Carl Beck

I'd love to rent one when needed... but... Can't find a place around the Tampa Bay area that rents enclosed car trailers. Maybe it's a business I should start. Of course the legal liability might be a problem. So I'd have to go around and steal several, then set the business up under an assumed name... maybe combine it with an escort service..

During my original experience - after the Z was stripped and repainted - I mounted the new hood emblem using the steel clips. On the first highway trip - while passing an 18 wheeler - the emblem lifted and blew off at about 80 mph. When I returned home - got another emblem - Thinking that I must have done something wrong the first time - I put the second one on more carefully, but using the same method..... da... On the next road trip the same thing happened. Double da.... What the hell was I thinking??? The third emblem - I installed using Permitex RTV. I coated the studs, and filled the holes. That was years ago - and I really can't remember if I applied extra RTV to the center of the emblem or not... As the years passed - I started using the Automotive GOOP where stronger adhesion was required. Properly applied it is amazingly good STUFF. The 3M emblem adhesive is also very good, as is the double sided tapes. The problem with the tapes, is that they can hold the emblem too far off the surface is you have to stack too much up, or will not hold as well if you can't press them down securely. I like the GOOP because you can put a fairly large/high bead on the emblem - press it down to its proper mounting height, and wipe off the excess if any oozes out from under it. FWIW, Carl B.

Another good reason old cars should not be crushed by the Government.

Hi Gang: I'm going to have to buy an Enclosed Carhauler..... I really hate too... as I only need it once or twice a year... Nonetheless, anyone know of an 8.5x18 or 8.5x20 footer that is for sale very slightly used - and somewhere close to Florida? Looking to spend around $4K... as new one's are really inexpensive now... FWIW, Carl B.

OMG - I've lost a DAY!!.... and I must have missed Church also... As I recall - the OEM pipe size on the 240Z was closer to 1 5/8 inch.. like 40 or 41mm. In the US the closest standard exhaust pipe size would be 1 3/4 inch. But then he may have been asking about his 280Z... FWIW, Carl B.

Hi Mike: Yes - I believe that one of your "members" is ME. I posted that article on "the Z Car Home Page" http://ZHome.com in 2003 and it seems to have been copied without permission, and to add insult to injury - nor without attribution to the source. http://ZHome.com/rnt/Scarab/Scarab.htm I now see that same person copied more than one article from the Z Car Home Page without permission and published them without attribution to the source. I'll notify the Club Officers and request that they honor our Copyright ... FWIW, Carl

What Z are you asking about???? Tomorrow is Sunday - is that shop open on Sunday?

Hi Marty: Yes - that one would be correct for a 01/71 Model. We would need to find a copy of the window sticker for a 240-Z with a VIN between HLS30 04800 and say HLS30 6900. AIR - Nissan did replace the original Black/White Windowstickers with the newer Colored one's at some point during the 1970 Calendar Year... but I don't recall the specific month that they made the change... Anyone have a window sticker from that period????? FWIW, Carl B.

Yes Carl B.

Hi Mike: Your right - I was going from memory there... it was Wick's car... The very early cars didn't get the tinted glass, nor rear window defroster. As cars started coming through with those items - Nissan had not changed the window stickers yet... So the Dealers being driven to increase the profit per unit - added them to the window stickers and charged the customers for them. I actually have TWO different window stickers for my first 240-Z. HLS30-1777. The first one has a bottom line of $3526.00 plus $75.00 shipping for $3601.00 and the second one has Tinted Glass $30.00 and Back Window Defroster $40.00 added in - for a total of $3671. The Dealers had about 18% GROSS Profit in the Z's, and they were very limited per Dealership. $3526.00 - $2,988.14 = $537.86 Take the cost of pre-delivery prep. the interest on the floor plan, the salesman's commission and other handling costs out - and the Dealers were left with a net profit of around $300.00 per unit. So adding $70.00 to the early units, along with body side molding, mag wheels, pin striping, undercoating etc - and it was possible to almost double the net profit per unit. You will also note that the early window stickers don't mention "radial tires"... So when the Dealers put the Mag.'s on, they listed the package as Mag Wheels with Radial Tires... and added anywhere from $495.00 to $650.00.. (for mags that cost them less than a hundred per car).... Note that Wick's car was also charge $30.00 for "Local Freight"...

"Silicon" and/or the man made "silicone" products are only one ingredient in any particular end use product. Don't confuse RTV (Room Temperature Vulcanizing) synthetic rubber products - be they silicon based or not - presented as Adhesive/Sealers with Silicone Cements/Adhesives. In the case of the RTV Sealants - the "adhesive" part means that the RTV itself adheres to the surfaces that form the interfaces needing "sealing". RTV's vulcanize when brought to room temperatures and exposed to air. They are NOT glues nor cements intended to strongly bond two different parts together. The products such as Electric Products Inc. produce - by the brand name of Automotive GOOP, Household GOOP, Plumbers GOOP are silicon based Adhesives/Cements. They ARE formulated to bond things together, while remaining pliable over their lifetime. They dry by evaporation of the solvents that keep them semi-liquid. So far, I haven't found anything that stuff won't bond together with a very strong bond. FWIW, Carl B.

Those little circle clips look like the one's that go on the accelerator linkage pivot...

That is BEATUTIFUL Mike .... you are one sick puppy.... but we Z Car nuts have to love it.... Keep the pictures coming... FWIW, Carl B.

Mike is most likely right - the hole in the body is large enough to hold the emblem clips... which the emblem posts are supposed to push into. Personally - I do not recommend using the clips for the emblem posts.. they are steel and they rust.. Far better to use RTV or Silicon Cement... seals the bare metal in the hole, doesn't rust and you can pry the emblems off without damage if necessary in the future.

You can search E-Bay - some show up there from time to time... BTW -=- Anyone know what happened to Torque Thrust Terry - aka Terry Vaughn... He had a widely known reputation -and it was very good - - - but now he has nothing on E-Bay and it seems several people that shipped him wheels... never to get them back. What happend??? FWIW, Carl

The hood emblem MUST be very secure - - otherwise it will blow off at speeds above 65/75mph. I had to lose two before I figured that out.... da..... If the holes are now too large - and the RTV was not strong enough to hold the emblem after it dried completely - - - - pull it out. Get some Silicon Cement and coat the mounting pegs with a good dab, then put a bead in the center of the emblem - so it bounds to the hood. After you push the emblem pegs into the holes, and push the center of the emblem down flush with the hood - remove the excess that will squeeze out. There is a product named "Silicon GOOP" that is a silicon cement - if you use it, let it bond completely before you "check" it by trying to move the emblem. If you "check" it too soon, you break the bond... Let it set up for at least a day.... FWIW, Carl B.

I use a shape pointed Awl - where you can see the original hole - just push it though the filler in the existing hole with a gentle twisting motion. Put a little RTV on the mounting studs on the emblem, to fill the hole and reseal it to keep water/rust out. Do you have a Series I or Series II 240-Z? The Series I cars did not have the fresh-air outlet on the rear quarter - so finding the original mounting holes may be harder... but usually if you look closely enough you can spot where they were filled in as well. It is easier to find on the Series II cars, because there is a larger hole for the vent, in addition to the mounting holes for the emblems.. If you have to drill though the paint - put masking tape on the paint - then use a center punch to establish a point for the drill bit to center. You can use a very sharpe center punch - or if you have one the Awl... FWIW, Carl B.

Hi Marty: The File Name is screwed up - that was my mistake when nameing the file - the colored one is for a 1971 Model.. note the signal seeking radio.... FWIW, Carl B.

HLS30 00026 is of course Chris's... and HLS30 03547 was Bill Regan's. You'll note the lack of the "Rear Window Defroster" being listed. The later 70 Window Stickers included it. FWIW, Carl B.

Hi Mike: Yes - it's from an Early 73 - HLS30 125678. The later 73's were about the same form, but included the DATSUN 610. FWIW, Carl B.

At $6K, in California, with the present economic situation, if you shop with serious intent, you should be able to find a car that meets the above criteria, with certain restrictions or disclaimers. - "strong mechanicals" - - as long as one realizes these cars are 35-40 years old, and nothing will be as strong as it was when new. Shopping will require a daily if not weekly active involvement in the market. It will require taking the time to go physically inspect many many many cars before you find "the one". You'll be best served if you have cash in hand, when you find the car you want to buy. You have to have a goal of being there FIRST when a new listing shows up. Lots of people want that $10K car for $6K.... get there a day late and most likely the really good cars will be gone... It might take a week, or it might take a year - but it can still be done. Five years from now, Datsun 240-Z's here in the States will either be $15K+++ or they will be parts cars. There will no longer be any $6K decent drivers. That's just the way the Classic Car market works.... good luck, Carl B.

As I recall - by 1973/74 and perhaps a little before - Jim Cook Racing offered a belt driven supercharger kit for the Datsun 240-Z. At something around $1,500.00 at the time, it did not become even the least bit common. There is one original owner of a 1971 Datsun 240-Z here in Pinellas County (Clearwater, Largo, St. Petersburg etc), Florida - that still has the JCR kit on his Z. Boost has been held down to 8lbs and the car has less than 100K miles. FWIW, Carl B.

Hi Arne/Ron: Oops.. my bad... thanks for catching that. 4.125 inch backspace minus 0.5 for the outter rim thinkness = 3.625 inch. the centerline of a 6" wheel is at 3" so positve offset for the matting surface is 0.625 in or 15.8mm FWIW, Carl B.