Need purchase advise

[Smokey]

I am currently looking at a 73 240Z. The owner is asking quite a bit of money for it--$6800. Just need some opinions as to whether or not this is reasonable.

First off, I realize that the Z's are getting kinda sparse in good condition and the price reflects that. But, in my experience only the restored pieces go for that kind of money. This car is unrestored with original paint (good shape) 128K miles on original motor. Sounds good huh? It is, for the most part.

My concerns are this, It needs weather stripping on the rear hatch area, the driver's side seal finisher needs to be replaced (rust under the vinyl). Also the car has lots of dings and dents, and the roof looks as though someone has sat on it (minor, but needs straightening). The rear hatch has two rust blisters about the size of an eraser, and is caved in slightly from closing it. The carpet in the back is dry rotted and the backing falls apart when you pull it up to access the storage area.

For the good end, it has a whole Koni suspension (dropped about 2 inches) with strut braces front and rear. The car is VERY solid and stable. The gas tank has been completely refitted by the best Z man in the area IMO. The SU's (round top) have been rebuilt by the same shop. Compression numbers are 150-160-163-160-150-160. Seems pretty good but low and high are separated by 13 (I thought 10 was acceptable).

While driving the car I noticed some big peaks and valleys in the acceleration curve. There was a hesitation when you mashed the loud pedal. I think this can all be cured by richening the mixture to the SU's.

The only other rust on the whole car is some surface (due to paint damage) on the driver's side frame rail on the top. And, of course, the afforementioned blisters on the hatch. Keep in mind this is all original orange paint. The car was a Cali car until 83 when the current owner purchased it. It has been garaged and covered and driven on sunny days only.

Any thoughts on this car? Should I hold out for a '72, or is the '73 with the SU carbs pretty much the same animal?

Here is a picture of it for reference.

[ZmeFly]

im selling mine for 5500 with a ton of parts and almost enough to rebuild the bottom end!

plus many other miscellaneous parts. has fairly new paint year old, recaro seats, new booster, msa springs, so on and so on and mine is a 71, no dents! no rust.

so you tell me. hehe i think thats to much for a 73 that isnt perfect.

[2ManyZs]

I'd have to agree the car is a bit overpriced. It looks to be in pretty fair shape but it does have its share of problems. Being an original paint car would make it worth the asking price only if it didn't need to be re-painted....

You could easily end up with another 2-3K spent on a paint job(if you provide a lot of the labor) and all the small things the car needs to bring it up to par.

Mechanically it doesn't sound bad, but the mechanical part is typically the easiest and cheapest to repair as there are many choices as far as mechanical parts still available for these cars.

I'd say it might be worth more like between 3 and 4 thousand....

however, since it is an east coast car, finding one in as good a shape as this one is going to be kinda difficult, unless you want to buy one on the west coast and bring it back. There are so many more cars available on the west coast that are in comparable shape for much less it's a judgement call on your part.

[Smokey]

Hey thanks for the quick responses guys. This board ROCKS!!

I agree, the car is overpriced. I've been looking at some similar Z's and found that the 3-4K price is more reasonable for the condition it is in. So, unless he decided to be realistic, I guess the search continues. He would not even entertain an offer of 5800, so I guess I will have to let him sit on it some more. Been for sale since Oct. 02. I am the third person to look at it.

[St.stephen]

well if you offered the guy 5800 for it and he declined, then ZMEFLY's car is the next best option. you;re getting a realistic price for a club member;s car and you know the entire history of it!!! Take a weekend and a trailer and slide on up to the burgh!

Honestly, your search for an east coast car in good shape is going to be pricy.

Looking at the rust buckets I own, and have owned I could have bought two West coast cars and had them shipped. The major benefit to not doing that was the emchanical experience I gained.

I do say though, this guy is waaay overpriced for the car he is selling. That car at best is around 3500.

MOST IMPORTANT!!! you made no mention of what the underneath looks like

[Smokey]

Oops, sorry bout missing that part. The underneath is just fine. It has tons of cobwebs, but the original undercoating (with body overspray) is present. The frame rails and floor pans are in great shape. The wheel wells are all fine also. This is the most rust free Z I have ever looked at. here is his add.

Owned since 1983 - This California car has always been garaged & covered Exterior - Good to Excellent original Burnt Orange paint with original Black 240Z stripe down both sides - NO RUST Interior

Original black in excellent condition with dash cracked in usual places NEW WITHIN LAST 12,000 MILES: - Blinker switch - Map light - Rubber on all bumpers & bumper guards - Clutch slave cylinder - Koni shocks & coil springs all around (lowered 1-2") - Ball joints - Oversized front & rear sway bars (1" front 7/8" rear) - Strut bars - Steering coupler & rack bushings - neoprene - Pressure plate, Clutch disc, Release bearing, & Flywheel - Headers - Transmission seals and bushings - Brake lines - K&N carb filters & breather - Water pump, Thermostat, & Coolant lines - Radiator & Fan clutch - Plug wires, Points, Condenser, Cap & Rotor - Complete fuel tank removal & all new hoses & fittings - Complete tune up including disassembly of carbs

Recent compression test showed - 150-160-163-160-150-160 - Michelin tires with mag wheels The car at this time is running in A-1 form!

PRICE: $ 6,800 OBO

And I have been looking at ZMEFLY's car. It has gotten my attention. Just thought I would look local first. I just really started looking into a Z in November. I am still getting the money saved up. I was going to have to take out a loan on this particular Z, which I really did not want to have to do.

[Smokey]

I went back out and looked at the floor pans top and bottom, they are fine, no rust or damage. There are some blisters that I missed popping up on the rockers, but they are minor. I got down and dirty looking behind the bumpers. The front one is fine, but the rear has been tweaked on the driver's side. This has caused the paint to crack and there is rust forming near the mounting pad. There is built up dirt and debris on the inside of both front fenders that has hardened like concrete.

The motor does have the round tops, but the head is the original E88 with the low compression ratio. This explains the lack of performance that I felt when I drove the car.

I think I will be passing on this car, as I want one that requires NO work for that kind of money. If anyone is interested in contact info, lemme know. I'll get you his number. It is located in Winston-Salem, NC.

I'm off to look at a '70 with 280 running gear.

[Smokey]

OK, digging this one back up cause, so far it is still my best option. After all I have looked at, the body is in the best condition with only some minor surface rust. I recently sent him an e-mail seeing if he would entertain $3500 for it. He, of course, declined. He has said that $5800 is acceptable, but after doing some thinking about it, that seems high, and since I did not really "offer" that (I said would he even think about $5800?), I don't feel overly obligated to stick with it. Should I keep bidding on it? He has had no more bites since I looked at it over a month ago. Might help my cause.

Any further opinions or comments welcome.

[Bambikiller240]

Originally posted by Smokey

OK, digging this one back up cause, so far it is still my best option. After all I have looked at, the body is in the best condition with only some minor surface rust. I recently sent him an e-mail seeing if he would entertain $3500 for it. He, of course, declined. He has said that $5800 is acceptable, but after doing some thinking about it, that seems high, and since I did not really "offer" that (I said would he even think about $5800?), I don't feel overly obligated to stick with it. Should I keep bidding on it? He has had no more bites since I looked at it over a month ago. Might help my cause.

Any further opinions or comments welcome.

Smokey:

I wonder if he'd "bite" if you waved Five grand in front of his nose? "FINAL OFFER". I doubt he has that much into it, and it isn't like he's fighting off eager buyers at this time.

I doubt the car would fetch anywhere near $5.8K in California, but as older Z cars are far more scarce back east, it may be a different story in your neck of the woods.

In shopping for a Classic, Patience should be a priority and WILL be rewarded!

Just my $.02

Carl