S30 Ownership Flaws

[Alfadog]

Previous owners

[kenz240z]

I bought my '73 in April of 2003. The PO had brought the car to Longmont, Colorado from Arizona, with the intention of fixing it up. Instead, it sat in his yard for 7 years. Initially I wanted to find a Z car so that I could drop in a small block Chevy engine. Something about the sound of a small block with a street cam and a nice pair of glasspack mufflers coupled with the sporty design of the Z appealed to me...still does!

Anyway, after starting to work on it I changed plans and have striven to keep it mostly stock. Being a purist about automotive restoration, I can't make the claim that my Z is restored, but it looks a damn sight better than when I bought it!

As for problems, three things stood out to me:

1. The rear wheel arches, rear hatch and A pillars had areas that were rusted through. One of the most expensive repairs I had done was to have a shop weld in replacement wheel arches for $600. The other rust repairs I was able to tackle myself.

2. Fuel delivery issues caused problems with acceleration and top speed. For awhile, I couldn't get my Z to go faster than about 60 mph on the highway. I finally tracked the problem down to a clogged fuel filter in the electric fuel pump mounted back by the fuel tank. Replaced the filter and my fuel delivery problem was solved.

3. The suspension on my Z was shot. The smallest bump caused such a jolt it almost rattled the teeth out of my head. Turns out the strut inserts were shot and the bumpstops must have disintegrated, because none of the struts had one. I rebuilt the front and rear suspension on my Z and now it handles well, with a firm ride and the steering is tight.

Most everything else I've done has been cosmetic: new paint, new carpet, new headliner, etc...

[Zrush]

Well when we purchased the Vintage Z in 2000 we had to have the bumper re-chromed, it was "burnt" in one small area. The car was also missing the rubber under the drivers side door. No worries as my husband made the dealer reduce the price for these minor items.

The 77 (now Zrush) was filthy dirty, and I believe the wiring was a nightmare.

The Scarab:love: was near perfect except for some nicks in the original paint. But she's going in the shop after the first of the year for a "refresh/restore". Want to have her done for the Z Car Convention here in Florida in 2007.

Vicky

[=Enigma=]

Well I got pretty lucky and found a clean one owner car with low miles and no rust to speak of, aside from surface rust on the suspension components, oil pan, and engine block, no cracks on the dash(looks brand new), and a clean interior with original footwell carpeting with NO WEAR(used rubber mats from day one).

My beefs with the P.O. are:

1) Continued use of the maintenance hatches even though they were out of alignment and chipping the paint on the fender.

2) Leaving one of the fuses partially engaged in the fuse box causing it to heat up and melt the cover

3) The wannabe/fakie alarm system hooked up to an aaaooogahhh horn. That was gone in an instant. Free to interested party.

4) The poor choice of pin switch placement for the alarm in the hood and hatch.

5) A missing stock horn

6) Garden hose as a supplement to the rack bushings

7) Cheesy Kragen fog lights and overkill steel shank mounting method.

My compliments to the P.O. for realizing that it was no longer of use to him and that it should really go to someone who would bring it back to it's former glory and use it as intended. And that would be me.

[280z]

the factory seats rock, two thumbs down for rust