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What is the item circled in red?

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1.1K views 13 replies 11 participants last post by  Pilot Boy  
#1 ·
I tried searching for this, but I don't know what it's called...

this is a 1983 280ZX I just picked up yesterday.

There are a few more problems...alternator isn't charging and previous owner has been through 3 already...but those I will search for on here and it seems ya'll have quite a good crew on here that knows what they're talking about. I look forward to conversing with ya'll.


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Thanks in advance.
Dwayne
 
#4 ·
I heard mine come on twice in the 7 years I've owned the car. once when I blew a heater hose, the other when I ran the coolant too low.
 
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#5 ·
ya it only comes on when the car gets hot above normal op temp totally pointless unless you see really high temps where you live then it is still pretty much pointless

- maybe time to pull the motor and clean it all up and replace a few things - it looks just a bit dirty
 
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#6 ·
It only comes on for 17 minutes after the engine has reached a certain temp and only after the engine is shut off.
 
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#7 ·
Yeah, a good cleansing will be one of the many things I need to do to it.

I just picked it up yesterday from the original owner (an ex-girlfriend) and it has an electrical problem. Overall, I think it's a pretty good car, but appearently it keeps going through alternators. I plan on trying out a few things on my own, like removing and testing the alternator and starter, and possibly replacing either or both if they're no good. She says she has replaced the alternator 3 times already, so if it's not the alternator or starter, I think that during the cleansing, I will check wiring...especially the ground wires.

If ya'll have any ideas...I sure could use them.

Right now she's putting out 12.21 volts while running, that's with a brand spanking new battery. No increase in the reading with any acceleration.
 
#8 ·
darrels answer is the one to believe. that fan has nothing to do with engine running hot while the car is still running.
thats not to say someones might be irattic if the wiring or motor is failing, but it is only designed to run after the engine is shut off like darrel said
 
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#9 ·
In the lower left hand corner of your last picture is a VERY SUSPECT area, the battery terminal. Rust and corrosion can be killers of these very cool cars.

I run a marine terminal with the wing nuts that hold batery cable. My

A whole lot less room for bad connection than the exposed wire connected between those two plates for lack of a better description.

I suggest that you remove and clean as many electrical connections that you can see.

Starting with that terminal. You may consider replacing those all together.

You are on the right track checking the ground wires...

Enjoy the wrenchin too ; )
 
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G
#10 ·
Before I tore into anything major, there are three areas I would focus on: your battery, your alternator and all the wires that connect the two. All of the fittings should be cleaned. Clean the ground points and replace your cables with new ones. They are pennies to replace and for all you know could be rotted inside the insulation and you would never know it. I would also run a new ground from the engine to the chassis. It's just something I do on older cars. Once you have done that then take your car to an alternator shop and have them run a diagnostic on the battery and the alt. Either one could be bad and drain the battery. Once you are certain they are not the problem then you can start with other areas.

If the previous owner went through three alts. then something is definitely wrong. Do the above, it's a good start. Then get back with us with the results. Good luck.

John
 
#11 ·
A lot of people feel the injector blower system is useless. I wonder how many of them have been stuck somewhere because of heat buildup under the hood — or the resultant hard-start or no-start until everything cools down. I actually hope one day to ADD one of these systems to my '76, which suffers a lot from the 'heat-stroke' syndrome in 100+ degree summertime Central Cal.

And anyway, the system doesn't 'rob' horsepower, so there's no reason to remove it. Besides, if you're a cowboy from Texas or AZ, you're gonna all the cooling help you can get.
 
#12 ·
Ahhh, I remember that on my 1983 Turbo. I thought that was the coolest thing when it went off as I walked away from the car.
 
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#13 ·
Yep, that's your injector blower fan. I've had my 82ZX for 16 years and mine has turned on 3 times (they were really hot days here in CT).
It only stays on for 17 minutes. The sensor switch is located inside the passenger side kick panel.
mark
 
#14 ·
OK, just to make sure you guys know what that thing is actually for.... (I hadn't heard anyone mention it yet) it is to prevent the common problem of vapor lock in the earlier Z's. My '77 is pretty notorious for it. What it does is blow cool air on the fuel rail, and I suppose the injectors too. Without it the heat from the engine will warm up the fuel rail to the point where the fuel inside it will evaporate. So you get a fuel rail with no fuel in it, or just fuel vapor (vapor lock), and the car is hard to start until you fill it (the fuel rail) back up. My Z will start but run like crap for a few seconds. The fan was an OK solution, but the best fix is to upgrade the fuel rail. Take that junk off and ask pallnet to build you a quality fuel rail.
 
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