Tell us about your Z!

[bigsinz]

Got my '77 as a graduation gift in 2003. went through it shortly after w/ grad money to get it up to snuff (brakes, suspension, stock drivability, starting/charging stuff). then i put it to work driving for 2 years straight to and from college 5 days a week like any other led foot teen. about 60 thousands miles to date! i owe it, it doesnt owe me. so its a daily driver, mechanically solid, it thinks it just rolled off the lot. but thats about it.

[beandip]

I bought my '73 for $500.00 in Feb of '01 , she was a parts car for the PO. All in primer and rough , the roof had been sat on and had Butt dents just back of the windshield. The rest of the roof was as smooth as a sack of potatoes. The PO didn't have any mechanical skills and tuned the engine to the point that it hardly ran . It didn't smoke and no weird noises from the block so I went for it. After a good tune the engine ran like a watch . I replaced all the brakes rotors ,master cylinder and tires . And drove her like this for 2 years while I fixed little things that were wrong . 3 years ago , about , I started a redo not a restore . I pulled the engine, trans , all the interior and wiring . All the glass was removed , and the front fenders and doors and hatch . I installed a R200 diff. Also removed the fuel tank and did away with the evap tank. The gas tank came out because there was body damage on the rear end of the car. To repair it correctly the tank was in the way . With the help of my friend , escanlon, the body work was completed and I prepped her for paint. All the body work and painting was done in my garage at home and I have done all the mechanical and a lot of the body pounding . I shot primer and Scanlon the color and clear . All the while she was apart , almost 3 years , I rebuilt all the stuff that had been removed form the car. A new floor pan had been welded in , I had that done. A nearly fresh 280zx replaced the L-24 , the automatic was retained , I finished , or almost so, shortly after Ed did his Z, about a year ago. Before the interior was reinstalled all rust was taken care of and any bare metal was treated with POR. about 80 sq ft of sound deadening was added inside the cabin area . I have just over 3000 miles on her now and have enjoyed every one. We painted her '05 Ford Mustang " screaming yellow " . Like the saying goes , ''WHY BLEND IN WHEN YOU CAN STAND OUT " With the performance cam and the SUs , headers and so on , she is a strong runner . One day I will post pictures. I did the car for me , she is not a show car, but does look nice . As I stated not a restored car but redone . She is valued at $12K now.:rambo:

[240ZGL]

Well the body and paint are in real nice shape. I just need to rebuild, renew, rewire, recheck Ebay and maybe rethink the rest of the car. But it sure looks shinny sitting on the jack stands.

Side note: Every now and then I turn up the radio in the garage, sit in the car and pretend I'm going somewhere. Gets great gas milage too.

[Darkstar]

I bought my '73 two weeks ago, and I did about 50 kilometers from then. It's an original Swiss car, chassis code HLS30-52689 with the factory L24 engine. The odo states 132k kms (about 82k miles). It used to be olive green (still has the original paint inside), but it was repainted in the 80' in black. The last owner added 245mm wide tyres in the rear and 225 up front - they really slow the car down! It runs on skinny Dunlops - I've got to change them quickly, as driving in the rain isn't safe. It has this stupid spraypainted thingy on the hood, just around the bulge, and I need to remove it fast, it looks so ugly... It has some rust, but since it was driven only in Switzerland (the Swiss don't use salt), it doesn't have holes in the floor panels (but I will take the seats out, so we'll see how it really looks like). It still has some of the original parts, like the wooden spare wheel cover (as far as I know, standard in European cars), jack with additional tools (found it in the box behind the driver's seat) and the luggage-holding belts in the boot. As for now, she patiently sits in garage waiting to be restored. I think I will paint it dark green or orange. I will leave the stock engine, but I'm already in search of a decent triple 40mm Weber setup. I also plan to add a fast road cam, make a full twin tip exhaust and shave the head slightly. But first, I will get her to the best possible condition. I hope I can make it in a year or two...

[Jeff G 78]

Mine doesn't neatly fall into any one catagory. I bought the car way back in 1990 in Atlanta as a wrecked, non-runner for $700 and worked on it quite a bit for the first few years. I then got a real job and moved from Ohio to Michigan, leaving the car behind in my dad's garage. Many years later, I retrieved the car, but to this day haven't had the time to finish it. Since I brought it to Michigan, I built the engine, went through the whole suspension, replaced most of the interior, cleaned the fuel tank out, and got new wheels and tires, but it still needs a few last items before it goes on the road. In 16+ years of ownership, it probably has less than 2-3 miles on it. I am really trying to get it on the road this month. I thought it was ready, but when I jacked it up to install the wheels, I noticed that there is a lot of play in the ball joints. I have no idea what is going on, because I replaced them with new Beck Arnley parts when I did my suspension. The car has only been driven around the block twice since they were installed, but they have play in them. I need to pull them off and see what's up. After that, I'll insure and plate it and see how it drives. Right now it's somewhere between "It has wheels, and the horn works-when you put the battery to it!" and "Good mechanical shape, but needs some attention"

[59ghia]

My car is a '72. It was given to me by an older gentleman who was the original owner. He had rear-ended someone and pushed the radiator into the fan. Parked it and 5 years later it was mine. But before actually taking ownership I found this site and read every thread possible. Brought it home, and began the refresh..Started with all new brakes(front calibers siezed) new

brake hoses, rebuilt carbs, flushed fluids, Petronix ignition. pulled front radiator support out enough to clear the radiator, and fired it up.Drove it for a month or two to clear the cobwebs. Then replaced all suspension bushings, bigger sway bars and eibach springs. Then the body got some lovin' cut out rust and welded patch panels. Found out the rear quarters had been "re-shaped"

(big time bondo) But since this was to be a presentable daily driver I was going to lose sleep over it. Put a decent paint job on it (110 red) and now drive it every day to work @30 miles round trip. Have taken it skiing to tahoe a few times and just enjoy every minute I have with it. Currently she has over 300,000 miles and from the inch thick of records is on her second engine, an L26.

I LOVE THIS CAR!!!

[240ZX]

Lets see....purchased my 1970 240Z back in 1983 from PierreZ in Hawthorn Ca. Basically, I had finally found a 1970 240Z that I liked and could afford. I fell in love with the 240Z when they first came out....had to have one!!! Anyway, the Z was in darn good condition and was my daily driver for approximately 6 years. At this point it needed some serious attention but, didn't have the time nor $ to deal with it. So, into the garage, up on jackstands, drain the fluids, remove the battery, and covered it up and sort of forgot about it until 1999. At this point in time I could make the time and had the $. Did about a year of resesarch before doing anything physical. My plan was to build a weekend toy for some spirited drives on the local twisty canyon roads. I figured it would be a good thing to have an escape from my regular activities. Along comes the begining of the 21st century....two years later and I have my weekend toy, just as I had planned it. OK, so I spent a bit more than I had budgeted (like thats something new) but, missing the extra cash is long forgotten and was well worth it. Yes, I love driving my Z!!! As I've said before...."Its so much fun to drive, it should be considered illegal". The Z resides in a garage and is not driven in the rain. The only thing I keep having to replace are tires....hmmmmmmm, imagine that!!! If you don't know my Z, visit my photo gallery. Currently, the Z has had a front BRE style spoiler, period correct rear spoiler, and a pair of the chrome bullet type rear view mirrors added to the package...and removed the rear overide bar.

[ChrisA]

Currently I have two Z's. Both 73's. One is in storage and needs work. The other stays at home in the garage driven only on dry roads. I used to have a 71 but it was rusted beyond reasonable repair (even by mull's standards) and I had a 72 that belongs to Bill Ramsey now.

The stored 73 is all original. No mods but Western Cyclone wheels (yuck) and rear window louvers. Flat top carbs too!

The Z at home has most of your basic mods. And a list of more waiting to be done.

When I have the time I plan to redo the other Z.

I really enjoy Z cars and being a member of this club and Z Cars of Nebraska as well.

Chris

[beandip]

Well the body and paint are in real nice shape. I just need to rebuild, renew, rewire, recheck Ebay and maybe rethink the rest of the car. But it sure looks shinny sitting on the jack stands.

Side note: Every now and then I turn up the radio in the garage, sit in the car and pretend I'm going somewhere. Gets great gas milage too.

I DID THE SAME THING , WILE THE CAR WAS DOWN. HELPS TO KEEP THE FOCUS ON THE FINISH . Hang in there .

[katcarl1]

have loved the240z since i worked at a datsun deadership during high school back in 1971. I have a 71 240z bought it 22years ago from my brotherinlaw co worker he decided that bmw was more fun to drive now he wishes he had this 240z back. drove this z alot till 1996 then stored it in the garage.had other jobs around the house for the last 9 yrs finally done them all then started last summer taking the z completely apart.with all parts mark and just the shell left will be getting floors,rockers and frame rails done then will start the body with a new coat of 903 blue. cant wait tell that moment alot of work ahead. thank carl h

[thefastestz]

Wrecked, sold, and the buyer left it for the county to pick up.....dang the hatch was still good..... I'm gonna be in the market for another one relitivly soon, its been way way too long.

[26th-Z]

Great poll! I got to vote for each car...err....garage queen!