howdy! just picked up my 280 today, everything is good, but at full throttle the engine hesitates.... like it's cutting off the fuel or something.... any ideas?

thanx! i will post pics as soon as i take them

 

When I got my '83 the previous owner had the timing way out
of whack. Got timing light? Pull the vacuum hose from the distributor and PLUG it. Find the small 2 pin conn on the distributor and unplug it. Now the timing is ready to be set.
If the sticker is gone off of the hood try 8deg BTDC. It helps to mark the flywheel with white out. This will set you base timing.
The computer will now have a usable range to work with. You should see a noticable drop in the hesitation, you can fine tune it at a remote location using the ole slight tight bolt method. Make sure you have NGK plugs and the gap is set.
If it still persists just work your way through a tune-up..new
plug wires, rotor and cap. My Z has finally dwindled its lag at
2800rpm to where its hardly noticed. BE THE MACHINE DUDE!

 

amazing dude, you should do motivational videos or something! it's 2 o'clock in the morning and if i had a timing light i would be fixing my car right now! thanks for the info!

 

I agree, just by reading his post. It does get you somewhat pump and ready to go. Also check your vaccum hoses since they could be old and have a little crack that allows some air to escape. just take it step by step. I replaced all my hoses since they were escaping. I bought silicone hoses (yellow) from pep-boys they have them for $20 the set, they look cool and they work my hesitation is gone. if you are going to replace them go all the way. I did because I plan to keep my car for a long time. good luck.

"It can't rain all the time"

 

Another common cause of hesitation is a bad or badly adjusted throttle valve switch (a.k.a. throttle postition sensor). If you'll do a search on the word "hesitation" on the zcar.com website you'll find tons of good info. on this and other possible causes.

You will be able to fix it, so hang in there till you do.