1990 300zx Project!

[jmtanner23]

Hey! So i'm fairly new to the Nissan game and have just got my self a 1990 Nissan 300zx. I got it from a buddy who no longer wanted it for 300$. I am fairly good with cars and love the way it looks and want to fix it up and restore it to its former glory! So here is what i know:
1.I have put a new battery in the car and started it up. It runs and idle is a little off, and sounds a little lean. Not sure what fuel components to check first but ill probably end up replacing a lot of them.
2. Brakes hardly work, After i started it i drove it around my apartment complex very slow and the brakes are very hard, and don't stop the car. EBrake doesn't stop it either.
3. The steering wheel shakes back and forth pretty harshly whether i am braking or not. Im not sure if this is bushings, or alignment or, rack and pinion.
4. The exhaust is disconnected, the pipes are in the car it a Borla exhaust system i just need to hook those up.
Overall is a clean title car and i am excited to learn more about this car and make it purrr!

I will post pictures and help would be much appreciated. Thanks!

[z.Leinbach]

Highly recommended to replace all 6 fuel injectors with the new style. Ethanol kills the old style, also probably corrosion ridden in the connectors, and or dead or dying injectors. Also sounds like you got a dead brake booster.. definitely recommend replacing both booster and master cylinder along with a brake flush make sure all lines are clean an clear. As for steering that could me many things. But start with wheel balance and alignment, that will give to a baseline to see where you suspension is faring from years of road abuse.. but absolutely first, get a 120K kit and I recommend getting the new intake gears as they start to knock and rattle, and get that done, then get the phase 2 ptu makes a huge difference.

Also parts are expensive. But highly recommended to get oem as much and where possible, especially water pumps!! Cpz (concept z performance) Z1 (Z1 motor sports) spz (speciality Z) are the main sites for parts.

[jmtanner23]

Alright so update, I have had the chance to pull it in the shop and replace a couple things! I replaced the brake booster which was very interesting, not alot of room! the brakes work now and thank you for that advice! As far as the steering was concerned the Tension rods were shot as well as the bushing that hold the front sway bar i replaced these and still had a shimmy when driving. That turned out to be a rim that had been ran into the curb or something and was bent! replaced that and it drives straight now! The 120k kit was installed as well. One thing i have yet to do is time the vehicle. I have a timing light and have timed a car before but wanted to make sure and see if there was anything weird with timing 300zx's. I also replaced a couple of bad connections. The major problem i am looking into now was after driving it around there was steam coming from the hood so i pulled over, There was coolant on the ground and so i took it to my mechanic friend and he told me it was head gaskets!! i have done these before but it seems a little more difficult with these cars as im sure you would have to pull the engine. As i was driving it home the car started to steam again and i found a leak in a coolant hose. Once i replaced this no more coolant leaked. I also did an oil change and didnt notice and coolant in the oil so im not sure if this means there is for sure no head gasket problems or if i am just lucky enough to not have coolant in the oil. Thanks for all your help and please advise!