CarCrazy24

Hi everyone! I have a highly original 71' 240Z which I purchased from the original owner about ten years ago. It's a beauty that is missing only one thing...the original wheel covers. My question is, what style would a 1971 240Z have...would they be red centers or with the "D" in the center? As a final question, is ANYONE out there selling a set of their steel wheels and wheel covers

I love the color and I love how the L28 came out...gorgeous!

Should be a great event!

I feel your pain. My 71 got rear ended, right after I spent about $2k in mechanical upgrades. I was literally just driving it home from the shop straight home, and someone just had to reach for something in the back seat while i was sitting at the light =( Fix it and keep it going! These Z's are amazing and they deserve another lease on life!

Gas has been leaking from my 71' 240Z every time I fill it up fully...I went to go to my usual Z shop, ALT-Z, and they seem to have closed down If there is anyone who knows of a Z specialty shop in Southern California, I would greatly appreciate it! The smell of gas filling the house is becoming...tiresome to say the least!

Sell it to someone who will be motivated to get it working...hate to see these cars become even harder to find =/

Both cars look great, but I do love the fresh paint on the 73...very nice!

Awesome, great find!

This is by far the cleanest restomod I've ever seen on a Z...it's all been done properly!! Congratulations, you've got me dreaming about restoring my Z one day.

This looks like a lot of fun! My Z's engine and trans rebuild should be done well in time for this...hmm =)

Agreed guys, appreciate all your advice and knowledge, I will definitely post pics when the car is all done =)

No no I found a shop that does good work on these classics. The insurance actually recommended this SAME shop, and I met the shop's supervisor and the insurance agent. Both have owned several 240Z's over the years...the shop supervisor says he's going to fix the bondo work that was already there and use little to no bondo...I look forward to seeing what he can do.

Just a quick update...you guys were right about going to the insurance first =/ So, being a nice guy and always giving the other person the benefit of the doubt, I went with his idea of trying to save him some money and go to a body shop where he knows someone who can hook him up. The place didn't look shady at all, however as soon as his "buddy" starting looking at the damage, his estimate was exactly the same as the more pricier places I've gotten estimates ($1500-$1750). So he can't afford it, and NOW wants to go through the insurance, after my car sat in the rain for three weeks =( Just incredible, give someone an inch and they take a mile. As soon as the insurance got involved, I took my car in an hour later to a shop the insurance recommended, an estimate from the owner of the shop, and a rental car reservation, all paid for and done in 10 minutes. Ahhhhh! I'll post pics as soon as I get the car back!

I like the flat black!! How's the car running?

After spending a grand on fresh carbs and getting a lot of little mechanical problems straightened out, I was driving my Z back home. Literally half a mile from my shop, I got rear ended at a red light. Overall I suppose it could have been a lot worse, but it still hurts. Badly. I was wondering if you guys could point me to a body shop in southern california that does some great work on these old Z's. Also was wondering if that chrome hoop on my rear bumper can be transferred onto a new rear bumper...or is there a way to somehow straighten out my bumper? Also you guys can see how in one of the pictures the bumper dug into the paint and chipped away at the fiberglass...was wondering if you guys know a shop that does good work on both the bumper and the fiberglass. Do you guys know a good place to buy a new rear bumper even one with a hoop like mine? I'm trying to help the guy out, says he wants to not involve the insurance company if possible. I got an estimate of 950 bucks for the work not including the cost of the rear bumper at Maaco. I also got another estimate at another place for the same work as maaco for $1250. Let me know some good places to go for bodywork and some places to buy the same bumper i have. Appreciate your input guys!

At this point Bruce, I'll take any potion you have in mind, haha. Sounds interesting

hmm, as far as I know, the car was sitting for about four to five months, started occasionally. how could i diagnose a stuck oil ring problem?

Sounds good to me guys! I just brought my car home today from the shop with the fresh carbs from ZTherepy...more smoke out the back than normal, maybe that's just from the fresh carbs. I'll keep an eye on it and keep you updated. For now I'm going to talk to Rtaylor and go from there. For now I'm going to enjoy the car, check the oil weekly and clean the spark plug on cylinder 6 more often. Anything else I should do? Thanks again for all the advice, and if I do end up rebuilding the engine I'm going to look for an L28 now that you guys have given me the go ahead =)

Guys, the information is GREATLY appreciated! I knew that my guy was overcharging, but I didn't know just how much bad rep that Datsun Parts store has...I'm going to avoid them. As for putting an L28, I'm going to stick with my L24 now that I've just done the Ztherepy carbs for it. RTaylor, I definitely want to see your car and the work your guy did! Let me know when we can meet up, I can meet up either today or next week, whatever is convenient for you. I had a feeling that I might just need a valve job done,which I can't imagine is too much. Do you think it's worth the effort to just do the head and see how the car runs? I suppose I can always have someone redo the bottom afterwards if that doesn't solve the problem. Let me know guys, thanks again for all the great info.

Hey guys...some good news/bad news for my 71 240Z. Apparently cylinder 6 is chewing oil...some blue smoke out the rear and the spark plug looks sooty. I'm wondering what my options are if I want to keep running the engine as is...I imagine everything will run OK if I just keep checking the oil level and replacing the spark plug every oil change or so. Your opinions on that. As for the good news, I'm willing to dish out a decent amount on a new motor...the Z shop I go to normally (ALT Z) is asking close to $5500 to rebuild my engine top to bottom. Seems a bit high, some guy told me he could help me put a skyline motor (RB25) and transmission in for that price. However I'm leaning more towards something like this: http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Parts-Accessories___DATSUN-Z-240Z-280Z-L24-Block-E31-Head-Rebuilt-Engine_W0QQitemZ400029606764QQddnZPartsQ20Q26Q20AccessoriesQQddiZ2811QQcmdZViewItemQQptZMotors_Car_Truck_Parts_Accessories?hash=item400029606764&_trksid=p4506.c0.m245&_trkparms=65%3A3|39%3A1|240%3A1318 Seems pretty fair on the price, just wondering if the E31 head on this new motor is superior to the E88 on my L24 right now. Also how much do you think is fair for an installation of that motor? Any and all opinions are welcome

+1 for the 4 Speed

Appreciate all the info guys! I'm looking into all the choices out there, I will be sure to update you on what I end up getting. Thanks for your time =)

Sup guys! I'm looking to buy some headers for my Z! Which of the main ones available fits the best? Also looking for an exhaust/muffler advice...I'm looking for a system that won't be too obtrusive at highway cruising, but still is free flowing enough for performance gains...2.25" piping from the header back seems a good compromise, 2.5" seems like it might cause a bit too much resonance...your opinions please :classic:

Thank you so much for all the info! Much appreciated, i'm gonna try each of those steps one by one, hopefully get this problem solved without too much expense =)

Hey everyone! I've been working away on the car, and while i had it on a hoist i noticed that it was difficult to spin the front passenger side tire when it was off the ground...it would spin slightly but it would stop immediately after i took off pressure. I'm thinking a frozen caliper, any other ideas? Just wondering if this is a common problem, and if there's anything I can do at home to fix this before buying new parts :surprised