Oiluj

Spent Monday afternoon taking the engine out. Still need to remove brackets, etc. Plan to take it to the engine shop in about 3 weeks. Also still need to remove misc items from engine bay before I can take the chassis to the paint shop, probably late next week. Once the chassis & engine are gone, I'll be able to clean-up the garage and organize the parts!

Keith, That's a tough question. First, I'm not an expert, so I'm only giving you my personal opinion. In my post I was referring to currently available items, but NOS items have a market all their own. Here's my take. 1) For NOS items, (assumng that they are better or distingusiable from reproductions), they should have a reserve price of maybe 20% above the reproduction part price. 2) If there is no difference between the repro parts and NOS, it's probably not any more valuable and eBay buyers will be looking for a "deal". My 80% rule. 3) If it's NLA, the the sky's the limit. Where you set the reserve price is hard to determine. I'd start with asking folks on this board about the value of those items. That's my 2 cents, and probably not worth that much...

As many of you know, I recently had an expensive bad experience with an eBay purchase. However, with exception of that one purchase, I've found eBay to be a good place for many items. I limit my bidding up to about %80 of store retail, Maximum). If it goes for more than that, I figure I may as well go to a store. Regarding the purchase above, I'm currently in dispute-mode with Pay Pal, though I don't expect to win. I don't get satisfaction through Pay Pal, I'll just re-sell the items for less and move on. My take on it is "You win some, you lose some..." Even with this one bad experience, over the last 10 years, I'm still way ahead moneywise. On the other side of the table, when I sell things on eBay, I am VERY careful to fully disclose item condition and take good pics. That way there is no issue. In fact, I'm in the process of selling some left-over MGA parts at about 50-80% value. I get some cash back, an MG owner gets what they want and the stuff doesn't end-up in a land-fill.

Doug, Very Well Said.

Definitely the "finish it now" button, a 5-speed plus the Bond girl. Second thought, the Bond girl would get me in truble with the wife, so let's just stick with the 5-speed and "button".

Dave, you are about 2to 3 weeks ahead of me in the restoration process. Barring unforseen time conflicts, I'm pulling my engine this weekend. I rebuilt an L24 a number of years ago. I was an easy engine to rebuild, but I didn't need to re-bore or do anything major. If the engine's out and money isn't an issue, why not start-out with a fresh engine? (That's what I'm doing) You should get the head reworked for use with unleaded fuel. My advice would be to get a second opinion / reference on the quality of his engine work to be sure he's not a hack. With something as important & costly as an engine, trust but verify...

Carl, I really don't think anyone here is denagrating those who buy an already restored car. Heck, for what I'm investing, given 12 months, I could have eventually found a fully restored Z! (Though perhaps not in my choice of color). I think what some of us, (or at least just me), are saying is that we gain a strong sense of accomplishment and take pride in our doing much of the work ourselves. From reading your posts, I think you probably fall into this group as well. FWIW, it would be nice if I could afford to just go out and buy a perfectly restored Ferrari 246 Dino, (I can't), nor can I justify spending $60K to have my Z restored. However, I don't envy those who can. In my experience, the few "wealthy" people I've met got there by working extremely hard and making personal sacrifices I was unwilling to make. Like you, I appreciate anyone who loves and maintains these wonderful older sports cars.

On my previous car, a 1960 MGA, I rebuilt / restored "everything" myself, including the interior, engine, transmission & brake system. The only thing I didn't do was body paint. I did strip the entire car down to bare metal and painted all the smaller components. There was a tremenduos sense of accomplishment associated with that project. That's why I had the car for 17 years. I am enjoying working on my 240Z am looking forward to driving the completed project. Doing it yourself is the best way to really get to "know" the car. The parts I'm not doing myself on the Z are the engine, seat upholstery & paint. Those are things, (paint & sewing), I'm not as good at and will get a better result by giving it to the pros. While I've rebuilt several engines, having someone else do the work fits my timeline. I want to be driving the car by mid-September. Of course, I'm saving money by doing a lot of the prep work...

I'm interested!

FWIW, I'll have $23.5 K total in mine when it's finished. That includes $3,500 for the engine, $6,000 for paint, custom seat uhpolstry, aftermarket A/C, new wheels, spoilers & new suspension components. Given the additional $15K to $20K in labor, that $50-60K number doesn't sound that far off.

This is second-hand info, so I don't know how accurate it is. I was told that a complete, ground-up restoration to original "show" condition at Z-Car Garage in San Jose runs about $50 to 60K. Ouch! (that's not including the car). Of course, that's silicon valley pricing... But if one has more money than time, why not? While my free time is limited, I certainly don't have that kind of money to put into my Z. Makes me think my time is well spent doing most of the work myself !

I hope mine looks that nice when it's done later this year! What's the sig on the glove box?

Do you have any pics of your new Z?

Very Nice! I have a polished cover, (on the car), that came with mine, but I think I like the painted look better! Do you plan to clear coat it? I also have an old oxidized one, (off the car), and may duplicate what you have done. "Imitation is the sicerest form of flattery".

JMark, If I read your last post, speedfilm has a pattern for the BRE front spoiler?

Just finished pulling-out my transmission today, along with the other stuff that had to come off first, exhaust, driveshaft, starter... Used a small, cylindrical hydraulic jack to prop-up the back of the engine to take the torque strain off the motor mounts. Also removed all the bolts on the stub axles, but have not yet removed them. Need to pry them off the differential side. Based on records and the look of the fasteners, only one side had ever been removed. Those 35 year old fasteners did not want to come off! Total time was 4 hours, including putting the car on jack stands and removing the wheels. Not too bad for not having lay under a Z for over 15 years! Will probably pull the engine next weekend. Things are moving forward!

Cool! Here's my duct tape & bubblegum story. I bought my Z in Scottsdale Arizona and drove it back to the SF Bay Area. On the second day I had a gas leak from the rear carb. There was a crack in the hose leading from the fuel bowl to the jet. There was nowhere to get a new hose, so I bought some bubblegum and already had some tools and duct tape. Chewed the gum and smeared it over the crack, then wrapped with duct tape. Carried me the next 6 hours home without a problem!

I'm interested in a pattern and think a number of others would be as well. The idea of cutting the film on the car is waa-ay too scary given I'll have just spent $6 K on a paint Job! Performance of the film is reported to be very good in protecting paint, so I'm really thinking it would be great for Z's. This is especially the case after reading the article in the attached link. http://www.automotivearticles.com/Clear_Bra_3M.shtml

Anyone using one of the invisible film products, (3M Stoneguard, Clear Bra), on their Z’s to prevent stone chips? If so, how long have you had it and how do you like it? What are the pros & cons?

It was driving down El Camino Real in San Mateo and there it was. I was dissapointed that the driver and passenger weren't wearing costumes. Don't know if it was the original, but it sure looked like it. Was still a kick to see it! It got lots of attention... Has anyone seen one of the Speed Racer Mach V replicars? http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.sussexcountyonline.com/news/columns/cars/carreviews/images/mach5.jpeg&imgrefurl=http://www.sussexcountyonline.com/news/columns/cars/carreviews/speedracer.html&h=155&w=300&sz=11&tbnid=x-6CLbkcdCSJ-M:&tbnh=60&tbnw=116&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dmach%2B5%26um%3D1&start=3&sa=X&oi=images&ct=image&cd=3

I'm going w/ 15" Panasports. The wheels arrived yesterday! They are silver, but I'm thinking of painting the spokes a medium gray metallic, but not as dark as Panasport's "gunmetal" color.

I got my spook from MSA, but I understand that Classic Datsun has a better quality version. Personally, I like the ducted version. The ducts are a convienient spot to install driving lights.

Nice! I hope to do the same in about a 3 weeks to a month!

Going with the BRE style front & rear spoilers. Vented front spoiler. I'm planning on staying with silver, but am thinking of adding a slightly darker "ghost" rally stripe. (see attached pic). I want the stripe to be very subtle, just a few shades darker than the body silver. Let me know what you think...

My 240Z was built in Dec 71 and purchased the last week of March 1972, so I split the difference: December 1971: Family Affair - Sly & Family Stone March 1972: Heart Of Gold - Neil Young or A Horse With No Name - America This was kinda fun to look-up! Of course, Led Zepplelin will be played in the CD when she's done...