Hi, I am new to this forum and am from New Zealand, I have just bought my first ever ZX, a 91, NA, 2+2 and in the 4 mths I have owned have had to have the Auto rebuilt already, but I have a few questions for you guys since you all seem to have a lot of experience with Z's...here we go...

1) My car seems to hesitate after I accelerate from red lights etc, at about 2000rpm it kinda bottoms out for a few seconds then comes right, I took it into the Local Nissan Service guy who plugged it into the Computer and said all was fine, but I gotta take it in again in a few days cause its driving me nuts! any ideas?

2) when I turn on my A/C deep down inside it sounds like Darth Vader with this throaty kind of growl? any ideas?

3) what do the Recon and Econ buttons do on the A/C?

4) When should I use the power/hold button?

5) My T-Tops dont leak, but I tipped them up one day and a couple of these funny looking plug things fell out! also, the car is fine in the rain expect if I open the door when its raining, after that i get water dripping on both sides of the car, I checked the door seals, the seal doesnt sit flush with the car door rim, there is a piece of metal that pushes the rubber out part of the way down, is this normal?

6) How do I know if the fan thingy by the cabin lights is working?

7) finally, when I brake the car is fine, but the last few seconds of braking creates a cracking sound in the brakes kinda like someone has stuck potato chips in there, can you guys help me out with any of these quieres? thanks guys!

3) Econ set the a/c to use cool air from the outside (if there is any) rather than to cool it itself. Recon, will recirculate air inside the car, rather than get fresh from outside - usually leads to steamed up windows and is only really useful when following smelly diesels !

 

4) 'Power' changes the characteristics of the gearbox slightly, holds onto gears longer, changes up later etc. 'Hold' keeps it in a gear. Don't think these options are on UK cars.

 

7) Are the brakes badly worn or warped ? Maybe this is just the pads sticking on the discs and then releasing as you are coming to a stop. Bit like inching along with the brake lightly on and the funny noise that makes.

3) Econ set the a/c to use cool air from the outside (if there is any) rather than to cool it itself. Recon, will recirculate air inside the car, rather than get fresh from outside - usually leads to steamed up windows and is only really useful when following smelly diesels !

 

4) 'Power' changes the characteristics of the gearbox slightly, holds onto gears longer, changes up later etc. 'Hold' keeps it in a gear. Don't think these options are on UK cars.

 

7) Are the brakes badly worn or warped ? Maybe this is just the pads sticking on the discs and then releasing as you are coming to a stop. Bit like inching along with the brake lightly on and the funny noise that makes.

I might be scaremongering here, but just in case:

 

2) the air-con system circulates oil to keep all its bits going; there's a pressure sensor that detects whether the AC is gassed up and good to go, and therefore whether it needs to perform the oil circulation.

 

If there's something wrong with the sensor, or you're out of oil or gas, or there's a leak somewhere, then *maybe* some of your AC parts are on their way to seizing up. Which is what happenned to my car sometime back before she fell to my tender care =)

 

Raz

 

I had my Air-Con Compressor go on me the other day, I had no idea it was about to go it just failed, I had no odd noises or anything, I just got a loud piercing scream which went into a grinding noise then smoke.....The unit siezed.

 

After help from Mike (Beamer) I cut my Air-Con Compressor belt and removed it, bingo!! I can use my Z again but without Air-Con not a problem short term.

 

Matty.

btw, the problem with the bottoming out doesnt happen all the time, only sometimes, plus the revs tend to fluctuate

 

2) the AC tends to work fine, just this weird deep throaty noise

 

 

Thanks for the help so far guys,

Andy, the brakes seem ok (have been checked by a mechanic) and have passed Warrant of Fitness, but yeah just a wierd crunching sound

1) Many people have had this problem. look here http://www.twinturbo.net/ttnetfaq/z32faq.html

 

 

5) Every time I open my door or even window I get a nice trickle of water landing right on my lap. My door does not leak nor does my T-Tops. So you are not alone on this

 

6) Fan thingy? I have no fan thingy!

 

7) do you know what side the car the noise is coming from?

Fan thingy - do you mean the fan for the aircon temp sensor? Buzzes after a while through wear on the bushes but nothing to worry about! All zs with aircon have this I think but you don't know its there 'cos its not visible!!!!

 

CheerZ,

 

Andy

 

[This message has been edited by andyduff (edited 18-06-2001).]

I have that brake noise exactly as you describe and I'm reliably informed that it's because some of the shims/spacers are missing.

Apparently you should replace them with each set of pads but this is not always done and they are sometimes lost.

Results in the pads shifting under braking and then moving back as the car finally comes to a halt.

Not dangerous but annoying and embarrasing!

 

Take a look at: http://www.300zx.co.uk/cgi-bin/manual.cgi

Select Brake System/Page 12

 

You will probably find you have some of these bits missing!

 

[This message has been edited by ChrisC (edited 18-06-2001).]

You can check the aircon temp sensor fan by unclipping the plastic surround where it has the slots at the rear end.

I don't have a fan by the way...