Beautiful silver 240 on Ebay

[WingZr0]

What you see here is "maybe" a good body, maybe a good paint job and maybe a few good parts. Almost everything else needs to be restored.

.... Engine Compartment Looks like a Flood Car.

FWIW,

Carl B.

As quoted by Carl B.

Geezer makes a good point too but when someone mentions flood thats when I start looking for life jackets, Unlike the other 15 houndred that went down with the Titianic :paranoid:

Oh yeah BTW a Z I wanted to buy in the FEES FOR A NON OP 1st gen Z CAR thread, underneath the paint there was so much rust, the rust had rust ! !

~Z~

[beandip]

It's obvious to me that this Z was not redone to be a concurs correct car. So if that is what you want to hold the quality to as bench mark . I agree that you would need to redo a lot of the car . As a beautiful car built to drive and show I still think it is worth the buy it now price. Personally I would NEVER buy a car on eBay unless I could personally look the car over . Especially one in this price range. And especially a Z . As to weather it is or was a flood car . I cannot see that the interior indicates this . Although it could be , and the interior installed after . I personally have no use for a time capsule . I drive my Z . Gary

[JLPurcell]

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ih=019&sspagename=STRK%3AMEWA%3AIT&viewitem=&item=290090473739&rd=1&rd=1

I believe this may be the sleeper on ebay right now. Take a look, original series one car, good history, with the exception of a few small items (radio) all original. If all is as it seems, it would be a great candidate for restoration. Jerry

[76Datsun280z]

When you guys mention "flood car", are you guys thinking it was in a flood and got all flooded out? This is kind of a stupid question, but just curious if this was correct..

[Carl Beck]

It's obvious to me that this Z was not redone to be a concurs correct car. So if that is what you want to hold the quality to as bench mark . I agree that you would need to redo a lot of the car . As a beautiful car built to drive and show I still think it is worth the buy it now price.

....snipped..

Gary

Hi Gary:

I'm amazed at this .... usually I'm the one arguing for higher values on these cars!!

The value of any of them - has to be based I believe, on the one standard known to all of us - "as it left the factory". We can and do debate all manor of minute details about "as it left the factory"... but overall, that is the one standard were we can all have a mutual meeting of the mind, a common metal image of what a car at that standard would look like.

How anyone chooses to refresh or restore their car - is up them - but the quality of work, the cost of the various choices made - has to have an effect on the resale value - Yes/No?

In my humble opinion - the car in question has a shinny paint job, re-chromed bumpers and not much else to recommend it. Lots of after-market stuff, lots of wrong parts and only a partial "refresh" done. (I hate it when an engine compartment is totally ignored).

So what could you have bought for $15K - ?? How about a very low VIN, 69 production, pure stock, nearly perfect 240-Z with 60K actual, documented miles. Previously located in the Pacific North West.(it came with the original metal fan - removed for safety}

This IS a $15K car.... Note the condition of the engine compartment, and I can assure you that it's as clean underneath as it is on top.

I think the car Jerry pointed out is a far better buy...(if of course it checks out)...

FWIW,

Carl B.

[Carl Beck]

When you guys mention "flood car", are you guys thinking it was in a flood and got all flooded out? This is kind of a stupid question, but just curious if this was correct..

Yes - when I said "flood car" I did mean it has the appearance of having been under water. I'm in Florida and we are seeing a lot of cars from Texas, LA, AL - that were totalled because of being under water - somehow showing up here with clean titles.

My comment was with regard to the water marks on top of the starter - the large amount of rust high up on the engine block and the over-all appearance of the engine compartment. I wouldn't bet any money that it had in fact been under water - only that it had the appearance of cars that had been.

Just a comment thown out there to prompt people to take a more careful or critical look.

FWIW,

Carl B.

[Carl Beck]

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ih=019&sspagename=STRK%3AMEWA%3AIT&viewitem=&item=290090473739&rd=1&rd=1

I believe this may be the sleeper on ebay right now. Take a look, original series one car, good history, with the exception of a few small items (radio) all original. If all is as it seems, it would be a great candidate for restoration. Jerry

Hi Jerry:

I'm with you - this is the type of car well worth being the basis for a full refresh or restoration - or just buying now and enjoying - kept in it's original condition it will appreciate over time. Throw a cheap, shinny new paint job on it and you would reduce it's market appeal and value...

Properly refresh it - with a high quality, complete paint job.. and it would command a pretty penney in a few years.

As always - If It Checks Out to be as presented...

FWIW,

Carl B.

[hls30.com]

I have to agree with Carl, it is a pretty car, but not one I would pay that much for.

Will

[Arne]

I can see both sides of this argument - assuming the cars do in fact check out to be un-rusted.

The first car - I personally wouldn't pay $15k for it, but that's because I know (first hand) that even better cars are available for less. But if the body and paint was done right, the simple fact that it's not stock in numerous ways should not (and probably won't) keep the value down all that far. There are still a great many people who really aren't concerned about total or absolute originality, and will pay a good amount for a clean, good running 240Z that is basically ready to drive. These people are the people who would buy my yellow car, if it were done. I understand them, because that's really what my original intent was when I bought my first 240Z. Clean, stock looking at a casual glance, and a great driver. That's all I was really after.

On the other hand, cars like the second one are ideal for someone who is interested in true 'restoration'. Shoot, other than being a Series 2, my red car is probably a good candidate for that as well, save for the sunroof. All original, 60k miles, all it really needs is a high-quality refresh, not the full-bore job. And eventually I'll do just that. But for now, it's a really great $7500 driver.

And there's the point for both cars. I've seen enough by now to figure that the $7-8k price range seems to be the sweet spot right now. I don't think I personally would be willing to pay much more than that for the first one, and less than that for the second.

There are still good cars at fair prices out there, but for the most part, you aren't going to find them on eBay...

[geezer]

The car originally in question sold for $14,100.00. Not to rub it in or anything like that, but I thought the seller would do well. I actually believed the auction was going to end early with a BUY it NOW. I think the difference here in placing a value on these cars is mostly on each individuals perception in their particular situation. Many of you are well connected, see many of these cars and have been very familiar with them for many years. You may live in an area where you occasionally see one driving down the street. You would have to get one heck of a good deal before you resorted to buying one off Ebay because you can find them locally at a very good price. I, myself have not seen a Z around here since the late 80's. I did see a very nice one on an excursion to Michigan. But I went there specifically to look at it. Point is, they are hard to come by for many of us. That particular car would sell here quickly for what the seller got. Originality is not such a big factor either. A clean (other than the engine compartment), good running, low mileage, unique vehicle such as this, that is dearly remembered but not seen anymore sells easily. I ask myself...what other car in this catagory can you buy for this amount of money? Prices are definitely rising and quickly. Just my thoughts.

[Arne]

Thanks for the follow up, Ron. As I said earlier, I wouldn't have paid that much for it, but I can't say that I'm too terribly surprised, either.

[JLPurcell]

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ih=019&sspagename=STRK%3AMEWA%3AIT&viewitem=&item=290090473739&rd=1&rd=1

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/1971-Datsun-240z-Mint-Condition-California-Beauty_W0QQitemZ290092734632QQcategoryZ6187QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

Not to beat a dead horse but with close inspection of the “refreshed” Z which sold for $14,100 the rear interior, including the towers and wheel wells, have been carpeted, there are a number of incorrect parts on the car and who knows what lurks under that nice coat of paint.

Now on the other hand the “sleeper” 78K original 71 went off without meeting the reserve. I was the high bidder in the end. I was given a second chance offer, which I am still considering, of $6,300. If this car is as presented, and I believe it is, another $7,800 invested in a refresh would, in my opinion, put you in a far better example than the $14,100 car.

I am always leery of a partially refreshed Z car with no attention to detail.:eek: If I were a more motivated buyer (didn't have so much money tied up in projects) at this time, I would not hesitate on the second chance offer. I did tell the seller that I would honor my original bid so we are just a few hundred dollars apart at this time. I am looking for a project for my son and I, this car fits the criteria I am looking for. I believe this to be a relatively easy car to make into a very nice drivable original series 1 example. The only thing that I could find that was not original on this car are the door mirrors and the radio and the original radio comes with the car.

I guess it all comes down to what you are looking for.

Just my 2 cents. jlp