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Wow, the community here is really amazing. You are all a great group of people! Thanks again for everything guys. Hopefully I can post again soon with some pictures of purchased Z. Cheers!

I'm looking for a project car, as I have a reliable DD. After looking at the work involved in restoring some Z's that had less rust than this I'd say I do not have the skill or the resources currently, to do the body work myself so I will be passing on this one. I've worked out a budget plan for a future Z car though based on everybody's feedback. Going to put aside about 5k to find one in better condition, and then a monthly budget of about 300$ to bring it back to spec. Timewise, I'd rather take it slow and do it right then do a rushed hack job to get a car back on the road, but ideally it would be worked on the occassional weekday evening, and most weekends. Ideally I'd like to keep the car I'd buy forever, and maybe hand it down to my kid when they turn 30. Not looking to flip the car, definitely not thinking it's an investment that would net gains. Just something I could slowly build and feel proud of. Am I being too naive in regards to the cost of restoring a car this old? Should I plan to put aside more upfront or monthly? I thought about doing this, if the car is still around in a week or two, I might give him a call with this offer. Thanks for the feedback guys, really appreciated.

Wow, thank you. I will definitely check out search tempest! Never knew that handy little tool existed. The more I thought about the guys story for the car, the more it sounded pretty nuts. I did some more reading into warning signs and other things to look out for, and remembered that the guy had the car fired up before I arrived, I'm guessing he wanted to avoid cold starts to hide other issues too. Anyways, I appreciate the advice, might make a good parts car for someone else. I'll keep looking.

Hey guys, I've been looking at building a nice 240z for a long time now, been hunting for a while for one in decent shape. Not looking to do a full showcar resto (although it would be nice), just want it to get it back to driveable and rust free, no engine swaps, maybe a few minor engine mod's to enhance the sound/feel of the base car. A guy local to me is selling a '71 240z, and claims the car has 34k miles on the chassis, but was sitting in storage for 30 years (open air storage apparently.) He originally bought it off the first owner's son, and then let it sit in his yard for 2 years of rain and snow allowing the rust to build further, while waiting for a local shop to take on the car for a full resto. Said local is looking for 1500, im thinking of offering 1000$. Mechanically it seems to check out, all 4 + reverse gears pull, engine sounds fine at idle and during rev, needs full new suspension and brakes though. Some rust in the rear hatch, rear 3/4 part of the body. Rocker panels look completely gone. Engine bay seems largely intact. Wheel wells seemed ok. Haven't had a chance to look at the frame rails, but based on both the driver/passenger floor pans I'm assuming they're rusted too. Should I turn tail and run? or pick it up and take on a long difficult but possibly extremely satisfying challenge? Mechanically speaking, any and all engine/transmissions/suspension etc maintenance and work I can handle, but in terms of body work, my experience is very limited. Like sanding away and filling paintchips limited. I'm definitely looking to learn (a LOT of learning) to do this kind of restoration? Should I turn tail and run and hope to find something less rusted? Thank you for any advice or thoughts!