motorman7

Got a series 1 oil pan modeled.

Started working on the block. Attached is the basic form but it still needs a lot of detail and clean up. Block.zip

Grrrrrr.......like painting a mustache on the Mona Lisa ..........I know, I know

Just went through the pictures again. That interior says 8K miles. Very little sag in the seats, clean wood on the steering wheel as well as the black paint, although it may have been touched up. The foot pad on the floor mat is intact and it looks to be the correct carpet. Radio knobs are very clean. Very nice interior indeed. In spite of the muffler discrepancy, the chrome in the muffler area is very clean. On my ’70 with 97K miles, the exhaust has definitely effected the chrome finish and rubber in that area. The chrome and rubber finishers look to be very clean on this car. Now, how to explain the engine? So many scenarios here. Owner could have used an engine cleaner on it and not rinsed thoroughly before running motor hot. Car could have been kept in a coastal environment with salt in the air. Maybe in an industrial area where dew point would cause water to be slightly acidic. These last two might also effect the rear muffler. Hard to say. Would really be nice to have a set of eyes trained eyes look at this and report back. Sometimes pictures are very forgiving of a cars faults.

i'm betting the throttle linkage on the silver was refurbed along with the carbs. I think the smog rail is a better indicator of mileage.

It would be nice to see some undercarriage pictures. That is always pretty telling.

Mine has the 2k mile limitation as well s the "limited in driving to and from show's or events and not used for daily driving". Works for me

Just to offer a different point of view, there is a little more to an old Z car than having one in #1 or #2 condition. Personally, I love my old minimally refreshed 240Z and have no desire or intentions of making the changes required for it to be a gold medallion winner. I love it's originality and 'patina' as Dan so appropriately calls it :-) . My car will never be as nice as his and I'm OK with that. More than anything it thrills me to say, "yes, that is the original factory paint, seats, dash, sparks plug wires, fuel hoses, etc". Not too many owners can say that. The thing I prize the most is the uniqueness of the car. There just aren't that many un-restored Z's in good condition out there, period. I may not place well at the local Z shows, but how many Z owners can say that they have won out over a Bentley, Benz's and Cadillacs at a Concours event (preservation class of course. Along this lines, it seems more shows are jumping on the 'preservation class' band wagon). A well preserved Z is a unique and special car indeed. The question with the '73 is what are you really looking for in a Z. Personally, if I were to buy this I would do the least amount possible to make the engine bay look better. I would definitely re-do the zinc for corrosion purposes, but beyond that, can't say I would do anything else. I would just do a lot of cleaning and manage any potential rust areas, that's it. The car definitely looks good in the pics. A close personal inspection would be in order for any car in that price range. And, regarding the market for an old car: I believe there are people out there that will pay top dollar for a minimally touched Z in great condition. I personally have turned down several offers including a $40K offer while at the Dana Point Concours. Again, it's the rarity of the item that makes it valuable. Anyway, just my thoughts. Rich

Mine is currently insured for $40K with no appraisal, and I probably need to move that up to $50K. I do send Hagerty's award (concours) links just for the record.

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HHmmmm...looks like some stuff I could use there. I think my exhaust manifold has a crack and I see a nice one in the picture. You will have to clue me in on how to access some of these parts :-)

Inspection lid clip......Test for iges upload 240z_clip.zip

Wow, your model is incredible. I would love to get an .igs file of your model. I am a Pro-E guru and this would be great to play with. Also, noticed you are in Russia. I traveled out there a number of times working with the Russian space agency. Was fun work. Best regards, Rich

Yes, I wasn't sure what thread to post this on as this is a Z site. But it is somewhat relevant as these are the Z predecessors, and there are not many active roadster sites. I was going to post this on the 'What did you do on your S30 today?', but that would not be correct. Not many threads here for the SPL or SRL311, so I thought I would resurrect this one. I will have to research that block valve...not familiar with it. I had a 67 1600 roadster when I was much younger also, but sold it when my first child arrived. Now that the kids are (kind of) out of the house, I picked up a roadster to restore and am about 1/3 of the way done, I think. Hopefully I can have it going about a year from now. Below is a before pic. Also attached is a pic of what I would like final to look like, only in 1600 form. Best regards, Rich

I put the motor in my roadster today. Had to make room on the engine stand for my Z motor. Anyway, just thought I'd post some pics of the Roadster. The resto is slow going. Doing too many house projects for the boss. Probably need some new tires here too.

Over the last several years I have learned that each show is very different and judges range from clueless to well informed. Each show is "like a box of chocolates, you never know what you will get". Personally, I try to get into shows that are 'off the beaten path', those that typically do not feature Z's. In those shows, people seem to be very intrigued that a Z would show up, which leads to some very nice conversation. Currently, that is my main reason for entering a car show. I want to be around people that are interested in the Z and enjoy talking Z's or similar cars. Any trophies received are just gravy. I have found the high end Concours to be the most enjoyable (that is, if I can get in) because those spectators attending are typically paying some decent money to get into the show. As a result, they are very interested and well informed for the most part. I think the shows that are free bring out those that are perhaps a bit more impressed by 'bling'. That definitely is not my Z. To be honest, I was very unimpressed with the 2012 ZCON car show. I think perhaps that my expectations were too high. I was expecting something like 200-400 Z's at the show, and I don't even think there were 100. The turnout was so low that there were only 2 Z's in the 240Z stock class that I was in. We get more stock 240's than that at our club meetings. And, my car really was 'not a good fit' for the show. The ZCON is for Z's that are restored to excellent condition. Preservation or un-restored Z's are not well received by the judges, nor is there a class for them. One of my favorite shows was the Dana Point Concours, and I didn't even place. The conversations were incredible, and parking my car on the fairway near the St Regis hotel in Dana Point over- looking the ocean was unparalleled and was well worth the admission fee. The brushed aluminum placard they set-up in front of your car is nicer than most of the trophies I have received. Yet the icing on the cake was when an elderly couple asked if I could take pictures of them with my car. The wife took some pics of the husband around the car which kind of made is looked like he owned the car. I asked them about the pictures and they said my Z looked exactly like the one the husband drove when they were first dating over 40 years earlier, and it brought back wonderful memories for them. Moments like that are priceless. Anyway, just my take. Best regards, Rich

It is sad to see those things happen. To me it seems that people want a club that is very active and provides a lot for its’ members. Yet, it seems that very few members really want to make the effort to make these things happen. It takes a certain amount of effort to organize a run, set-up a car show, produce a newsletter and run a website. It seems that more and more people are not willing to put in the time and effort. I am not sure why that is, but is definitely having an impact on some of the clubs. Also, there are very mixed interests in what the members want from their clubs. As an older Z owner, I am typically more interested in the car shows. I have noticed that those with the newer Z’s (350Z’s and 370Z’s) much prefer to organize runs to different locations. With limited resources, it is difficult to meet the needs of both. As a result, divisions occur and dissatisfaction. At ZCCIV we are going through similar pains. In an effort to support the club and provide value for our members, we will be joining this ZCSD as a ‘sister club’. With this arrangement, we will receive their newsletter (which is the best on the planet) and co-ordinate events together. This way, with the smaller membership, ZCCIV can be appraised of what is going on in the Z world and still function in their local area. It may be what some of the other clubs need to do. It could also be that we need to make some changes in how we operate. Typically, our groups meet at a diner and we have a sit down meal and discuss business. Maybe we need to change this up a bit. Again, at ZCCIV, we were having on average about 10 people at our diner meeting. A new member suggested that we meet at the In-and Out Burger for a more casual meeting the next month, and over 30 people showed up! I was amazed at the turn-out. It made me think that we need to do things a bit differently (although I do not claim to have any answers here). Anyway, just thought I would post some of my thoughts. Perhaps, in time, Group Z will re-org and once again thrive in SoCal. Peace Out, Rich

Not a 'P n P' find, but got this beauty on e-bay several weeks ago. http://www.ebay.com/itm/130631562369?ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1439.l2649 One week before ZCON my smog pump throws a blade. Was able to pick this up in time for the show and it works great, and is very quiet. It was cheaper than the crappy looking re-builds you see on e-bay. Lucked out on that one.

Hi Jerry, Not that you want my opinion, but that rim size with the low profile tire is just too small for the wheel well. Even lowering it won't help much. You either need a much taller tire on those 14's or go with a 16" rim and lower profile (see attached). Then it will look sweet. just my two pennies. Rich

That's funny . I TOTALLY missed that

Hi Marty, As a guy who always sees the glass half full, I took second to Dan’s first. The reality is that there were only two cars in our class, so it could also looks like I finished last. For now I will stick with second. I must honestly say that Dan’s Z is the best stock restored Z that I have ever seen. I learned a lot from the viewing. Also learned a lot from the judging so it was a very good experience over all. The attention to detail is incredible. I can only say that I have been very lax in some items. The other reality is the car will never be a Gold Medallion winner. That is not really my goal for the car. My goal is to just clean it and keep it as is, a minimally refreshed survivor ( I did clean up the engine zinc and block paint – more for ‘uniformity’ than anything else). I like it that way. I always enjoy showing it and am very proud to own it. I was anticipating a “Best Survivor” possibility as noted on the ZCON 2012 website, but that never materialized. Not sure if it was an oversight or they just forgot that they posted it on the website. One of the best parts of the car show was spending some time with Mr Matsuo. He always seems to take special interest in my car and spent a lot of time checking it over. I also got some great pictures of him with the car as well. His PowerPoint presentation Saturday night was awesome. It was great to relive a little of the Z history through his presentation. Jay (Espirit) did a great job translating. I think the one thing I walked away with is that there are very few stock early 240Z’s out there. Seems as though most have succumbed to modification or decay. It makes me want to take care of my Z all the more. So all in all, it was a very good experience. Best regards, Rich

Dan, Contrats on the ZCCA Gold medallion award!! Well deserved. Best regards, Rich

Here's some more pics. There were some exceptional cars there. I love the ZZZAP Z and the Black Pearl. There was also a light blue metallic 280 there with just 18K miles on it. Also saw a gorgeous white pearl 300ZX turbo that was very impressive. A number of these are up for the gold medallion award. Mr. Matsuo gave a short speech at the event. There were also quite a few of the newer model 300ZX vehicles. That group definitely had the largest attendance. I think just Dan (AZ240Z) and I had the only two stock 240Z. All of the rest were modified.

Wow, lots of nice cars at the show today. I got to experience the official ZCCA judging which was pretty cool actually. I was not considered for the Gold Medallion Award, but it was nice to get some comments from the judges. Also got some tips from some of the more experienced members. Dan (AZ240Z) had his gorgeous persimmon 240Z there. Looks like he did very well in the judging, so I had to get a pic of my car next to his. Also got a pic of me with Mr. Matsuo. It was nice to see him again and he was very happy to see the car. Did I mention it was hot? Over 100 deg F I am sure. Will post some more pics following this.

OK,OK,OK, so everyone wants to see the detail pics. Well, here they are. Also, I have met Mitsuo San before, can you tell? We had a great photoshoot with Japanese Nostalgic several years ago. It was great to meet him and he loved the car. I will post the pictures someday. Never saw the Japanese Nostalgic article though. Hopefully I will get a chance to chat with him again tomorrow. Best regards, Rich