zcar70

I was wondering who has owned their Z the longest? That is the longest, continual, uninterrupted length of time? (Can you tell it's December and the snow is flying here???) My '70 for 30 years, 6 months.

Wow. Outstanding. Wanna sell 'em?

The stock radio was bolted into the center dash supports. However and aftermarket radio like yours most likely is not. I've had good luck removing radios by first removing the center console. Then the heater control panel has to come out by detaching the cables from the heater box and the fan switch wire harness (reattaching the cables is a bit of a chore, hey, I didn't say it would be easy!). BE CAREFUL with the heater control panel, they are VERY fragile and hard to replace! No need to remove the whole dash, although it would give you more working room! Good luck!

SEATZ. They make great quality products, exact OEM specs. I believe they supply most retailers. Seat covers, foam, carpet kits, headliners, doorpanels. Good stuff. www.seatzmfg.com

So let's see how many series one cars we can get to Nashville! #3833 will be there!

Z season ends about November 1 here in western New York. I tuck three of my cars in the garage for the winter, the fourth has to sleep in my son's garage nearby. Luckily my "Z" garage is separate from the "family" garage and is heated. It also has a mechanic pit, compressor and stairway access to the basement where I store my parts. For the winter months, I usually catch up on smaller projects with the cars, something I can take my time with as they won't be driven again until spring anyway. Depending on what needs to be done, for more room I sometimes move the center car out and move the end cars in as they are on casters. Depending on the road salt condition, they usually emerge again around mid-April. I'm going through withdrawl already!!

For the sake of discussion, let's consider "surviving series one 240Zs" as intact cars more or less as Nissan made them. That is a L24, L26 or L28 engine and ORIGINAL chassis. Most were modified in some way over time anyway (different tranny, interior parts, body parts, etc). I would not consider a series one car severely modified into another type of car entirely, as described above. That simply is NOT a 240Z any more. I still say there are less than 1000 drivable examples today, maybe a few hundred more stashed away for years......

Good posts all! By checking Carl's zhome.com registry, taking your opinions, figuring the rate of attrition for a sub-$4000 early 70's sports car (not many set out to preserved the relatively cheap car back in the day), KNOWING how 240Zs rusted, etc., I would estimate that there are about 600-800 series one 240Zs still on the road today. I would think it would also be fair to assume there might also be near that many tucked away in garages and barns somewhere (who knows what condition those are in!). In any event, I would be surprised if there were 10% still on the planet 40 years later.

I figure that Nissan built approximately 18,000 or so series one 240Zs from 10/69 to 1/71. 40 years later, how many do you all think are still on the road today? How many 1970s? How many 1971s? Hey, it's December. Just thought I would get some different conversation going!

My Pertronix is hooked up with the ballast resistor as seen in the schematic. Works perfectly.

Right! I didn't realize that Mike was reproducing them. Nice job by him as always!

I can't tell you how many times younger drivers in 350s, Z32s (and Hondas and Toyota tuners for that matter) pull up to me in my 240 and invariably want to know "What's a Datsun???" The heritage is not lost on all, just SOME born after 1980....

The original plastic was a white translucent, but I don't think quite as white as the MSA version. In any event, they all faded over time. The original Nissan part has been NLA for a long time now. Try to find a used one that isn't melted, broken, missing, painted or undercoated on! Most 240s today don't even have them anymore (take a look!). The MSA part is a decent replica and the only game in town.

I also put the Pertronix module on my '70 240Z. It is the best thing I ever did, the car runs smoother at all RPMs and starts more easily. All of my gauges work properly. Here is the wiring diagram for the Pertronix on 70-72 manual transmission 240Zs. Double check your connections before you do anything else. Good Luck!

Damn, I have been looking for an R180 3.7 or 3.54! No Zs in the junkyards in this part of the world though!

Ditto to all. Be thankful!

Thanks for your help spreading the word! We already have folks from Maryland, Virginia, Connecticut and Florida who are interested in joining us. The "All Japanese Classic Car Show" draws hundreds of entries of every Japanese make and model, from vintage to newer customs. Watkins Glen International is also very excited to host our group for a day at the track. Participants will be able to take a few "warm" laps on the historic track in their cars. The event next July should be memorable indeed! John Taddonio President, Z Car Club of Rochester www.zccr.net

The Z Car Club of Rochester has set the dates for our 2010 "All Japanese Car Weekend"! The event will run from Friday July 9 to Sunday July 11, 2010. I am encouraging you to set these dates aside so you can join us for this very special summer Z event. The schedule of events: Friday July 9: Kickoff party for all participants. Refreshments provided free of charge. Saturday July 10: The Third Annual "Jonathan Krenzer Memorial All Japanese Car Show". Spend the day at a multi-class car show featuring the best of Japan old and new. Saturday evening gather at a local establishment of fine food and drink to relive the events of the day. Sunday July 11: Start the morning with a road rally through the twisty roads of New York's Finger Lakes region to the historic Watkins Glen International raceway. Participants will enjoy warm laps around the race course in their cars then stay for a catered lunch in the WGI clubhouse. Here is a link to photos of the 2009 event: http://www.zccr.net/main/modules.php?name=gallery2&g2_itemId=2102 Full details and pre-registration for the event will be available early next year. This is shaping up to be the biggest 2010 Z/Japanese car event in the northeast! Please share this information with your friends and club members and keep checking our website at www.zccr.net for the latest information. We hope to Z you there! John Taddonio President, Z Car Club of Rochester NY www.zccr.net

My '70 had two snaps on the front part of the carpets where it attached to the firewall. There were no rear snaps, however I believe there may have been velcro strips at one time at the rear of the carpet. These became clogged with debris and were virtually useless. At one time someone must have added screws or snaps to your floors to account for the extra holes.

Call Brian Rolfe, owner of SEATZ. Their products are terrific, they supply most aftermarket retailers. I've used them in all my Zs. Replaced the vinyl in my 240Z with their FULL CARPET kit, fits and looks great! Here's the link to their website: http://www.seatzmfg.com/seatz/index.htm Good luck!

That is indeed the aftermarket AMCO armrest. As stated, they required drilling two holes on the rear of the console and they had a nasty tendency to strip over time. They are not as rare as you may think, they turn up on ebay all of the time and sell for $30-$50. The ones I have come across seem to fit the later 240 console, they are too long for the series one console. They install, but intrude into the choke lever assembly, covering the rear defrost switch. Perhaps AMCO made two versions of the armrest?

It's black because I liked the way it looked. As you know, the BRE type spoiler was not a Nissan part or option, however many 240Z owners added them. With my color scheme, I liked it in "rally black".

What are the EXACT dates for the 2010 convention and the car show?

I've got a couple. They work but need some cosmetic help. Email me at zpartz@hotmail.com if interested. PS- NLA from Nissan.....