Poindexter

Here ya go, jcote75... I included the whole page rather than the cropped area of the 240Z only for better presentation to the "officials". I'm sorry that I can't remember the source of this file for proper attribution, but I seem to recall it came from Carl's site. *bow*

How did you arrive at that determination AggieZ? I'm in the process of revaluing my car with Hagerty. As Carl reminded me, there are lots of costs involved in replacing a Z car- especially one as rust-free and original as mine. Potentially a trip to view a car, trucking/transportation, sales tax again, mechanics' inspection fees...all on top of the cost of the car. I "only" have it covered for $10k. It could potentially cost me thousands more than that just to procure one in equivalent shape. I'm trying to work out some equation for comparing restored car valuation versus original cars with small defects- obviously. Like when is an original car worth as much as a restored car even with small deficiencies- because of the "original" factor, and even more important to me now- do I do any work that replaces original parts with new- like shiny, new zinc/cad (whatever) plated bolts? A puzzlement.

Well, I have Z-Car Revival ordered, as well as the Datsun-Z book by Brian Long. I could have bought a new mirror for what the Long book cost- but it comes highly recommended. This whole thread- to me- has been leading to answering one question- more or less. Besides the unknowables, like general demand in the market, how do the details- or lack thereof- relate to desirability, in monetary terms, and correctness, as relates to judging- and are they related? I hope I'm making myself clear here. What's my best bang for the buck I guess. With so many smaller part "details" to be done on these cars to bring them up to higher standards, like proper hose clamps, hoses, wiring, dash parts, bolts, etc. can anybody make a stab at listing the items that have the biggest bang for the buck? You know how in home renovation they say that a pool will return you, say 80%, a new bathroom perhaps 90%, a new kitchen 100%....is there any equivalent in the Z world? Not including the big buck items, like paint or carpet. The smaller things that can be done in an evening for example. With literally dozens of the smaller (dollar-wise) pieces to replace, cosmetically- as I do have every bolt and clamp functional, but mostly the "wrong" ones, where should I begin? After seeing all of this shiny new zinc on most of the cars we've discussed here, I just want to buy a huge bag of bolts and start wrenching. I know this questions begs to know what's wrong with my car, but let's simply assume that all of these smaller items are intact, but not correct for this version. These items are each only a small amount of money, and each are in themselves a quick job, but they all add up to being right in the end after lots of these smaller efforts, and in the final analysis, they do end up making the car more period correct, and thereby more valuable- and to a lesser extent- they make the car rate higher in judging too. Or is this an incorrect argument for replacing the smaller items, like bolts, clamps, etc...? I just don't want to start worrying about buying and installing tons of these smaller items that in the end don't mean much- to miss out on the more important things. BTW, that white Z in Texas, the one supposedly restored by Courtesy, ebay item 250273972425, sold for $16,600. I'm trying to figure out why one car will sell for $7,000 and another for $17,000.

Wow, more excellent information to be had on this site. I was considering a similar thing- just to get me to the winter, with a few small spots the size of a quarter, and one playing card-sized area, but now I'm going to wait for a pro to do my touch-ups. I realize that it's too far beyond my complete lack of experience in applying automotive finishes. Thanks E.

Does these front pads have any application on the street at all, or would that be a completely incorrect usage? Just looking for something with greater bite than OEM.

@MidLifeCrisiz- Thanks for taking the time to measure and post pix showing this area. It will definitely help me in my seat fix concerns. As I expected, my spacers are long gone. Unfortunately so are my seat bottoms! So of course I have excellent headroom, for now. Using your measurements, I'll try to figure out what I would be left with if I use the OEM spec seat foam. I really want to keep as stock as humanly possible. Thanks.

First- was the low serial number of the engine indicative of a non-matching numbers car, and how much does this lower the end price of a nicely refreshed car- imagining this one as a donor? (Note- Just noted that owner stated that all numbers match) I that vein, let's create a class of Z's called "clean, slightly dingy, but apparently *relatively* unmolested, with non-original paint". I'm imagining a range of vehicles that can be made easily enough into a nice driver, or alternately refreshed. As you said Carl, for a complete restoration even a cheaper, lower-quality car would be better for a ground-up restoration. So I'm trying to imagine a bottom-line standard for what constitutes a nice source car for *other than ground-up restoration*, or making one into a nice DD. Does this make any sense? I'm actually thinking ahead to "retirement" and I honestly think I'd like to restore Z's as my money-producing- as opposed to money-consuming- hobby. By trade, I'm a design/build contractor now, so I normally tend towards creating an organization with subspecialties around a clearly-defined work project. And since I have rediscovered my love for these cars, I can't imagine anything more enjoyable, as I consider these cars rolling art. So the first step is- for me- defining the standards for cars to enter into this process with an eye towards sourcing them. The repair/refreshing/restoration process is actually fairly defined already- as opposed to finding them, IMHO! Luckily I have my collector friend on the West Coast who has been the source of many a superbly clean, rust-free car over the years for me.

Look through the redlineoil.com site. They have some excellent products, several which are almost standards for Nissan gearboxes and differentials. I used the MT-90 in my 240's later 5-speed gearbox and immediately noticed an improvement in the dreaded "second gear cold crunchiness" by changing the gear oil alone- with no other existing problems, and not even the tiniest bit of metal on the magnet plug. (knocking on wood. ) I have not researched their diff lubes though, but they do have some knowledgeable people on their hotline, so I would definitely give them a call on for their advice. I believe that the advantages of Red Line- or any oil for that matter- are not huge, but I have found it is noticeable, and well-respected enough around here, IMHO. And no, I have no connection to this or any other product connected to these cars in any manner. Good luck.

WOW! Just look at how nice that hood lines up! My gal just passed 70k miles yesterday- finally- and the hood is meandering all over the place. I'm jealous. She looks fantastic, especially the over-riders. And in one of the best colors too. Great catch Bob. Best of luck with her.

Makes me want to make my next car in green & butterscotch. Excellent work, MidLifeCrisiz. Looks great. Japanese Racing Green. XK-Z-type is more like it. Actually, I have one question. I'm 6'3" and I've been told that for taller drivers, the new seat bottom strap replacement really puts you much, much closer to the headliner- I'm assuming new foam too. For that reason I kinda like my collapsed seats. I have tons of head room. And instead of regular bucket seats, they're more like 5-gallon pail seats. Perhaps you can post a measurement from seat bottom to headliner, for me to compare? Thanks.

I guess this is more like it- Z #1732 on ebay - item # 190238850648 with 18 hours left at this point. $7,300 with the reserve not reached as of yet. Whether it represents a good value or not- we'll see what it goes for, and I'll leave that comment up to those with experience observing values in the Z marketplace. Reading your comments is a great way to learn this market. Typical range of problems, but looks nice. White over blue. I imagine that this is representative of an above-average car out there now- but is this clean enough to be a rarity? If mechanically sound, and safe (no dangerous frame, suspension, electrical, brake issues, etc...) I would have no problem driving it around. In front of people even! I like seeing cars in this condition- especially compared to the rat-traps I see most of the time, and one that's (hopefully) easily made into a good driver, or perhaps with sufficiently good enough bones to really deserve a shot at a more serious preservation, whether that's a restore or a refresh. And a belated thanks to the book recommendations. I will certainly check them out. I've been so busy working on major weatherstripping replacement issues- which might warrant their own comment thread. I seem to have found a very economical method to replace both hatch strips with something perhaps better than stock and for around 75% less.

NJ apparently has similar restrictions on driving with historical plates- but I think I could talk my way around almost any stop- "But officer, I just finished working on my valves (or tune-up, or shifter bushings, whatever) and I needed to road test her." After all I DO work on her almost constantly- little things to big things. There's always something going on... There is no inspection requirement for historic plates, and that's very appealing to never have to worry about that again, but not at those extreme (apparently) restrictions on driving only when related to car shows, exhibitions, or other "educational or club" purposes. I also have a friend with a lift, and I imagine it's reasonable that I was over there working on my car. It's whatever you think you can dance around. But for comfort's sake, I really need to check with the local gendarmerie and ask directly what their policy is if they see an historic plate out and about at, say 1AM, coming from a friend's house. I've never seen such a stop, but it could have happened.

Dennis- I count on the fact that there will always be people out there with much more knowledge than I. "Learn from the mistakes of others so you won't be doomed to repeat them" kind of thing. Learning is one of my favorite things. It's how I was raised, thankfully. As an aside, I wish I had not missed the lessons on brevity. So I've always valued every opportunity to pick the brains of somebody with extensive experience in an area where I have much to learn. Especially in the area of history. For example, both my Father and many of his friends were a source of incredible recollections about pivotal moments in world history- the wars of the 20th Century. It's one of the areas I study most- the positive and negative responses and lessons learned from how people act and react during the most overwhelmingly stressful moments in our time. We can learn so much by observing how people act under the direst of circumstances, IMHO. This data can then be incorporated into our own behaviors and actions, leading to better performance under whatever "fire" one may be under. So I am certainly hard-wired to accept advice, knowledge and more importantly- to *learn* from these experiences- be they in war or peace, about crucial life-altering events- or "mere" recreational activities. So I'm neither threatened by people with more knowledge than me nor surprised either. IMO they are an irreplaceable resource. I count on my willingness to use the experience of others to increase my ability to deal with (and enjoy) the world as we interact with it. However I still would be faced with the complications of being confronted by the overwhelming volume of incorrect information- with respect to which books to read. I would hope that there are some people around this board who are respected for their incredible wealth of knowledge, and can steer me towards the more accurate reporting. Life is too short to waste further time reading books with inaccurate information- or worse- writings that are slanted in a propaganda-like manner to promote falsehoods for personal aggrandizement or material gain. Regarding your comments about prepositions, where are you going to?

I guess I feel foolish for allowing a "marketing man" to apparently put forth a canon of inconsistencies, distortions and falsehoods- for which I have evidently fallen victim to. There is nothing more important to me than the truth- except perhaps personal honor- but aren't they linked? There's an old saying that I really like- "When 3 people you respect tell you you're dead, grab the lilies and lay down already." I feel sheepish having been "marketed to." I can't state it any other way, except perhaps to use the words "lied to." I feel that I'm usually quite immune to the pitchman. I can't remember when I've ever "bought" something- sight unseen- from marketing patter, be it a product or information- and by these comments, THIS information is DIS-information. This apparently qualifies as one of those times that, by all recent appearances, I've been taken in and have accepted as fact some things that are not so. Therefore I must get to the bottom of this. Can anybody please suggest a book or 2 that details the "true" story of the Z car, with specific focus on how it was introduced and promoted in the US of A? A book that is respected by those who would know, having undergone their own trials of understanding, and having put the details through the crucible of truth and peer-review. I realize that the car was marketed nearly around the world, so additional details of the multinational effort would be helpful too, but I understand the best book about the US effort might not have the scope to cover the whole world too. I guess I've fallen prey to the need for putting SOMEBODY up on a pedestal, for picking somebody on who's head I would like to place a laurel honoring what I consider to be *one of* the most impressive and personally important vehicles in motoring history- which can be argued too of course. In the US there is obviously a long history of coming up with a single "Father" of a myriad of products and concepts, be it the "Father" of the transistor, the Father of the Z car or the Father of the cheese steak. Simplistic at best I know but it does provide for an outlet for our obvious need for heroes, which is part of our culture. The champion, the hero, the person we can honor. BTW, this goes equally for the "goat", the person we need to blame for something. I guess this is really a universal concept. In a more perfect world these choices would be more apparent and less bound by mysticism. I would greatly appreciate being better informed about the history of something so important, and if I've come across as pedantic I heartily apologize. "Poindexter" was a know-it-all but I'd hate to offer up only the negative aspects of that character name. I truly do want to know the truth and the whole truth, and also where the BS and distortions lie too.

I actually never said nor implied that Mr. K did anything other than support and even champion the introduction of the Z car in the US. A benchmark occasion IMHO. For this reason, and this reason only I and tens of thousands of others on this continent are profoundly appreciative. This concept is based on extensive and protracted reading on the subject from a multitude of sources. I've actually never heard that Mr. K had ever ascribed to himself any serious contribution to the penning of the car. Nothing is ever a one-man show. I've never imagined it otherwise and I think it's a mistake on your part to consistently imply that there is a dearth of comprehension that all Americans possess on all things Z. I apologize, but it does come across as a bit smug. Perhaps your isolation on a small island is colouring your thoughts and limiting your perceptions about us colonials? Isn't the whole universe orbiting the US? But it certainly can be said that without the efforts of certain people, key events might not have happened. That's all I meant. Idol (not idle) speculation is kind of fun, anyway...

Alan- Was he NOT significantly responsible for bringing this car to America, or demanding that it meet certain specifications that would make it more desirable to the US market? Was this car not a labor of love? Was he not a sports car aficianado, with special affection for the Jaguar and Porsche, among others? Perhaps his position in the company was imaginary? I don't understand your point. Please be so kind as to provide your viewpoint and understanding as to the errors of my perception. Methinks I sense a pattern here. I think this sums up the history as we have been led to believe. "The Datsun 240Z began its lifespan back in 1966, when a new sports-car design was created by Fumio Yashida's design team at Nissan. It caught the attention of Yutaka Katayama. "Mr. K" was responsible for Nissan's West Coast operations in the U.S. and he was convinced an affordable GT would sell big in America. Yashida's design was just the thing. Katayama insisted on a closed car, not a convertible -- "easier to get into the market" -- and a two-seater only, not a GT. When the new Datsun sports car finally appeared in the fall of 1969, there was no lack of midpriced European competition, but the sports car would offer Porsche performance and Jaguar style at a fraction of the cost. At home it was called the Fairlady Z, but in the U.S., it would be the Datsun 240Z. " And...???? Why so cryptic?

I prefer the Work Ethic Eliminating Device. I made that one up all by myself.

Say what? Two peoples separated by a common language. Perhaps I've been up for too many hours and I'm missing something. What's unclear about saluting the driving force behind the fantastic cars we're all here to celebrate in one way or another? Did you think I meant Kissinger, perhaps? By all means, please digress away. I began this thread specifically to freely ruminate on many things Zed, so there should be nothing off-topic. I can do that can't I? :paranoid:

@xcyter- please come back and let us know how this turns out. I'd go the same way. Are you going to spray the insides of the gauge cups white to make them reflect better? Wrapping my knuckles and getting Bandaids, Bactine and Excedrin ready in anticipation.

Glad to be able to help. I'd much rather have help replacing my own bulbs! Actually I cleaned up the existing dimmer rheostat and mine are bright enough. At least I can see the gauges now.

xcyter, here is a link to MSA higher watt bulbs. Singly or in a set. 4 watt up from 2.8-3.2 OEM according to them. Good luck. PS- I take cash, credit cards or Datsun wagons in payment. http://www.thezstore.com/page/TZS/PROD/SIC09E01/45-4329 QUOTE- Description: Tired of straining to see your gauges when the lighting situation isn't perfect? Here is the solution! These 4 watt bulbs directly replace your original dash bulbs which ranged from 2.8-3.2 watts. They will provide a clearer, brighter, and more distinct backlight for your gauges in all lighting situations. Fourteen dash bulbs can be replaced (it is always best to replace them all together). See Related Items below for a discounted kit of 15 bulbs! END QUOTE

Is there any way to piggy-back both the mechanical and electrical oil pressure gauges? I don't want to lose a functional dash gauge, but I wouldn't mind a pod of 3 smaller, more accurate gauges, on top of the ash tray, of say volt, oil press and something else, tbd.

Wow, check out this 76 F-10 on ebay, item # 160265044935 in Portland, OR. Current pix look like a dealer brochure! I'm totally in love with these Son of Dat wagons now! I bet she rates very highly too.

Carl, have you checked into steel buildings? I'm putting one up next summer for a friend- it's gonna be an indoor equestrian center- 100w X 160d X 14h for under $75k for the shell. I imagine that's somewhat bigger than you plan, but they scale down well. Add a pad, some furring, insulation and sheetrock, etc. and instant building for almost peanuts.

Nice! Good luck with her. Do you notice anything significantly different with the solid coupler? Another item I'm considering- but need first hand experience/feedback first before taking the plunge.