abas

The UK seems to be suffering the inevitable effect on the cost of living of having 1/4 of the population of the USA living in an area the size of Texas. And in London multiply that by a factor of probably 3 again. From a comparison of UK vs USA perhaps the middle earner income figure isn't so different, but that the cost of living in the USA APPEARS ( in my fairly uninformed opinion) to be less. I am basing this on 1) price of fuel in the USA is about 1/3 what it is UK 2) Things I buy for my Z from the US are regularly cheaper to buy from the US even after factoring in shipping to the UK, VAT(taxes), duty and whatever else I get charged for. Hardly a thorough cost of living comparison I know but thats my experience AndrewB

Seems we get paid about the same as you guys over here in the UK but our fuel is US$5.70 a gallon.!!!! I'm spending on 2 z's at the moment. Somehow I feel better having those bits than the money in the bank, so I must be truly Z obsessed. :classic:

Mike Coming to this a bit late like, but when was the last time you visited the UK? I don't know anyone who doesn't have a dishwasher. !!!!!!!!!! Can't vouch for the rest of Europe though.

Hi guys/gals I'm trying to ascertain how to go about overboring my 240z engine to take 280z piston, like rebello do. I'd be interested in any experiences re compression ratios (e31 head) and whether I need to change the conrods (I have the early thinner bolt ones) and any piston height problems etc Thanks for any help.

My 240z is April 1970 and the overriders have 3 bolts and one rubber nipple holding the rubber to the guard. I don't however know whether the rubbers are the original.

26-thz do you know what year z those ebay pictures came from? I might be wrong but I thought the earlier cars' rear shelf jute was different as the plastic stowage compartments were in the way.

Kats that's a great looking interior you have there!!! I agree with the cut for the section that goes under the seat. Can't comment on the front footwells or the rear deck unfortuately. You may already know this but there was a jute section behind the rear seat that goes part way up onto the stowage shelf. Mine from my 4/70 are pretty ragged but I might be able to ascertain the original cut if you can't get it from anywhere else. Is that jack holding clip the original? Mine is different ( made mostly of rubber) whereas yours seems to be all metal.

I'm no expert, and I can't remember where I heard this but as the bottom line of the 'E' on the head marking on the spark plug side of the head is very close to the head gasket flange, it is possible that if the head has been shaved that this lower line will have been lost. So if the head marking on your E31 says 'F31' then it is almost definitely been shaved by a considerable amount. If it has only been shaved a small amount and the head still says E31 then this will not of course work.!!!! Hope it helps

Does anyone have any idea how to remove dents in a fuel tank? The previous owner of my 1970 z decided that the middle of the fuel tank was a good jacking point for the rear of the car:stupid: A friend of a friend thought I could 'blow' the dent out with compressed air, but I'm doubtful I could get enough pressure to do so without something breaking first. thanks for any help

landmizzle I painted the engine bay on mine with rattle cans ( see my gallery). Looks OK from a distance but close up its nohing like as good as a professional spray job. It will however do for an engine bay where a large number of other components obscure any imperfections. I wouldn't attempt any exterior painting with a rattle can.

So you can remove the UJ's on 240z driveshafts without a press? How would you go about doing that? Is it something that can be done by your average DIY'er?

240znz just also to say that your car doesn't look as if the whole rear deck has been changed, just holes have been cut in the rear deck to accomodate the metal tool hatches. OK it might not be original but the tool boxes in the rear deck are a lot more convenient/usable than the plastic originals. ( as the plastic toolboxes no longer take up space behind the seats you can also treat your 240z as an occasional 2+2 if you have some short passengers!!!! although I accept this might not be strictly legal.

240znz, sorry to say,I agree with Nick that the hatches have been retro fitted. My 1972 z with hatches has a recessed flange in the deck all the way round the hole. You also have the remnants of the 'swiss cheese holes' in the rear deck that you can best see on the pictures that 26thzposted on this thread earlier. Finally there are the 2 luggage strap bolt holes holes that are right at the top of the picture (ie so that luggage strap goes the entire length of the rear deck as on the earlier cars), whereas the later cat had the luggages trap bolt holes roughly in line witj the rear suspension towers.

Divx seems to dislike my PC intensely in both windows 98 and XP. I did see the video once ( ace!) but I can only get the sound now. Nice to hear a z again, its been too long. You need these kind of things every now and then to keep you motivated (especially with a rebuild that is 12 years and counting!!!!)

Alan Good to hear there is someone less than 3000 miles away!!! I'm near Bournemouth on the South Coast. I'm definitely interested in following this up. Do you have an E31 head for sale? Was going to get mine repaired but not sure now. I would lilke to keep my original engine if possible, do you know what the max overbore/piston size is for a 240z engine? I'm thinking of increasing the cc by overboring (which it needs anyway) but by keeping the crank the same. You have some great pictures in your gallery!!!! cheers Andrew