daddz

Classic car insurance certainly is the best known thing to any hobbyist. It makes this hobby alot more affordable and hassle free when coupled to a DMV that will issue historic plates which exempts emissions and the other hassles of registering a car. I currently use Parish-Heacock and there is no mileage limitation and that is a standard feature with no extra cost.

Rich, I agree. I will plan to make a call tomorrow and get some more information but it sounds like a good deal. You never know.

Fred, Sensitive issue here. I would have to agree with you on this point. I do what little I can and stock up on things such as fusible link covers by the 10 or 20 to help keep them in production. I do see the value in this support of the Z car cottage industry.

Neal, I would say from a production standpoint (Nissa's perspective) your car is a 1970 however, from a titling (DMV, etc...) standpoint it is probably handled as a 1971. My car straddles that same line as it is an 08/70 production (HLS30-08323) and it was first sold in September of 1970. By the time father sent the car to daughter in San Francisco for graduation present it was titled as a 1971. No real solution but I prefer to refer to mine as a '70.

Rich, If you have a chance The Reckoning by David Halberstam (circa 1986?) is certainly a great book and is told in an informal manner and pits the story of Nissan and Ford. Bon chance if you decide to go ahead with your project management book. That is a large personal undertaking/personal journey. I too have long admired the Beck 550 Spyder for staying so closely to the original. In that idiom I would also love to have a chance to drive or own a Lotus Super 7 replica. I heard of a rumor that Yoshikawa-san was attempting to get a series of aluminum 2000GT bodies produced. Let your mind ponder that one for a moment. I also like your criteria and at various times have employed a few of them though not as often as I should have. Restraint is a key word for someone like myself. MikeW, A friend of mine would love to talk to you about your experiences. I tend to be a monohull type of guy but he is an extremist and I am slowly being converted to multihulls. His love of the Ian Farrier designed trimarans have inspired me to take a few test rides or demo sails as it were. His new F-22R promises to be a success and lord knows those boats hold their value. I am lucky enough to live close to Annapolis where there is night racing three or four times a week depending upon the time of year and there are some attractive females that love to sail as well. My friend has raced in the Pensacola Beach area and there is alot of interest in the Worrell 1000 which is a gruelling race to say the least. (boy has this thread covered alot of ground?) At least we seek to provide value on many layers or something like that.:knockedou

John, I would be willing to sign up for that duty here in the Washington-Baltimore-No. Va. area. Rich, I am thinking hard about that '72. Madness. At that price it is tough to go wrong even with the bodyside molding.:laugh:

Rich, It seems as though this conversation was to happen sooner or later. It just so happens that as a requirement of my major (finance) I am studying a 300 level marketing class this semester and that coupled to running through Japanese history at a breakneck pace last semester (3 books, 1 visiting professor, and about 200-400 pp of reading for 14 weeks) I am bound to see Deming's name yet again. I saw his name in a 400 level project management class as well as a 300 level information systems class last semester. I see a trend here in both of your seections of classic automobiles-- finding and seeking undervalued classics. I think it is fun to see the trends in the classic car hobby. As a brief sidebar I was into Mazda RX-7's about ten years ago for daily drivers and they had reached a trough in terms of values and just recently Hemmings did an article on the SA bodied RX-7 GSL-SE (I owned an '85) and they pegged the value a bit too low. As evidenced recently on an ebay (not the bible) transaction where a 29k original unmolested example with complete records made better than $8,000! Like Z's a stock original is the rarest of the breed. I believe another tough find would a stock Honda CRX Si --try to find one with less than 50k with paperwork. As the funky little Honda S600 becomes more rare the values are sure to rise on this little gem. It would be neat to see this parked next to an Honda S200 in a garage?

Rich, you are so right and it's only a football team (soccer to us here in 'states) but just look at the sport of sailing and Ten Turner's famous run for the America's Cup. It all comes down to scalability.

Carl, I think the value discussion of Toyota's 2000GT should involve some mention of the history of the motorcar industry as it relates to Japan and Japanese history as well. Following WWII and the myriad reforms that were undertaken in Japan which spilled into the 1960's (the country's plan was to increase the economic well being of all citizens as well as that of the country--very simplified explanantion here) Japan found itself able and willing to challenge itself in all fields of endeavour. Another key point to make is that Japan did not have to budget for its own military which left alot of potential on the table in terms of investment. So what am I trying to say? It is because of this pot of circumstance that a car such as the Toyota 2000GT should arise from a country that twenty years previous was in shambles. The car is as much a symbol of fine motoring as it is to a lesser extent a symbol of national pride. Think of America's fascination with the Ford Mustang (40 years and counting--hell I even own one of these things) and it begins to make sense--at least to me. Take for example: a run of the mill Mustang circa 1966--it is taken from the assebmbly line with black paint and sent off to Shelby and then it is sent off to hertz and becomes a lowly and abused rental car the GT350H. Five years ago you could have bought this for about $50 to $65k and now they are approaching $200k! Getting back to my point the Toyota 2000GT is valuable for a number of reasons to a wide swath of people. I just wonder when a replica in the idea of the Superformance Cobra Daytona Coupe is going to appear? Toyota maybe the most conservative Japanese automaker but when the giant takes a step it will be a good value for money proposition. Think of all the 200k Toyota MR2's that run around these days. My own '87 Supra is another example--great build quality from the slightly thicker sheetmetal as compared to my '86 300ZX and an absolute refusal to rust like a Nissan. Rich, I agree with you 100% in regards to the values of the Jaguar E-type FHC. I think it is a prettier shape than the roadster and eminently more usable. I just hope the value chasm remains until I snatch one up! Alan, I think you have struck a fine point in regards to the comparison of a 240Z and the 2000GT. The Datsun took a formula and "cheapened" or "diluted" it to a price point that was sure to at least recoup Nissan's investment in tooling and such. A sportscar cobbled together out of saloon parts--sort of like British Leyland?

If anyone is interested I have a ton of links regarding Japanese history that also serve to tell the story of Japan. These were accumulated when taking a 400 level Japanese history course last semester---the reading ballooned up to 300-400 pages per week as the course came to a close. Chris, I always chuckle when you compare 26 and 27 to their place in society as Japanese pleasure companions. Maybe 27 was sent to the Philippines or Thailand early in her career?

That reminds me of a blurb I read in Classic and Sports Car back in the late 1990's about a real 'barnfind' Toyota 2000GT that had been left to sit outside and bake in the sun. It was going to need a full restoration but even in its neglected state it was still beautiful. I always imagined playing the eccentric and collecting a car like that and not restoring it! I first got that idea when attending a British Car Day in Bowie some years back and in the spectator parking lot a Ferrari 250 Lusso had been parked and it had faded paint, cracked leather seats and dash and filthy Borrani wire wheels. It was simply beautiful to see it in that condition.

Clive, I don't know where you're located but the parts you need are as close to you as a telephone (Olympus--www.forparts.com--just ask for Ralph Bull) or a local NAPA parts store or an equivalent. If you want to do it right and not to have mess with it for most likely the rest of the time you will have the car (imagine your 1976 everything has lasted this long) a visit to your local Nissan dealer will get you the parts you need. If you're still not interested then a call to Mike McGinnis at Banzai Motorworks (301-420-4200) will get you the factory Nissan parts or better. In any case I imagine by your post that the "fuel injection wires" that you are referring to are the injector sub-harnesses which Nissan sells in a Lawson box (about $17 each) or you can go the Banzai Motorworks route as he has found a good supplier and they are a bit more expensive. There will be some soldering involved to do the job right. The "water temp switch" or water temperature sensor should be replaced and the wire can be replaced as well. While you're at it you might consider replacing the thermo time switch since they practically sit on top of one another. I forget the exact prices but from Nissan one was about $40 and the other was about $20. I would also suggest that you have a look at your fusible links (under the white plastic covers which may have turned brown or disintegrated by now). At the very least remove the fusible links and sand the contacts--I would replace the links as they about $12 total from Nissan and the fusible link covers are about $1.xx each. I would be interested to hear the history of your car (has it been sitting for a long time, high or low mileage, and ideally if you could post some pics of the engine bay a picture can tell alot of the story). It sounds as though your Z just needs some quality time spent under the hood to freshen up those old parts that want to be replaced. You may want to have a serious look at your injectors and all of the attendant rubber hoses including the air flow meter boots (look closely for any cracking like you might find on an old set of tires); some people remove the injectors and you can send them a couple of places spotted throughout the U.S. that can clean and "balance" your old injectors (Marren Motorsports did a set for my old RX-7 awhile back for $25 per injector) or you can replace them but this can get expensive (Nissan injectors list for a little over $100 apiece but my local dealer sells them to me for about $65 each (I have bought a few sets in my time). This can be expensive depending upon your budget but once you have sorted the engine bay area you can be assured of enjoying your Z for quite awhile. In summary it's tough to 'diagnose' your car without ever having seen it in person or otherwise and before you jump to carbs at least try to post a pic of your engine bay so that we can all give you some good advice.

This might sound funny but your Z reminds me of a rubberized Z car toy I had when I was a kid and it looked exactly like your Z right down to the black wheels. Now if only I could find that toy I could upload some photos of it. The rear spoiler is very discreet looking as well.

Clive, What electrical problems have you been dealing with? The fuel injection when sorted properly is much more efficient than the carburettors. If you must go backwards then at least employ the factory twin Hitachi S.U.'s. I have driven a few cars with properly set up S.U.'s including a friend's MGB with HS6's and the response and drivability was very close to fuel injection. Tell us what year 280Z you have and I am sure you will get some very good advice with regard to your 'electrical problems'. The biggest pain with the fuel injection systems in my experience has been the BCDD valve but even that can be bypassed by running a hot wire thereby bypassing that nuissance. Another two items that a few will overlook is the water temp. sensor and the thermo time switch located just under the thermostat housing.

In my case lightning struck twice before I was ten years old. I remember noticing the shape even before I knew what make it was. It was a pale yellow 240Z (not sure of the year) that I saw when I was probably no more than four years old viewed out of the window of my parents' old '73 Celica. Before I knew what it was I also liked the Saab Sonet and had a hard time differentiating between the two. Matchbox only gets you so far. Then lightning struck for the second time in February 1978. My father called to speak to me on the phone (my parents were separated) and his old '76 Mustang Cobra II (think Charlie's Angels only it was black and gold w/ 302 and 4 speed--145hp!) had just been totalled that previous New Year's Eve in D.C. He mentioned he was thinking about a Triumph Spitfire and I knew what those were as my neighbor had owned three Triumph TR-6's (this might be where I got OCD for having multiple '78 280Z's all in the same color?) and that was cool. He then went on to say that he had also been looking at a Datsun 280Z maybe a red one with a vinly roof (ack!!!), but at least it was a Datsun Z and that was all that mattered. The following weekend a wine red metallic 280Z with gold pinstripes showed up in the driveway and the rest is history! I can still remember being mesmorized by the ticking under the hood when the car was shut off (aluminum cooling) and the smell of the interior. Even then you could sense that you were climbing into something special and then when it was first started that crazy fan clutch noise that the 280Z's make.

Carl, All I can say is WOW. Too bad there aren't some photos of that yellow '77 280Z as well. Seeing that one makes me wish I still had my yellow '78 280Z. I missed a chance to buy one that used to be parked at the George Mason University campus in Fairfax, Va. about 8 years ago. The yellow Z's are becoming fairly scarce in original unmodified condition--even mine had the dreaded sunroof cut into the roof. There is a really nice early series one on ebay right at the moment in Winton, Ca. that is the pale yellow color. Someone will end up with a nice series one with a '70 production date and it even still has the old California blue plates registered currently.

Carl, That 240Z is gorgeous! I love that yellow as well. Our old ZCCNV president bruce Troxell used to won a '72 240Z that he restored in that same color and it was always a joy to see that 240Z out and about. He ended up selling that 240Z after moving into the Corvette scene and the selling price was under $5,000! In that condition I really could love any color? The yellow is very nice though. Makes a strong argument for me to thin the herd even more. I couldn't help but notice a yellow 280Z in the background photo as well. What is the story with that car? It doesn't look like a Zap car but the yellow 280Z's are getting tough to find as well.

Rich, here is your ISBN # 0-932128-10-6 (probably will not need the dashes but that is the way it appears on the back of the book. I ordered mine online from a bookstore in Tokyo named Lindbergh and it was at my house here on the east coast in three days! No extra charge for that quick shipping either. Nissan seems to be going through another AMC blind styling department phase at the moment which reminds me of the days of the Datsun F-10! I had to walk down the 350Z path and buy it new just once to get the experience. I bought mine at the same dealer my father bought his '78 280Z 25 years before me in 1978. The same family still owns that dealership and the owner was there the evening i took dleivery of mine and he had a few laughs about it. I think he said something like i wish it didn't take 25 years to get a repeat Z car customer though! In regards to your comment about the last gen Supra I didn't mind the styling although it was a bit bulbuous for my tastes. The rear wind was awful even though I probably would have bought the non turbo version anyways. The new Jaguar should have been offered with a manual transmission but the current clientele wouldn't go there.

Rich, It is yet another one! I have to do this by chassis numbers: my avatar car was a one owner car and it has already sold (July) and it was HLS30-437667, the second one that is for sale at the moment is HLS30-453461, a fellow came by yesterday and he is supposed to pick up the Z on Wednesday! He was the first one to come and look at it and I was surprised it sold in less than 20 minutes. The next one that is up for sale is HLS30-448652 which is yet another burgundy '78 280Z! I have to look at the receipts file and tally up what I have tied up in the car and set a price (it will be resonable) so that it sells in short order. it doesn't look too terrible and it certainly has alot less rust than the one that sold yesterday. Here is a short list of what's been done: Engine installed from my old '82 280ZX hardtop with 119k on it. While it was out on the engine stand waiting to go into this car I painted the block with the correct blue paint from Banzai Motorworks (6 coats and 4 coats of clear). Installed new intake and exhust manifold studs (Nissan). The transmission was swapped out for a five speed from another '82 280ZX 2+2 which is an ATK rebuilt unit. When the engine bay was empty I repainted the engine bay (most of it including the core support and battery box) and recleared the engine bay. I also removed the brackets and sandblasted them and repainted them to the correct colors. All hoses passing air and water were replaced. Intake manifold was swapped for a '75 280Z non-egr manifold and new Nissan injectors and sub-harnesses were installed. This really cleaned up the intake side of the engine. New KYB struts and Motorsport lowering springs were installed with new urethane bump stops. ABS steering coupler and urethan rack bushings installed. I haven't installed it as of yet but a new Nissan passenger fender goes with the car. I would POR15 the inside before installing the fender. I will also include a urethan front air dam as I didn't plan on installing the big fat 280Z front bumper and stock lower valence. The rear bumper was removed but I can supply with another rear bumper if the new owner wants stock bumpers again. I also have the front bumper assembly that goes with it as well. In any case I will start a new thread for this one in the next week or two. I need the reclaim the driveway for the other two burgundy 280Z's that are being stored up at Andrews AFB. I will also be shooting a bunch of new photos for that one as well. Who knows where it may end up? It would be nice to see it go to a member of this forum so that we can all see where the car ends up as it is still not a finished project.

Carl, I agree with you regarding the book as it is a wonderful piece of exhaustive research and attention to detail.

Nevragain55, I ahve been dealing with a similar problem on my father's '77 280Z. It has been sitting since 2003 and just this spring it had alot of work done to it including: new Nissan injectors, sub harnesses, manifold gasket, intake and exhaust manifold studs, heater core, heater valve, distributor pick up. I got the car home and installed: new NGk spark plugs, NGK wires, Nissan dit. cap, Nissan dist. rotor., fuel filter, all vacuum lines (I used the silicone SVH). I began making small roadtrips and it has been acting up (stalls and sometime won't restart) and I think I may have that clogged screen although I haven't had the time to check this out--maybe this weekend? I also insatlled new air flow mete boots and cleaned the throttle body while I was at it. I installed a fuel pressure gauge and it reads 32-34 psi and when I squeeze the return line the pressure jumps to about 55-60 psi. I notcied that the fuel pressure regulator hadn't been changed so i may install that piece as well just for peace of mind's sake.

Victor, Too funny! Maybe when I make the move to SoCal because a Roadster in the Washington area would only get driven about three months out of the year and with the nutty drivers we seem to attract you would want to stay off the Capital Beltway as much as possible. I have been known to bug a friend of mine from time to time about his black over red '66 Roadster that is an absolute joy to look at. He is lucky enough to live close to work and thus he drives his on a fairly regular basis. For me it would have to be low windshield model and while the 2000 would be tough to find in that configuration I would probably be just as happy with a 1600. Of course getting back to my previous repsonse now that I think about it a Miata would be fun as longs as it was a '95 M (the burgundy thing).:stupid:

I will definitely keep that in mind. I have to second your opinion with regard to the car appetite. A friend of mine and I were in the "cave" which is another name for the man room knocking back a few Bacardi and cokes one evening and he finaly said "I have figured out your problem; you are a car whore"; I almost snorted the rum and coke at that point. Luckily I did not make a mess as his wife would not ahve appreciated rum and coke on her carpet. We still know who's boss? I seem to go through phases and lately I have been building Noah's Ark which is to say that the idea of twins is appealing. So far I have two burgundy 280Z's (a '77 and '78); two '86 300ZX hardtops; two 280ZX's. The oddballs are the 240Z, '72 Celica, '87 Supra, '03 350Z, and the '91 Mustang GT. I don't think I would want one each for those although an XKE owuld look good next to the 240Z--as it is I need an airplane hangar! I would love to round out the '80's Japanese car thing with an '86 or '87 CRX Si, '85 or '86 MR2, and an '84 or '85 RX7 GSL-SE. The Mustang is a strange one for me as at the end of high school all of my friends went crazy for those cars. At the time I did not appreciate them although I had driven a few thanks to an uncle car salesman. When a friend of mine and I saw the Mustang at a car show and I got a look at the ridiculous amount of paperwork (build sheet, window sticker, etc..) and the manner in which the owner described his maintenance habits I was hooked. As with the latest muscle car fad the devil is in the numbers and thanks to mustanggt.org there is a wealth of information to be had. I imagine with the XKE the British Motor Heritage Certificate would be a neat item to have. As an endnote I was at a local car show at the Treasure Caost Mall in Port Saint Lucie, Florida a couple of weeks ago and I was introduced to a gentleman who happens to be the original owner of black over red XKE coupe that has only covered about 60k miles since new! I believe it was either a '65 or '66 and he mentioned that he hadn't taken it out of the garage since 2002! When I asked about paperwork he stated that he kept the original sales invoice and brochure. I would imagine there cannot be too many XKE's with that set of circumstances still around? The friend that introduced me restored an MG TF and drives the heck out of his car (Sebring, Daytona etc...) and was chiding his friend for not driving the XKE which makes sense.

I forgot to mention that if you have the time a great book on the Toyota 2000GT written by Shin Yoshikawa deatils the history of the 2000GT in excruciating detail with a complete list of every chassis number produced and the location to which they were delivered. The text is in Japanese which may present a large hurdle but the book is well worth the asking price which is usually in excess of $100.