Threehz

I love every Z car for what it is, especially the early Z's. I would make no changes. I love the fact that I could go out and pick up a 240, 260, or 280 and either love it just as it is, or mod it out in an infinite number of ways. In my opinion the simplicity of the early Z cars opens up endless possibilities. However I'm just a complete Z-fanatic, so continue with the good thread!

Well let me tell you, when I bought my Z I had VERY basic car knowledge and I mean very basic. Now just four months later I feel completely comfortable taking my Z completely apart and putting it back together. They are not hard cars to work with, AT ALL. As Healey said, go check out a lot they are all over and you'll find the right one, just make sure you watch for rust and a straight body. As for parts, you can get most normal parts at local auto stores. The rest are readily available online from quite a few places. Rockauto is a good online resource, however I found usually it's cheaper to get parts local because of shipping. Motorsport auto has just about everything you can think of for your Z. New dashes are one of the most expensive parts for the Z cars, however there have been MANY more then successful repairs on dashes even with bad cracking for under 100$. There are tons of Z resources out there and don't be afraid to ask here.

So I'm going to be doing my gas tank pretty soon too and I was browsing POR-15's site when I came across this, http://www.por15.com/FUEL-TANK-REPAIR-KIT/productinfo/FTRK/ I don't know how that compares price-wise to other kits but I'm sure it is a good kit.

What exactly do you want to do with the car? A lot depends on this, however, rust is definitely the key issue as others have mentioned. I'm guessing cars are prone to rust where you are located seeing how far north you are. If you are willing to spend so much money to find one in really good condition, maybe it's worth it to expand your search? Maybe you can find one in good condition that is a ways away but a trip for the right Z could end up being a lot cheaper then saving for a restored car. This is just my opinion but maybe you'll agree. No doubt that owning a pristine perfectly restored Z would be a great pleasure, but I think if you find a good Z that you yourself restore, it'll mean that much more. Not to mention getting to know your Z inside and out will be a big help when she runs into problems. Anyhow I believe it's more about the journey then the destination. You asked for it so here is my story, hope it helps guide you in the right direction. When I was around ten years old I knowingly saw my first Z and asked my dad what kind of car it was, he was a big fan of the Z's growing up and always wanted a 240. A couple years later I got my first job working as a janitor for my parents at their small office. Their office was actually just an old house so it was on the edge of a neighborhood. One day after I got done working we left through the neighborhood and I saw that about 7 houses down there was an old Z car sitting by this house. I thought it was the coolest car in the world and decided someday I would get one. Eight years later, at the beginning of this year I was at my parents office re-coating the roof for them. I remembered the Z but didn't see it, just a white truck where it should've been. When I left I drove by the house just for grins. Sure enough right behind the truck the old Z was sitting where it always had! That sparked my interest in the Z's again and I begin researching them furiously and in fact that is how I came across this great site. Anyhow I become completely taken over by the Z fever and was watching craigslist constantly and checking out cars here and there but I either didn't have the money or it was a washed up Z. It then struck me to go see if that old Z near my parents office was for sale. Went to the house one day and knocked on the door a few times but no one ever came out, so I left a note. About a week went by and I never got a call so I decided to go again just for one final attempt. This time the owner was there and came out and I told him my story how I envied his Z for years, and he turned out to be a really nice guy. He showed me the car and told me that he got injured about eight years back and getting in the Z (being so low to the ground) hurt too much so he finally got a truck. According to him it ran fine and it appeared to be in great shape. Before I left I asked if he would be willing to sell it and he said make an offer. I had no clue what to say and didn't want to low ball him so I told him I didn't know. He said 1500$, but no less. I told him that I didn't have the money but if I decided I wanted to get it I would let him know. I came back a couple weeks later and gave it a thorough inspection and in fact the Z turned out to be in much better condition then I had realized or thought it would be. I had saved up about 500 dollars and was thinking about where I could get a loan. I knew in the next week I would have 800 and I decided maybe he would accept that and I felt it wasn't too low an offer so I called him up. I offered 800 and he immediately said he would except no less then 1500. Then as if in a dream he said, "but, since it's you, and I know how much you love this car. I'll sell it to you for a grand." I had honestly expected to pay the 1500 for it and was more then happy to, but upon hearing this I was ecstatic. I obviously accepted and told him I had 500 that I could put down on it right now to secure the car as mine and he said of course. The next day I asked my parents if they would loan me the other 500 so I could get it right away and start working on it sooner (as the semester was a week away from ending). They said no but then I got a text from my uncle who I had told about the car after I first found it saying he would loan me however much I needed to get it. Now that is all history and I am the happy owner of my beloved Z. Sorry about the long story, but hopefully it will give you some inspiration. Now I'm not saying to just wait around for a Z to magically come to you, but I believe if you keep searching you will find your Z. Good luck on your journey and everyone here is always willing to help!

Aha thank you very much!

So my dash is out and since it's out I'm going to refinish it and fix all the cracks in it, I have all the gauges out except for the speedometer. The speedometer removal is as easy as the rest except there is the tripometer reset knob and cable, the knob seems to be attached to the cable (knob also cannot be pulled through dash) and the only place I can see to remove it from is right before the cable goes in the speedometer there is a TINY screw. I can take pictures if necessary. Anyone know how to go about this? Also 77 280Z if it helps.

Gtom, you said you are looking for an early z, but I didn't see mentioned anywhere if by early you meant only a 1970, or any 240, or any 240, 260, or 280 (which many consider the early/classic Z's). You can definitely find a great unmolested 280 for a fraction of the price of a 240. If you aren't exclusively looking for a 240 then I can tell that I see great 280's pass through the Tucson/Phoenix area all the time for great prices and a lot of them aren't all that messed with. (Not to mention a lot with modifications that might be preferred depending on exactly what YOU want) For instance I found my 280Z completely "unmolested" except for a sounds system (easily removable, but I was happily surprised to find it) and in great condition for a more then reasonable price. So anyhow for one, what year range Z are you looking for? And also, what are you looking for in a Z? Obviously this thread is to get a response from the Z community about what the general consensus is on Z car "molestations" that are either over the edge or could reduce it's value. You had made the summary above, so is that what you believe to be the top 8 violations of Z purity? Sorry for the use of the M word but I believe it's usage is widely accepted and used to describe the altering of anything to a less desirable state. my2cents FWIW

ZCurves if you are talking about generic weather stripping then yes it is available at most all home improvement stores and there is usually a variety of thicknesses, and material from rubber to thicker or lighter foams and some have an adhesive side already. With those you can just pull the adhesive cover off and stick it right on to whatever you like, I like these because the adhesive will stick very well, however it is also easily removable if you need to replace it or change something. 2cents.

Ok so I've been trying to take off my front fender and I think I've almost got it however one thing I do not have done yet is the head light wire and side flasher light wire. For the head light it looks like I can just take the lamp holder out and the wire will come with it. The side flasher is more complicated though because it does not fit through the opening that it mounts in. This would be easy if these wires disconnected at some point but it's all one fluid wire. Does anyone know how to get the side flasher out of the fender? edit: this probably should've gone in body/paint sorry.

I have never ordered from them however you will want to check out this thread here: http://www.classiczcars.com/forums/showthread.php?42334-Modern-Motorsports-anyone-recently-placed-an-order I am not giving you my word or any guarantee, however if you read through that thread it appears that they are reliable, however it can take a while to get your parts. I would talk to some of the people in that thread who ordered from them if you aren't completely sure.

Great because I've found a perfect gravity feed HVLP from Devilbiss that I'm thinking of getting. Now to find the perfect compressor that doesn't cost too many arms and legs...

Thanks for that Ben I was actually going to ask next exactly how much paint a typical Z engine bay takes, you read my mind heh. As for the bedliner, I think that would be cool on the underside of a car but not the engine bay, just my opinion. So I've been reading up in my spare time about painting cars and doing the engine bay shouldn't be hard at all. Money was an issue but my dad says he will go in on me with a nice compressor and paint gun since they can be used for many other things, ESECIALLY a good compressor. So I'm looking at different kinds of paint guns and imagining all the places I'll have to shoot inside the engine bay. Will there be any problems using a gravity feed gun for this? Maybe I should rephrase this, what types of paint guns would be ideal for this job? Suction feed seems like it would be a lot more flexible in holding position for weird places. Or will this matter? There are only a few places I can think of where I will have to shoot upwards or the likes. Thanks for all the responses guys!

I have definitely seen some awful paint jobs on Z's and I mean the entire job not just the quality but color/design, however I have also seen some beautiful non-stock Z paint jobs so that is a job by job deal in my opinion. For instance I'm going to repaint my Z the stock white it was however I might add a stripe. I do have to agree that convertible Z's and Z's with sunroofs are an abomination, and in my opinion one of the worst molestation's you can do. At first I hated all body kits on Z's however now I appreciate a lot of body redesign as long as it is mostly still Z. I'm pretty open-minded, so I can appreciate a lot of the crazy things people do with their Z's even if I would never dream of doing such things to mine.

I wouldn't doubt that at all, when I got the car it had been sitting next to a pine tree for the duration of it's eight year sleep... Let me tell you, I found myself loathing pine needles, and they still show up in every nook and cranny I get into ha. Well the fenders are one of my next steps so we will see what the damage is. Thanks for all the info and putting it into perspective for me!

Yeah I've been talking to some people about it and I might be in over my head, price wise. I did find out that my friend's brother is a painter so that might be the way I go. Still though any ideas about the under-cowl area? I mean most of it is definitely spray-able but down the drain spouts and all that, there has to be some way to get those?

Nearly everything is out of the engine bay, only small things left and the time to paint is coming closer, and closer. I was originally just thinking of taking her to a local body/paint shop and get the engine done up but being me, I can't stop thinking, if I'm going to invest a few hundred dollars in this, why not do it myself? That way I get experience and tools for the future. Anyhow I'd like to get some tips from the people I trust the most with my Z, you guys! First of all, what ALL should I remove before painting? (Maybe the better question is what shouldn't I remove?) I've got almost everything out besides the brake stuff and the wiring harness & a few other little things and grommets. Also I think I'm going to remove the fenders and see how the body is looking under them. Along those lines, under the hood cowl, that entire area is covered in a nice layer of surface rust, not bad at all but it seems like that area wasn't stock painted? Is this normal? Anyhow how should I go about sealing that up? I would really like to seal and paint it so that I can feel at ease about water running through there. For this job I want to get a nice paint-gun, and when I say nice I mean one that I can do a really good job with. I am a poor college student but I refuse to sacrifice quality to save a few bucks. So what are some good quality brands and guns (I have ZERO experience with using a paint-gun)? (I also would like to be able to use this gun to repaint my dash after I repair it, and things of that nature) Next thing is paint. For the engine bay I don't need the sexiest top of the line paint. My main purpose in painting the engine bay is to remove the surface rust that is there, and seal it all up to prevent future rust. That being said, I want this job to last and look good. So what are some good quality brands of paint? Also are there any specials primers/paints that I should used since it is an engine bay (temperature sensitive or anything?) I feel like I had another question but that's quite a lot already and its time to head to work now.. Thanks for reading my long posts guys!

Well that does explain it, living here I've been in a few of those dust storms this year and I know there have been a lot more. Well I would be utterly surprised if it had NO cracks after sitting in AZ for a year, our state is probably one of the toughest on dashes . Interesting combination, and obviously just from looking at her a lot of work has been done, excited to see those pics and I bet everyone here is as eager to find out more about her as you haha.

Hey man the car looks great! That engine bay needs one hell of a bath, I gotta wonder how so much dirt got up in there and over everything.. That dash looks near perfect though, are there any cracks of is it all in good condition? Congrats man, excited to hear more about what's been done to her!

I have to ask, do you want just a 'classic' Z car in general, or did you want the Fairlady specifically? Because if you just want a classic Z but you just happened to come across this one, which is a Fairlady, you will have no trouble finding a stateside Z. There are many many Z's out there and new ones pop up for sale every single day in places all around, if you go check ebay you can find a slew of really nice restored ones for a worthy price, however there are usually a lot of really great deals on some in good/great condition that just need a loving owner. my 2cents Hope you are enjoying your time in the Z world and good luck finding the right Z for you!

Agreed, I don't understand how half of those people who up from those crashes could even move at all. Great video!

She looks great man! That is one hell of a nice find, and glad to hear she's up and running, Z's are such champions! I gotta ask did you get a story about the wheels? Not that having different front and back isn't a fresh twist, I've just never seen that ha

Some of the most common, modern wheels I see used are Rota, Konig, and of course Panasports. Considering you are using it for everyday driving are you looking for looks/style over performance? You can get a good idea by going to different wheels sites and looking for ones that fit your Z. The main thing to watch out for is offset. Technically many wheels "can" fit your car, but you will have to use spacers which I've heard are a bad idea but I'm no expert. Anyhow hope that helps a little!

Looks like the new Camaro & 370 had a love child, which is in no way a bad thing. Looks like some nice marker work to me (Copic?) Great drawing and also welcome!

That sounds fantastic to me, the less the clutter the better! However what is an AAR? I'll probably get a replacement for it, and then get the same thing but with a sealed end so it has a nice clean seal.

Thanks for the advice guys! I showed her this and she loved those comments. She does love the Z, however sometimes she gets tired of all my "car talk"