1969 Minty 510 Sedan

[tristinGrind]

So now it's going to have NASCAR-looking 13x7s sticking out from the fenders under all 4 corners with stretched whitewalls? I'll wait for pics before I pass judgement.
But what do I know? I run R-compound 205/40-17s year-round on 17 inch Volk TE-37s.
"cartoon wheels R us"

One of the other benefits to keeping it 13s was the fact that my stock hubcaps will still work with the new rims. So if I ended up not liking the look of the steelies, then I can just put hubcaps on them and it would look OEM with the ability to clear ZX brakes.

I personally love TE-37s. I wouldnt put them on a 510, but I do love them for more modern cars. But I agree with you that we will have to see on Thursday. Im not 100% on the Aero rim look, but like I said I can run caps so we shall see which option I go with. Opinions are always welcome whenever I post pics.

[okayfine]

I'm still unconvinced a, at best, 165/80/13 (and possibly 155/80) on a 13x4.5" rim is going to fit well at all on a 13x7" rim. We put 205/60s on 13x7 BITD. Rim prices aren't going to go up, and if you have money for the JDM plastic rear tails, some decent rubber is cheaper.

To each there own from a looks standpoint, but I'm more concerned with the safety aspect. Not only of the tire itself, but of some quite-possibly unsafe handling characteristics as a result of that stretched a tire.

[tristinGrind]

I wont do anything dangerous. If it turns out the stretch is too much when I get there, then Ill just buy new rubber. Like you mentioned about my GL lights... I have money, I just dont want to buy rubber if I dont have to. I dont know why an inch difference will be that bad. Here is a 155/70/13 on a 7 inch rim and it doesnt look horrible. Only time will tell.



Also, here is a picture of the installed center console once completely cleaned and painted:

[tim bridges]

When do we see the "build" in this project build thread

[tristinGrind]

When do we see the "build" in this project build thread

Lol, I'm just as anxious as you are to see some progress. I'm tired of this busy work on the car... Stickers and center consoles only go so far. I have all these parts sitting in my living room and I can't even use them yet.

These wheels are the last piece of the current puzzle so I can get some real work done. I have 280zx struts, brand new rotors, brand new stainless braided brake lines, and coilovers to install. I just need to the wheels so they clear all of the new components.

I did purchase a 68 license plate light which means I'm one step closer to having a shaved light panel to go along with the new tail lights.

[okayfine]

Are steelie 13s going to clear ZX brakes? None do, and only a few 13" alloys do with extra grinding.

[tristinGrind]

Yes these do. That's why I specifically bough them. All of these racing steelies clear: Aero, Diamond, Bassett, etc. There are guys running them on another forum so I know the combo will work. Otherwise I would never have bought this version of rim... I already have steelies, I really don't need another set.

[okayfine]

Stand corrected - good information.

[tristinGrind]

From my other forum:

In case you're still wondering, you are correct there. The only 13s that clear 280ZX brakes are the steel racing wheels like those from Diamond/Bassett/Bart. Never seen any aluminium 13" wheels that clear, nor stock steelies.

These are Diamonds, 13x7 +0 and they just barely clear the 280ZX brakes.

[tristinGrind]

So driving to a work thing this morning, the engine started sputtering... it was fine with no gas going down the street, but as soon as you started giving it some gas it would get all crazy idle on me. I couldnt get the car above 50mph and I was on the freeway (60mph limit). I got on surface streets and babied it the rest of the way. I had an appointment I couldnt miss so I had to go the distance; I didnt have time to call a cab and no one was close enough to give me a ride. I had these same exact symptoms a couple weekends ago which is what made me miss the last Graffiti Garage meet. I thought it was bad gas that weekend because I had just filled it up at a place I dont normally. Needless to say, it fixed itself.

So back to today, I get out of my appointment and as Im going home I get the same symptoms and now I cant break 35mph. Cars are lined up behind me as Im going super slow and sputtering down the street. I pull off safely and start to do some investigating. I figure its a fuel issue and look at the carb sight glass- barely any gas. I check the fuel filter- barely any gas. I open my trunk and I almost pass out from the fumes. Ive been watching my gas gauge a lot lately because it seems that empty shows 1/4 on the gauge. Ive been doing a lot of math to see what my mpg is and I feel like I should be getting a lot more. The car has smelled like gas for awhile now, but assumed that it was because of my missing door seals and that Im running a little rich. Well it wasnt.

Turns out my breather hose connected to the filler hose into my tank has come loose. I didnt think it was that important, but apparently it is. I connected it up, drove for about 4 blocks and had the same symptoms again. I checked the hose again and it was apart. I tightened it back up, and down the road I went. So... Im not sure if its supposed to be that important, but Im about 97% sure thats what my issue is.

So looks like I have to find a new longer hose to make sure it stays together.

[okayfine]

'69 will have the tank vented to atmo from the factory, and that means the tank isn't pressurized. I posted the exploded view of the fuel system in another thread here recently.

In short, it shouldn't make any difference that the breather hose from the tank to the fuel inlet tube came off. Doesn't mean it won't, but there's no real reasoning behind it. Sounds a lot more like you have a restriction in the tank outlet or the fuel line leading to the engine.

[tristinGrind]

Thats exactly what I thought too... Its not one of the smaller diameter clear lines (one of the three). Its the larger about 1" diameter braided hoses leading from the top of the tank up to near the gas cap. All I know if that if its disconnected, it sprays gas (maybe spray is the wrong word... its not huge quantities) and the car runs/idles like shit. If I connect it the car works great.

I thought it was just a coincidence that it worked after the first time I adjusted it, but having it work three times after it disconnected and I fixed it... Im a believer. I even looked at the FSM to see what its purpose was.

[tristinGrind]

So I started working at a local tuner shop ran by a friend of mine. The benefits are that I now have access to high quality tools, a lift, and space to take the car apart if needed for the project (I live in an apartment).

Last night was a late night in the shop waiting on a local parts store to send over a rear main seal for a customers car. Anyway, after that ordeal we threw my car up on the lift and took care of installing some of the parts I had been hoarding for the last month or two. We installed a set of Troy Ermish front coilovers on 280zx struts and brakes, stainless brake lines, and Aero 13x7 +0 rims with the slightly stretched 155/80s on them. I wish the rubbers were 155/55 or 65s, but I already owned them so it will have to do until they wear out. Then I can buy something with a little better sidewall profile. I had some issues with the drivers side 280 caliper as the stainless line wouldnt thread into it. It seems like the first two threads were stripped slightly so after a little manipulation we got it sorted out and fitted right.

Everything else went pretty smoothly. Adjusted the coilovers to a height I liked and took the car off the lift. Turns out it wasnt low enough... so it needed moar loar. Dropped it down another couple inches to a better height. Now the car has a bit of a rake to it. Unfortunately with the rears being so soft and the extra inch of rim I added, the tires rub if theres even a moderate amount of weight in the back. Theres no way I could even carry a single person in the rear with the way it sits right now. Even 70lbs make the rears rub. So now Im on the hunt for a good setup to fix the rear. Any ideas?

Anyway, here are some pictures:

New rims on stock suspension and height


Side poke on stock suspension and height


Stock suspension


280zx suspension


Side poke on 280zx suspension and lowered height


New rims with lowered height


Profile view to include all new parts installed and front lowered


When I ordered the rims, I ordered a set that were completely black without the yellow stripe and for whatever reason those were the ones that showed up. Unfortunately, I didnt open the box until I went to mount and balance the tires so I didnt notice. The Aero logos on the rims are stickers so Im just going to Goo Gone them ro remove them, but Im not 100% sure what I want to do about the thin yellow line. I still have to completely refinish the stock bullseye hubcaps before I mount them to see how they look. So far I really like just these (with the exception of the yellow). I want to thank Paul for all the suspension components I picked up. They were in great condition and worked out phenomenally.

If anyone local to the Seattle/Tacoma area would like a set of stock 510 hubs and brakes I have them available. They are stock components so its really not worth it to ship... but if youre local and need them let me know as you can just have them.

[tristinGrind]

Rear lowering springs, near rear shocks to replace the blown ones, and a bit of a roll. We didnt think the drop would be as significant so we didnt expect to have to roll the fenders today... well it was required otherwise the car wouldnt drive. Whipped out the bat for a small roll until the Fender Roller we ordered shows up and smoother out the lip a little. It still needs a bit of work to be perfect, but we will use the actual roller for that. Im going to drop the front down another inch since it is now higher than the rear.

[tristinGrind]

Did a little to the car before heading down to Elma for WildRose's birthday BBQ. It was gorgeous outside today so Im hoping it stays that way for tomorrow... Anyway, this arrived yesterday:



Which turned into this:



Which turned into this:



And this: