87mj

I have a 60k mile car and a ~110k? mile car neither of which could be verified in a court of law. My observation was the pics of the front suspension seem to have quite a bit of surface rust for a 38k car.

I don't know if I can post a FB link here but just I case. The auction in Auburn is coming up. There are two ways to sell a car there. You can run it across the auction block. They also have a lot in the back where people can put a sign on it. https://www.facebook.com/auburnauctionpark/?eid=ARBi_0r2CkhC1AzyzDR-KB7S69tCBT0yCgpucXhl0qnPNy6Ua3phZL682OarSxdf9of6JJU0XfJB_wZw

So the old Z sent the vettes home? Great. I have been waiting on this day for 40 years.

I installed the barrel clips on the posts of my metal B pillar emblems and push them on without adhesive. They went in great. Then I put the barrel clips on the posts for the rear hatch and hood emblems. They went on just as easily although I had to press them in a bit harder. They were plastic. No adhesives. I haven't installed the front fender emblems yet but I don't expect any problems regardless of outdoor weather conditions.

I posted a similar question a few weeks ago. The recommendation I received was to install the clips on the posts. Then push the emblem into the holes. That would prevent the barrel clip from getting pushed through the back side of the fender. I followed that recommendation and it seemed to work for me. Maybe the librarian can sort this out and get back to us? :)

On one car I have 185/70/R14 that I bought about 4 years ago. For the other car, I bought 195/70/R14. That was just last year. Both sets are BF Goodrich Advantage TA. I don't race or drive hard. They don't see rain either so I have no idea if they are any good. But I have no complaints whatsoever. I am sure they are better than what came with the cars from the factory.

There is a fall in Auburn Indiana each labor day. About 3-4 years ago a '73 went on the block for around $25. That was a high price for that period. Plus it was brown with excessive sanding marks in it. You could drive there. I should also point out that the auction is very large. About 3 days long.

Just beware of the photos verses seeing it in person. That color seems to vary so much depending on the light conditions of a photo. Incandescent verses florescent, sunny days verses clouds and shade.

Personally, I wouldn't buy anything with an aftermarket sunroof. I'm out.

Was the heat wrap really asbestos? I thought I read somewhere where the '73 also came with an electric fuel pump. Is that correct?

I had a bad experience with flat tops as a teenager. I couldn't get them to run right so I took the car in for repair (about 1978-79). I had the carbs overhauled and the guy still couldn't get the car working right after 3 returns. It could easily be my ignorance but I would be scared to death to have them so I remain open minded about the flat tops. But... those hubcaps have got to go. :)

Thanks for everyone's input. Personally, I thought it was a little unusual that a 5300 vin car with a mfg date of 6/70 would have been titled as a '71 and not a '70. When I buy parts for it, I definitely say it is a '70. It was sort of funny looking back. I think if it were advertised as a '70, I dont think I could have bought it. The poor thing was on craigslist and advertised as a '71 for about 2-3 weeks and none of the "series 1" features/cues were included in any photos. Plus it was white and looked more rusted than it was. I popped the hood for the first time and saw the valve cover then looked at the door and inspected the vin & build date. I did a good job of keeping my composure. It was well worth the money in parts alone. Most of the original parts where still there including a fully in tact and functional hand throttle. But the bad news is the restore isn't going as smooth as I would have liked. And yes, I have one of those mid year '71 cars. Buying parts for that car be a little more subjective.

Does anyone know how to tell the difference between a Nissan replacement S30 front fender verses an aftermarket front fender? With the exception of the tabco replacement rockers & wheel arches, etc, front aftermarket fenders always seemed to be black at least from the pictures. And the Nissans were grey. Other than that, I wouldn't know how to tell the difference. I realize it has been awhile since they made them. Any way to tell? Thanks

I have a 6/70 5300 vin that is a '71. :)

I just bought one of those. The description said the left lever was the hood release and the right lever was for the gas tank filler door. No joke.

A couple of years ago, I bought a '71 off craigslist. I already owned a couple of '71 cars so I thought I knew what I was going to see. Long story short, when I arrived and started looking the car over, I popped the hood and saw the 2400 valve cover. Then I looked at the vin on the door jam. Its vin was hls30-05305 with a manufacture date of 6/70. I am curious why such an early car is a '71 and not a '70? A friend of mine said back then, the cars were titled based the year they left the dealership. Not when they were manufactured. Also, since the price went up each year, there was a compelling financial reason to title the car later in the year. Does anyone agree or disagree? Thanks

Theoretically, I might be installing emblems on a freshly painted car soon. I was curious what produced the best results when installing the emblems. Do you insert the barrel clips in the holes and press the emblem into them or do you insert the barrel clips over the posts and press everything into the holes? Thanks

Someone with more knowledge than be might be able to chime in with an exact date but there was a period between the series 1 & series 2 cars that had vertical glass, the early seats, and the older style center console but still had the c pillar vents like yours. Mine was built in 6/71 and is one of those cars. It had the c pillar vents like yours does, the vertical defrosters in the rear glass, the older seats you mentioned, tool bins in the rear deck and the older style console & radio with the large antenna switch. If you really would like to know, I good clue is the location of the transmission tunnel opening for the shift lever. The later series 2 cars moved the shift lever forward an inch or two which meant the older style console doesn't fit. The nasty flat top carbs didn't come along until '73 & the rims are aftermarket.

For what it is worth, I have an old series 1 I am restoring. My body mechanic blasted the inside, underneath and engine bay. Those things turned out fine. He didn't want to blast the body for fear of damaging it. He was very incompetent so I am glad he chose not to blast the body and sanded it instead.

After you have exhausted (?) all other possibilities, remove the left rear quarter interior plastic panel and the interior rear bezel that covers the rear tail lights. Park it in a garage and with the lights off, and from underneath the car and behind the rear wheel, shine a mag light flashlight up and look for light inside the cabin. There is a flat piece of sheet metal there which extends from the wheel well, around the antenna and to the rear valance. I found a small gap there. There are also numerous rubber plugs around hoses in the back that can deteriorate after 50 years.

Wow. Great observation. I guess they don't call you Captain Obvious for nothing. :)

If you are new to Z cars, the one piece of advice I would give is treat it only as a fair weather car. The sheet metal was not very good. I don't drive mine unless the sun is out. I live in the Midwest. Mine sits in a heated garage in the winter and I only drive it on dry summer days. No rain. Also, try to put a light colored towel over your dash when it sits outside. Especially in your area of the country. :)

Thanks Siteunseen. That post is very helpful. In my case, my idle adjustment screws are completely backed off so the linkage does not touch them. The front carb still draws much more air than the rear eve though the idle is backed off. Valves are adjusted and plugs are good.

Thanks for the help everyone. I will open the float bowls and take a look. No I assumed not mixing the parts between the carbs was important. I made sure I did not mix & match anything between the carbs but as I write this, I cant say someone else didn't a few years ago. Maybe I will try switching the pistons and see what happens (keeping track of which parts belong to which carb). I just noticed the insulators are mounted upside down. There is a pair of holes at the bottom of them that are now at the top. Cooling perhaps? Maybe that is allowing airflow where they shouldnt?

I am trying to balance the carbs on my '71. I warmed up the engine. Then I set the jets so they were flush to the bottom of the carbs and turned them both so they were flat with the bottom of the carbs. I backed off the idle on each carb so the adjustment knob was not touching the linkage. I also loosened the linkage so it wouldn't interfere with each carb and they could respond independently. The car has about 62k miles on it and it runs and drives nice. When I have the car running and look in the throat of the carbs, the front piston is much higher than the rear carb. Maybe by 1/2 inch. When I install a syncrometer to the front carb, the air draw is off the chart. There is no way I can turn the idle back because it is as far as it will go now. I can get the rear carb to adjust to anything I want. The piston is not stuck. When I shut the engine off, both drop down to where they should be. Any ideas from anyone would be appreciated.