I'd say it is time for a new (to you) cowl. I'd also check and see what the drainage area looks like under the cowl.

-Mike

I think the only way to fix that is to replace the cowl.....

anyone know were to buy one,what you think of this car i paid $3500 and it only has 39000 mile on it .i have the orginal bill of sale from the dealer from back from 1980,every paper work to track the mileage.did i paid to much or did i buy a rust bucket.

Edited January 8, 201114 yr by clownguy

That spot makes me nervous. I see holes that let rain in and where is it going? There may be much more rust. You may not know until you get in there. It looks like the carpet is pulled back on the driver side, how are the floor pans?

the floor has small rust hole.unibody rail rust out

Uh-oh

Not a fan of the Zx's even if it is driven by a guy with a porn star stash :paranoid:

but that is a nice car, looks like its time to start de-rusting it. It should be saved. Start looking in junk yards or try to find a donor body.

You could take the cowl off and assess the damage, remove all rust and weld in scrap steel bent to profile. It seems rain will enter that area regardless of rust holes, note the two large holes that are stock to accommodate wipers.

Edited January 11, 201114 yr by grantf

just needs a little tlc. my black gold has a rust spot on the cowl also. just replace it. it's not that hard. i think. anyway a lot of people on these forums are haters when it comes to the zx. just ignore that. i personally think its cuz they are jealous, they don't have a LUXURY SPORTS CAR. but i think you got an amazing deal. check out this site.

http://silverstone-motorcars.ebizautos.com/detail-1980-datsun-280zx-10th_anniversary_edition-used-5815516.html

Unfortunately CLOWNGUY

The wiper cowl does not detach like the 240Z but it can be fixed. This is a common spot on the ZX's. It can be fixed though. If you find a donor car you will have to cut the cowl away as opposed to detaching it. I always liked the anniversary addition livery and always wanted one. The ZX is a nice machine. My very first Z was a 1982 burgundy model 2+2 w/ T-Tops. Very nice car and is what gave me the desire to purchase a 240Z. I have one in the driveway but unfortunately the cowl looks like yours. I'm using a few metal panels to work on Project 3/72. It is complete so if you need other parts maybe I can help. Don't get discouraged.

so easy just replace it...