mlaw7

mdbrandy and conedodger are correct. I looked at a '75 280z and my burgundy '78 280z yesterday. The big piece is a shield that mounts over the driver's side rear bumper shock by the antenna drain tube. The two small pieces are the lower support brackets for the front trim piece and secure it to the two front bumper shocks. One end fits into a slot in the top part of the bracket and the other end is held by a screw. Still not sure about the fourth piece though. I took a few photos and will post them later for a reference. Thanks again!

Can anyone recommend a good reasonably priced source for the following parts for a '78 280z? Heater control valve A/C receiver/drier A/C expansion valve Thanks!!

Hey everyone, I hope all's well with you and your families! My name is Michael from Houston, TX. I've been a member for almost a year now (hard to believe!) and so it's well past time to introduce myself. I first fell in love with the Z car back in 1978 when a drummer I was working with in the U.K. used to take me for rides in his 240z. When he let me get behind the (right-hand) wheel, that was it. A few years later in 1982 I purchased a burgundy 1978 280z 2+2 with a 4-speed transmission. I was partial to the coupe model but liked having the back seat and extra room for my guitars, etc. That was followed by a blue 1978 280z 4-speed coupe which I loved. I later switched to a van (!) in order to transport my band's gear as we were on the road pretty often. However, the thought of getting another Z never left my mind. Over the years, I fondly remembered from time to time how much I loved that 280z. Sometimes I would look at ads on ebay and found myself trying to remember what it was like to sit behind the wheel of a Z. It was like a sweet dream that brings a smile to your face every time you think of it ... sound familiar? Flash forward to early November 2007. One of the secretaries in my office told me one day that she and her boyfriend were working on a 280z. I of course told her that I had owned a couple of 280z's years ago. The subject came up a few more times after that and then ... something clicked. The fever was back. On a lark, I started checking out listings on ebay and cragislist to see what was out there and recall being surprised at how relatively few Z's I found around Texas. As the fever grew, I then began crunching some numbers to see if I could swing something crazy like this. And then I knew - somehow, some way - I was going to get another Z. By late November I found three 280z's for sale on Craigslist. Two in the Dallas area and one around Austin. At that point, the only thing I clearly remembered about Z cars was that you had to remove the fender liner to change the headlights! So I asked the sellers a lot of questions and had them send as many photos as possible. I decided against the Z in Austin and decided to make the trip to Dallas in hopes of returning with one of the 280z's. My first choice was a bronze 1978 5-speed coupe. Second was a green 1977 coupe. I knew that the '78 needed some brake and other work and would need to be towed if I bought it. For some reason I didn't have a real good feeling about the '77. Very early on December 1, 2007, I took a Greyhound bus up to Collin County (north of Dallas) and rented a U-Haul truck with a car trailer. (My Volvo was not heavy enough to pull a trailer with a car on it). I had made arrangements to see the '78 later that morning and drove over with great excitement to see it. When I got there, I found that it was in somewhat rougher condition than I had expected. The body was in pretty good shape except for a few dings and dents. No visible rust. Paint was fair. The interior was dirty and a bit rough. Overall the car just looked neglected. And it had an ugly half dash cap! The engine sounded pretty good but as the owner had told me the brakes were not working well, I didn't try driving it. After checking the car out as well as I knew how, we agreed on a price. Using the parking brake, we loaded the car onto the trailer and I drove away as the proud owner (once again after all those years) of a 280z. When I got home, my brother helped me unload her from the trailer. I then discovered that the brakes worked better than I had thought. It felt so wonderful just to sit in the driver's seat of MY 280z! As the registration was expired, I was a bit reluctant to drive her but later that evening took her for a spin around the neighborhood. I recall my intial surprise at the steering as I had completely forgotten that the S30's don't have power steering! The fever was coming back with a vengeance. Over the next couple of weeks, I took every opportunity I could find to reacquaint myself with Z's in general and learn about my car in particular. This included a few more neighborhood drives. At that point it became clear that I needed to find a good Z mechanic to bring her back to health. I ended up taking her to Kin Chan's shop in Cypress, TX. Kin is the Technical Co-Chairman of the Z Club of Houston and a Z car enthusiast. My intial intention was to have her checked out and restored to proper running condition as a daily driver. As most of you know, however, these projects often take on a life of their own! And so it was with mine. Kin and I often discussed the possibility of a full restoration. As Kin's shop was restoring her to mechanical health, I decided to redo the whole interior and see about having her repainted. We ended up pulling the engine, transmission, wiring harness, etc. and sending her to Master Auto Body & Upholstery in Houston, TX. She is now repainted in the original 301 bronze color. Except for a few hard to find parts, the engine, transmission, etc. are back in the car. While the engine and tranny were out, we had the valves and cylinder head redone, block repainted and a bunch of parts like the intake manifold, valve cover, heat shields, splash guard and various brackets powder coated. Also had the underbody, wheel wells and floors undercoated, the bumpers rechromed, seats recovered and mag wheel covers refinished. There were only a few minor rust spots throughout the car - some small ones in the floorboards, a little under the battery tray and in the windshield channel, and a few small spots by the tailights. There was also a bit of rust forming on the drivers side frame rail that was only visible after the engine had been removed. These were all sand blasted and repaired. The real fun was cleaning and protecting all the connections on the wiring harness and retaping all the places where the old tape was pulling away. New weatherstripping too. Before she went to the body shop, I also replaced the struts, ball joints, tie rods and steering rack. At the same time, we replaced all the bushings with a poly master bushing kit from Energy Suspension. Also replaced the front sway bar bushings, which are not part of the master kit. Later pulled the dash out and took off the half dash cap that was on it. I removed all the gauges, cleaned them, installed brighter bulbs from MSA and put a full dash cover on with a new dash emblem. Also replaced the short insulated duct that goes from the drivers side dash vent to the vent under the dash. Now in the process of locating a few miscellaneous parts such as a new receiver/drier and expansion valve. I got some new replacement stickers/decals for the underside of the hood, air filter housing and radiator. MSA doesn't have the 301 paint code sticker yet, so that will have to come later. Soundproofing, new carpet, re-upholstered seats, new console, door panels, etc. will be going in soon. Once the paint and trim are buffed out and polished, new emblems and side molding will go on and then a set of new tires. Last thing will be a muffler that's closer to the stock design. Last July, I decided that it probably wouldn't be a good idea to use this car as a daily driver. When a friend started asking me to sell him my Volvo 240, I started thinking that it would be fun to have another 280z to use as a daily driver instead of the Volvo. A few weeks later I purchased a burgundy '78 5-speed coupe from a guy near Fort Worth. But that's another story for another time ... for now here are some photos of the bronze '78 coupe at various stages of this project. Back in the saddle indeed!!!!

Thanks - that sounds right. Unfortunately I don't have a spare. I'm going to have the body shop put it back on as well as the two pieces for the front trim. The fourth looks like some kind of a spacer or perhaps a shim? Since they were all together with the other bumper parts, I'm thinking it's probably bumper-related. Once I find out what it is and where it goes I'll post it here unless someone else nails it first. Thanks again!

Hey everyone, The body shop just reinstalled the bumpers on my '78 280z but when I was looking through one of the parts buckets I saw these four parts. Although the bumpers seem to be solidly mounted, I thought some or all of these are part of the bumper mounting system. Either way, can anyone tell me what they are and where they're supposed to go? Thanks! P.S. I thought I'd throw in a couple of photos of the work in progress ...

I'm getting ready to undercoat the rest of the interior in my bronze '78 280z and then install soundproofing and new carpet. Can anyone tell me where or to what this connector goes? It is part of the wiring harness on the passenger side floorboard and does not appear to be connected to the console wiring harness. I've matched the parking brake and drivers seat belt warning light connections but forgot to label this one when I took the interior out. Thanks!

Man, she is a real beauty!

My 1978 280z coupe has just been completely repainted in the original 301 bronze color with undercoating on the underside, inner fenders and wheel wells. I'm waiting on the clips for the inner-to-outer fender seals, and then the body shop will be ready to remount the fenders, extensions, bumpers, grilles, hood, cowl, etc. Before they do this, I would like to do everything possible to make sure water and other foreign materials drain from the body as they are supposed to. I'd like to check and clean the drain tubes (at least I think that's what they are) on each inner fender. What about the cowl? Any other areas that should be checked? Any input would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

I thought that's how they all came! I mean it makes sense to me, as having the dome light come on when you open the hatch is pretty handy. Even if it isn't a lot of light. I'll have to get in there and see what's up with that. It might not even be for the dome light. Come to think of it, I just remembered that there was a suspicious and definitely non-original loose wire running from somewhere around the fuse box back to that switch. One of the P.O.'s had at some point installed an alarm system with a horn under the hood. I bet the switch was wired to set off the alarm if the hatch was opened. We removed the alarm system and I now remember disconnecting the wire, so mystery solved!

As promised, here are a few photos of the bronze '78 coupe. The first was taken shortly after I purchased her last December. The four following that were taken at various times last winter and spring while I was in the process of stripping her. You can clearly see the dome light switch on the passenger side of the hatch sill in the first two photos. I thought I'd go on and post a few other more recent photos from right after she had been stripped, blocked and repainted. While the engine and tranny were out, I had the valves and cylinder head redone, block repainted and a bunch of parts like the intake manifold, valve cover, heat shields, splash guard and various brackets powder coated. Also had the underbody, wheel wells and floors undercoated, the bumpers rechromed, seats recovered and mag wheel covers refinished. There were only a few minor rust spots throughout the car - some small ones in the floorboards, a little under the battery tray and in the windshield channel, and a few small spots by the tailights. There was also a bit of rust forming on the drivers side frame rail that was only visible after the engine had been removed. These were all sand blasted and/or repaired. The real fun was cleaning and protecting all the connections on the wiring harness and retaping all the places where the old tape was pulling away. New weatherstripping too. Before she went to the body shop, I also replaced the struts, ball joints, tie rods and steering rack. At the same time, we replaced all the bushings with a poly master bushing kit from Energy Suspension. Also replaced the front sway bar bushings, which are not part of the master kit. Later pulled the dash out and took off the half dash cap that was on it. I removed all the gauges, cleaned them, installed brighter bulbs from MSA and put a full dash cover on with a new dash emblem. Also replaced the short insulated duct that goes from the drivers side dash vent to the vent under the dash. Now in the process of locating a few miscellaneous parts such as a new harmonic balancer, A/C drier and expansion valve. Once we have these, she'll be ready to go back to the body shop to have the fenders, hood, headlight buckets, cowl, grilles, valence, etc. put back on. All of the heavy mechanical work was done by Kin Chan's shop in Cypress, TX. Kin is one of the technical chairs of the Z Club of Houston and has done a great job on my car. I got some new replacement stickers/decals for the underside of the hood and radiator. MSA doesn't have the 301 paint code sticker yet, so that will have to come later. Also put in new carpet and belt molding. Once the paint and trim are buffed out and polished, new emblems and side molding will go on and then a set of new tires. Last thing will be a muffler that's closer to the stock design. More to come soon ...

Will do. May not be until this weekend though.

I've seen what I believe are some dash kits with face places for the 280ZX on ebay. Do a search for 280zx radio and they should come up. Hope this helps!

Definitely not ZX. My bronze '78 coupe (manufacture date 10/77) definitely has a dome light switch on the passenger side of the hatch sill. I'll have to take a look at my other '78.

Thanks for your input and A BIG THANK YOU to Moonpup here in Houston for taking the time to fix them. It looks like these are actually the same mirrors that came on the Black Pearl. As Sailor Bob said, it was a matter of unscrewing and sliding the glass out of the housing and then making sure the plate is nice and tight against the swivel. Mike went one step further and slightly adjusted the curve on both plates to help make sure they stay that way. So far so good! It was not very much fun trying to drive with the driver's side mirror being blown out of position by the wind and the passenger side mirror flopped over on its side!! Not to mention dangerous and somewhat embarrassing. Shifting from 3rd up to 5th gear on freeway entrance ramps is now fun again! Thanks again Mike!

! I am not as familiar with the 240Z series as I am the 280Z. I know the taillights are somewhat different, so here are two possible differences. Do the tops of the 240Z grey plastic trim pieces attach to the hatch sill with rivets like those on the 280Z? Does the 240Z have a dome light switch mounted on the hatch sill like the 280Z? Thoughts?

Does anybody know if there are any differences in the hatch sill on the various S30 coupe models from 1969-78? Thanks!

Quick question: I need a new air flow meter for a '78 280z. Does anybody know whether an AFM from a pre-'78 280z will work in a '78? Nissan shows a different part no. for the AFM for 280's after 8/77, which indicates that it will not. It is of course NLA from Nissan so used or reman are the only remaining options. Can anyone confirm this? Thanks!

Thanks Bob - I'll keep you posted. That's a beautiful pair of Z's you've got there ...

Sorry, I'm still new at this and forgot to attach the photo! Here it is.

Hi to everyone! I first got turned onto the 240Z (or Zed) by a friend when I lived in the U.K. in 1978. In the early 80's I had a burgundy '78 2+2 and then a blue '78 coupe. Since then I've always dreamed of owning another Z. Last December I made the plunge and bought a bronze '78 coupe in semi-running condition, which has turned into a full restoration project. The one shown here is my daily driver, which I got last July. I'm planning to have it repainted in the original 611 burgundy after the restoration of my bronze '78 is completed. After that, maybe a 240Z??? I'll be posting more pictures of my two 1978 280z coupes in the near future. For now, here is my question: does anyone recognize the aftermarket side mirrors on this one? If so, do you know where I can find them? The swivels are pretty worn on both sides, especially the passenger side. If possible, I'd like to find a new set like this. If not, I'll see if I can repair the swivel mechanism in them. Any help would be greatly appreciated! Thanks! Michael

Does anyone know how close the vinyl basketweave seat covers offered by Black Dragon Automotive for a '78 280z are to the OEM pattern? The picture on their website looks very accurate but I'm wondering about the quality and design of the actual product. Thanks!

Does anyone have a line on a pair of the chrome door handle finishing trim pieces that attach to the door panel at the top of the interior door handles? Do they have a specific name? It seems that some of these would be floating around somewhere but I haven't seen any. Thanks! Michael

Were the ZAP Z and Black Pearl passenger mirrors a reversed version of the standard 280z driver's side mirror?

Does anyone know if Nissan made an OEM passenger side mirror for the 1975-78 280z? If so, any leads on where I can find one? I've only seen these on a few Z's. Thanks!

I hope everyone is doing well this evening. I have also been looking without success for what I thought were butterscotch seat covers but am now told that this is not the proper color for a '78 280z. My seats and interior are a deep golden brown color identical to the center portion of Arne's seats as shown in the photo of his seats. I thought it was butterscotch but now I'm told that this is actually known as ginger! :eek: So I'm wondering if butterscotch is really the lighter color of the bolsters in the two-tone seats pictured here. Does anyone know anything about this or have any idea on which color is which? Thanks!