HS30-H

Thanks Chris, It makes it a pleasure if people like yourself appreciate the effort and can use the data / information to good effect. I only wish that the people who ask the original questions might sometimes be bothered to acknowledge that somebody attempted to give answering them a full and proper shot. Declining social skills, maybe? It would be a real shame if this site ended up like a lot of the car-related sites on the web. Sometimes I read them and start to think that people don't even notice when they have their cake and are eating it. What say you, 1975yellowBSPZ? Alan T.

This one did not want to attach for some reason, sorry. Got it now:

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Here's another angle:

Hi Guus, Your best bet is to make a replica yourself. The originals are VERY rare even in Japan ( not many Japanese-registered cars were fitted with them for 'temporary use' outside Japan, in conjunction with the 'temporary export' translated Japanese registration number plates ) - so I think you will be very lucky to find one. Making a replica should not be too difficult. The originals were just aluminium plates with a white reflective face ( you know - the type that looks white until you shine a light at it, and then it becomes reflective ). On top of that, they screen-printed the black border and "J" letter. You could do it with computer-cut vinyl lettering. They just pop-rivetted them to the rear hatch ( using steel pop-rivets, not aluminium! ). Its just a flat piece of metal - no moulding / forming at all. Here's a pic for better reference: Alan T.

Oh well - maybe the information will be of use to somebody else who will appreciate it.................................. Alan T.

Constantly over 100mph? Where does he live then - Daytona? If his "authentic" G-Nose is strengthened or reinforced then he might not have the same drooping issues. However - I can assure you that this is a well-known problem amongst owners of the real thing in Japan. Its not just my car that does it. Alan T.

Hi Guus, I can see the flaps - but I think they were almost certainly fabricated from scratch and fitted by the owner / preparer of the car. The reason I say that is because the front splash-flaps seen on the Works-built Safari Rally cars were actually never available as a Sports Option or race part from Nissan. The ones on the Safari cars were hand-made in Japan by the craftsmen who prepared the cars, and by the Works mechanics who travelled with the cars to Kenya. They gradually developed them to be even bigger during testing / practice to help stop mud and water splashing up and over the front of the car when they forded the many rivers and streams on the rally. The rear mud flaps ( with "Datsun" in white writing on them ) WERE offered as a Sports Option part - so their situation is slightly different. However, even these had hand-fabricated mounts on the Works cars. My opinion is that the owner / preparer of the Portuguese car may have seen pictures of the Safari cars, or even developed his own parts without seeing the Safari cars, to cure the same problem. Surely if there was at least evidence of ONE type of Works part or Sports Option part on the car, then he would have had more? We don't know about the engine and drivetrain parts - but I'm willing to bet that they were very close to stock, or had some 'local' tweaks. Alan T.

Ben, I suggested that you ask Guus because he is collecting and classifying 'Privateer' as well as 'Works' cars on his "Victory Lane" table of results. For my part, I've been limiting my own parameters to 'Works' or 'ex-Works' / 'Works supported' cars. The only exception is Japanese circuit racing, where lots of other interesting stuff went on and lots of privateer teams got hold of ex-Works parts and ex-Works parts. What I can tell you about your picture of the Portuguese-registered rally car is that it is almost certainly a Privateer car and has no evidence ( from the pic ) of Works or Sports Option parts on it. Even the lights are CIBIE Oscars ( as opposed to Koito ) and it appears to be on stock-looking steel rims. It bears all the hallmarks of a private entry car with a few tweaks to help it on the stages. There were many cars like this around in the early Seventies. Most of them seem to be relatively undocumented in racing history, and you have to go back to search entry lists and results for the events to find out anything about them. Its a shame that we can't hear their stories. The picture that Mr Camouflage posted is of an entirely different animal. The pic shows Harry Kallstrom and Claes Billstam taking part in the 1973 RAC Rally, and I think this picture was taken on one of the Welsh stages of the rally. This is a full-blown Works car, and was registered "TKS 33 SU 4079". This particular car was running some pretty trick parts for the time, and was just about the ultimate Works rally development of the 240Z before they switched over to the 260Z. It was running the "LY" Crossflow engine with ECGI fuel Injection, and would have been a very fast car. You can see it is using the homologated bumper with the lowered centre section ( nicknamed the "Drop" or "Monte Carlo" bumper ) which was first used on the 1972 Monte Carlo Rally. The lowered centre section allowed better placement of the spotlamps ( better for cooling, better for light beam spread and better for protection ) and this type of bumper was seen on many of the later Works rally cars. Don't get confused about the front valance corners and indicator lamps of this particular car. In fact "4079" was almost certainly first fitted with the usual wraparound indicator lenses and front valance corners when it left Japan. However, these were very vulnerable on the stages - and were often broken. This loses points in certain rallies, and I should imagine that they were either replaced with the UK-type after the originals were damaged, or the staff at the UK-base for the Works team ( Old Woking Service Station ) fitted them to avoid inevitable damage to the originals before the car started the 73 RAC. Don't forget that the fact that our UK-market cars had the different valance corners and indicators meant both that the 'proper' wraparound types - generally fitted to the Works rally cars - would have been in short supply here, and that there may have been issues with using lighting / indicators that did not comply with UK Type Approval regulations ( which is why the UK market cars did not have them in the first place ). Nothing is simple when it comes to the Works rally cars. Nissan built more than 50 of them, and each one had its own spec. and its own life. All the best, Alan T. ( PS - this is what happened to a lot of them: )

Just to clarify Gav, It was only the actual Bumper of the ZG and the Factory G-Nose kit that was made from Urethane. All the other parts ( Headlamp cowls, upper panel, lower panel & Overfenders ) were made from fibreglass ( "FRP" in Japan ). There would be nothing wrong with the replicas if they were even close to the quality and fit of the original parts - but they usually are not. The best of the budget replicas I have seen were made in Japan, and once properly installed look like the real thing until you get close enough to look underneath. However, I have seen replica panels made by a one-man company in Japan that are all but indistinguishable from the real thing. The same company even replicates the Urethane front bumper perfectly. He only supplies these to owners of original ZG's who need them to repair crash damage, and they are VERY expensive. The original items are extremely good quality, but even then there can be fit issues. Once you get the car up to a high speed ( over 100mph ) it starts putting a BIG strain on the panels, and they are after all basically just hanging off the front of the car with not very much holding them up. I've stopped after some fast motorway and track drives to find that the bonnet filler panel has drooped about 1cm. Wait about 10 minutes and it gradually seems to 'relax' back into shape................. Don't forget that the Bonnet / Hood hinges are also different. Alan T.

The original finish was a metallic gunmetal grey I believe. I think the new ( OEM ) ones you can buy are in this finish too? I've seen the 432-R type on real PZR's in Japan, and the ones I saw were satin black. I believe they were this colour originally - but I'm not 100% sure. I have conflicting reports on that point, and I think the colour may have been changed at some point. My guess is that satin or matt black was too difficult to keep looking clean without constant repainting ( ? ). When I fitted a ( new ) mesh grille on my old everyday driver - the red UK-market HS30 that I turned into a Fairlady 240Z replica - the grille didn't last longer than a few months before getting rust spots on it. They really do have very little paint on them, and what little there is soon gets blasted off by road grit! Of course I live in foggy and rainy old London town - so maybe that had a lot to do with it. Anyhow I'd recommend a thicker and more thorough paint job to anybody buying a new one. A couple of rattle-cans should do the job. Alan T.

Just a quick point of clarification before this thread turns into history..... What is being referred to here as a "NISMO Grille" has nothing to do with NISMO at all. It is also not specific to the 432 model. The 432 front grille ( original part number 62300-E4101 ) was exactly the same as that fitted to the Fairlady Z, Fairlady Z-L, Fairlady 240Z and Fairlady 240Z-L models for the Japanese market. All those models shared the same part number. The 432-R model however had its own unique grille ( original part number 62300-E7200 ) and the main difference was that it had a different gauge of mesh. The replacement Japanese-market model grilles that can still be bought today are the modern version ( OEM remake ) 'normal' versions - not the 432-R type.:classic: Alan T. ( nit picking department )

Yes - he was certainly looking apprehensive about "touch down"! With his current gearing and tyre size, at peak RPM in 5th gear, he would have been at around 120mph or more when the picture was taken.:cross-eye Unfortunately, a couple of corners later he went off the road and into a ditch. That's rallying for you. Not much margin for error, and quite serious damage for a slight off.............. I certainly hope you don't take it so seriously in your car. Its too nice to bend! All the best, Alan T.

Hi Guus, Great to see that you are using your car in this kind of event. Well done! Thought you might like to see this photo that I received recently. The driver has a funny expression on his face. Apparently he was flat-out in 5th when the picture was taken........... All the best! Alan T.

Hi Ben, Seems that you have had fairly good contact with JANSPEED already. Its very difficult to troubleshoot your problems online. However, as the engine actually starts and runs I'd have to say that you are now going to need to get into the fine tuning of it. It seems to me that the problems can't be that big, and must simply be a case of adjustment to spark timing and mixture. Everything else is just going to be common sense.............. The Janspeed turbo conversion was actually a very simple and trouble-free setup as far as I have heard. There are still a few cars with this conversion being used regularly here in the UK. I'm sorry I don't have any direct contact details for any of these people, however I'm going to send a PM to you with information on the UK "Z Club" where you MIGHT be able to get in contact with a UK-based Janspeed turbo conversion owner. At least you might be able to get some accurate first-hand advice. Good luck, Alan T. Alan T.

Hi Jackboot, Now I understand about your Skyline. If it had been a REAL C110 GT-R I think I would have eaten my chair.:classic: Are you looking for the GRP / FRP / Fibreglass "Overfenders" that would give your car a similar look to the one in your photos? I think that is what you mean. Well - if you have a 4-door GC110 the it gets a little bit difficult. I have seen them in Japan, but they are a really funny shape on the 4-doors and I'm not sure if its still possible to buy them. The ones for the 2-doors are still available as replicas - but there's probably not much call for the 4-door ones. As you are in Portugal, I might be able to help you with your search for used Watanabe wheels. What size are you looking for? Probably not too wide for a 4-door? Let me know. Alan T.

Hi Jackboot, The wheels on the car in your photo are made by a company in Japan called "R.S. Watanabe". That design is their classic "8 Spoke" ( 'Hachi-Spo' ) design, which they have been making since the 1960's. You can still buy this design new - but they are a little expensive when shipping and taxes are taken into account. Take a look at their website for further information: R.S. Watanabe Japan website My 1972 Fairlady 240ZG is fitted with these wheels. You can see images in my Gallery of you are interested. Are you sure that your Skyline is a PGC110 or is that a misprint / mistake? A "P" prefix would signify the S20 twin cam engine, and on the 110 series "Ken & Mary" Skylines this was only fitted on the KPGC110 model. Alan T.

Right - I've been in the garages all day today. I finally had a chance to measure up the Fender Mirror positions from my ZG, and this is what I measured. Bear in mind that I measured to the EDGES of the base ( the plastic gasket that goes between the paint side of the body and the "stem" of the mirror ). I measured to the FRONT of the base for the front-to-rear dimension and to the widest part of the base for the side-to-side dimension. This will not give you the centres for the holes ( I wasn't going to take my mirrors off to measure the hole positions ) but it would allow anyone fitting a set to get the Factory positions by using the gaskets as templates. I think the main point is that they ARE indeed NOT mounted in the same measured position on each side. I can see that this is because they work better that way. The mirror on the passenger side ( in an RHD car ) is further toward the rear of the car and further away from the edge of the Wing / Fender to Bonnet / Hood joint. With the limited adjustability of the mirror faces, this positioning must allow for a better angle of vision I suppose. I would recommend that anyone fitting them to an LHD car either transposes these dimensions from the RHD configuration, or thinks long and hard about where they are going to drill their holes. Apologies for the crap 'etch-a-sketch' style line art........... Alan T.

Hi Steve, Just PM'd you with regard to data on the UK-market cars and where you might get some joy on bulk figures. I know the data for a lot of cars is held in one "Register", and its just a case of getting hold of this document and manually transposing it. Its not an official Nissan / Datsun document; it was made by enthusiasts who set themselves a similar task to your own. I don't think its complete or up to date, but it will surely be a help? Will send you my own numbers over the weekend too. All the best, Alan T.