Rainman

An Enkei imitation wheel. I recently had these powder coated and the rims polished, will put them on my refreshed 260Z. Should look good.

Those wheels look fantastic on your car, great choice!!

Nice find!! RX7's are very popular at the autocross events here in southern Oregon, some of those guys really boost those rotary engines with big turbos. Cool technology. Enjoy your new car!

Just got my rims back after powder coating and polishing. They look great so I thought I'd share... They are a mesh/basket design by Modern, similar to the Enki designs of the '80s. Included a before photo with the black paint applied over the original gold color looking very tired and the outer rim needing a polish in the worst way. The after photos show the steel gray powder coating and the outer rim brilliantly polished. I'm excited to see them on the car.

Good luck with the sale Rich, it has been great watching your progress! Thanks for sharing!!

Hey Mitchell, glad you liked the photobucket pics. Concerning the engine, it's been handled already. I've got a 3.1L Rebello stroker with (you guessed it) triple Mikuni's.. The engine was in the car before I tore it down and put it on the rotisserie, so it was in some of the early photos. You're right, it is a complete thrill.. The engine is a blast, makes a bit more than 275 HP so the car really goes.. Can't wait to put it back together and drive it again! I'll be posting photos on the photobucket account as I continue along this path so keep checking back. To be continued...

Thanks Capt. I've got to leave for work and will be gone for the rest of the month so my Z will sit in the garage for a few weeks before I can start putting it back together... Once I'm home next month, it should go back together in short order.. I'll continue to update the photobucket account as I go so keep checking back!! Thanks for the comments everyone... I'll keep you posted!

Capt Obv.. The guy in the front looks like I feel when lifting the front by myself all right.. The guy in the blue shirt doesn't appear to be exerting himself at all so am not sure this is accurate. Yes, it can be done but only for about three or four steps (I am a bit of a wuss). Another guy and I held the back of the car (without moving) for 30-40 seconds while another guy positioned some sawhorses under it.. That was plenty for me.. Refer to my statement of wuss-dom in the previous sentence!!

Thanks for the replies everyone.. I'm really excited to get it down off the rotisserie and back on the suspension. Something tells me I'll drive it more once it's done so will have to bring it up your way Arne! It'll be a few months though.. Jepherz.. I removed the tar paper from the interior myself, used dry ice and it come off real easy. The car was media blasted before paint so I took the easy way out in the prep department. Capt Obv.. I would guess it weighs somewhere in the range of 600-800 lbs.. The rear is the heaviest by far but can be lifted by two guys without permanent injury. More photos on my photobucket account, username 'rainman6801' if you're interested...

I ordered these parts directly from Nissan a couple years ago.. Still have the P/N's if you'd like them, just let me know.

I had the inside of the doors powder coated after the car was stripped. My car is in the process of a total refresh, it's still on the rotisserie. Definitely not the average solution to the problem but it will prevent any further issues inside the door.

Thought I'd post some photos of my early 260Z with the new paint on it.. It's a Nissan color: Monterey Blue and I'm really happy with how it turned out. It's still on the rotisserie but I hope to start putting it back together in the coming weeks.. Wooo Hooo!!

Considering you are in college.. I suggest cleaning the engine and engine bay as best you can without spending too much cash. My main focus would be fixing any/all oil leaks and making it mechanically reliable. Replace the rear main seal, remove and clean out any residue in the bottom of the oil pan and reseal it. Don't worry about pouring oil through the engine while it's out. I've found the best way to clean the internals of an engine is replacing one quart of oil with a quart of ATF (automatic transmission fluid), drive it a day or two then change the oil and filter again and you will find the engine will be nice and clean after that. Have the radiator boiled out, replace all the hoses in addition to the previous comments about the thermostat housing (replace the thermostat as well) and replacing the water pump. Definitely replace the engine mounts now as well. I had an issue with this when I woke up my 260Z after it sat for 11 years.. I missed a shift at high RPM and the engine moved (or in combination with the fan flexing and the sloppy transmission mounts) enough to take a chunk out of the radiator creating a decent leak. So after the money spent in boiling out the radiator, I still had to have it recored after the missed shift incident. Have fun and enjoy getting to know your Z!

Thanks for posting all the details regarding jet and air corrector sizes Mitchell! I've got a Rebello 3.1 Stroker that was tuned for autocross so it appears the mixture is set for the top end. As a result, the plugs are very black and sooty. I am going to adjust the jets and air corrector jets once my car is off the rotisserie, so your post is a good starting point. Tom

Z Club of Southern Oregon Show and Shine 2011 Information..

Yes, the Z Car Club of Southern Oregon is hosting a Z car (and other sporty Datsuns) show on June 25th. The prizes are excellent and I hope the turn out is good! I have to leave for work that day so will miss it unfortunately. Sent you a PM with more info. Sorry for hijacking the thread Stephen!! Tom

Hey Stephen.. Sorry I don't have any input on the Black Dragon product but wanted to know if you are near Medford? I'm going to use Kia Sportage weather strip when I put my 260Z back together.

Removed the 30+ year old black paint from the tail light surrounds of my 260Z using 0000 steel wool and a bit of lacquer thinner. It took about 3 hours to completely remove the paint from one surround. Completed one and got half way through the other. Was cursing some nameless PO but thought better of it after seeing the condition of the chrome underneath. It certainly wouldn't have been in this condition without the paint covering it for all those years. Some before and after photos...

I have substituted one quart of ATF in place of one quart of oil during an oil change. Works very well to clean the engine internals.. Like Rob mentioned, the high detergent content cleans out any sludge in the engine. I didn't run it very long, just a day or maybe two of normal driving before changing the oil and filter again. I did this when I bought a used Rebello 3.1L stroker from a friend of mine. The engine had been sitting a while and now the oil is just like Rob's 4Runner, very clean after every change..

Nissan Monterey Blue.. The 370Z's are available in this color. The shop tells me the bodywork is done, all I need is a hood and it may have color on it by the end of next week!!

I was going to refer you to WingZr0 but it appears you have found his thread.. Have you sent him a private message? That might work better.. I purchased these from WingZr0 a couple years ago and had no issues at all, he's a good guy.

Hey Ben.. The powder coating job on the suspension cost about $1300. The job included every piece of the suspension and I didn't media blast the pieces myself.. Springs, sway bars, brake drums and backing plates, rotors and rotor shields, crossmember, fuel tank straps, under engine pan... Everything... Your project will likely cost less as you will be blasting everything yourself. I was able to save some labor costs because the shop allowed me to do all the high temp taping of areas that were not to be coated.

Have you considered powder coating the parts? Since you're planning on media blasting everything, I thought it was worth mentioning. Just did the same thing to the suspension pieces of my early 260Z and went with the powder coating instead of paint as it is more resistant to rock chips and such. Don't mean to hijack your thread but here are a couple pics..

Very nice!! My 260Z is at the paint shop now, I hope it turns out as nice as yours.. Enjoy it!!

Hello JK.. I have an early 1974 260Z, a two seater as well.. those belts may fit but are not the same type as the system in my 260Z. The belts in my car have two reels, one bolted to the roof of the car, just above the rear shock towers and one bolted to the floor just behind the seats. They sure look nice though!! ZCurve's idea sounds like something I'll try once my car is back from the paint shop.. Best of luck!! Tom