Carl Beck

Hi KDMatt: As previously mentioned, Air Bags are a passive restraint system - intended to protect people who are not actively wearing a properly adjusted three point lap and shoulder belt. To date there is no evidence to suggest that the Air Bag offers any greater degree of safety, than using a three point lap and shoulder belt. There is some evidence that the Air Bags when inappropriately inflated, can do serious damage to people. (many children have been killed by them). The bumpers on the 240Z or on the 280Z would make no real difference in the end outcome of a 40 mph head on collision, as both would simply be pushed back to the engine. Although some might not be aware of it, providing some degree of safety in a crash has been not only a design goal but public law since 1968 here in the USA. The Datsun 240-Z like all cars in 1970 had to take and pass Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards (FVMSS); one of which was a frontal impact test at 30 mph. See: <a href=http://ZHome.com/History/240ZSafety.htm TARGET=NEW>http://ZHome.com/History/240ZSafety.htm</a> On the one hand the 240-Z is pretty light - so you aren't carrying a lot of energy in the first place, on the other hand the uni-body is very light and doesn't offer much mass to both absorb the energy nor redirect it... Add 10mph to the above test, and the front tires would most likely be pushed farther back... but I would guess that you'd have a pretty good chance of living through it. FWIW, Carl B. Carl Beck Clearwater, FL USA http://ZHome.com

Hello Alan (everyone): Due to the holiday here.... I'll be traveling and doing the "family things" today/tomorrow.. So I'll get back with you all after I return... regards, Carl B. Carl Beck Clearwater,FL USA http://ZHome.com

Hi Alan: I can see that the car is damaged... but please tell us the "story".. who are the people in the picture, where are they and what were they doing just before the road side stop .... and how did they get the car to begin with. thanks, Carl

As I understand it... A coil spring is designed to work under compression.. the "spring constant" is an expression of how much the spring will compress in length, when loaded with a specified weight (pounds of load per inch of deflection) in the middle 60% of it's length. Coil Springs hold a more or less constant rate, once they are compressed past their first 20% of free length, and before they reach 80% of their free length. In the first and last 20% of their length, their spring rates can vary greatly from the rate of the given spring constant. Higher spring rates (constants) will of course make the car ride more firmly. As the terms "ride quality" and "more" are pretty subjective... each person has to decide how "firm" a ride quality they can accept. Personally - given the super light weight of the 240/260Z's - I wouldn't want spring rates much more than 20% higher than stock, if I planned to drive it on the street. I would suggest that you find out what the spring constants are for any of the after-market springs - before you consider buying them, so you will have an apples to apples comparison. FWIW, Carl B. Carl Beck Clearwater, FL USA http://ZHome.com

SuperDave: I think your measurements and calculations might be off just a little. According to the written spec.'s for the 240Z's.... the number of "active" coils is 8.5 on the 72 240-Z's. (10 is the total number) the outside diameter is 4.35 in. and the spring constant given by Nissan is 83 lbs/in for the front springs Nissan spec.'s show a Free Length of 15.2 inch and an installed height of 7.9 inch for the RF - when loaded with 604lbs. So 15.2-7.9 = 7.3 and 604/7.3 = 82.74. The LF = 14.7-7.9=6.8 with a load of 562lbs So 562/6.8= 82.65 The Rears = 14.5 - 8.4 = 6.1 with a load of 635 lbs So 645/6.1 = 104.1 If you run the above numbers from the written spec.'s given by Nissan - in the ProShocks calculator you listed - they come out pretty close... FWIW, Carl B. Carl Beck Clearwater, FL USA http://ZHome.com

Hello Alan: Great pictures - I can't imagine anyone that looks at the car not noticing that mess. Can you tell us more specifically what was different on the "Works" bodied cars vs the regular production bodies? thanks, Carl B. Clearwater, FL http://ZHome.com

Hi Mike (everyone) Every NEW long block I've seen sold by Nissan through the Parts Dept. of the local dealers, has been stamped with an engine serial number, but I've only see a few... I don't know if the bare blocks were stamped at the factory, my guess would be that they aren't. Nissan records and then uses "engine" serial numbers to identify engines in case some recall or service problem pops up related to them, which is usually limited to some specific production configuration that was produced between certain dates... which would related to a specific segment of the serial number "series". That would not normally be the case with a bare block. Re-stamping or altering the engine serial numbers is common in many big bucks cars... but the hard part is getting the exact font on the dies used.. For the most part the Z's haven't reached the level of pricing that would easily justify the effort required to re-stamp or alter a serial number on their blocks... but it could be a problem in the future... FWIW, Carl B.

Tell your mechanic to look just below the #6 spark plug, on the block itself, just below the aluminum head. There he should find two flat "Pads" cast into the side of the block. if he looks there - he can't miss them, as they stand out slightly from the rest of the block. If he wipes them clean, he should find that the first Pad is die stamped with "L24" and the second Pad is die stamped with the engine serial number. the number stamped into the block, should match the number stamped into the data tag in the engine compartment. If the Pads cast into the block have no numbers stamped into them - it could easily be a replacement block and hence not the original engine that was installed in the car when it was built. FWIW, Carl B. Clearwater, FL http://ZHome.com

Let's not get ourselves confused.. the VIN won't match the engine number. The original engine serial number is stamped - not on the VIN Plate - but rather on a Data Plate under the hood (as Chris mentions above) - it's a shiny metal plate about 2"x 4" and the original engine serial number will start with "L24-"...... Your 73 240-Z would have a Date Of Manufacture (aka build date) of 07 or 08 of 1973. That information is stamped on another Data Plate that is affixed to the Drivers Door Jam. Now - go look more closely at the engine number stamped on the block... On the block there are two flat pad's cast into the block - the first one should be stamped "L24" Is it? The second one might be 182194 rather than the 082194 you reported... If the serial number stamped into the block is actually 182194 .. it might be the same number as is stamped into that Data Tag under the hood.. As that is in the range of the engine serial number sequence used in 07/08 of 1973... If the engine is actually stamped with L24 082194 it is most likely out of a Z built O2/03 of 1972. What is the serial number stamped into the Data Tag on your Z? FWIW, Carl

The car may not have been wrecked, but trust me when I say that Nissan did not build any 240/260/280Z's after the 1972 Model Year, that were imported into North America, with anything other than metal headlight nancelles. While the 73 240-Z's has to comply with the 2.5mph standard for bumpers - the 74's had to meet the full 5mph bumper standards... The Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards were very strictly enforced on all import cars after 1971. Prior to that year, manufacturers could get wavers for minor production changes if they imported less than 50K units. After 71... the cars complied or were returned to the factory. The fines and hassles levied by the Fed's just didn't justify non-compliance with the FMVSS. Trust me - I worked for Datsun then.. if you or anyone else has a 74 Z with fiberglass headlight nancelles.. some previous owner changed them from the originals that came on the car. FWIW, Carl

Hi Gang: I now have a set of NOS Nissan Euro Spec. Stage I Springs, as listed in the older Datsun/Nissan Competition Parts Catalogs. These were just slightly stiffer than the US Spec. OEM springs and were a very popular upgrade to the 240-Z's suspension, without resulting in a significantly lowered car and a harsh ride. I am putting together a group purchase in order to get this NOS set Reproduced, as they have been NLA from Nissan for several years now. This will be a very limited production quantity, they will be manufactured by a US manufacturer, shoot peened for stress relief, painted black and marked with the correct color paint dabs (just as the originals were). All spec.'s will be the same as the originals.. free length, installed height, and spring rates etc. Pricing will be very reasonable for the Group Purchase, so if you are interested in ordering set let me know now, and I'll add your name to the Group along with the quantity of sets you wish to pre-order. You will pay for them, only after they are manufactured and ready to ship... and you will know ahead of time what the final pricing will be. (final pricing will be somewhat dependant upon the total number of sets we have manufactured - but are expected to be well below Nissan's last list price from years ago). They should be shipping at the end of the year or just after the first. If you would like to order a set, or have questions - e-mail me at: beck@becksystems.com regards, Carl Carl Beck Clearwater, FL http://ZHome.com

Hi Gang: rzola is correct. 70-72 240-Z's used fiberglass headlight nacelles. Nissan switched to metal for the 1973 Model Year cars because they were necessary to pass the test requirements, for the 2.5mph bumper standards for the US. I'm learning more about fiberglass now - so I'll pass this on FYI. "Fiberglass" and "Fiber Reinforced Plastic" as used in the context of this discussion - are both simply common terms, that refer to a broad spectrum of materials, that fall into the general "composite materials" category. The most common term used in the USA is Fiberglass, and more commonly used in Europe/Japan seems to be FRP, they are one and the same. Other common composite materials are things like Carbon Fiber and Kevlar Composites are materials made up of two individual components who’s combined physical strength exceeds the properties of either of them individually. The reinforced plastic composite consists of a fibrous reinforcing network embedded in the cured resin matrix. The thermosetting type resin is a plastic that cures from a liquid to a solid through a chemical reaction of its two components. Once this reaction occurs, the material can not be reformed. Fiberglass: a fiber made of glass; a mixture of glass fibres and resin that when cured (hardened) produces a very light and strong material. It is used to build boats, car bodies, repair damaged areas, etc. It can also be spelled "Fibreglass." "Fiberglass Cloth" or "Fiberglass Mating" - are materials "woven" using Glass Fiber. Fiberglass Cloth can be laid-up in layers and when it is done in that manor it's usually referred to as "Laminating". Laminating originally referred to applying a thin protective coating of resin and reinforcement over a surface such as wood. The term’s use has broadened to include virtually any finished composite part, molded or otherwise Chopped Fiber fiberglass is usually used in a casting process. Casting refers to pouring a large mass of resin into a cavity. The cavity can be a mold when casting parts, or it can be the backside filler for a tool when making the mold itself. Specialized casting resins are necessary which generate less heat during their cure and thus create less distortion in the final part. Fibrous fillers can be added as needed to strengthen the casting. The fiberglass headlight nacelles and the simulated wood steering wheel are most likely produced using a casting process. Nissan used wood fibers to make the simulated wood steering wheel...that is why it takes a stain, after sanding See: http://www.fibreglast.com/ for more info., video's, articles, etc. FWIW, Carl Carl B. Clearwater, FL

"How Close"?? They are a couple ten thousandths difference in wire diameter, due to useing US vs Metric measurements... and are exactly the same in terms of free length, installed height and spring rate. Bryan and I both sent sets of original springs to assure exact reproductions could be made. I received my sets yesterday as well - and I couldn't be happier with them. FWIW, Carl

Hi Don (everyone): I hate to tell you - but yes - 30 years of wear and tear on the old body makes a HUGE difference in how much "seat time" you can tolerate in a 240-Z!! I used to drive Coast to Coast back in the early 70's - I'd drive 36 hours straight though and arrive at my destination ready to Party. A couple years ago, I drove from the Tampa Bay area up to Atlanta... two hours into the trip I was taking Advil to relive the pain in my hips and lower back!! We also have a Yukon XL... and I could sit in that for hours and hours without a problem. Both the seating position and seat support are critical to our comfort. So I swapped out the stock 240-Z seats for a set from an Acura Integra (95-98 I think)... HUGE difference!! Eight hour trips are a pleasure again and 12 hour trips are even more fun!! Far more support to your lower back and hips.. as well as your legs. SPRINGS: Any steel will suffer fatigue and lose strength when it's been flexed enough. Your coil spring is simply a bar of steel, a lever.. that is constantly flexed as you drive. Depending on the degree and amount of flex... some springs are fine after 30 years - others can be shot in 10 years. On average, I'd guess that the original springs in most Datsun 240-Z's are well below factory tolerances by now if the car has been driven an average amount (say 100K + miles).. Thanks to Bryan's tireless efforts, we had the US Spec. Stock Springs reproduced in limited quantity. If you call David House at Courtesy, tell him you are a member of either the Internet Z Car Club (IZCC) or the Classic Z Car Club - you will get the special pricing we worked out for our members. Retail on the Internet will be $259.95 for a complete set of four springs (very very reasonable by todays standards), and the club price will be $229.95 plus shipping (a bargain!). These springs are produced by a major OEM to the US car manufacturers, shot peened for stress relief, sprayed with the semigloss black and dabbed with the correct color paint dabs.. Each Set consists of One Right Front, One Left Front and Two Rears - sorry but sold only as complete sets. If you think you want a new set of Stock Springs - buy them now. As I said, the quantity we had produced is limited. (only 20 sets available.. and most likely less than that now). Grab them and stick them on the shelf for later if your not ready to swap out your tired old springs yet. When you call Courtesy - ask to speak to David House as he is aware of the special club pricing... tell'em Carl told you to call. Our thanks to Courtesy Parts for helping us make this project happen. Getting old is not for sissy's... "If I had thought I'd live this long, I'd have taken better care of my body". regards, Carl Carl Beck Clearwater, FL USA http://ZHome.com

Hi Gang: Thanks to Bryan's tireless efforts, we had the US Spec. Stock Springs reproduced in limited quantity. If you call David House at Courtesy, tell him you are a member of either the Internet Z Car Club (IZCC) or the Classic Z Car Club - you will get the special pricing we worked out for our members. Retail on the Internet will be $259.95 for a complete set of four springs (very very reasonable by todays standards), and the club price will be $229.95 plus shipping (a bargain!). This is actually just a "service" done as a favor for us by Courtesy Parts... and another reason we should perfer to give them all our business. If you think you want a new set of Stock Springs - I would suggest that you buy them now. As I said, the quantity we had produced is limited. (only 20 sets available.. and most likely less than that now). Grab them and stick them on the shelf for later if your not ready to swap out your tired old springs yet. We are working on having the Euro Spec. Stage I Springs reproduced next - hope to have them available in limited quantity just after the first of the year. These springs are produced my a major OEM to the US car manufacturers, right here in the USA. They are shot peened for stress relief, sprayed with the semigloss black and dabbed with the correct color paint dabs.. Each Set consists of One Right Front, One Left Front and Two Rears - sorry but sold only as complete sets. When you call Courtesy - ask to speak to David House as he is aware of the special club pricing... tell'em Carl told you to call. FWIW, Carl Carl Beck Clearwater,FL USA http://ZHome.com

Thanks Alan - we had an off line discussion about that and I wondered if the HS30-H was the same as the HLS30 A or HLS30 AU etc. in that regard..(also never stamped in the firewall nor VIN tags). Too bad they didn't stamp the firewall - makes it harder to tell original from reproduction. It also answers some questions I had about your earlier listing of VIN start and stop points for the chassis serial number sequences. Do you have an end number for the 1973 chassis numbers? By 1972 was the JDM Fairlady 240 Z-L the same, or all but the same car as the units shipped to Australia? Were the Export HS30's and JDM HS30's sharing the same chassis number series, only using different assigned segments? regards, Carl

Hi Chris: I believe that information about the start date for the 73 Model Year Left Hand Drive, Datsun 240-Z's is taken from the earlier Nissan USA Parts Catalogs. As is the case with several Nissan reported data points, it just doesn't line up with what we have found to be the case in the real world. HLS30 120001 may have been built in Aug. 1972, but most likely it was Sept. 1972 (so far we have not located that specific car), even though some Nissan Publications do state a beginning in July of 72. Nonetheless every VIN past HLS30 1200596 that we have recorded so far has a Sep. 72 build date. HLS30 120031 is Bob Bondurant's and I believe it has a Sept. 72 Build Date as well. All the cars with build dates in July and Aug. of 72, that we have found so far have VIN's between HLS30 91591 and HLS30 100155 (Jim's white Z from Dan) and are 1972 Model Year DATSUN 240-Z's. So I believe it's pretty safe to say that the 73 Model Year cars that were given chassis numbers starting with HLS30 120xxx started production in Sept of 1972. "Model Year" may indeed only be an important designation here in the US. But it is relevant and important for example when passing the annual emissions standards tests in many States - as it is the Model Year they go by, not the production date. Likewise it was an important designation for the Federal Vehicle Safety Standards and Emissions Standards. (73 Model Year Z's here in the US had to have 2.5mph bumpers and the "emissions" carb's etc). If there was the typical overlap in production between one Model Year and the Next in the same month (maybe in Aug.) then the two cars would be built to different safety and emissions standards and they would have to sold as, and titled as, different Model Year cars here in the US. Just to carry this "H" thing a bit farther.. "H" signifies the 2.4 liter engine in the 240-Z's when it's in the first position of the VIN prefix. If the VIN is HS30H - the second "H" signifies a JDM Fairlady 240 Z-G. Of course the "H" signifies the 2.8L engine if it's in the first position of the VIN prefix for a DATSUN 280Z. (not to be at all picky - but we do have DATSUN 280Z owners on the forum as well, and did not want to confuse them either.). FWIW, Carl Carl Beck Clearwater,FL USA http://ZHome.com

Hi Sean: The chassis numbers are serial. Cars were not completed in chassis serial number sequence. They did not roll off a single assembly line in serial number order. You have the 4944th HLS30 chassis built - but it may not have been the 4944th Left Hand Drive Datsun 240-Z completed. (but it is most likely very close to that). Nissan used one serial number set for the HLS30 chassis and another serial number set for the HS30 chassis. So you might find for example that HLS30 0089 is owned by Danny Tucker in Oregon, USA; while HS30 0089 is owned by Adam Batter in Australia. You would find that HLS30 00415 is still owned by it's original owner Donn Walket, in San Diego, California - and still has it's original engine serial number L24-2756, with a Build Date of 11/69; while HS30 00415 is owned by Doug Wright in Australia and it's original engine serial number is L24 24587 (aprox. 12/70 build date). It would be very unlikely that you will find HS30 49xx anywhere. Indeed very unlikely that it would exist. Something less than 4,000 Right Hand Drive Datsun 240-Z's were produced between 1969 and the end of the 1972 Model Year (Series III cars). Then in both the HS and HLS serial number sequence - Nissan jumped ahead to restart the serial numbers for the 1973 Model Year. The HLS30 series restarted at HLS30 120xxx and I believe (someone can look it up) that the HS serial numbers restarted at HS30 100xxx As Chris mentioned - you "might" find the Fairlady Z with the chassis number S30 04944. FWIW, Carl Carl Beck Clearwater, FL USA http://ZHome.com

rzola wrote: >I re-built my front suspension on my 1970 240Z. I used a set of >front springs that were on my 1971 240Z. I blasted and painted them. Before you blasted and painted them - did you notice they were marked with red and blue paint dabs? That was done at the factory so they could tell which spring was which. If you didn't notice the paint dabs... is would be easy to get them mixed up when reinstalling them. >When I installed them, the front ride height was much higher! Also >the camber is way off. Top of tire leaned out (popsitive camber I >belive). That will happen any time you unload the suspension, then set the car back down. Did you drive the car around for a while after you put it back together - to let the suspension settle out? Did you let the car down on the suspension "BEFORE" you set the torque on the control arm bushings & tension/compression rod bushings? If you torqued the control arm bushing and TC bushings with the car in the air - you pre-loaded them and that alone can hold the car up higher. >Before installing the springs, I compared the heights. The >old vs. new were within 1/4 of a inch. Actually - you compared the "old" vs the "older". After 34 or 35 years, depending on a lifetime of use/load etc...the springs will hold different percentages of their original spec.'s...{one reason to note the marking from the factory and remark them the same after cleaning/painting}. Measuring the free length of old springs can be very misleading... you can only use the free length measurements of new springs to tell them apart. >After scratching my head, I >belive these front springs may be too stiff and holding the front of >the car too high? If both sets of springs were OEM on the 70 and 71 they are the same. However if you didn't notice and take note of the paint dabs.. you actually have no way of knowing what some previous owner did... They may have mixed a front and rear spring.. 83 in/lb vs 103.6 in/lb and they are both close to 15 inch when new. (15 vs 15.2). The OEM rear's are marked with white paint dab. >I just measured the coil diameter. The old spings >are about 0.425" wire diameter. The "too high" springs are about >0.455-0.460" diameter. I am going to install the old springs >tomorrow. Heres a question.... You said you measured the "coil diameter".... In the Factory Service Manual, that term defines the distance from the center of the wire on one side of the coil spring to the center of the wire on the opposite side. {100mm or 3.94 inch} The Factory Service Manual also give the "wire diameter" as 0.417. So 3.94+ 0.417=4.357 inch outside diameter of the coil spring and 3.94 - 0.417=3.52 inch inside diameter. 4.357-3.52= 0.837 / 2 = 0.4185 {vs. 0.4170 just rounding errors} If you used a metric ruler to measure the outside and inside diameter of the coil spring.. it's easy to be off a few hundredths of an inch. If you used a Micrometer to measure the wire diameter..it's easy to be off from the factory spec.'s because the wire is curved not flat.. Again it's easy to get readings that are a few hundredths of an inch, or several thousandths off from the stated factory spec,'s.. >My 1971 service manual says the left spring is 373mm or 14.7" tall. >The right side spring should be 386mm or 15.2" tall in free state. >Should the shorter spring go on the left side of a US left drive >car? Yes. >I relize more weight is on the left side of vewhicle. Interesting - I always realized that the battery was on the right side, and that the engine leans to the right. >Wouldn't you want the taller (and maybe stiffer) spring on the drivers side? No - I'd want it where the factory put it. On the heaver loading on the Right Side. >Why did Nissan have different height springs on the front of these >cars. Depends on how you say that. They have different "Free Length" but the same "Installed Height". The spring constant is given as 83 in/lb. 42 lbs. additional weight on the Right Side and the Free Length is .5 inches longer. 83 / 2 = 41.5 lbs. So the additional 42 lbs on the Right Side, brings the "Installed Height" of the Right and Left springs out level... >Any help from you Z suspension gurus would be appreciated. I'm certainly not a suspension guru.. but I have been looking at the spec.'s for OEM springs recently... I don't know if we can be of much help to you at this point - I think there are a lot of unknowns here. For anyone following the thread.. 1. note the marking on the springs and see if they match the factory markings. This at least gives you some indication that the springs are OEM or not. 2. keep in mind that after 35 years the factory springs won't be at their full factory spec.'s - even spring steel weakens over time. 3. put the weight of the car on the suspension - BEFORE - you torque things down FWIW, Carl B. Carl Beck Clearwater, FL USA http://ZHome.com *

Finally - the Solstice! Several years ago we discussed the proposed Pontiac Solstice on the e-mail based Classic Z Car list... Well finally it's here, released, in the metal. Some said at the time that Pontiac would not be able to provide a 2800 lb roadster, with the spec,'s forecast at the time, for anything near the proposed $19,995.00 MSRP. - WRONG.... roadster at $19,995.00 (before incentives) Curb Weight 2860 lbs 2.4L I-4, 177 HP/ 166 lb/ft torque (16lbs per HP vs the 240Z at 18.8) 5spd. 95.1" wheel base 157.2 Overall length 60.7" front track 61.4" rear track 4 wheel disc brakes rack & pinion steering 4 wheel independent suspension 245/45/R18 tires 18" five spoke aluminum wheels 3 year / 36,000 mile warranty 6 year / 100,000 corrosion protection (warranty) AM/FM/CD Stereo, signal seek & digital clock rear window defogger loaded with A/C, power windows, cruise control, limited slip etc $21,545.00 (before incentives) maybe coming soon... a 2.4L supercharged model at 235HP...(12 lbs per HP) <a href=http://www.pontiac.com/solstice/index.jsp TARGET=NEW>http://www.pontiac.com/solstice/index.jsp</a> If only Nissan had given us this car with an in-line six..... FWIW, Carl B. Carl Beck Clearwater, FL USA http://ZHome.com

Hi ZSaint (everyone): First you say "no one" knows what fits with what - but then you seem to know - because you give good advice...ie simply use all the same pieces - I believe you mean a complete package of clutch disc, pressure plate, clutch fork, throw-out bearing collar, clutch slave and matching transmission from the same model year.. when doing the swap. I believe this subject gets very confusing, very rapidly in part because we all use indirect references, mix terms, and fail to be very specific when we discuss this subject. For example what is "280Z stuff" and what "same pieces" are you talking about? {I'm using your example but we all tend to use the same shorthand all too often, myself included.} Too often we also seem to want short easy answers to subjects that require longer and far more detailed discussions. There are so many things that can go wrong during one of these swaps, that it would take a booklet to document them and warn prospective newbie's about how to avoid them... Again for an example: You order one part from the Parts Catalog - but you received the wrong part from the vendor to begin with. You get all the parts from the original installation - and all the new/used parts needed.. but in the process you get them mixed up!!! {ie... now which throw-out bearing collar came from which car?...} You take a part out of a junk yard car - but have no way of knowing it was the correct part to begin with - who knows what some PO put in there? {maybe the car is in the junk yard because the PO couldn't get it to shift gears to begin with} You order a 240-Z clutch from the Nissan Dealer - and the Parts Counterman fails to tell you that it is a "replacement part" - not the "as built" part. {you order a 240Z pressure plate, but when it comes in, it is really a 280Z pressure plate because they quite supplying the original height 240-Z part years ago} Your advice to "use all the same pieces" is valid - but then the person has to know the specifications of all the pieces, to verify he is in fact getting what is required, and that he is in fact matching them up correctly. You most likely did - what you thought everyone told you to... but you most likely don't know for certain because of the compounding factors exampled above. Then on top of that, you have to have the clutch pedal adjusted correctly, the correct slave cylinder that is providing the correct travel/length etc. Throw in a "Maxima" or "truck" transmission - and all bets are off. They could be quite different in terms of bell housing and tail shaft housings, the position of the clutch fork etc etc. Also - if the point is that you want the highest over-drive ratio - then the 1981/83 280ZX 5spd. has an 0.745 overdrive 5th. {the 77-79 5spd.s had a 0.864 5th gear} Good point... FWIW, Carl Carl Beck Clearwater, FL USA http://ZHome.com

Actually that chart is quite misleading and incorrect according to our research (and the Factory Service Manuals). Where it shows only one gear set for the 240-Z - there were two. 69-71 Type "A" tranny and 72/73 Type "B" tranny. Where it shows "260Z" .. that tranny was actually used 72 though 76 for the 240Z, 260 and 280Z's with 4 speeds. Where it shows 280a and 280B... again it is incomplete. learnerZpermit: - There are Four different 5spd transmissions found in 280Z and 280ZX's. 77-79, 80, 81-83 and the T5 in the turbo's. I think the charts on the Z Car Home Page are correct- As they were reviewed and verified by several of our members with extensive race/rebuild and hands on experience, in addition to information published in the Factory Service Manuals. <a href=http://zhome.com/ZCMnL/tech/GearRatios.html TARGET=NEW> http://zhome.com/ZCMnL/tech/GearRatios.html</a> To answer your question - there is no way to tell which transmission you have from looking at the external case. The only way to tell is open the tranny can count teeth on the gears, or turn the input shaft and count rotations on the output shaft. FWIW, Carl B. Carl Beck Clearwater, FL USA http://ZHome.com

Hi learnerZpermit: Not to be argumentative, and in the full spirit of helping a learner...I'll have one more round at this discussion. It might benefit others that are following along. Sounds like you've been feed a few lines on previous car purchases and/or repairs ... yes/no? I'd suggest that you think of it this way: Trusting someone else has very little to do with it, "buy" or "build" - YOU still have to do the work on the car yourself. If you buy any Z and set it up from scratch for competition yourself... you'll be starting with a Z that you have purchased from someone at sometime anyway (so some amount of trust is involved). Then you'll have to determine what performance parts you need to buy, for the type of competition you decide to participate in. Past that point you intend to do all the mechanical work yourself... OK. If you first determine what type of competition events you want to participate in, then decide what all performance parts you'll need .... then buy a Z that's already set up that way, with all the needed parts included .. You would be buying the Z and the parts as a bulk purchase - for about 1/4 to 1/3 the cost of buying all the individual parts. In this case YOU would still disassemble/ inspect/ reassemble everything yourself anyway.. Most guys that race go through this process every race or two anyway. No one would suggest that you simply buy a used race car -jump in and go racing (maybe we should have made that point more clearly to begin with). If you buy a competition car that was campaigned successfully - and that's easy enough to check - you have the added advantage of getting a car that actually is equipped with items that do help performance, are legal for that type of competition and you avoid buying stuff in a trial and error mode. I believe the main advantage of buying a well sorted out competition car to start with, aside from the cost savings - is the fact that you can now spend far more of your time learning to drive and gaining seat time - rather than chasing down parts, waiting on machine shops, welding shops etc. and/or figuring out how to best install the component parts yourself as you start from scratch to build a car. Driving experience is 90% of the battle... Once you decide that SCCA competition is in fact the the type of competition you live for.. and once you have a lot of competition events under your belt - and a lot of experience with all the individual bits and pieces on your car ... then you may want to invest the heavy time and money in a ground up build of a competitive car of your own. FWIW, Carl B. Carl Beck Clearwater, FL USA http://ZHome.com

Anything you can do to stop or prevent rust in these cars is a good idea. Get the spray wands as suggested above - or elsewhere.. shop the net. Get a gallon of OSPHO.. and spray it inside that upper fender support (for that matter spray it inside all areas of the body that you can't easily reach to stop rust). Spray it first to WASH as much dirt/grim out as you can.. you can flush the area with water, as the OSPHO will protect the bare metal from flash rust... Once you feel that the area is flushed out clean - blow it dry - and spray it again with OSPHO and let its chemistry do its work until dry. OSPHO is sold at most automotive paint and supply stores. It is a mild phosphoric acid solution. It will chemically convert iron oxide into iron phosphate, effectively stopping the oxidation process (ie killing the rust). Once the rust is stopped, you can simply spray any good rust proofing paint in there. That area isn't exposed to the elements, so you simply have to keep the moisture in the air at bay with a good layer of paint. Washing metal with phosphoric acid to stop rust is a proven method - mil spec standard stuff.. been around for a hundred years and so far nothing has proven to be more effective at stopping rust. I'd flush and spray it one day.. give it a day to work completely, then spray it again and give it another day to work.. then spray the paint. I like POR-15 - and I use it all the time where durability is important and where the metal can be properly prepared... but it isn't needed inside those panels IMHO. FWIW, Carl B. Carl Beck Clearwater, FL USA http://ZHome.com

Perhaps you were thinking of spending 1/4 to 1/3 as much money to buy a completed car, than to start from scratch yourself. FWIW, Carl