78 280 help..ALAN?

[HS30-H]

Hi 280zx Fever,

I very much doubt that any "pre-production" Z ever made it out of Japan, or even out of the hands of the Factory.

Please take a look at you VIN number and report it to us. That will clear the confusion up, I am sure.

My bet is that your car is simply an early Japanese-market 280ZX ( S130 series ).

Is that the car in your avatar image? Looks like an S130 to me.

Let us know what the VIN is.

All the best,

Alan T.

[280zx Fever]

no thats not my car in the avatar

Mine has the crome bumpers...

But i never found any Fairlady 1979 Z's at all in all my search on the net

ill get the vin number

ok i got it

this is strange no complicance plate or anything only this plate thats above the battery on the left hand side the number is:

000713

then the block number on the block..

[HS30-H]

Sorry - I meant the whole VIN ( including the prefix ).

Can you find it on the car? Should be there.

Alan T.

[Ivan]

Hi James,

the RB25DET is in and running, sounds really great, apparently only running about 10 - 12 psi but still more than enough hp for me. It's all painted and at the interior shop getting taned.

My girlfriend has a job in Wollongong in January but is still waiting on an offer from Sydney.

Thanks,

Ivan

[280zx Fever]

no what i mean thats the only number on the firewall !

considering as all fairlady's are imports (?)

it could of been imported as a write off (no compliance plate) and never licenced that would explain why they never sent me the rego papers..

the plate wouldnt be anywhere else ? or could it ?

[Mr Camouflage]

Craig, Alan

The Fairlady 280z(x?) in question is a japanese domestic market s130 type car. It wont have an australian compliance plate (initially there was no need for them to comply with aussie design rules, but the government made them change the seatbelts to inertia reel types, and put side intrusion bars in the doors), but may (should) have a nissan/datsun vin plate with the chassis number and engine number on it. Externally you can pick the difference by the badges. Aussie ones were nissan 280zx badges, imports were fairlady 280z(x not sure if they had the x).

We got a lot of japanese domestic market second hand imports in the 80's here in WA (not sure about the rest of australia).

I know a guy with a Fairlady Z 2+2 1978 (S31 260z/280z body shape) and it has electric mirrors as standard, so that earlier commet about only 280zx's having electric mirrors is incorrect. It has a efi L20, but was replaces with a L28E.

I friend of mine also used to have a 1979/80 Skyline 2000GT (the one with the L20ET in it), white of course.

My mum has a corona ex coupe, even rarer than a 240z in perth. I've only ever seen about 5 of them in 12 years. She almost bought a Skyline R30 coupe instead, but got the corona because it was an auto and the skyline was a manual. Pity, I'd have liked to have bought the skyline off of her when she got a n MX6 last year, if only shed bought it in the first place. (photos of the corona in my gallery)

Craig I'll drop by that house on the weekend and see if he wants to give you the S130 bodyshell if you still want it.

Mr C.

[HS30-H]

Well, it ought to have the full number ( INCLUDING the prefix ) stamped onto the firewall. Can you take another look?

See the attached picture for places to find this information on the S130 series Z.

Don't get confused just because the car is not actually badged as a "ZX". If its only got the "Fairlady Z" emblems then that's what you have.

The S130 series was released in Japan in August 1978. I think you have one of the following:

*FAIRLADY Z ( S130S ) - L20E engine

*FAIRLADY Z-L ( S130 ) - L20E engine

*FAIRLADY Z-T ( S130J ) - L20E engine

*FAIRLADY Z 2 by 2 ( GS130S ) - L20E engine

*FAIRLADY Z-L 2 by 2 ( GS130 ) - L20E engine

*FAIRLADY Z-T 2 by 2 ( GS130J ) - L20E engine

*FAIRLADY 280Z-L ( HS130 ) - L28E engine

*FAIRLADY 280Z-T ( HS130J - BC ) - L28E engine

*FAIRLADY 280Z-L 2 by 2 ( HGS130 ) - L28E engine

*FAIRLADY 280Z-T 2 by 2 ( HGS130J - BC ) - L28E engine

You said you have the L28E engine didn't you? In that case, just work out the trim level, and whether its a 2 seater or 2 by 2, and you will know pretty much which model it is from the above list.

If your full VIN is missing or erased ( or just the VIN prefix ) then I would guess it may have been some kind of dodge to register it as a late S30 or S31 series Z when it was imported to Australia? I can't imagine any other reasons to mess with it that are not illegal.

My guess is that you just have an early S130-series Z ( forget about the "ZX" bit ) and its early production date has caused confusion in the past as well as now. Its certainly not going to be 'pre-production' - so forget about that. I had a guy here in the UK excitedly telling me that he had a "pre-production 240Z" just because his VIN prefix was "S30" and not "HS30" - so you can see that the Japanese-market models cause some people to get rather over-excited.

Try and work out your full VIN number if you can.

Good luck!

Alan T.

[HS30-H]

whoops - forgot to attach that FSM scan for how to find the VIN number.............

[280zx Fever]

*FAIRLADY 280Z-L 2 by 2 ( HGS130 ) - L28E engine

*FAIRLADY 280Z-T 2 by 2 ( HGS130J - BC ) - L28E engine

Mine would be either of those

Mr.C - that would great if you could do that ! and maybe even take a few snap shots ?

thanks for the help guys now i know what my car is

And with that image i looked all over the firewall couldnt notice any markings as such doesnt mean i didnt seen them though ill get a good look tomorrow

And the plate behind the battery was only held in with 4 screws thats where i got the 000-713 number from

Once again thanks for the help

[Alfadog]

Originally posted by 280zx Fever

And the plate behind the battery was only held in with 4 screws thats where i got the 000-713 number from

This plate should also have the prefix printed on it, however there is a chance the letters have all worn off as they were not stamped in.

Keep looking!

[280zx Fever]

Ok, i found the prefix it was at the end on the engine on the firewall just in the pic as HS30-H attached.

So its a HGS130 - 000713 and id take it that it was the 713th one to roll of the production line

I suspose there is nothing special about this model ?

[Alfadog]

Nothing special? I wouldn't say that, it's an imported Fairlady, and a pretty early one too.

And yeah, it'd be AROUND ABOUT number 713 off the production line... of this particular model of S130 anyway.

Congrats now where are the pics?