Production date question...

[sennavsprost]

I have looked at VIN numbers and production dates... I have a 72 240Z, #HLS30-96919. That would be production date of 9/71 - 6/72. However my VIN plate in the boor jamb shows a production date of 8/72.... that would be a 73 240Z, but I had round top SUs, all the things of a 72, period! DEFINATLEY a 72 240Z. So I'm curious if there is a mistake with the stamping on my door jamb vin plate.

-Dave

[Bambikiller240]

Originally posted by sennavsprost

I have looked at VIN numbers and production dates... I have a 72 240Z, #HLS30-96919. That would be production date of 9/71 - 6/72. However my VIN plate in the boor jamb shows a production date of 8/72.... that would be a 73 240Z, but I had round top SUs, all the things of a 72, period! DEFINATLEY a 72 240Z. So I'm curious if there is a mistake with the stamping on my door jamb vin plate.

-Dave

The production information for US Spec 240Z's shown below is copied from www.zhome.com: and shows production changes and the month that they began:

1972 HLS30 48863 thru 99596 (earliest & latest reported so far - Notable VIN Month Highlights

01 Auto seat belt retractors installed, rear window defroster lines run horizontal

02

03

04

05

06

07

08 Last 72 Model Year Car Reported So Far - HLS30 99596

1973 Model Year HLS30 120000 thru HLS30 172767 (to date). Major changes made for 73 Model Year Z's - Federal Vehicle Safety Standards & Emissions Standards. Too extensive to list here, see below.

09

10

11

12

So, as you can see, some cars produced in in 8/72 were in fact 72 240Z's, and production of 73 240Z's had begun in August also.

[MikeW]

September or so seems to be the switchover month. My '72 HLS30-47431 lists a 9/71 production date and is therefore one of the earliest 72's. You just happen to have one of the latest. Strangely enough, ZHome lists HLS30 48863 as the earliest reported '72 yet other sources claim the starting number was 46000. I think it's safe to say that there is a certain amount of overlap in there. While your carbs could have been replaced (as many '73 owner did) I doubt anyone would have gone through all of the trouble to replace all of the other '73 changes (dash, metal headlight buckets, etc.).

[Victor Laury]

Mike, you beat mine. I owned HLS30 48255. It was a 72 to the core with the exception of fixed seat belts (no retractors). Ours were switch-over models for sure.

[Bambikiller240]

Many of the early 72's had the pockets in the body for the seatbelt retractors, but the retractable belts themselves were not added until Jan 72 production dates.

My Bambikiller (HLS30 55703) was mfg'd 11/71 pockets, yes / but fixed belts (for now, but I bought a nice set of retractables to install later)

PS when Zhome.com lists "earliest reported" he means earliest VIN registered on his website

[Royce]

Sounds like you guys need to go to www.zhome.com and report your Vin numbers so they can update the table! If there isn't a way to reach Carl Beck, current editor of www.zhome.com, on the website let me know, I am sure I have his email somewhere.

[MikeW]

I've thought about registering but wasn't sure what to put for the colors. I appears as though my car was originally a #113 green (which was apparently introduced in 9/71). When I bought it in 1985 it had already been repainted twice and needed another paint job. Being a poor and naive college student I personally strippped it to the metal, primed it from spray cans, went to the paint shop and picked out a nice blue Imron from the samples book, and paid a guy $200 or so to spray it. It actually turned out fairly well.

Looking at the paint codes list at ZHome it makes it sound like the green cars only came with a tan interior whereas mine is black. The interior plastic panels in the hatch area are black but are also a brownish color on the back side. Is that standard or did someone dye them black? The seats are also black so I'm just not sure.

[Alfadog]

Black interior panels are black on both sides. The back of the panel should be fairly glossy black (no texture), if mine are the right panels........

[MikeW]

Originally posted by Alfadog

Black interior panels are black on both sides. The back of the panel should be fairly glossy black (no texture), if mine are the right panels........

Interesting ... that means the previous owner(s) did more to the car than I thought. I plan on replacing those anyway since they're all cracked and otherwise damaged but now I'm wondering ... what else is wrong? I assume that the non-black interiors have non-black seats, inside door panels, platic trim panels and the diamond vinyl stuff. Am I missing something? Headliner? I plan on painting the car again (paint job number 5 if you're counting) and may be leaning toward an original color this time (but not the original #113). The metallic blue is close to what I have now and I like it more than the other original colors. Does that mean I'd have to switch the interior to white to be original? Were any 240Z's custom built?

[Bambikiller240]

US Spec 1972 240Z's that were Metallic blue, came only with White interior panels, door panels, white seats, white headliner, & white vinyl. The dash, carpets and console were black.

If you want to make it "orignial", you'll be buying black interior plastic panels and using dye to make them white, as no white plastic panels are available.

To my knoledge you could NOT order a different interior color. You ordered an exterior color and all cars of that paint color came with one standard interior package. At least for 240Z's.

Carl

[MikeW]

Interesting. It looks like the only stock colors with a black interior in '72 were orange, red, and yellow. Unfortunately black seems to be the only easy interior color to get now.

I'm starting to have second thoughts about making things original. I may keep but refresh the current black interior and go with an exterior something like the Carribean Blue that Infiniti offers on the new G35 coupe. I test drove and came close to buying that particular model with the 6-speed but decided to instead put some money into my old 240.

I figure there's not much point worrying too much about originality, certainly not because of resale value. It's not like it's an early '70. I've had the car 18 years and am putting way more money into it than it would be worth to someone else so I might as well just pick a color that I like. Painting it #115 with the extra cost of trying to do a white interior would probably not make up the difference in a resale anyhow.

[EScanlon]

Mike, unless you are going for a Concours restoration, and trust me that is an extremely anal endeavour, I wouldn't worry much about it being "stock".

I have a 1971, which I could put to bone stock. But I like the illuminated Heater Control Panel from the 73, and the reclineable seats from the 72+, and I've added the Throttle Control to an Automatic Car, and my Fog Lamps are Wallie Mart Specials, and I'll be finagling a Hazard Switch to act as a Fog Lamp Switch and this summer I'll be adding the Parking Lamp Switch and wiring to light up the traffic side of the vehicle (*Special Thank You to Kats).

And let's not forget my Wheels, and the Louvers both back and side, and the pin-striping, and the gloss black rocker panels........

Do you get the drift?

The idea is make the car YOURS. If you have a thing for White interiors, have a nut. If you want them Red, go for it. Now if you get real outlandish, send in pics and we have a special gallery for those cars. (Check out the Bright Metallic Blue Diamond Tuck)

But whatever you do, its the car that YOU will be driving. Not one of us.

2¢