Smokey

Hmmmmm, the driver's door and rocker seem to be straight. Might be able to salvage some more items to help resurect a certain 240 that is in a bad way now . Glad to see you back

A guy that I talked to in SC about a '72 said that he had a radiator from a GM vehicle. It fit just fine, except it hung a little lower than original. Still room for the shroud and fan with no problems. Not sure what car the radiator is from, all I know is that it was a V8.

Well, if it is a hydraulic clutch, and there is no adjustment then I would try changing the fluid. With 120K on it, the tranny fluid should have been changed at 2-4 times by now. I would try switching to Red Line MTL or MT-90 depending on what the tranny calls for. This is some good stuff, and I have used it in an Xtrerra for 2 years. It shifted flawlessly where as it was notchy brand new. If that does not work, then it sounds like your syncros are beginning to wear. Just strange that all gears are going at the same time. Might be the release bearing. You hear any noise from the bellhousing? If so, with clutch in or out?

I'm with Kmack on this one. From the picture, it looks to be straight. What it appears to be is from the upper radiator support rubbing, and rusting. Then the owner repaired the area, possibly using some filler to smooth the damage out. Over time the filler cracked and the paint peeled up showing what you see now. Just a guess from a 2D picture.

Ernie, I am glad that you are home and getting better so quick (although, I am sure it has been slow for youLOL ). In my job I see all kinds of crashes and injuries from these crashes. Side impacts can be brutal. The fact that your car received the magnatude of damage you are telling us, and you came out in as good a shape as it seems, speaks of a certain amount of safety in these cars. I know that a newer car with side airbags would have done better, but geez 30 years old with decorative bumpers--not too bad! Again, I hope for a speedy recovery and a new Z project for you in the future.

Add one more person hoping that he pulls through OK. My thoughts are with him and his family.

Last I heard form him, the deposit check was in hand. The buyer had promised to buy the car. I guess I just sit back and see if he does now. I am betting the car is gone, but the owner will contact me if the sale falls through.

Something else to consider. The Z is a very reliable mode of transportation, however, being used as a daily driver is hard on the car. As has been discussed, they are prone to rust. If you use it as a daily driver, you will be in rain, snow, salt, and whatever else. I made this mistake with my first Z. I lived in an apartment, and needed a daily driver. My CRX was totaled, so I bought a Z. The condition was fair, and I tinkered on it for a while. In the year that I had it, it saw all kinds of bad weather. The metal began to rust, and there was not much I could do with it since I needed transportation. Just playing devil's advocate here. The Z is a great car, and easy to work on. It is a better "second" car though. I hate to see Z's out in the weather deteriorating. They need to be in garages and driven on sunny, dry days. The 240SX would be the more practical daily driver, and a better one to learn how to drive in. I say that only cause it is easier to find replacement body parts for the newer car. And, odds are, you will wreck your first car.

Well, I'm kinda bummed out now. You see, when the owner sent me the pictures he also sent some to another potential buyer. While I was E-mailing him to set up a time to come and see the car, the other buyer was E-mailing that he was overnighting a deposit and that he wanted the car. At least for this minute, it looks like I have missed out on this car. Hopefully, either the deposit will not get sent (doubtful) or when the guy goes to look at it, he decides not to buy it (very doubtful). All I know is that he is from the Northeast. It's not you WannaZ, is it?? I had pretty much come to terms that this was going to be the car that I wanted too. Price seemed to match the condition. Guess it is just a waiting game now. I must perservere.

Yeah, I would have gone with a L28 short block too. According to the owner, the "Z Doctor" in Fl was restoring a 260 and had pulled the engine out. This was the donor block on this 240. Motor only has 4600 miles on it, and is in tune. He says that it pulls strong all the way to 6500RPM.

He only mentioned the heater core. I assume the box and the other parts are there. I know the AC works, but is out of R-12 (so he says). Also the car has an L26 block with the L24 crank and rods. Its been bored .30 over with the Early E88 head and a hot cam. The induction is 3x Mikunis. Is this a good setup? He speaks highly of the drivability.

Quick question on this car. It does not have a heater core, and therefore no heat. How difficult is it to find a heater core? Ahhh Hell, I just got some pictures of this car--I can wear a jacket:love: I need to find a way to call dibbs on this car till I can get down to SC to see it.

Where are you at?

Yeah, I saw that car . Believe me, it is not near the car Barry thinks it is. BTW, the black one does not have a heater core. I have heard they are tuff to get a hold of. The A/C also needs charging. And, again, the front suspension needs rebuilding--Shocks, ball joints, tie rod ends, bushings. The rear brakes need to be replaced too. We shall see.

Can't help with the location, but the Z Doctor was one of the guys that designed the Z from the beginning. He now works on Datsun/Nissan cars--mainly early Z's. I have heard he does real good work. I am looking at a car that he did the motor on, so I might let you know what kind of work he does from first hand experience soon.

Talked to the guy briefly while at work. The car sounds pretty good. He has owned it for 4 years, and bought it from Orlando Fl. It has been a Fl car all it's life up till now. The motor has been replaced less than 5K miles ago with a .30 over 260 motor with early E88 head. It has the hottest cam that can be put in without affecting drivability. The SU's have been dumped for triple Mikunies. It has full electric ignition, original 4spd tranny, and diff. The floor pans have been completely replaced and are in excellent shape, and the frame rails are original with no rust. There are some rust bubbles forming at the bottoms of the doors and around the gas lid. The rubber has been replaced on both doors and hatch. The mechanical work was done by the Z Doctor in Florida. The body was originally Silver, but the last owner (had 3 owners to this point) had it sprayed Laquer black. The engine bay is still Silver, with no rust around the battery. The interior is red. He will be sending pictures soon. This sounds pretty good, but we shall see.

Found another Z I will be looking into. This one is in Lexington SC. It is a '72, but the ad tells nothing about it. Just says looks and runs great. It is black, so I know it has been painted, but then again, my first Z was a black '72. Anyone know anything about this car? Looks pretty nice, but body work can be very misleading. The one thing that it has going for it, is the black paint. Pretty hard to hide body work under black. Gonna try and call in the morning. I just can't shake the desire for one of these cars.

Came across this car on collector car trader. Just wondering if it belongs to any members here. The location is in Tampa FL. I have not talked to the owner as of yet.

DUDE!!!! put a warning on this thread . Makes me sad to see Z's in less than perfect shape, but at least you will be getting it all fixed up soon. I am glad that the damage is minor and can be repaired fairly easy. Let us know how it goes.

One thing to consider here since you say the car has sat for an extended period of time. It might not be the valve seats that are the cause of the low compression. One of the Z's I have looked at fell into that very same condition. The owner said that when he bought the car, it ran, although poorly. He pulled the head to get it machined and overhauled. While at the machine shop, the guy said that the head was pretty much shot from having sat so long. The acids in the oil had started to eat away at the head. The owner then went home and started to look at the block. He actually found a small hole in the side of the block. Come to find out, the acids in the oil along with the coolant had rusted out the block from the inside out. There was no way to save this engine. he ended up with a new Jasper L26. Not sure if this is what is going on with your engine (and I hope it isnt), but be aware that sitting is one of the worst things for an engine unless it is drained and prepped.

I am actually curious about this question. Of course, I am lost on bars too. From what I have seen, looks like 150's are good numbers for these engines. Or at least, those are the numbers that I have seen generated in the L series motor. Someone, fill us in on what is a good number range for compression.

I live in the great state of confusion. I also visit the state of chaos occasionally.

Glad to hear that you will be going somewhere you really want to go. Sorry to hear that you must sell the Z. It is a beautiful car . Send some pictures of the trouble spots: rails, pans, rockers, etc... tome . You are asking near my price range. I really did not want to buy outside of NC, but for a club member, I might make an exception because I can verify the history of the car much easier.

Thanks again Carl. I have not talked to the owner yet. I will prolly talk to some friends in the body shop I used to work at, and see what they say about the battery repairs. Just a lot of work to get the car where the owner says it is already.

Pic 2