02for2

Hand Polishing is like a marriage - you only get out what you put in. 4 ought steel wool is good, but as mentioned, lots of rub time. The best metal polish I have ever used - bar none - is Flitz Paste Polish (www.flitz.com). The chrome on the bumpers of my '76 was gone and so rather than re-chrome, I progressively hand wet-sanded them - 400-800-1200-1500-2000-2400 finished with a machine polish of Flitz w/ foam pad. It took 6 hrs. each, but they came out brilliant and then I sealed them w/ POR15 clear and an airbrush followed by a good paste waxing. They don't have the pure 'white' metal look that chrome provides, but unless I point them out, no one sees the difference, in fact they're amazed when I do point it out. Check out the pics in my intro post to see for yourself. I do realize that you want to preserve the chrome, and assuming the patterning isn't in a sublayer, all I can say is try the steel wool oand/or machine polish w/ foam pad as I did. It will take time... seemingly endless. But, if you put in the time, you'll get the results. Cheers!

There are two types of Hitachi SUs run on the Z cars, and they are quite different. The early cars used the Hitachi HJG46W with a domed top, while the late 240Z and early 260Z used the Hitachi HBM46W which has a flat top. Most Z owners replaced the Hitachi's in favor of Webers or Mikuni's. Not that the Hitachi was a bad carb, but many really didn't understand them so dialing them in was much more difficult than the aftermarket carbs. In many cases it boiled down to using the wrong oil for the dashpot. Motor oil was too thick to pass through the damper as the piston fell causing the oil to flow out of the top of the dashpot or collect under the piston to be eventually sucked into the motor. Light machine oil was too thin and after 30 min. running time (and heating) would be too thin to counter the upward movement of the piston as the throttle opens. The ideal was a mix of the two in a 2/3 ratio motor oil/machine oil. SU's are actually one of the easiest carbs to setup once you understand them. Maybe the best resource is: Tuning S.U. Carburettors 4th edition by G.R. Wade, Published by Speed Sport. If you're looking at the HBM46W (flat top), I'd pass. This was a highly modified emissions carb, hastily brought to market by Hitachi. This carburettor is difficult to tune. Instead of adjusting the air fuel mixture by adjusting the jet height, as in the HJG46W, the jet height is fixed. Additional air bleeds into the side of the carb just behind the piston via an adjusting screw, causing the air fuel mixture to run lean or extra lean. Many people tried to compensate for this by re-jetting which in the end only further complicated the operation. In fact, whichever you have, there isn't likely to be an out of the box linkage setup for these and it would be very trying to come up with one, for little or no reliability or performance gain. Cheers!

The car was made iconic in the 80's by Tom Cruise and 'Tony Montana' and has been much maligned and misunderstood. The mainstream Porschefiles instantly rejected it as the 911's successor (it's intended purpose) because of the front engine, water-cooling. Secondly, about 65% of all production were Automatics (made by MB and VERY robust). The design didn't suit everyone's taste - you loved them or you hated them, but then again, the same can be said of the bug-eyed 911. It is a true GT cruiser capable of all-day 100+ MPH cruising. In fact, when the S4 was introduced in 1987, Porsche set a top-speed record for a production car at the Bonneville Salt Flats of 171 MPH. They're labled as Maintenance Hogs, which is true only to the extent that the drivetrain is so tightly packaged that engine removal is required for such things as cooling system component repair and timing belts/tensioners. As with most cars of the era, these had short service intervals. Other than this, the drivetrain experiences very few actual failures. Most of it's issues involve electrical switchgear, window motors and the rear bearings are weak (and a b*tch to replace). Add to this that the term Cheap Porsche is a true oxymoron - I own 3, meaning that I am well-schooled in the fact that everything from a bolt to a filter to a switch costs 4 times what the rest of the automotive world pays. Because of the suspension setup, the car eats rear tires at a rate of 2:1 vs the fronts. A common misconception is that they have a generous helping of VW DNA (like the 914 & 924) - absolutely untrue, every aspect of the car was designed and produced by Porsche (save the MB slushbox). They are seeing a revival right now with the later cars being the most sought after - S4 and GTS. The end of the line 1996 GTS (340 hp v8) was a very impressive car. Many are doing away with the Porsche internals and dropping an LS1 under the bonnet - smaller (more room under the bonnet) lighter - 60 ', better performance, MPG, lower maintenance costs. A company named Renegade Hybrids offers an LS1 (or 2 or 3, even the Z-06) installation with either 5-speed or automatic, and this significantly lowers the operating/maintenance costs. The car was often referred to as the 'Euro-Corvette' and with this conversion, it accomplishes that - truly the Best of Both Worlds! If I had 20 Large fall into my lap, I'd seriously consider finding an Arizona shell and dropping a Z-06 into it! 928's generally fall into two catagories. They either have been poorly maintained (in which case your maintenace costs will easily exceed the car's market value in your 1st 6 mos. of ownership), or they are well-preserved, low-mileage examples, in which case, especially for a DIYer, the costs are palatable. If yours is the former, RUN, don't walk away from it. If it's the latter, with proper maintenance, it can provide a very nice driving experience. Cheers!

Correct! The allen head bolts come as M8X50 or M8X60. Mine screw directly into the stub axle/drive flanges and uses the M8X60 bolts. I'll go with new ones, locktited and if that doesn't work, I'll try to get longer bolts so I can add a locknut to them - you can rotate the wheel so that the nut would be accessible for install/removal one-at-a-time. Cheers!

Sounds like the starter you refreshed wasn't assembled properly, or was gresed too much, or not cleaned up enough. Current from the battery is applied to the solenoid, through the ignition switch, and it pushes out the drive pinion on the starter driveshaft and meshes the pinion with the ring gear on the flywheel of the engine. The solenoid also closes high-current contacts for the starter motor, which begins to turn. Once the engine starts, the ignition switch is released and, a return spring in the solenoid assembly pulls the pinion gear away from the ring gear on the flywheel, and disengages the high current contacts, causing the starter motor to stop. You probably have a broken, gummed-up, or mis-set return spring which is not allowing the electrical contacts to disengage. Cheers!

It's been my experience that these type of issues are almost always the result of improper bleeding, that there is still some air in the system. Power Bleeders are great, but many people make the mistake of using too much pressure. Rather than force the air through the system, too much pressure will result in the fluid being forced past the air trapped in the system. Try rebleeding with a very low pressure, say 10PSI. Also, air likes to rise in a fluid rather than be forced downward through it. Try reverse bleeding them from the bleed nipples up to the MC, again at low pressure. You'll need an assistant with turkey baster and catch can to keep the fluid from overflowing the reservoir. My bet is that if you do this, your issue will be a thing of the past. Cheers!

Congrats! I'm just 8 weeks into my '76 and loving it. Rather than MSD or Pertronix, I prefer the Crane XR700, XR3000 system, it uses an optical trigger and installation is foolproof. Crane Cams was sold recently, but the units are still available, though you may need to hunt for them. I have used MSD and Pertronix in the past and they're a definite improvement over points/condenser. But, the Crane system is a definite improvement over the MSD/Pertronix, esp. if fitting to an old dist. That said, I lust after an electromotive crank triggered system with separate coilpaks, but I don't want to have to take out a mortgage for the ignition system. Cheers!

If you're checking with the suspension unloaded (car raised), you'll get a distorted measurement, the geometry won't be right until the suspension is weighted. If the car is on the ground, suggest adding 150' weight to driver side, if still no-joy, suspect something's bent on the front end. Cheers!

Great deal on Piloti Driving Shoes - make a very nice gift or present to one's self. Piloti Driving Shoes Cheers!

The Sportsman's Guide is running a special on several models of Piloti Driving shoes. This is a great deal with savings of $60 - $100 off retail price. They ran this last year as well and I picked up a pair of now discontinued Nomex lined mid-rise DTMs. This year, I got a pair G-16 low cuts for $26.97 which arrived today. I have owned a pair of Pilotis since '99 and they fit great, are very comfortable, run true to size, and are more streetable than many pure racing shoes. It's debatable whether or not they are the best Driving shoes around, but they are unquestionably the best driving shoes around for under $40. A great gift to yourself, or a nice Holiday gift. See them here: Piloti Driving Shoes Cheers!

OK UPDATE Raised the car today and found that the 4 bolts which didn't shear seem to have just turned out in just 200 miles - unbelievable considering they were properly torqued. The two which did shear (side-by-side) appear to be the last two to work loose and the halfshaft torque was too much for just the 2 of them, but I was able to extract the nubs by tapping them with the edge of a cold chisel and small ballpeen until enough thread was exposed to grab them with a needlenose and turn them out. Upon close inspection, the taps in the stub axle are all OK and a bolt screws into each one with no problem, they do not appear elongated, cross threaded os loose. I'm going to replace all 24 of them (both sides) with fresh OEM Fillister Bolts which presumably have better thread depth being new and I will torque them and use locktite to hopefully prevent this from happening in the future. Thanks to all who replied. Cheers!

I'm in too! Thanks! Cheers!

ABSOLUTELY go for it! ...Renew your AAA membership just to be sure. If you make it - which I'm sure you will... it'd be a non-sequitur, but you'll look GREAT in Park City. If not... well it's fodder for your next film. Cheers!

I have already gotten my Xmas present from my wife courtesy of THE1ST3. I am getting a sport steering wheel for the '02. My present to myself is an authentic pre-WWII Navy Pea Coat which I found after 6 mos. of searching, I am x-navy and their P-coat is the best by far. These are the warmest coats you can find - timeless styling, and I found an NOS model from 1936 in #1 condition - impossible to find today and a real collector item. Already own a timing light.. Cheers!

It pretty much has to be your fresh air vent, either slightly bent to one side, or not fully closing. I rebuilt my box last week too (seems to be the season) and I used the tutorial here. I did have to trim the foam slightly angled at the leading edge for it to close fully and make a proper seal - easy w/ razor blade. If you're lucky, you can adjust the bowden cable at the slider control to make up any slack. If not, you'll need to pull the box. Cheers!

Well, finished all my upgrades about a week ago on my 'new' '76 auto and have put about 200 nice, trouble-free miles on it. Today, I ran some errands and on the way home, a block and a half away in fact, I stopped for a car which was picking someone up. I was on an incline heading up and when I gave the car some gas, the car moved forward about 5 feet. Then, I heard a 'thunk' and the motor rev'd. I stopped and looked underneath to find that the p-side halfshaft had separated from the stub axle. 2 bolts had been sheared off and the rest seem to be OK. Now, when rebuilding, I did have these apart to do the cv boots and the axle bearings, but reassembled them properly and torqued them to the requisite 25 ft. lbs. I pushed the car the block and a half to my garage. Tomorrow, I will raise the rear and do a more thorough inspection. I'm suspecting that the stub axel will be stripped, and i'll go over all the bearings, flange etc., but is there any reason to suspect any damage to the halfshaft or diff? It's very disappointing to have a breakdown so soon after getting it back on the road, but at least it's not January with a foot of snow on the ground. Cheers!

Very clever! It's unfortunate that the guy has his personal life splattered all over, price of fame and all that - but it's not like infidelity is restricted to million dollar atheletes - what the current reasearch?... something like 1:4.6 married couples experience male infidelity? Personally, I could care less what he does in his private life, and I must say that in the many times I've encountered him, he's been the most genuine and nicest guy on the tour, far more humble than you'd think his status warrants. But, my wife runs about 90% of all the major tournaments in the country, in fact, she's out in Thousand Oaks, CA right now running the Chevron, and whenever Tiger is a 'no-show', her company's sales are impacted $100k-$300k due to lower attendance, and this impacts ordinary people. In today's game of golf at the top level, it's all about Tiger. Cheers!

FYI, Carfax is far from a definitive source in researching a used car to buy. Reporting to Carfax by service, bodyshops and authorities is totally voluntary and many many do not report. Also, many people will pay cash for collision repair to avoid Carfax. So, a Carfax report may indicate no issues, but issues can still exist. I personally would never use Carfax because it is next to useless, especially for older cars on the road which pre-date their database. Better to get the car to a reputable mechanic and have a PPI done - Pre-purchase Inspection. A competant mechanic will charge about $150 for this and perform many checks physically - much more reliable than a paper report. And, you can often negotiate the price of a PPI from the seller. Cheers!

I just replaced the heater fan on my car. It had a plastic cover over the bearing (presumably to protect it from weather). I transferred this bearing cover to the new fan motor (spanish Bosch) which it fit perfectly just like the oem. Anyway, the point is, your methods of running lube or machine oil down a rod, or sprayed from an aerosol can would not do any good since all it would be doing is lubing the plastic bearing cover with none actually reaching the bearing. So before you try it, take a mechanic's mirror and look to see that your bearing is in fact exposed, if not, you'll need to pull the box to lube it. Cheers!

Felicitations and salutations! I'm a newby here and we've yet to get properly introduced, though I've read a good portion of your 6k+ posts with great interest. But, I cannot think of a better way than to wish you many happy returns on your 58th birthday! Cheers!

Headgaskets may have been redone, but that doesn't eliminate the possibility the new one isn't leaking. If the head wasn't checked for true and skimmed, it may not have properly sealed with the new gasket. That's unlikely, but still a possibility. More likely is that while the PO may have swapped the head gasket, he may have failed to flush and refill the cooling system. I would start with that. Then do a compression check as a baseline, and watch each over time. On the compression check - don't pay as much attention to absolute individual values as to consistency between all the cylinders. My suspicion is that you do not have a problem, but doing these two things will pinpoint it over time if you do. Cheers!

Where can I get some? TIA Cheers!

I respect your opinion, though I do think it's a little harsh. No one said a thing about a cafe racer. The ziebart process is much refined from what it was back in the '70's. Aside from a reformulation of the material, they've also done away with yellow plugs - they're black now and very discreet. But, like I said, I respect your opinion and acknowledge that everyone is entitled to one. Cheers!

OK, '76 2002. Air pump was hanging by a single bolt on the bracket with both hoses simply disconnected and left hanging at the pump. Swapped Thermal Reactor manifold for Tii manifold. Hose from TR manifold now disconnected at manifold. Both hoses lead to some sort of emissions valve at the block/head under the intake manifold on the driver side (EGR?). Question is - Can I simply remove these hoses from the unidentified valve and be done with it? Or do I need to cap off the valve (note that effectively, it has been left open for God knows how long already)? TIA! Cheers!

I can tell you that it is NOT a Clardy unit - just removed one from my '76. Cheers!