Well, I was an idiot and bent some lines (at a minimum) jacking up my car. I was jacking it up by the center mounting point and it must have slipped off the point and when I looked under the car the jack had slipped to the front of the mounting point and was pushing through the plastic shield.

I let it down and jacked it back up to see what I had done and sure enough, at a minimum, bent a couple of metal lines that are right in front of the jack point, bent enough that I don't trust they are not damaged or constricting.

Can anyone tell me what these lines are, and if they are reasonable to replace? OEM or aftermarket?

I'm probably going to have it towed to my local shop instead of risking starting it up and driving.

Thanks..

 

Some pics here:

http://www.techav.com/misc/300zx/bent1.jpg
http://www.techav.com/misc/300zx/bent2.jpg
http://www.techav.com/misc/300zx/bent3.jpg

 

most likely power steering follow them and see where they go. Really bad closeups of some bent pipes aren't much good for diagnosing.

 

I know, sorry...

If they are power steering any idea what I should expect in regards to the repair?

Thanks

 

if you would really like answers that would help you and avoid flames give the following info when you post: year of car, n/a or turbo engine, stick or slushbox. Most of us can tell by the year what model you have ie 85T is a turbo z31. Z cars come in many flavors and they are all different. example 84,85,86 Z31's pretty comparable. there were changes in 87,88,89. in addition 300ZX can refer to two completly different cars the Z31 and the Z32. No mindreaders here the more info you can post the more likely you get a cogent useful answer. The cars with L engine (straight six) changed almost yearly from their introduction. A 240Z and and a 280Z have similarities but they can also have wide variance.

go to napa and get the cost (they will need to know year and model!). then decide to DIY or pay the price. since you seemed okay with jacking the car up I would go with DIY. shop rates are pretty high these days.

 

Sorry, you're right of course - I just typed this quickly very early this AM before I headed out for work.

I did post in the Z32 forum, so thought that should be obvious but I did lack many details in my post.

1992 Z32, twin turbo, manual transmission. I'm not going to DIY, feel I caused enough damage as it is and I'm don't like working under my Z since I'm very light in experience and it's such a pain for me to work under.

I typically do the standard oil and filter maintenance and that's about it.

I guess I was just hoping I'd get lucky and someone would be able to ID it quickly and tell me how big of a job it is for my piece of mind.

Thanks

 

it's not a big job. you do need jack stands and some reasonable mechanical skills but nothing compared to say dropping the tranny and doing the clutch. tools you can get fairly cheap at Harbor Freight. they are very reasonable quality for someone that uses them infrequently (which is most of us). when I was a wrench in a Diesel shop I used them daily and had no bad experience.

 

Some zoomed-out pics with the area in question circled would help a lot with identifying the lines that are bused.

 

Shop confirms it is the power steering lines. Says they look like a bitch to replace, lots of labor to get to where they connect, so he's suggesting he cut and replace the bent/broken portion of the lines with compression fittings. Seems confident they will last and said that's what he'd do if it was his car. Seems like the way to go.

Any thoughts/comments?

 

if you like being led down the garden path by some silver tongued devil go for it. but sounds like someone who is full of **** and not a real mechanic. Find out the price of the hoses from NAPA. get a quote from the shade tree mechanic you talked to (better yet go elsewhere). get a quote to juryrig with compression fittings and a quote to replace with new lines. Get a warranty in writing as to who pays when the compression fittings leak (they might well). pressure hose listed by Oreilly at around 150 bucks

Another problem might be the HICAS system is involved if your car has that feature. My 96 was electronic so not the same as earlier models. you might ask down at the dealer might get lucky and find an old timer that knows something. I might also post a query about hicas and how it works. someone may have worked on that and could steer you right. there is a way I am told to lock it out. do you have the fsm? if not download from xenon and look at the steering section. I would start the car up move the steering wheel back and forth and see if anything is leaking

you might also post your geographical area and ask for anyone know a z mechanic (that is honest not cheap) around Seattle I could direct you to some.

 

Fluid is definitely leaking.

He got back to me and said he doesn't feel comfortable with the quick fix because the lines were not the size he expected, so looks like we're ordering up the proper lines.

I do feel comfortable with this guy, he's a solid shop around here that a lot of people recommend. Not a Z shop, but a good repair shop.

He did mention they were for the rear power steering, so I do believe that's HICAS if I understand correctly.

 

I've looked at the eliminator but think I'm going to move forward with the line replacement for now. Will post back.

Thanks for the feedback.

 

Just wanted to close this thread. Everything seems to be good after replacing those lines. Ended up being a ~$600 "oil change" after expedited shipping of the lines (from CA), labor, etc.

Lesson learned!

 

Yeesh, congrats on a healthier-than-before Z though.