26th-Z

Well! Her Majesty barked a little? Sorry guys. I'll stuff a sock in her muffler. The presentation that will be made in Dallas from the Florida Z Association will be Daytona, the first week of October 2007. If the ZCCA approves of our plans and budget, we'll be cranking. I'm director of the car show and our plan is to hold it in the garage area of Daytona International Speedway. Come to the Dallas convention and meet our group. Just in the United States, Nissan holds an outstanding racing record and Daytona is no exception to the winning streak. For example: the 1990 IMSA GTP champion ZX-T GTP/Electramotive the 1991 Daytona 24-hour 2nd place finisher R90CK the 1992 Daytona 24-hour winner R91CP driven by Hasemi, Hoshino, and Suzuki the 1994 Daytona 24-hour winner 300ZX Cunningham These would have to be considered for the list. Chris

The grab handle is on the driver's door because the only new door interior panels remaining are for right-hand drive cars and they are cut for the passenger grab handle. There are a lot of other "contemporary" parts on the car. The wheel covers are not the correct color. Nice looking car. I'll be watching the auction with interest.

My dearest Ron and gnosez, Knock it off with the bad karma. Mr K. will be at the 2007 convention because Chris Wenzel and eight other guys are busting their arse to see that it happens. The Princess and I wouldn't miss it. In addition, Mr. Wenzel is busting his arse to see that championship Nissans and championship drivers attend the convention. He has his own list and it doesn't stop at ten cars. Look for him at the Mitty and Dallas. He's looking for cars to invite. He'll bring his BMWCCA and PCA experience to the table - gladly. Things are changing in the Z world and it's time to start thinking outside the box for ways to present our events. Return-on-investment is what it is all about. "Drive a Datsun - Then Decide". With all due respect, Her Majesty the 26th

Thanks Arne.

Carl, If your seats do not have vents in them, they aren't original. You may recall that the seats had a tendency to rip on the side bolster. Many, many people complained about the vents. At two previous owners and 65k miles, I would suspect replacement. Original 1969 American import seats had vents. Chris

The original cables on a 1969 240Z were woven strand type and were later replaced by solid wire. The solid wire will perform better, but thanks for the link!

Very tight. No play at all. Sounds like you done good.

The connections are soldered - not braised. Braising involves brass. Easy to remember BR (braise) = BR (brass) Good idea to take it to a radiator shop and have it soldered back up, Ed! I would suggest buying a new oiler for a couple of reasons. First, if you heard metal scratching noises and judging from your picture, you trashed the cam. The cost of a new oiler bar is the least of your problems. Second, the oiler didn't get that way on its own. Someone bashed it. Check for other damage. Check to see that your lash pads are still in place.

Thanks Will. Good article.

Rich, I'm registered on a bunch of the club sites around the state. I'm involved in a consortium of Florida clubs called the Florida Z Association, Inc. We're the guys who are going to put on the ZCCA convention in 2007. Daytona. October. The FZA is currently nine guys from five clubs and the last I heard, the South Florida club is jumping in. In addition to all the regional club activities, the FZA holds thier own events and our group evolved from the guys who put on Z-Fest for the last three or four years. We intend to hold several events annually, awarding points at each event, and awarding championships at the end of the year. Its called the FZA Challenge and it kicks off Aprill 22nd in Gainesville with a Solo / Autocross. I'm about a week away from an official announcement and registration form. Now, I'm over on the left coast and don't get too involved in club stuff out of my area. No, I didn't go on the run. My major problem being that Her Majesty continues to spa and relax at the body shop, however she does have some clothes on and she's not laying around in the bare metal any more. I'm hoping she gets off her arse and shows up in Daytona. I don't really know what's going on with my Suncoast club. The newsletter said picnic at DeSoto March 11. And then Rob and Jim and I talked about a picnic / car show on April 1 instead, but that's the St. Pete Grand Prix weekend, so we moved it to April 8. Then the autocross contract happened. Then, the 350Z club proposed a major car show with us in July, an FZA points event, so we may go back to the original March 11 picnic. I don't know. Its not my call. I hear Greg was introduced to the same character that got me into this Z addiction of mine. Watch out, Greg! He's dangerous! The next step to your sickness is going to be your visit to the Mecca! You'll fall into the same hopeless spiral I did! Chris

Just so we make this clear for the history buffs; there is nothing "NISMO" about this grill. This grill was used on the S30-S model. There have been some discussions about its use on the PS30 and PS30-SB, the size of the expanded mesh is different, but this is a stock Datsun part. You might notice the Fairlady 432 on the cover of Brian Long's "Datsun Z, Fairlady to 280Z" has this expanded mesh grill. And for what it is worth, I had a long conversation with Yoshihiko Matsuo, chief designer of the S30, at the ZCCA convention in Long Beach 2004. His original design for the grill was the horizontal slat type. I have one of these grills and think it looks quite handsome, but the reality of it is that it is an alternative grill type for various models of the S30, most of which we never saw imported.

See if this link to Kats' site doesn't take you to the seat part. http://www.geocities.jp/datsunz903/interior.html Here's the old thread http://www.classiczcars.com/forums/showthread.php?t=9188

Dan, The seat cushion trim / guards are pretty, pretty rare. I think the only way to prove correctness would be be to research the parts manuals and see if they were included with a part reference. Kats has a very early parts book. I think HS30-H has early references also. I have never been able to come up with a part number for them. If you could find a dated parts catalog that references them, it would help determine their application. Chris

Screw how you pay for it. Does it work?

I hear quite a bit about this subject. I can't rationalize it. "Ugly as it is, this sort of thing happens in the business world. It is common for the winning side to erase the achievements of the opposing side within a company". But this is Takarabe talking about what happened to Katayama and mentions the destruction of Z records and tooling only in support of his point. He says that in 1975, Datsun became the number one import brand (America) surpassing Volkswagen. He goes on; "Nissan kept Katayama's achievement as a secret never to be divulged". So, most people I talk to subscribe to the idea that the "records" are long gone. I DO hear some talk of warehouses and lost records, but as far as I know, and what I read, there's not much hope. Chris

Hey Moonpup! MSA sells the rivets and you don't have to buy them off eBay! Hurray! They usually come in packs of ten and we just counted 46. Buy 50 of them.

Zowwie, it took me a long time to find the reference. After reading the chapter, I am at a loss for an easy explanation. Read "Z-Car, Revival of A Legend" by Yutaka Katayama and Seiichi Takarabe, 2005, Diasuke Koujiya, Publisher. In the prologue, under the chapter "Nissan's Taboo", Takarabe discusses the 20 year struggle between Ishihara and Shioji - management and union - when the success of the Z became the taboo of Nissan. The convoluted explanation is not something I think a capitalist Westerner would understand completely but there was a time at Nissan that the Z was seen as a disgrace and memory of it was literally wiped clean from the record books. The tooling was destroyed, the dies, everything. Takarabe makes a case that the Datsun name was eliminated as part of this "corporate climate". It has only been recently, under new corporate direction, that the Z has become the revived automobile that it is. The warehouse burned down? Bill, stop smoking dope and get a job!

For that antagonistic remark, Bill, Her Majesty has fined you 1000 posting points. You are no longer top poster. She suggests you quit smoking dope and go out and get a job. Try McDonalds. They will teach you how to count and act pleasantly. 25

It is my understanding the Nissan's production records were destroyed. I do not know of any way to trace production information.

Me too! You say matching numbers but I don't see anywhere WHAT numbers. It must be something in the three digits? Register that baby on IZCC and welcome to the early Z group. I'm anxious to see more of that short nosed air cleaner and you mention vertical lines in the hatch glass. See if a wiring adaptor kit was put on the car for the demister glass. There is a service bulletin about that and I wonder if your car was one of them. Check your front brakes. Ducts in the backing plates? Vented rotor castings? How about the inspection lids on the hood? Plastic clips? Are the alignment tabs welded on or riveted on? Are the hood bumpers little rubber cups? What are the seat belt dates? Hanger clips on the seats? Do the seat cusions have plastic guards on the bottom? Ho boy! You could have a lot of fun with this lovely!

That's pretty cool. Any more pictures? What were its performance stats?

Don't bother if its crumbling. If its that bad, its gone. Go shopping for new plastic. Its around. SEM makes really nice products to refinish them.

Thanks Pat! Have been looking for one of those.

Hey there, Alan! I was wondering where you had been off to. Good to hear from you! Katayama politics? Yeaaaa...maybe. I don't know exactly what he meant but I do know he was not pleased with the name change, or for that matter, the name deletion! My impression is from Katayama's writing "Z-Car, Revival of a Legend", Katayama and Takarabe, 2005, by Daisuke Koujiya, Publisher. Katayama's commentary in chapter four, "Disappearance of the Datsun Brand" reveals many of his thoughts about the Datsun to Nissan name change. "The fact that the name Datsun came from the initials of the three founders only served to make it all the more important and precious". And a few sentences later; "It was Nissan that erased the trust and history of the car and company that was built over 80 years, destroying it like a tornado takes a tree from its roots". What would you gather from that? I think the whole chapter is rather scathing. The purity term comes from the Long translated, Taylor edited, ZCCA published, "Mr. K", but I'll be darned if I can find the reference right now. After reading both books, it seems the manuscript from Katayama and Takarabe is what was used for writing the "Mr. K" book. I don't know that for a fact, but the two books run in parallel all too frequently for coincidence. Would I argue with you about the issue being Katayama politics? No. But what I read from "Z-Car" is a passion for the Datsun name and disdain for Nissan. Just got the winter issue of Zclub magazine. Nice write-up! Chris