280z rebuild from the ground up

[andres14oj]

pick it up a few months ago. Plans are: car will be striped (just got a few lines to remove left actually) down to the bare unibody, then take car of all the rusted panels, remove all the old paint down to the bare metal including the under coating, primer and paint (i'll be learning how to spray on this one, whatchout!!), im thinking a dark silver. suspension will be mostly stock with all bushings replaced by polyurethane bushing and im thinking illuminas and linear springs of a good brand and plenty of drop, these is still on the drawing board, lately i've been thinking about s13 coilover conversion but idk... Engine is apperantly in really good shape, I got good number on all 6 cylinders-around 170psi-so it will just be refreshen with all new gaskets. I'll also be installing headers on it and a ka throttle body, all emission bs will be removed, intake mani will get cleaned up and still deciding on making my own exhaust or getting an aftermarket one, thinking 2.5. Interior will be clean and simple. Mostly stripped with some aftermarket seats. Trying to find some old recaros in good shape, no luck so far. Im thinking about fixing the dasdhboard cracks, but we'll see.

That's pretty much my basic plans for it.

On with some real entertainment:

When i first got it, 77 280z, stock everything with crunchy ol paint. Not running cuz no gas tank...

Changed the oil, put a battery on it, hooked up my injector cleaning tool filled with gas to it just to find out that the injectors were bad on it.... So i went and picked some up from the local junk yard, serviced them, installed themand voila, it fired right up! Not only that but i got really good numbers on a compression test

Also i picked up a gas tank, repaired it, cleaned it, just to find out it wasnt the right one smh... i know i know, im still a newbie around s30's, would be a different story if this was an s13/14... Here it is in case anybody is interested

so i was ready, so istarted by removing the engine and power washing the car

Then the real fun began

Ok so here's the main issues, very typical on these i believe

Hatch frame:

[andres14oj]

Then of course, the rocker panels

replacement panels came in, had to take advantage of the holiday discounts...

rails arent bad and floor pans arent too bad either, i really dont feel like replacing the floors cuz of two little rust whole, im still trying to look for a solution

battery tray will be staying, sand blast should take care of it

The rest is very light surface rust, on some areas it comes off rubbing it with my hand..

[andres14oj]

so vacation finally came and i got a chance to build my rotisserie and finish stripping the car and this is how it sits today

Meanwhile, in my garage....

Paint will be stripped with strip and clean wheels. Prices for dipping are very high and there's always the risk of leaving the unpainted/unprotected areas after the dipping where painting afterwards is impossible.

These are the results from stripping wheels after some 10 minutes:

That was only a quick try, they had just came in the mail and i was desperate to try my new toys like a little kid.... Just sprayed some rattle can primer on it to protect the metal, rust is a bitch. I am really glad i went this route thou, seems like they really get the job done, surface is mice and smooth afterwards

That's all for now fellas, stay tune for updates

[madkaw]

Looks like a good project. I'm always amazed how these engines seem to survive. Keep us updated.

[theguppies]

FYI, the gas tank you picked up is incorrect (70-76). 77-78 gas tank looks like a hot dog. Overall, it looks like a great project!

[andres14oj]

Looks like a good project. I'm always amazed how these engines seem to survive. Keep us updated.

yeah i heard they're quite durable. I was very surprice to see such good number on the compression test. One thing thou, when i separated the tranny from the engine i noticed it has a new clutch, the pressure plate has some "atsugi" engraved into it and the teeth look new, and the disc has a newer looking sticker on it, cant remember what it says. I found out that atsugi makes stock clutches for nissan, but the inside of the tranny shows signs of someone trying to clean it up previously, so i dont know. Also, the head and the flywheel seem to have some over spray from the block's paint (stock blue), so maybe some work has been done to it. Guess i'll find out when i get to work on it which wont be for another few months...

FYI, the gas tank you picked up is incorrect (70-76). 77-78 gas tank looks like a hot dog. Overall, it looks like a great project!

Yeah i do know that, i found out when i was having trouble installing the sending unit, then finally when i tried mounting it haha.... lesson learned. Never though about early and late 280 models...

Thanks guys

Edited January 14, 2013 by andres14oj

[siteunseen]

Wow, you really dove into that one! I see a nice Z in your future. Looks great, keep them pictures coming. Oh yea, there's an "early '77" so remember when ordering your interior pieces.

Cliff

Edited January 14, 2013 by siteunseen

[TomoHawk]

Just wait until you need to replace something. THEN you will know the fun the rest of us have....

BTW- Are you going for a stock look or a customized look? For stock parts, now is the time to start building a list of potential resources. Here is a good one:

Rod's datsun parts

Mobile: (408) 314-3006

San Jose, Ca

Office phone: 888-257-7773

URL: Welcome to Rods Datsun Parts

(free "Datsun" T-shirt with a qualifying purchase)

Edited January 14, 2013 by TomoHawk

[Homeboyx]

Ugh.. I hate how everybody owns a welder but me. Nice project you have going on here btw!

[andres14oj]

Just wait until you need to replace something. THEN you will know the fun the rest of us have....

BTW- Are you going for a stock look or a customized look?

U mean that its a pain in the arse to find parts? I am already having trouble to find a gas tank.. and bodywise im not planning on doing much to ot, stock fenders, front spoiler/dam, some trim delete, and maybe 240 fiberglass bumpers.

Ugh.. I hate how everybody owns a welder but me. Nice project you have going on here btw!

I did the rotisserie with an old lincoln gas powered arc welder, not the prettiest welds but they sure get the job done. I recenyly got an eastwood 175 and man i love that thing, i guess after welding with arc welders for years mig welding doesnt seem to hard, well at least the basics.

Thanks

[Hardway]

Just had to say GOOD JOB!!! I am just north of you in the Austin area. Glad to see you are bringing this one back to its former glory. I try to keep my eyes open for Z cars up here. If a 280z gas tank comes up I will let you know since you need one. Look forward to seeing your progress in this thread.

[andres14oj]

so i am kind of at a stand still. Got it almost completely stripped, just have to get the windshield removed-for which i am planning on bringing an expert/pro to do-and maybe a few other details like brackets and other small stuff. Got all the lines removed, brake and fuel lines, and im trying to decide how to fix them since i think some of them might be clogged up. I was originally thinking about heating them up with a torch but that may affect the metal strength, so now i am not sure. Doubt 175psi would help, I least i know that didnt completely take care of my fuel return line. But it's still a few months before i have to install those so i still have plenty of time to think about something.

I took care of most of my right side rear quarter panel, down to the bare metal. Found some bondo on the lower area on the very back, but it's very little so im not too worried, probably a small dent repair many many years ago. I painted over the bare metal with a spray can primer which i am planning on sanding down again to repaint when i get a real gun a good primer. Kind of a temporarily thing to do just so i can advance on the project and dont get my bare metal rusted. But i have decided to stop until i get the gun and the primer that way i avoid the extra work of removing the temporary primer.

Anybody's got any tips with stripping the paint on hard to reach edges? Especially on the undercarriage. I am planning on getting a sand blaster, mostly to use it on the interior, but is there any other method? I was thinking about paint stripper but im afraid that **** may end up dripping and getting inside unreachable places where i wont be able to clean up afterwards causing more problems than helping.

I also adjusted the car one inch higher on the rotisserie and now it's real easy to flip it, a one man job now.

Here's a few pix, again, sorry for night pictures, cant say anything about quality 'cause they'll always be cell pictures haha:

I did finish my new intercooler set up on my rb too