HS30-H

Hi Alfadog, If your car is an Australian-market HS30 then it really ought to have been fitted with a rear Anti Roll Bar ( "Sway Bar" ) from the factory. The originals are quite a different shape to the aftermarket ones ( which were usually offered in the American market to allow the fitting of a rear bar where no mountings existed ). So be careful when thinking about purchasing one of the aftermarket types to fit on your particular car; you might receive the type that does not fit in the standard mount brackets on your chassis. As I've said before on previous posts about the USA / North American market HLS30's - its strange how the factory thought that a rear bar would not be needed for that model. Was it just to save money and keep that dealer price down? Can't imagine it would have saved that much, and most of the S30-S, PS30 and HS30 models had them fitted as standard........... Anyway Alfadog, check out whether you have the factory rear bar or at least the factory mount brackets before diving into the purchase of something that you either don't need or can't fit. Alan T.

Hi Bo, You're going to have to get the car up in the air and give it a good looking over underneath before you can identify your trans and diff. combination. However, if you have a "normal" shift pattern ( ie, fifth gear position all the way over to the right and forward ) then I would bet that its a pretty standard "B" type box ( the FS5C71B ). Depending on which version of this they fitted when they modified the car in Holland, there will be different ratios. They might even have fitted the 32010-N3130 "Close Ratio" Option transmission, which has the same shift pattern as the standard box. More likely is that they have fitted something like a 4.1:1 or 4.375:1 Ring and Pinion at the same time as the LSD unit. This has the effect of closing up the gear ratios, as well as making acceleration seem somewhat brisker. It also means that top speed is slightly reduced. If you have been used to the normal USA / North American spec. diff ratios and four-speed transmissions then you might now be finding out why some of us think that the other market specs. were superior!.... Those Dell'ortos might have been equipped with large chokes or something compared to the Webers, as if they had the same choke sizes and overall settings then the car would perform about the same with either set installed. The Dell'ortos are not racing carbs per se; it depends how they were set up and jetted. They will not outperform the Webers of the same size. No idea why they thought that it would be useful to be able to take the radiator out so quickly. The factory bolted them in quite securely on their race and rally cars, as they did not expect to have to take them out. Maybe its what someone thought was "racey". If you can post photos of the brakes and suspension ( and the diff. too if you cannot identify it ) then it will be a great help when trying to identify them. We have a member on the site ( "z-point" ) who is Dutch and is based in Holland. He might know a little about your actual car and who used to own it over there. Why not send him a personal message and tell him what you know. It might be interesting! Alan T.

Nah, either they don't get it or they don't care! Somedays the fish just don't bite. Alan T.

Hi Bo, I just had a look at your photos, and I have to say that it looks like you have a standard production car that has been "tweaked" a little........... You might have misunderstood what I was trying to say about the spare-wheel well; if it was a Factory-prepared / "Works" bodyshell then nine times out of ten you could bet that there would be no spare-wheel well AT ALL. The spare would have to sit flat on the deck, level with the surrounding floor. The big tank takes up all the space where the original tank would be, as well as the space for the spare-wheel well. The mods on the car that I can see ( especially the radiator and its overflow tank sited on the inner wing - sorry "inner fender" ) seem to bear no characterstics of what the Competition prep. shop at Nissan's Oppama test track used to make, or of any Sport Option / Competition parts that were available through the years. The Webers are also quite recent types ( post "Emissions" versions ) and are not in period with the age of the car - so it would be even more doubtful that the factory had anything to do with them. They are probably less than fifteen years old. I doubt if you will find any type of oil cooler or circulating pump / heat transfer system on your diff now. If it was a genuine Factory / Works type then it would have pipes both in and out of the rear cover ( although the early R180's had a spray pipe on the top of the body that aimed cool oil at the Crown-Wheel and pinion interface ). You might like to see if you have an R180 type diff. ( standard on your year of car ) or an R200 ( a later addition to the range that was much stronger ) or, and this is very unlikely, an R192 ( fitted to the Z432 and Z432-R ) which would be quite exciting. My bet is that its an R180 with a Nissan Motorsports or Sports Option list LSD unit fitted. The 5-speed transmission is probably the standard FS5C71B box ( unless you have a "Dog-Leg" first gear position - which again would be exciting, but unlikely ). Those louvered inspection covers are not something that the factory ever did, either. While all the above might sound quite negative considering the story you were sold, I do think that the car looks to have a really good spec. and is far superior to the "standard" HLS30 USA / North American market version spec. The engine is probably very well built ( its a good sign that it has an E31 head ) and if it goes as well as it looks then why worry? Intrigued by that unknown thing under the sump that you mentioned ( although it could be a special sump or something ). What about the brakes / suspension? Are they uprated too? Alan T.

Hi boholio, Congratulations on your new acquisition. I don't want to upset you while you are still on a high with your new car, but I think you need to take an industrial sized containerful of salt with that story. First off, the factory was in Japan - right? They never built any "custom" S30 series Z cars for ANYBODY, let alone any "race" cars. They kept all that in-house, and any race cars built by the factory in Japan were kept under very close supervision and were campaigned by "Works" employed drivers, or run by semi-Works teams with drivers like Haruhito Yanagida ( of "Central 20" fame ). A very very few cars eventually found their way from the Works teams ( both in Rallying and Circuit Racing ) into the hands of privateer racers, but these cars were just being pensioned off - and were never built FOR any customers outside the Nissan team. You will also have to bear in mind that the factory purpose-built their race-cars starting from sheet metal components; they utilised different chassis / unibody pressings to the "standard" shells, and built them up on the line as purpose-decided race cars. They did not just pick bodies off the line and modify them. This is in contrast to what happened with the cars campaigned by the likes of BRE and their rivals in the USA, who received standard PRODUCTION road cars from Japan and built them to their own specs. In short, the Factory "Works" racers were purpose-built race cars from the get-go, and NOT modified production cars. If your car had modifications performed by the factory on the production line, then they will conform to a fairly standard spec. that the factory adhered to. The easiest of these to identify on the bodyshell is the deletion of the spare-wheel well, and the insertion of a ribbed panel in its place - this was to leave enough space for the larger fuel tanks ( initially 100 litre, and then even bigger ). If your car still has the original spare-wheel well and the normal 60 litre fuel tank, then it is unlikely to have started life as either a factory-made Rally car or a Circuit Racer. Just from the other details that you mention, its also hard to imagine it has any "Works" history; the carburettors ( both Weber and Dell'orto ) were never used by the factory race cars. They used Mikuni carburettors ( 40, 44 and 50mm versions ) as well as the ECGI fuel injection. Both Weber and Dell'orto carburettors are not purely race carbs; most of the models that they make are dual-purpose, with only a very few described as pure "Race" models. The LSD-equipped Diff. could also be a street item; if it was fitted with a cooler pump then it would be more likely to be a Factory race part - but LSD units have always been available for the R180, R192 and R200 Diffs. that the factory used on their S30-series Z race cars. I won't mention anything about Dutch princes; probably best to leave that to "z-point" ( Guus himself is Dutch and tunes in quite regularly to this site ). Probably he is the best person to comment on the Royal Family of the Netherlands!....... If you want any help to try to pin down exactly what you have, then I would be pleased to try to help. Maybe if you post some pictures ( try putting some in the Members Cars section ) of the details of the car it might help. It sounds like a good spec. anyway, and as long as you did not pay too much for the "Royal Race Car" story then you should be happy with it. Good luck, Alan T.

Mike, Naturally, its on me! However, it looks like our posts just drop off the end of the Active Topics list without any of the Lefties taking the bait............. Perhaps they have no idea what we are talking about, or they just don't notice it in amongst all those "How fast will my Z go if?...." and "Can I fit 19-inch wheels on my Z without widening the arches?..." type of posts........... So perhaps we don't need the bomb shelter after all. That feels like being damned through faint praise! More tea, vicar? Alan T.

Ho dohc and gav, That's quite a list of stuff to answer, dohc - and I will be away from home for most of today. What with the time difference between us, you will not see my full answer until tomorrow I think, so please bear with me while I pull it all together. Gav, I'll post some photos of the 432-R replica project too - even though its pretty uninspiring yet ( just a rolling shell and a conglomeration of parts! ). Alan T.

Hi Cuong, Good to hear that you are up and running. Maybe its a good idea that you won't be putting the windows in until after the dyno run. You might find that they pop out of the body with all that power! Question: Did you buy your engine as a "known quantity" and then left it alone - or did you open it up and freshen it up with new rings / bearings? No idea what you can do with the handbrake issue. I have seen mini-discs ( just for handbrakes ) with a tiddly little two pot cable-operated caliper on another car at some point. As far as I remember, this was mounted on the propshaft just before the diff. It looked rather like the disc setup I had on my 100 National racing Kart about 25 years ago! My PS30-SB replica is STILL in the queue at the paint shop. They are really busy at the moment, and it looks like this will cause me to be a whole Summer behind schedule. I am using the time to gather more parts, and the engine situation is becoming more interesting. I might be going for a gear-driven oil pump kit ( the S20 was originally chain drive to the oil pump ) which is more reliable and has the bonus of sounding great too. Tell us how you get on at the dyno - yes? All the best with it, Alan T.

Hi Cuong, Dream on, eh? The Z432-R ( PS30-SB ) usually came in either the Orange, or 920 "Gold". I am painting my replica in 920 as its a really utilitarian colour and not many people seem to like it. I have also seen them in the early Red ( not 110 ) and Silver, and there was at least one white one I think. They had the semi-matt Black bonnet because on the 432-R it was made from FRP ( with a gunmetal topcoat on the inside, which was applied by the company that made them ). They painted them black to help dissipate heat, but it was more of a sporty image thing than a real attempt to help cool the engine. The ordinary Z432 ( PS30 ) on the other hand could be ordered in more colours - you could have all of the stock Japanese "Home" market colours if you wanted, but most owners chose Red, Orange, Gold or Silver. What with Japan being so hot, darker colours have a definite disadvantage. Glad to see you are "getting there" with your project, Cuong; I have been watching it develop in your photos. I think your feet might catch fire when you get on full boost!.............. Alan T.

Hi Cuong, Don't get too excited. There are always two or three Z432s for sale at any one time in Japan. There are a lot more out there than you might think, as they were always expensive and were the "top of the range" S30 model, so they have been coveted and cosseted. They are a lot more difficult to own than a "normal" L-series engined S30 - and of course the prices are MUCH higher. Add to this the perception that they are not all that powerful, and expensive to make faster, and it means that they are like the elephants at the zoo; lots of people like to look at them but not many people find it practical to own one! That price is 4,980,000 Yen ( about average of what they change hands for over there ) and if you were buying for "Export" ( rather than for use in Japan ) you would be able to get it a little cheaper than that, as the seller would not have to give you so much aftersales service. One of the problems of buying a car in Japan is the difficulty of transporting both yourself and the car around the country; its expensive! Buying a car a long way from the port where you will ship it from can cost an arm and a leg............... The Japanese script could not be recognised by the software on this site ( at least not on my computer ) so it just looked like gibberish. However, it would probably be just the usual stuff describing the car. I noticed that the year of the car "S46" came out clearly though; this means the 46th year of the reign of Emperor Showa - which translates as 1971. Cuong, are you secretly planning to get one eventually?! I know some of the best Z432 and S20 engine specialists in Japan personally, so could help out there. I have no idea about how to get this kind of money together without the wife knowing though....... Alan T.

Hi Mike and Shiin, Difficult to compare the original S30 with this "New" 350Z / Fairlady ( depending on what market version ) as we are living in different times................... Back in the '60's while the S30-series Z was being designed, Nissan was very much centred in Japan - with the East and West Coast offices of Nissan USA concentrating on selling the cars and looking after all that goes with it. Here in Europe, we had stand-alone ( ie, not owned by Nissan ) companies acting as Importers. You would have to say that they did not have all that much input with the design process, but would make suggestions as to what they could best sell - and what to "tweak" to help the cars survive the needs of their particular market. All said, the design and development was happening in Japan. Nowadays things are completely different, and auto makers are much more global in structure. Its difficult to see ANY new car these days as the product of any one company or country. There are honourable exceptions that prove this rule, though. The R32, R33 and R34 series Skyline GT-Rs were the babies of an intensely focused faction inside Nissan, a group who still feel their heritage and family tree come from the Prince regime of ex-aircraft engineers who were realy serious about racing and making great cars. Sadly, this group now seems to be feeling pressure to change.............. This "New Z" / "350Z" / "Fairlady" or whatever they have decided to call it, cannot really be seen as a pure product of Nissan Japan. I think I read somewhere ( and I have to admit it - I don't really care where it was designed ) that it was a product of some outpost design office somewhere ( probably in Calif. ) and that the process has been something of a global collaboration between all parts of the company. My eyes start to glaze over when I read the dull corporate-speak press releases, so forgive me for not knowing the details on who or where it was "designed". Personally speaking, I have no idea how they think that they can link the "DNA" of this new car to the original S30-series Z. There are very few car manufacturers who have pulled this kind of stunt off, and any new car has to survive on its own merits. It seems from the good reviews that the new car has been receiving that it may well indeed be a good car. Again, personally speaking, I will not pay much more than passing attention to it - and I feel the same kind of ambivalence to it as I do an S130-series, Z31 series, or Z32 series car. Its something quite different to what I am into. As Shiin suggests, things are a lot more organised these days in relation to VIN / Chassis numbers on new cars and on prototypes. We live in a different world to the one where the S30-series Z was the product of a small group of guys in Japan with a mission to build a sportscar at a good price and make their company successful by exporting them around the world. Those guys ( and I include the American branch of the operation in that ) did something that would be impossible to do these days, and I have no idea why anyone would think that the "new" Z could even come close to matching what they achieved. The prototypes and styling studies for the S30-series Z were indeed RHD. However, there were also LHD versions being assessed for productionising at the same time, as they planned the LHD version from the very early days. The LHD version needed to work and work well, so they put just as much effort into it as any other of the versions. I don't think we can say for sure that any cars that were serious pre-prod. or sign-off mules ever received their hand-stamped numbers, so "00001" is a kind of fairy story anyway. There are only a few guys who know the truth, and they were the guys on the line who were responsible for this part of the Z story. I have met some S30-series Z production-line workers, but they were not the people that had the authority to put numbers on chassis - so I am still waiting to meet the relevant person to ask the questions to! All the above aside, there seems no doubt that the RHD version of the car was what came first in the design process, and the LHD was a "version" of this. I don't think that this was something that they consciously decided on; it was just NATURAL. Even the engines and transmissions that they used were designed primarily for RHD cars; they just evolved from the previous designs of Nissan and Prince engines which came before them. I'm not trying to re-write history - its just that the English-language version of the story seems to have been misconstrued from way back when............ Surely anyone who looks under the bonnet ( sorry - "hood" ) of a Left Hand Drive S30-series Z would see that the layout of the components in the car does not make logical sense? There is a hell of a lot going on in the driver's side of the car isn't there? Now think of what a Right Hand Drive version looks like; the carbs and exhaust are on the opposite side to the driver ( hence out of the way of the steering column and the master cylinders ) and the balance makes a lot more sense. Looking inside the car, you can see the handbrake is on the RIGHT side of the tunnel, and even the clutch slave cylinder is on the right hand side of the transmission. They never moved them from the roiginal RHD site for the LHD version. I'm not saying that the LHD cars were any sort of "afterthought" - but they did need to compromise slightly to make the LHD version. And I have no idea how anyone could call the "HLS30" USA / North American version anything approaching a "definitive" version - especially with a four-speed, tall diff. ratio and no rear anti-roll bar. We might end up chasing our tails if we start thinking along the lines of "Chassis no.1" - as there probably WAS no such thing. However, we should at least try to think of the RHD versions as being there at the beginning ( and I am NOT necessarily talking about the HS30 here; it is the S30 and PS30 that everybody seems to forget, and which need to be given their rightful place in English-language Z history, or any other non-Japanese language come to that ). Its nice to have people like Mike ( zedrally ) and the other Australian guys sticking up for the "Right Hookers" out there. We can't let the "Lefties" think that they were first, if indeed either of them was "first". All you guys in the USA and North America might sometimes like to reflect on the fact that this is a now a globally subscribed website dedicated to a Japanese car. Naturally it will be biased towards the main percentage of its audience and participants, but we non-USA / North American members make a good contribution to the debates and help to give it some balance. I really wish that more Japanese S30 -series Z owners would feel confident enough in their English to participate and put across their side of the story. I suppose we will have to wait for the day when our computers can automatically translate everything for us without asking. Sometimes it would be useful to know what the hell some of you guys out there are actually talking about!..................... Zedrally, would you like to join me for afternoon tea in my nuke-proof bomb shelter?! Alan T.

Hi Guus, I'm always worried about getting too much going on these threads, as it makes it difficult for me to be getting on with my work! I keep coming back to the site and having a look at what's going on - when I should be working to make a living.......... By the way, its quite clear that the '75 and '76 cars are one and the same car. We even know where it came from now, and that Japanese number plate should not have been on it in '75, as its from a quite different car. Seems they bent the rules a little to get the car into the race......... Here's one you might not have seen before;

Hi Guus, Here we go again with the Le Mans car subject!........... Here in the UK we have a replica of the '75 Le Mans entry under construction. Owner is Mr Chris Gray, and he is making a really good job of it. His research is amazingly detailed. I just helped him to get a replica body kit in from Japan ( the Works type "B" ) and he is now fitting it. Its going to be as authentic as possible, with all the correct stickers etc. Here's one of the photos that you might not have seen before;

Hi there ZR240, Only one S30-series Z car raced at Le Mans, it was in 1975 and 1976 - and it was the same car both years. Other attempts to qualify were made in previous years ( notably by Rob Grant ) but they did not make the cut. In '75 the entry had a few diff. troubles, but still won their class after finishing the race. In '76 they were going quite well until until a crash on the Mulsanne straight destroyed the car and very sadly proved fatal for the driver. Have a look around on this site for previous posts on the Le Mans entries; a few months ago we were going great guns on the subject. I have a fair few photos of the car in both years now, but I would need the permission of the person who gave them to me before I put them up here. I'll have a word with him about it. What part of the subject were you most interested in? Maybe there's something in particular you want to know? All the best, Alan T.

Hi Z Kid, I think I just caught you in time before you dropped off the bottom of the Active Topics list.......... The bottom-end of that 260C L26 is to all intents and purposes the same as you would find in an RS30 / RLS30 "260Z". The main differences were in the head and the manifolding / carburation. This should work with the stuff on the L24 engine that is currently in your car ( I presume its the original engine? ). Do watch out for the sump and oil pickup pipe being different, as there were some models where this was quite different ( and the dipstick position too ). Being as its an auto, you will have to put the flywheel and clutch on it - along with the head and everything else from your present L24. Its still a lot of work, which begs the question; why not rebuild the bottom end of the present engine? It probably only needs a good clean out, new bearings and piston rings. Bet it doesn't even need a rebore or crank grind.............. You might notice different characteristics of the L26 engine compared to your L24; it will not want to rev as eagerly for one thing. Good luck with it, anyway. Alan T.

Hi Steve-o, You get the award for polite and enthusiastic replies. How refreshing! Some people don't even say a "thank you"...... I just looked at your photo gallery, and only one set of four photos is up so far ( the other set is awaiting approval - which is an administrative thing to safeguard the users of this site, and makes sense - so be patient ). First thing I noticed ( no, second ) is that the steering wheel is the very early stock type with "filled-in" spokes. In fact, the spokes had the squareish depressions - just they were never cut out as on later cars. Its a totally stock early wheel - and perfectly matches the car. This is a good thing. Actually, the first thing I noticed was that it looks like a good solid and unmessed-with car. Many of these cars ( no matter where they are ) have been altered or messed with in some way, which can be discouraging. Just like any vintage or collector car, and yes - just like the early VW scene - a nice "barn-find" car is quite often more sought-after than a good everyday runner. Its probably something to do with the virginal aura it sends out, and that whoever buys it can be the first to get at it.......... Those wheels are pretty regular aftermarket "Slot Mag" types and were possibly offered by the dealer as an extra. They are aluminium, and carry on the tradition started by Halibrand way back in the late Fifties ( although real Halibrands were magnesium and more sculpted than these ). I have no idea of the make, but it might be cast into the reverse of the wheel if you can get one off. That "P/S" logo must be identifiable by one of our American correspondents, surely? The rear brake drums are also stock. They are cast aluminium with a steel or iron liner - like all S30-series Zs. Those rear bumper bars were a USA / North American market option ( again, a bit like the Empi bumper bars of the period - so it was probably part of the automotive fashion of the time ). The other markets did not get this choice as far as I know. The lights sound stock, and they were made by Koito and IKI, with some being made by Stanley. Nothing out of the ordinary there ( again, that's a GOOD thing ). The seats are probably the standard vinyl too; it was a pretty horrible simulated-leather vinyl. This did not survive well in hard use or strong sunlight - but again, the car seems to have been off the road for a long time - so its probably stock. That flip-up centre console is non-stock I think; probably a dealer installed option or aftermarket item ( not a factory item ) and makes perfect sense with the automatic trans. I would recommend that you try to get the car rolling ( get the tyres pumped up ) and then try to get it out in the open so that you can see what you have got. Gentle recommissioning would make the car easier to sell, so the usual rules for getting an old car running after a long lay-up would apply. There have been posts about this procedure on this site in the past, so I recommend you have a look and don't rush into it. You can bet any fuel in the tank will be bad stuff by now, and you do NOT want that getting into the rest of the system. Its easy to drain the tank and flush it out, there's a big plug in the middle underneath it. Spark plugs out and some stuff down the bores will help to unstick any piston rings that don't want to do any more work. You can turn the engine over by putting a big socket and breaker bar on the front pulley nut ( make sure you turn it the right way ). God, I hate sitting here typing all this stuff - I want to come over and get my hands dirty myself! Hell - just leave it as it is and send it over to me............... Any more help you need, just ask - the guys that inhabit this site are a good lot and will I am sure already be hatching plots to come and get the car from you. Good luck, Alan T. ( in London, England - so I'm a bit too far away to come and sniff the thing myself..... ).

I'm not complaining or anything 2Many - just paranoid about being misconstrued! I'm sure that some people already branded me a heretic for daring to question the word of the HLS30 Gods....... Being interested in the Right Hand Drive S30 story can be a lonely furrow to plow. Sometimes it seems that questioning the "facts" can lead to a lightning strike and eternal damnation. I just want S30-series Z enthusiasts to realise that the Left Hand Drive cars were not where the story began or ended. Thank heavens for some of the more vocal enthusiasts in Australia and New Zealand for giving me some moral support on this. I have to say that this website would be a very lopsided affair without them.............. One day I might summon up the courage to start a thread along the lines of "Why the handbrake is on the wrong side of the tunnel on Left Hand Drive S30's" or "Why the carbs and exhaust are on the 'wrong' side for LHD S30's" - but I think I shall finish building my nuke-proof bunker first! Alan T.

Hi Steve-o, Sounds like you have inherited something really nice there. Thanks to halz for pointing out that the VIN / Chassis Numbers are each a unique series to their prefixes ( seems like some of the previously posted replies did not understand that ). Therefore, steve-o, this car would be the 14946th "HLS30" assigned a number on the production line - but certainly not the 14946th S30-series Z made. You must not forget all the other variants on the basic S30-series chassis type. Just to decode what that prefix basically means: *S30 = the factory's code for the basic model type of the "First" Z *H = fitted with the L24 engine *L = left hand drive Put these all together and you get "HLS30" which is stamped onto the bulkhead ( along with the actual number of the body - 14946 in your case, which means the 14946th "HLS30" as mentioned above ) as well as on the chassis tag ( attached to the inner wing or "fender" on the sparkplug side of the engine ). As you have the USA / North American export version of the HLS30 ( as opposed to the European LHD model ) you will also see this number in other locations on the car, such as on the dash near the window and on the door shut panel. 2ManyZ's perhaps slightly overstates my previously posted points about the factory "missing" a few chassis numbers; it was probably only a small number ( in the scheme of things ) and mainly traceable on the RHD type chassis numbers. To all intents and purposes, its probably OK to call this car the 14,946th "HLS30" produced - but don't forget that caveat; there were other number series sequences too. In the USA, its common to hear a car like this described by its "Model Year" ( in your case, they might call it a 1971 Model Year ). To me, that's a local habit for one particular market and I think it causes confusion. To the rest of the world ( and especially Japan ) what counts is the date that the car came off the production line, and I personally think this is the only thing that counts. I don't care when it ARRIVED in the country it was sold in, and I don't care what the DEALER described it as when he sold it ( especially as they will always try to make out that a car is younger than it really is! ). Its the day that it came off the line and got inspected that counts for me. That's why to me, and to many others, your car was born in late 1970. The engine number is on the engine block, on a raised pad just below the spark plugs - just by the head / block joint, and at the firewall / bulkhead end. It will probably match up with the number on the chassis plate, as these engines were very durable. I can understand you thinking that the steering wheel might be an Empi - they look similar in some ways. However, what you describe sounds like the stock wheel and is not rare ( although the very early models had no cut-outs on the spokes - which are rarer ). Without seeing a picture it would be hard to comment on the wheels, but I know some cars in the USA ended up with dealer-installed Empi 8-spokes ( which were, somewhat ironically, manufactured for Empi in Japan ). That P/S logo sounds different though, so they might well be Panasports. I ought to let the American experts comment on that.............. I know a little about Empi because I used to have a lot of VW's ( 55, 56 & 57 Type 1, 66 Type 2, 62 and 69 Type 3 ) so I can understand what you might be thinking about rare parts on this Z. However, its unlikely to have any really rare / valuable accessory parts on it. The only stuff that's really collectable or rare are the genuine factory Sports Option or competition parts, and there are certainly not that many of them out there "undiscovered". As an Automatic version, you might find people telling you that its worth less than a Manual transmission version. You might also find that the colour will not be that popular ( although it would certainly be rarer than a red or silver one ). The bottom line is the CONDITION of the body, and this will be the main factor in deciding the price that you can get. You are also situated in what seems to be the easiest area of the world to find an early Z in good condition - so you might find that the local market value is slightly less than it would be elsewhere. As you may have noticed from previous posts, there are many of us out here in cyberspace that would jump on this car if it were more local to us! Unfortunately, the distance and cost involved in obtaining a Californian Z can mean that it is not a viable proposition to buy. Good luck with the car and make sure it goes to a good home ( why not keep it!? ). Alan T.

Hi Alfadog, Pleased that you are getting involved with this one. Certainly there is no reason to doubt that your car is non-original in having no Hatch Vents but still having the Hand Throttle. Like I said before, they switched stuff over "gradually" - so there are plenty of anomalies out there on cars that were half way between switchovers................ HS30-O1031 would most likely be very early '71 I would have thought, and maybe even very late '70 ( they took no notice of the Christmas holidays in Japan; New Year is the big one for them.... ). Great input re the Australian Compliance Plates from Lee and Darryl there. Good stuff. Didn't know any of that. Looks like quite a lot of early HS30's survive out there in Australia, which is great news. Alan T.

Zvoiture, He won't find many "R190" diffs in Japanese scrapyards........... The "R190" was the name that DATSUN COMPETITION in the USA gave to the diff. that was fitted as standard in the Z432 ( PS30 ) and Z432-R ( PS30-SB ), and in the first Skyline GT-R's ( PGC10 and KPGC10 ). In actual fact, the Japanese called this the "R192", and it was kind of like an R180 on steroids. Still the same basic design - just scaled up. These are now very difficult to find, and very expensive when you do. Being the same basic design as the R180, it shares the faults of the R180. They were always noisy, especially with 3.9, 4.1, 4.44 ( standard on the 432 and GT-R ) and up gears ( they went up to 5.1 ). The R200 however is a much better design, and is a dream to set up in comparison to the R180 and R192. Its also so common in Japan that it seems to be possible to find one whatever area of the country you look in. Not too expensive either, and with Japan's many difficult mountain roads and snowy / icy weather in winter, it quite easy to find them with LSD from the factory - especially on the commercial vehicle applications ( look for Cedric and Gloria wagons for these ). The "Scrap" yard owners in Japan quite often have them already stripped out of the car, on the shelf, and with the ratios marked on them in paint marker. Jurven, you sound like you have the luxury of free shipping - in which case you might consider buying some more diffs to sell when you get back. The "Want Ads" seem to be full of Z owners in the USA looking for R200's with and without LSD's. Happy sailing, Alan T.

The 18 series is an excellent choice for the L24 engine, and Weber themselves recommended this model for it. They have the 10mm Accelerator Pump Rod stroke as standard. That's very important for making sure you get good "driveability" from the conversion, and I notice that you said you had a nice mid-range performance - which is probably down to the Pump Rod stroke. Once you get those bigger chokes installed and sort out any other details, you should be able to get to the bottom of the problem pretty quickly. Good luck, Alan T.

Hi jurven, Can I ask precisely why you are chasing what you call a "Skyline" diff. for your Z? If you want to "upgrade", and even go LSD with a nice ratio, why not go for the R200 ( seen on many many Nissan models - not just the Skyline ). If you choose one from an early 300ZX it will NOT be expensive in Japan ( unless you think around $400 for a really spiffy 3.9 LSD-equipped R200 is expensive ). Open 3.9 ratios should be peanuts money in Japan ( maybe as low as $100 ) and they are usually in great condition too. If you ask at a Japanese used parts yard for a "Skyline" diff, you will probably be asked what model you want ( there were myriad different versions, and don't forget that the "Skyline" name started way back in the mid Fifties in Japan..... ). Stick to asking for a "Fairlady" diff and you will probably simplify matters for yourself. Then you only need to change the moustache bar and pop some bolt-up output shafts on it ( easy to find from any early-type R200 ). You might not be able to get it through the X-ray machine at the airport though..................! Good luck, Alan T.

By the way Nick, I was surprised to note that you are calling your car a 1971 year build. I would have thought that such a low HS30 number would have probably come off the line in the later months of 1970. Maybe you have some data that makes you think otherwise? I'd be fascinated to hear about it of you have. Its automotive archaeology. Alan T.

Hi Nick, That's a difficult one, and I don't think that the factory would even be able to tell you the answer to it................ Don't forget that when you ask about RHD cars, it also includes all the Japanese "Home" market models too. So that makes a total of three basic types ( "S30", "PS30" & "HS30" ) and several different spec./ trim levels to combine. In the "X Files", they say that "The Truth is Out There......" - but when it comes to hard and totally infallible data on the early Z car, I'm sorry to say that it probably isn't............. You can bet that your Export spec. HS30 is a rare survivor of the first few hundred of them built. They had a far higher rate of attrition than the early HLS30 models. If you want an educated guess, then you can be sure that there were more than 900 of the deck-lid vented and hand-throttle equipped "Export" HS30's. Probably not too many more though ( and certainly not thousands ). Interestingly, there are examples of these cars both WITH the interior "Tool Boxes" and without. Nissan phased these in over a fair few cars, so its possible to see anomalies where the bodyshell styles crossed over slightly. I don't know if that is true for the LHD cars, as it seems that the spec. on those was more reliable. Alan T.

Hi Darryl, Thanks for the kind words ( knew that our fellow HS30 owners wouldn't let me sink out there on my own ), but I'm still waiting for the barrage to come in from the "zhome.com" Appreciation Society. I should think that you are probably pretty close with your build date guess at Octoberish '70 for your "HS30-00145" VIN ( you lucky sod! ). Its fairly obvious that there was a big gap in HS30 production between the turn of the decade and later in the year. I think this was most likely because of the Type Approval problems on the UK-destined cars, as well as the great surge in interest from the USA / North American market taking over most of the production space on the lines. So many people in Japan told me that they were working around the clock and doubling-up just to build enough cars to supply the huge demand from that market. Seems it quite took them by surprise. The factory were using "HS30" as well as "PS30" and "S30" prefixed cars as part of their race programme in Japan from early '70 though - so there is no doubt that some small number of "HS30" prefixed shells were made in late '69 early '70. Personally, I think all this talk of "Series 1" and "Series 2" cars is nonsense. The factory never seemed to describe them this way, and I have only heard Z enthusiasts in Japan talking about them because they picked the habit up from English-language websites and books. The whole thing seems to be a leftover from that American "model year" thing - where a car gets updated for a its new selling season. That's the same concept as the magazines I buy fresh off the news-stand in July saying "September issue" on the cover. Its just dealer-speak. What I am interested in, and what I mean when I talk about build-date, is WHEN IT CAME OFF THE LINE. The "HLS30" experts might like to tell people that such and such a car should have such and such a part on it, and for 99% of the time they can be right. However, they make me wonder when we can identify all sorts of anomalies and strange combinations on the RHD cars. Things that just do not fall into any kind of strictly-regimented order or plan. Stuff where the factory used different suppliers for the same basic item, or a "test" addition of a newly-modified or updated part on a car that "should" have had the previous type. Here in the UK, we have seen this particularly on the late HS30's when they started to get parts that would later be seen on the RS30. The factory started switching parts and phasing them in with seemingly no rhyme or reason. Derk, if I were you I would have another look at the VIN on that car. If I'm not mistaken you are short of an "L", unless you have that Caelocanth of the Z world - a Left-Hand-Drive HS30......? Happy number crunching. Alan T.