MikeW

In the states the 260Z was only available in 1974 and there was an "early" model and a "late" model. This is the "early" model with bumpers similar to the 1973 240Z. The late model had the larger bumpers similar to the 280Z. The bumper "towel bars" in this example are aftermarket.

Welcome. Please post pictures.

They are rare because not as many were made to begin with. Some people have claimed they have the advantage of not having been driven as hard as manual transmission cars. Many people have swapped the automatic for a manual. If it's clean, i.e., rust free, it might well be a good buy. Do you have any pictures?

I'd search through the gallery on this site. There are bound to be plenty of images of a 240Z with a white interior. Here's the first one I came across: http://www.classiczcars.com/photopost/showphoto.php?photo=9953

Sorry, I missed the part where it said "She was also in the front passenger seat". If they were both sitting in the seat she was probably on his lap. Makes me wonder how she survived and he died but there's no telling in an accident that devastating. Whenever I see "thrown from car" I also immediately think "no seatbelt".

Was the Twin Turbo available in 2+2 or was one of the fatalities riding in the hatch?

Yes, it's the same basic VQ35DE 3.5 liter V6 engine that Nissan has used in many vehicles including the 350Z, Maxima, and Altima 3.5 (but not the 2.5 that you mention which is an inline 4). It's long been considered one of the best engines around so I'd really be surprised if it truly has an oil consumption issue. If by research you mean google searching I think there's a common problem. For any product on the market if you do an online search you'll find a vocal minority with problems. I wouldn't let that sway you as the G35 coupe is a great car. As with any used vehicle I'd have it thoroughly inspected before a purchase.

I buy most of my gas at chain of convenience stores called QuikTrip. They're based in Oklahoma but have a lot of stores in Atlanta. It's not Exxon/BP/Shell/Chevron and the gas is almost always less expensive than those name brands. The interesting thing is that they actually encourage customers to not waste money on premium if it's not required by your engine. Have you ever seen a company this honest in advertising? http://www.quiktrip.com/gasoline/myth.asp

Your best bet is to google for a free .srf converter. That way you can take your own jpeg/bmp/gif/etc and just convert it instead of trying to create something by hand.

If it runs at all it can't be way off and if it runs Ok then the timing is probably close. Did you see marks at all? It often helps to add some white paint in the notch(es) on the pulley. If it's hard to start without starter fluid then you've got a fuel issue of some sort. I've seen claims that a weak spark can ignite starting fluid but not gas but I find that possibility remote.

I can see absolutely no flaws whatsoever. Who else here can say that about their car?

Not only a timing light but an "advance" timing light. This will have a knob that allows you to dial in the exact number of degrees. You then turn the distributor until the pointer lines up with the 0 mark. This makes it easier to get an accurate read than using the notches on the pulley which are in 5 degree increments.

Welcome back Vicky!

There are a couple of Z experts in the north Atlanta area: John Williams in Sugar Hill (770-806-2926) Eddie Radatz of E. Radatz Motorsports in Kennesaw (770-926-6609) I can't find a web site for either. They both must be old-school mechanics but that's what you need.

Nice. "Z guru Alan Thomas ..."

Yes, the evaporator is in the box under the dash. I don't see the compressor, however. Just the hoses and carbon canister and aftermarket control box attached to the console. There were two different standard locations for aftermarket compressors. One was on a bracket near the mechanical fuel pump and another was on the lower left side near (or replacing) the factory air pump (which you still seem to have unless that is a compressor). The air pump was emissions equipment.

No, the wheels are not original. All 240Zs exported to the US came with cheap steel wheels and hubcaps. Most of them were thrown away and replaced with "mag" wheels like what you have. So many originals were thrown away that they're now quite valuable. Your wheels may have even been installed at the dealer. Overall the body looks very good. Hopefully being in storage 20 years preserved the body well. If you haven't already I'd get some pictures of the underside floorpans and frame rails and under the battery. Also some shots around the wheel arches and rocker panels. Some other quick observations of non-original or missing stuff: The "towel" bar on the rear bumper is aftermarket. Missing hood ornament Missing right front turn signal assembly and lens Aftermarket AC is disconnected Missing right side Datsun emblem Not original seat covers Missing radio Not original shift knob Air cleaner from later model Very strange fan None of these things are a big deal so consider yourself lucky.

A few odd engines have actually had 3 valves per cylinder. For an overhead cam engine I suppose 4 valves would require 2 camshafts so that last part of '432' is a bit redundant.

Why do you have to reboot? As I recall it's just a bunch of high resolution pdf files with a launcher application that helps with navigation.

http://www.ztherapy.com I did see a trick in the old VHS video from ZTherapy that showed a way of straightening a needle by chucking it in a drill, running the drill at speed, and gently pressing the needle sideways into a rag or towel.

I don't think anyone has ever claimed that the ventilation system was very good to begin with. A lot of people have upgraded the blower motor to a Honda motor that bolts right up and vastly improves air flow from the vents. If you're getting 24 degrees at the evaporator then more air flow might be required if the compressor is not cycling as Stephen mentioned. He's the expert.

Welcome aboard. The first thing to do is take a bunch of pictures and upload them here. You will quickly get a lot of expert eyes inspecting things for you. The engine is easy to deal with compared to any rust issues. Hopefully being in a garage for so long helped preserve it. Where you go from here largely depends on what you want from the car. Do you just want to get it running well enough to drive it around or do you want to do a full restoration and enter it in car shows? Chances are you're somewhere in between.

Welcome. You should really get a factory service manual. The Clymer/Haynes/Chilton/etc. books can be helpful but don't always have everything you need. For my '72 the FSM lists 2.9 to 5.8 ft-lb for the oil pan bolts. Even the FSM doesn't show valve cover bolt torque but 5ft-lb or so seems right. It doesn't take much. As far as brake upgrades I'm surprised you haven't found anything. By far the most popular is using 4 piston calipers from Toyota. They bolt right on. Here's a recent thread on the subject: http://www.classiczcars.com/forums/showthread.php?t=34762

I think the new GTR certainly falls into the supercar category. It may not have the looks of the NSX which is more similar to traditional Italian supercars but the performance is certainly there. Just look at these numbers for confirmation and to see how it compares to other supercars: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nordschleife_fastest_lap_times The order of the posted top 10 list hasn't been mentioned in this thread but presumably there is significance to it even if it is just an opinion. I certainly can't complain about my 240Z being listed in position #3 behind the R35 GTR and the Honda/Acura NSX.

No, the R390 was a race car: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nissan_R390_GT1 Since the R32 never came to the US a top ten list in this country might well include the Z32TT.