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Today, September 13, 2017, is the 45th anniversary of my ownership of my Z-Car. If someone told me when I first bought the car that I would have it for 45 years I would have said “you’re nuts”! Most of what follows is copied from the similar thread that I started on the 40th anniversary ( http://www.classiczcars.com/topic/44418-me-my-z-40th-anniversary/?tab=comments#comment-402126 ) and updated to cover the past 5 years. This is the story of the car… I read the road test of the 240Z in the April 1970 issue of Road&Track magazine and recognized the car as a great value. Then, in 1971 I visited my brother down in Miami and he pulls up in a blue 1970 Z - so that was my first ride. Between the article and that ride, I said to myself: I should get one of these someday... Bought my Z new in 1972 while in the Marines, using a re-enlistment bonus to pay cash for the car. Had a BRE/Interpart header, spook, and rear spoiler installed by the dealer at delivery. After I had the car for a while, drove up to the BRE/Interpart shop in El Segundo, CA and bought the Mulholland suspension package. In ’73, put in a hotter cam. Also in ’73 I put in the Interpart TC kit. In ’74, bought a new WR OD 5-speed, driveshaft, and R-190 LSD w/4.44 gears from Datsun Comp ($575 through a mechanic friend at a dealer). The car scooted pretty good with that gearing. Car was up on blocks for a year while I was stationed in Japan in late ’74 into ’75. By 1977, I wanted more power, so skipped the triple carb scene and went with a 331ci SB Chevy – 11:1 forged, cam, Edelbrock Tarantula manifold, 650 Holley double-pump carb, headers. Had to pull the R-190/4.44 out and put a R-180/3.36 in for the V-8 (the R-180 lasted while the V-8 was in). In 1978, I had the Acra-Trac front suspension mod installed (who remembers Acra-Trac?). Sometime during this period, I had the short steering knuckles put in. After 5 years with the V-8, I got married, needed a better transportation car, and was getting caught up with smog/legal issues with the swap, so in 1982, put in an L-28 with just a slightly hotter cam, and another Datsun Comp 5-speed. In 1983, the R-180 pinion gear finally failed while I was doing a spirited 1-2 shift (must have been something to do with the V-8 service!) so put in an R-200/3.54. Also in 1983 I made the +1 upgrade to 15” wheels. In ‘86/’87, did a moderate refresh of the car – went through the mechanicals, had it repainted original color (901 silver). Then, didn’t do much but drive and enjoy it for nearly 20 years. In late 2005, I started a mechanical refresh again (mostly suspension). In December 2005 (unfortunately) the head cracked and I had an oil pan full of coolant – so, an unplanned engine rebuild. As long as the engine was apart, went with flat-top pistons and a hotter cam. In January ’06, decided to go to the MSA show, so I worked on the cosmetics a bit and finally refreshed the interior. In 2007 I installed Z-Therapy carbs with SM needles. After those refreshes and rebuilds, I figured the car would be ready for another 20 years of trouble-free driving. In 2008, I moved from Southern California to rural Tennessee. I had planned to drive the Z across but couldn’t make that work with the household move so it was shipped to TN. Since the move, the car is used mostly to get me to my local fishing lakes, but occasionally I take it for a spin down a deserted country lane and blow it out with a couple of fast runs. Over all this time, the car has only been out of service (not counting the year on blocks while I was in Japan) for about 6-7 weeks due to engine swaps/rebuilds, paint, etc. It was a daily driver for the first 17 years, about a “twice a week” driver for the next 17, and has been about a “once a week” driver for the past 11 years. It’s been a long, but fun, 45 years of ownership. Future plans? Five years ago on the 40th anniversary I reported that perhaps I would reverse some of the mods I made to the car over 40-45 years ago (mostly non-stock instrumentation and other interior mods). That at some point in the future, with upper body strength diminishing, I’d have to consider pulling out the quick steering knuckles and putting stock ones back in, along with perhaps a larger diameter steering wheel, to reduce the steering effort. I haven’t done any of that. I’m 65 now and can still turn the wheel (although parking is a bear) so no changes to the car yet. I just keep driving it and “enjoy the ride”… A problem that will continue to get worse over the future years may be finding appropriate performance tires for 15” wheels (of course, as I age, perhaps I shouldn’t be exploring the capabilities of performance rubber!). Otherwise, the car is mostly good to go – let’s see how much longer we stay together…!

How about the factory drawing? L= blue, W = white, B = black.

I've always pictured a Dr Frankenstein type basement with a 280 chucked up on a lathe.

Techno Toy order placed! woot woot Hope I get the credit card statement before the wife sees it....

Also from that 40th Anniversary thread, board member "psdenno" posted this comment: "... it might be interesting if we all shared our memories when we hit a milestone date - things like what other cars we considered before buying the Z, what we traded in for the Z, what was the dealership like, waiting list, what we've done to our Zs over the decades, and Z adventures." In response to that, I posted these memories: Other cars considered? A crazy list which I still remember. I had re-enlisted in the Marines and was sitting on $8000 after taxes - a tidy sum in 1972...and of course I was prepared to blow it all - who needs to invest for the future when you're that young! So, my list was: Jaguar XKE V-12, Lotus Elan+2, Corvette LT-1, Porsche 911, and Pantera. A wildcard was a used Ferrari (they used to depreciate pretty fast back then). Some of those I would have had to finance and didn't want to do that. At the end of the day, I went with the most practical selection - the Z. Of course - all those other cars would be worth MUCH more now - but I probably wouldn't have been able to afford to keep them this long... Car traded in? A 1969 Datsun 510 wagon (wish I still had that). Dealership experience? A guy named Ron Marsh was the saleman - a nice enough guy - but then all he had to do was process the sale. NO negotiation on price - full sticker plus the options they loaded the car with: AC, mag wheels, undercoating, front bumper guard. Waiting list? By September '72, at least in Southern California, they were JUST about caught up. There was only a single car at the dealer in the showroom (an Ontario Motor Speedway pace car replica as I recall). So, I had to wait for the next shipment to the dealer. Four cars came in - they called the next 4 people on the list and I was #4 so I only waited a few weeks. A coincidence that when I got the call to come to the dealer, it was my birthday - Happy Birthday to me! The only choice the 4 people on the list got was color. 1st on the list got first pick, then down from there. By the time it got to me the only color left was silver...and that was fine with me. Z-mods over the years? In my original bio above. Z adventures? Gosh - that would be a whole 'nother thread. Some random thoughts: Driving the car a hundred miles a day a number of times when I first got it - just couldn't stop - and gas was 35cents/gal back then. Driving the car to the east coast and back to SoCal in '74 and '75. Getting TWO speeding tickets on the same day - trying to win the Yuma to El Toro Grand Prix. When the V-8 was in - blowing off the outside rear view mirror while doing about 145 way out in the middle of nowhere in northern Nevada. The pits that are in my windshield happened on that trip as well. Same trip - being in a windstorm and opening the door of the car - it gets yanked out of my hand and the door got sprung - have a problem with the drivers door to this day. Also with the V-8 - getting caught by CHP while top ended (145) - but he only wrote me for simple speeding at 99mph - he gave me the "military discount." Every important person in my adult life has ridden in the Z. Coming in hot on a left turn, a little moisture on the road I wasn't counting on, went to 10.5 tenths, started to spin, and hit a sharp curb - toasted the rear suspension and cracked the right rear mag. Enjoying lots of country drives. Transportation car - back and forth to the range or to the lakes. The "sleeper" aspect of the V-8 - blew off lots of expensive cars. The quickness of the car with the 4.44 gears - drove a 289 Mustang nuts for a few lights in a row - just from the light up to the 45 speed limit. Driving southbound on 395 from Reno back to LA at night - mostly all two-lane back then - on the first day of a 3-day weekend - every car in LA was headed northbound - blinding lights for hundreds of miles - most miserable drive ever. And on, and on, and on - 45 years is a long time. Before I forget - the greatest Z adventure was when the Z saved my life. Probably in the mid- to late-90s, I was heading into an intersection - I had the green light, it was a 55mph zone and I was right-on 55. Just as I'm getting close to the intersection, a car headed towards me made a left turn RIGHT in front of me. Somehow, the Z moved sideways to the left, then sideways back to the right. I cleared the other car by what seemed like inches...maybe not, but it was REAL close. I pulled over to the side of the road, stopped, and my hands were shaking on the wheel. A guy pulled up behind me and said "whoa - you alright - I've never seen a car turn like that" (or something like that). I said I was ok. Got calmed down a bit, started the Z back up and drove off. I don't think I would have made it in a stock Z - I think the suspension and hi-po tires saved me big time. Had I been in another car...I don't think I'd be typing this now...

I am back! After selling my series-1 240z on August 21st I picked up my new 240z yesterday September 11th. To be honest, I did not think I would be in another Z so quickly but my friend Mike Cooper, who never sells anything asked if I would be interested in buying his red 240z. He needed the room more than anything and had owned the car since December of 2000. I had seen the car many years ago parked in the corner of his garage but never saw it up close. After a trip to look at it and another trip to drive it, I knew it was the one for me. When I sold the series-1 Z I had a goal of taking the money and getting my shop air conditioned before getting another car. The next car would be a classic Z I could modify and not affect the value. It could be a 240, 260, or 280 as I wanted to do triple Webers, springs, sway bars, different seats, etc. Mike's car already had all of this and more. The highlights include a 1mm over '78 2.8L engine w/an E88 head, triple Dellorto carbs, '83 280zx Turbo 5spd w/Hurst shift and custom shift handle, '85 Turbo differential w/Precision LSD, Susp. Techniques springs, front & rear sway bars, and seats from a Mitsubishi Eclipse. The car is a 1/72 build and is number 65,283. As you can see in the pictures it needs a deep cleaning, the paint needs a careful cut & polish, and there are lots of little things that need to be addressed, mainly just items that need to be replaced due to age. The car was originally silver with a red interior and one day it may return to that color scheme. For now, it will be tinkered with and driven alot! When I first saw the shifter handle I thought I thought it looked a little ridiculous but I can testify it is totally functional. It puts the shift knob right where you want it and the throws are short and precise. I will keep this post going as I make updates and repairs. I look forward to showing it to everyone at local events in Austin and at Atlanta in October 2018! And it came with a few parts too! Believe it or not 99% of what you see was packed in the car when I picked it up. Who needs an SUV?

Listen good to the advice you are getting NMcKe97. You'll live with the engine for a long time. The P79 chambers are large....piston contact is not a problem, and even with the flat tops, you will still have a very low compression engine. 1 mm (.040 inches) overbore is the minimum I would bore....ITM Pistons have worked well for me. Nissan used flat tops in the 82 ZX's NA engines.....still was a very, very low compression engine.

Be sure to schedule a visit with Bruce in Philadelphia for the full anal-retentive approach to Z care and upgrades!

I added a third brake light to mine with a $10 Ebay light and wired to to my existing brake lights. Mine is kind of short but it is pretty bright. You could probably find one longer if you wanted. 3M adhesive tape mounted it to the inside glass and has held up well over the summer. It's very visible through the louvers to normal kinds of vehicles and SUV's behind me when on the road, but probably not to any high lift trucks, say, at a stop light. This is the only pic I have at the moment.

Goose52, After reading this I realized my 40th year of ownership of my 72 was last year. Purchased 6/17/76. That 40 years went way too fast. Enormous list of changes over the years but have kept the body stock except for front and rear spoiler. Only one repaint over 20 years ago. I even have the very same front spoiler as yours. It has never once left me stranded. Sold my Triumph TR6 at the time so I could purchase the Z.

P79 head originally came with flat top pistons and was used for NA ZX cars. I personally would never build a P79 head with anything but flat top pistons. And, most folks who build the P79 head follow a process where they shave the head far more than you have. Guy can speak to this more.... @Diseazd

It sounds like we are going to find another set that are flat top pistons, definitely will need the extra get up and go for the build as I was already using every ounce of hp she had stock so I definitely can't go backwards. You hit the nail on the head with that one Siteunseen, he's given me an unbelievable amount of help so the last thing I want to do is cause a problem or stress him out! Thanks for the link to that calculator, that will definitely come in handy at some point or another. Probably not this build cause I'm to lazy to gather all the numbers and plug them in right now but nonetheless thanks for the tool. Unfortunately the pistons have already been attached to the rods but I can't have compression drop from 8.8:1 to 7.3:1 so we will be getting the right flat tops. I don't even want to know what the hp output on something like that would be, it sounds awful. If I had a different head or a turbo laying around with all the other little goodies needed then the dished pistons wouldn't be a problem but unfortunately that's not the case. I wondered the same thing zed head but the box and website both specify it's for the l28e so I'm not really sure what to think, it'd make more sense if it were an early 280z but what do I know. They imaginably have a reason for it or maybe they are just out of touch with the z pistons, who knows. I think you'd be modestly surprised to see how the 2+2 drives, I've pulled on a number of cars with more hp including evos, bmws, subarus, and more. Probably has something to do with me knowing how to drive but I'd like to accredit it to the ol' Daty puttin in work! For now I'm going to stick with the 2+2, it's done surprisingly well for me so far and that's with it being stock. You'll have to take my word when I say I've driven the $^!# out of her and really put her through her paces. I've nonchalantly removed 100+ pounds of interior from her before and it had a real nice get up and go so I imagine if I really wanted to lighten it up it wouldn't be to tough. I believe I recall people lightening it to 2600lbs or less if memory serves me correct. I know most people aren't a fan of the 2+2 but I've genuinely enjoyed every bit of it, it has a nice get up and go as well as great steering and handling. I could care less for the cruise control and all the other luxury bs, especially cause most of it doesn't work, but it's nothing I can't remove or fix. Do you guys want pictures of the build or should I save my time and forum space? Thanks again for the help, advice, and taking the time out of your day to help me gentlemen, it's very much appreciated, hopefully I can return the favor someday! -Noah M

Great narrative. I look forward to the next installment in a few years. Coming up on 46 years with my Z in November and can appreciate reading about your Z adventures. Dennis

Thanks for sharing your story. I am new to this forum and enjoying all the info. You and I are about the same age, 63 and I am on my third Z. A 1977 and 79 when I was much younger and a little more crazy. Now with my second 77 that I have owned since 2000. Having a lot of fun once again restoring it. Thanks again for sharing. Sent from my iPhone using Classic Zcar Club mobile

Really enjoyed your story about owning your 240z. Thanks for sharing. Your story caused me to think about some things. My dad bought his 72 240z in 73, slightly used, and paid as much as a new one. He put 190,000 miles on that car driving all over the southeast for his job. I drove a 280z during high school in the early 80s and put probably 30,000 miles on that car. My point is that reading your story and thinking about my dad's ownership makes me want to drive a 240z every day. Most of us, yes there are some exceptions, will never know what it is like to put that many miles on one of these cars and really experience all there is to know about the car. I find myself paranoid about letting it get wet. My dad drove his in the rain all the time. Funny.... Anyway, enjoyed the story. Take care.

Looks like great fun. How is the rust situation?

All is right and good in the world again!

Wow how did you find this out?

Congratulations Goose on 45 years of ownership! Thank you for posting all of this up and sharing your experiences with us. I have loved reading this and I have learned something too. The '72 240z I just purchased has an Interpart 3x carb intake manifold on it and have been trying to find some info about it. Interesting to see that BRE sold Interpart stuff and I had no idea they offered so much more back in the day. Keep the good times rolling with your Z!

Got busy with the suspension modification... First up, I drilled two opposite holes near the top of the strut to drain the oil. The gland nuts are rusted and seized and I don't plan on saving these anyways. Drained the oil to make it safe to cut with the angle grinder/cutoff tool. Then I removed all the hub and rotor components off the front spindle. For the rears, I pushed the spindles out with the press before removing the backing plates. That gave me something to push against. Removed the backing plates and then marked out the cutoff point at 2" from the bottom. Cut off the strut and test fit the collar. I may remove a little more material for a more flush fit. Did the same to the fronts. A little more creative cutting is needed to clear the spindle hub. Not impossible but the casing needs to be cut up a bit more to get the grinder in there. And that's it for now....

Sounds like you might be talking about some of us older Z owners as well as the cars we drive. Dennis

Another thing people often forget about is the age/maintenance ratio. These are old mostly plastic and fragile cars everywhere but the body which is rust prone. They require constant attention, like a pet in my opinion. Do you like working on cars or drivng? That FSR I think from Scion is a nice arse car and nothing but driving. These Zs are easy to work on but you have to work on them. That turns to the fun part, for me at least. I have a garage and like working on mine as much as I do driving it but I enjoy beer more than any car.

the fuel pressure is maintained by having a pressure regulator that monitors the engine vacuum to maintain a constant pressure relative to that. 36psi is where it should be with the pump running but the engine NOT running (no vacuum in the intake manifold). at idle you are more likely to see 30psi assuming all things are working as they should. The pressure will rise and fall based on engine vacuum. A massive air leak would therefore effect not only unmetered air but the fuel pressure regulator as well. You may want to get a vacuum gage hooked up as well. Vacuum leaks can create havoc. check all hoses and don't forget the PCV hose on the crank case AND the PCV valve. This assume you have a vacuum leak issue of course. the excess fuel provided by the pump will be returned to the tank via the return line. I suppose you will be ok with a non standard pump but again you are introducing a variable into the system. Its hard to know how to proceed unless you start by baseline the pump (pressure and volume AT the fuel rail). I started with a factory pump just to be sure I did not have an issue. What was in the car was one of the high pressure skinny long pumps that was good for 90psi. Are there any other non stock modification to the various systems (PCV as an example). things like loose fitting valve covers including the oil cap, can cause air leaks, as can leaky injector o rings, even a non secured oil dip stick. Also all the hoses that flow air from the AFM to the throttle body should be inspected for crack that would allow air to go unmetered.

Rotas 15x7 Polished lip - Modified Cap Sent from my iPhone using Classic Zcar Club mobile

Hey @Travel'n Man, what are the specs for this setup? Wheels and tires if you could, thanks.

Sent from my iPhone using Classic Zcar Club mobile

Can't help it...drive your car exclusively on pavement and you won't have to worry about weeds getting into your secret compartments!

Yup, but I chose to ignore it, as there was 257 post's in the R/T mount group buy thread, and no where in any of those posts did it say that the mount came with the GM mount. I was selling the R/T mount and that's it. There was over 100 posts of where to buy the Bump stops and GM mounts, as they were not supplied with the R/T mount. Aint no person with decent vision that can hit my Z from the rear and say "But officer, I couldn't see his brake lights" When I'm stopping, YOU'LL KNOW IT! I got a whole wall like that, loaded withcleaned and finished parts, waiting for paint and the paint job to be done. I'll check the PM. Dave

So I finished my 3rd brake light and installed it today. Bright enought to easily be seen thru my 20% tint, Correct angle and works like a charm. Dave

I'm doing a light myself. It'll have a Z logo cutout with LEDs.