Where should i start with my car?

[robs240z]

i'm just venturing into the world of car restoration and i'm starting with one of my all time favorite cars, the 240z. my grandpa gave it to me as long as i promised not to sell it, but i want to preserve it as a family heirloom. i thought it would be fine, just need some interior work and a little TLC for the engine, but it had been sitting for longer than i thought. i dont even know where to begin. i started by tearing out the carpet and insulation in the interior because it's all trashed and will need replacing. where should i go next? i have attached a link to some picture of the car i took today. i'm keeping a journal of the restoration process and all the stories my grandpa tells me when i go over to work on it. anyways, once i get it cleaned up and on blocks, what should i do first? get started on replacing things on the engine? do whatever it takes to get the thing to turn over? dissassemble and paint the body? where is the ideal starting point? it has the original block and i want to keep the original block in it. i dont mind changing out other parts like alternators and such, but it would be nice to keep anything with a vin on it the same. also did all 73's come with the hood vents?

thanks,

rob

photos of my 1973 240z

Edited November 26, 2008 by robs240z
add more pictures

[hls30.com]

Welcome to the club!

I would start with mechanicals-get the car safely driveable-if it has been stored, replace the fluids-all of them. It is much more fun to restore a car that you can take around the block after doing something-momentum becomes a large issue when the car will not move with a twist of the key and a blip of the throttle-as well being able to stop becomes important once moving! There is a wonderful thread about what to do to a car that has been on extended vacation from the road-I would start there-I'll see about posting a link shortly

No '73 came with hoods vents! There was a vapor lock issue in '73, and one of the "solutions" was adding a single vent to the hood right down the middle-it is sometimes called the competition hood vent-I'll post alink to this info as well.

From the looks of it, you have a '77/78 hood that came with vents in front of both the passenger and driver.

Will

Edited November 26, 2008 by hls30.com

[hls30.com]

From Zhome.com

Competition Hood vent illustration

also clean her up, and start with the advice in the thread below!

http://www.classiczcars.com/forums/showthread.php?t=22619&highlight=drain

Edited November 26, 2008 by hls30.com

[7277]

by the looks of your heirloom, ask yourself....how big is my budget?

[hls30.com]

Being that the car is in Arizona-and evidently has been for quite a while, I would not expect rust to be as much of an issue as I would on a car from the east coast. Go over the car and inventory/picture/post the issues, and we will help you figure out what to do. I don't see to much that would make me think you have any more a money pit than the rest of us. Rust repair is the single greatest source of repair expenditure found in most Z cars. If yours is fairly devoid of rust, you can get away with learning how and rebuilding(essentially cleaning and/or re-gasketing) most parts of the car yourself-if you are handy, patient, or at least determined. A factory Serivce manual would be a large step in the right direction-as was joining this club!

Will

Edited November 26, 2008 by hls30.com

[Carl Beck]

Hi Rob:

My best advice is - let your Grandfather keep the car. You save up about $6,000.00 to $8,000.00 in cash, then go buy the best condition 240-Z that you can find. That should be a car that is running fine and looking very presentable. Drive that one for a year, learn how to R&R all the small things, find out how much all the small things cost in terms of dollars and your time.

While you are doing the above - save up another $10,000.00 before you start a restoration or refresh on your Grandfathers car. With $10K cash in hand, a garage large enough to work in and a far better basic knowledge of the 240-Z - - then start on Grandfather's 240-Z.

If you start on that car now - it is very likely that three or four years from now - it will be an uncompleted project sold for pennies on the dollar, or sold off for parts.

FWIW,

Carl B.

[madkaw]

Listen to the voice of wisdom(Carl), you will get fustrated with a total resto right off the bat. It is many years of work and $$$$$$$$. Welcome to the Z world.

[Travel'n Man]

Rob,

I would have to agree with Carl. These are great automobiles and bring a great joy to anybody that has ever owned or driven one - everybody has a story about a Datsun Z car. But in the real world they are expensive to restore and once it's completed the market really doesn't support the cost to restore (kinda crazy isn't it?). I would have to guess that anybody on the forum that has recently done an on or off frame restoration has a minimum of $20,000 invested. Carl is right, if you save you money you can buy a good Z car in good shape for $10,000 or less. Restoration is kinda like an addiction, "once you get a good taste you just keep coming back for more".

I wish you luck if you decide to continue (of couse none of us know your finiancial condition) and I can totally understand you wanting to restore your grandfathers car.......I hope my future grandson one day will want to refresh mine.

I would start with a body shop coming over to inspect the car and give you an estimate to bring it back to life, and I would do the same with a family mechanic. Get some solid estimates. Then order a Black Dragon catalog and a MSA parts cd and do your restoration on paper. Then you can make an educated choice on fixing up the car. Be sure to be honest with yourself.....and your budget.

One more thing, since your grandfather gave you the car (as long as promise not to sell it) and if you have a space to store it the one item that will bring the car to it's knees is rust. That would be my first consern to fix. After that is corrected get the car out of the weather, in the dry, and store it until your life allows you to take the next step.

Keep us posted on your choices to follow.

[peterc]

It all comes down to wants and needs. Carl's estimate for a proper restoration is very reasonable. In fact, you can find people on this site that have invested far more in their projects.

However, if your first priority is to be able to drive the car, sooner rather than later, (isn't that why we love Z's in the first place?) then I'd be more inclined to follow Will's advise. Get it running, so you know what you're dealng with, then plan your restoration one step at a time.

By keeping your "projects" small and managable, you can still drive the car as your restoration continues. Plus, as you become more familiar with the car you may wind up changing your original plans.

p

[Zedyone_kenobi]

As said before, you must be honest with yourself. Do not underestimate how long things will take. something that looks like a 1 hour job can easily turn into a week long endeavor. This is how projects cars get lost and sold for parts. What your looking at here is not simple refresh, its a car that needs attention on every single level from electrics, to mechanical, to paint, to fluids. You have to ask yourself some real questions...

What can I do, am I good at mechanical things, am I pretty savvy at paint and body?

How much money can I set aside to do the work, 10-20k dollars is not unrealistic by any means. Keep in mind that number is not for a show quality car, we are talking about a decent looking daily driver.

How much time do I have?

Do I have a PERMANENT space to work on the car?

When would I like to have the car completed?

If you truly want a Z, and I understand your love with them, as they were my all time favorite car growing up, then this will be a long love affair filled with swearing, tears, blood, and finally joy. But ask yourself this. If you just want a Z to drive and enjoy, then this resto may not be the best choice. You have ALOT of work ahead of you.

To answer your question, what should I do first, the answer I would suggest is, make sure you know what your getting into. That is the first step.

For what it would take you to fix this one up, you could buy a VERY nice 240Z for yourself to drive worry free for years. Granted this one has family significance, but I have to ask you this. Do not take offense at this, but if the car is so important, why is it in the condition it is in now? Perhaps a family event caused the car to be sidelined, but either way, letting emotional attachments to a machine can often lead you astray of realistic goals.

My advice would be to let the car sit where it is and save up 8-12k, and then go find you a nice Z that you can drive, learn about and work on.

[mally002]

Rob,

Not to sound like a broken record but the experts who have spoken earlier are giving you great advice.

Here's a brief summary of some of my projects in the last few years, maybe it will give you a ball park idea of some cost.

1973 240Z in very good condition......Bought for $3500, invested another $7000 plus to get it in a #3 condition.

1973 240Z in poor condition with minimal rust.....Bought for $1000 invested $300, decided too big a project and sold for $1400. This was a running car with a very nice interior but would have spent another $10k plus easy.

1971 240Z in very nice condition, already have about $8 to $10k in the car. To get it just to a number #2 condition I would have to spend another $8-10K, but this is my weekend driver and it's perfect for what I use it for.

1970 240Z in very good condition but going through complete restoration. After I'm through with it I will be afraid to look at the receipts......

If you really want a 240Z do as Carl suggested and buy a $6k car, and then refresh it as you can. If you start on this 73, you are going to need several thousand just to get started.

PS.....Here's the pictures of the 4 cars mentioned above so you can relate them to your project.

Good luck and welcome to the club.

Randy

Edited November 26, 2008 by mally002

[five&dime]

I assume that all the bright blue under the hood is from the paint but how did it also end up on the passenger seat? Looks like blue chalk???

Great advice here. Carl is dead on!!

If you ARE heart set on restoring this one soon, I would pull the engine and start stripping the body. My first order of business would be to get the body and engine bay straight. Get some paint on her. Then you can build an engine and drop it in a clean car. Looks pretty rust free. That is the most important thing to look out for when buying a Z IMO.

This car will definitely be a slow restoration lasting at least a year working every weekend. I imagine the cost of bringing her back to life even with doing your own work would be in the $12-20k + range based on these photos. My main concern would be what's hiding under the re-spray