should bow to you. (Ok, maybe not that last part :D ).

I prefer sythetic oil, but I think Redline is an overkill. I use Mobil 1 synthetic. It's about $4-$5/qt. More imprtantly is the oil filter. FRAM is crap, don't use it. Stick with OEM preferably. Napa sells Wix filters; which are good and K&N also makes a quality filter. There's an oil filter comparison on Rizz's link page.

The idler pullies are an optional replacement at the 60k service. I would recommend you replace them now since you don't know if the previous owner did. It'll add $145 to the job.

Don't replace the sensors unless you're having problems with them. The EGR is very difficult and expensive to replace. The MAF is easy, but very expensive. You'll know if the PTU fails. The car will run like dog sh*t. O2 sensors would be about the only think I would replace in your position; unless you know they were recently replaced. Cleaning the throttle bodies is always something that is good to do. If you do replace the O2 sensors, then replace the PCV valves also since it's somewhat duplicate labor.

Check out my Link Page.
There's tons and tons of info there for new owners such as yourself. Everything from how to's, how stuff works, comparisons, and retailers where you can get stuff online.

Okay, no one has covered this yet. But your idle problem is most likely your TPS (throttle positioning sensor). Check it out, I don't have one of these cars but I am well informed on computer controlled and foreign cars. This is most likely your problem.

Yes, synthetic oil is better. I use Mobil 1 and it is great. The number one rule for synthetic oil is, if you change to synthetic DO NOT go back. It can damage your engine, so if your not willing to spend the money each time a change is nessisary then don't make the change.

Hope this helps, good luck!

i am attempting this with me and my dad, and i am a car salesman so i hardly have any time off!

He has an extreme wealth of knowledge when it comes to fabrication...which will come in handy if I TT swap! He also has worked on cars since he was like 5 years old! But he is old school all the way he doesnt know alot about these cars so were learning together!

I planned on one day off ...we would change the Tranny fluid.... do a radiator flush.... change the differential gear oil.... and do an oil change!... where i will probably switch to a full synthetic blend and get a good filter!

Next day off Spark plugs and spark coil pack wires!

then the pcv valve fuel filter and 02 sensor!

Finally the timing belt ... and replace all drive belts and possibly an UDP not sure about getting just the crank or the whole set?

Does that sound like a good tune up?....and should i take the car to a pro for the timing?or should my dad be able to time it if he can time any other engine made!

1993 300ZX
Stillen Intake
Stillen Cat Back Exaust

Why would you want to change these? Are they damaged?
The coil pack wires aren't like spark plug wires, they don't need to be changed unless they're not working and/or damaged.

For the timing belt, i suggest doing the 60k, 120k, etc. maintanence. Buy a kit at courtesy, conceptZ, SGP, or your local dealer and do it all at once. Just changing the belt itself is a bit of a hassle if that's all you're changing.

Spark coil pack wires old and slightly damaged and very brittle!

Coil pack wires will have to be cut and soldered. First thing you need to do is inspect, inspect, inspect.

Inspect the engine harness to insure all the connectors are good and you have no broken wires. Your coil packs, injectors, egr, ptu, cas and all other engine sensors are part of this harness. $350 to replace it.

Inspect the egine for any leaks, oil seals, water pump, bypass hoses, and FUEL. If the fuel lines around the injector rail are old they could start leaking in the cold.

And finally inspect the belts, cables, pulleys and moving parts around the engine like throttle bodies.

Remember that these cars were not imported passed '96 so everyone of the PLASTIC pieces is at least ten years old if original. Be prepared if you remove a connector and it breaks that you can replace it. Other people have mentioned kits from various places and they are all good parts. Pick which packages will replace the parts you need for the best price. The quality is comparable.

well the reason i say i should replace my coil pack wires is i have already tuned my car by doing a liitle maintenance to get rid of a slight miss.....i seemed to crack all the coil pack wires when removing them to check the plugs....so now i m gona change the plugs as part of the maintenance ....i figured pulling them off again to change the plugs they will really need fixin!....am i wrong can we use electrical tape and still be ok?......are you saying i should just relace the wiring harness!?....what si your advice on doing this maintenance?....do the things i mentioned doing ...in a systematic approach sound like a reasonsable way to perform this maintenance keeping in mind that i am time on a time restraint

IM TIRED sorry if that is hard to understand!

about 2 or threee mistakes. he's on the way to spell liek a champ liek me!!! :D*

GO BARBADE!!

Rplacement coil pack wires are about 10 per (all readers chime in for lower prices) so thats $60 for just the coil packs. If the injectors are in just as bad shape then your up to $120.00 and there's still the egr, ptu, pvc and all the rest. It's just a thought but if you are planning on using electrical tape what kind of connections are you planning to make. Barrel connectors, Soldering, Crimp caps or just twisting them together? Remember this is your engine, not a cheap speaker in the back seat. Connections are the key. Just about everyone here has had some kind of electrical problem fron=m a bad connector. By no means do you have to replace the whole harness if you can't afford it but definately do the research in the car and on the net to make your choice.

I'll sell you all my coil pack conectors for 40$ I replaced em liek not long before my car was wrecked. they are in perfect condition. PM me if intrested.

the electrical tape is for wrapping around the coil pack connector connecting to the coil pack because when i pulled the connectors off to check my plugs the were old and brittle and the clips broke so i wrapped the connector in electrical tape it worked fine.

i would never jimmy rig something under the hood if i thought it would hurt anything

why would i replace the pcv, ptu, egr, etc etc??

still noone has said if that sounds like a good tune up for a car with 112k on the odometer!

i just thought that was a good way to approach it without being overwhelmed all at once!

would i notice the car running bad if ptu or pcv or egr were bad....would i need to change all that if they worked fine now....or wait till they go out?

If you don't know when the T-belt was last changed, I wouldn't drive it much until it is changed. Putting that off can have dire consequences. Normally when T'belts are changed, there's a sticker that goes under the hood that has the date and mileage of the change.

The next thing I would focus on is replacing all fluids, cleaning / replacing all filters, and spark plugs.

Then, a really cheap thing to do is to clean all of your electrical connections and groundz. I wouldn't waste the money replacing any harnesses or connectors unless absolutely necessary. If you break the little locking tab off, tape it up to hold it together. It'll hold for ten years. Now if the wires are fraid and you don't have continuity, or the connectors are turning to dust, then you might need new harnesses.

coil packs, either they work, or they don't. same with injectors, except they're known to leak.

Once again, get a fsm. look at ALL of the things that need to be done at intervals of from 5k miles to 60k miles. If you haven't done it, it needs to be done.......... :D

2nd what denver93tt says.........

perfectly stated and understood!.....timing belt was changed at 67,??? miles so it's coming soon!


1993 N/A 300ZX
Stillen HIgh Flow Intake
Stillen Cat Back Exust
what next?