Go240Zags

I'm sorry I started this post. After reading about the honda strut bar "swap" to a 240Z at several other sites I thought it would be good info to pass on. Especially as they were way less expensive than the one's designed for the Z. However, after drilling, bending and cussing the bracket I've come to the conclusion it's a lot of work and, as sblake01 said, the hood won't shut. Well, that's not entirely true in my case, it's just once I got it part way shut I didn't think I'd be able to get it open again. I did, but not without sweating a little bit. :sick: The one in the photo I posted doesn't look like it was that modified. I've decided to fashion a whole new bracket to allow the bar to sit lower in the engine bay. I like the looks of the bar, altho mine is slightly scratched now from the hood incident. For those who have already ordered theirs and don't want to try modifying the brackets I'm sorry. I think I'll be happy when I've made the changes, but would probably think twice if I had it to do over again. Now it's time to put those welding classes to work. They have a real neat plasma cutter at the school that may just come in handy. Gary

Do you have some pictures? What year/build date is it? What do you mean by significant rust -- floorpans, under the battery, etc.? I live pretty close to Spokane and will be there for visit at the end of the month for the last Zags home game. I might take a look see if we can arrange something. Gary

Hey v12horse, I know there have been lengthy discussions on the rally clock in past threads, but I must have missed it. You don't need an oscillating box when you used the 74-78 version? Do they look basically the same as the one from the 70-73? I figure if my oscillator doesn't work I'll still put my early rally clock in, 'cus it just looks "cool," and that's not a word I use too often any more. Now I'll be on the look out for one of the later models as well. Gary

Howdy, Thanks for all the replies. I don't have the head where I can find out all the pertinent info, but when I get it I'll take it to the local shop where they work on them. I'll have to wait until the head makes it up here from Portland, and that will probably depend on when my friend makes a trip north to see his parents (which doesn't happen too often, gee I wonder why?) or I can meet him down there.

Thanks 26th, I know of at least one wrecking yard that had a verticle lined hatch glass that I can pick up for less than $50 I think. Of course it is not new and may have problems of its own. The thought of having one for a back up, especially a new one, just got the better of me for a minute there. Hopefully the wrecker hasn't done something silly like crush the car. :tapemouth

Victor, It was a regular seven day auction, I just didn't point it out until it went way beyond what I wanted to pay and figured someone here might want to bid. Unfortunately I didn't notice it was so close to ending (1 hour) until I posted it here today. seerex I was going to add it always makes me shake my head when something like a Z Therapy Video goes for 10 bucks more than they cost new straight from the source. I always want to e-mail the bidders and say something, but figure it's none of my business and who am I to ruin someone else's auction. Of couse this just makes me frustrated when I am trying to get a deal and it goes for well over the new price. However, I do try and help sellers when they have some misinformation in their auction and they could better tell prospective bidders what they have available (that is, if I don't plan on bidding myself). Helped on a recent Early '69-'71 center console advertised as a console for an automatic instead. I'm no expert, but I hate to see obvious mistakes. Gary

26th-Z, I know you said you were holding the vertical line glass for a trade, but do you have a price in mind? Of course shipping from your corner of the U.S. in Florida to the opposite corner up here in Washington State would probably give me a heart attack. bimini_blue I have a horizontal line rear glass in my '72 parts car, however the lines look a little faded. I hear there are repair kits (JC Whitney, etc.) for these, but don't know how well they work. I'd sell it cheap, as long as you pay for the shipping. As you're in Idaho it wouldn't be too bad. I'm making a trip to Spokane at the end of the month to watch the last Zag home game and could bring it with me if you're interested. It's still in the rear hatch of my parts car, but has been unbolted. You could have the whole hatch for that matter if you'd like, it has a few rusty spots, but nothing too severe. I have some other '72 parts, what do you need? Got anything to trade? Where are you in Idaho? Gary D.

Yes, I bid the first day and it seemed like no one else was going to bid it up and then wham it started to skyrocket. I think I bought mine off ebay for about $57 and felt like I did something crazy, especially considering the millions of other more important things that need to be done on my car. They look pretty cool and I'm hoping mine works when I finally get it all hooked up. I talked to a guy who fixes the regular clocks and he said he'd love to work on it if it doesn't work, I don't know if he means for free or what. I'm glad I'm not the only one that spends far too much time searching ebay for that once in a lifetime deal -- however, I think those are few and far between nowdays. We could probably get much better deals deciding what we want and putting an ad in the wanted section of the classifieds on this site. When I have something to sell I try to offer it here first, altho I prefer the ease of people paying with PayPal rather than having to deal with checks and money orders. And, if the person doesn't follow thru on ebay you can threaten the buyer with negative/neutral feedback.

Well, I stayed in the bidding up to nearly $30, but it's now up to $125 which is too rich for my blood. There's a nice looking Rally Clock on ebay and I don't think the seller knew what he had and is probably delightfully surprised about how much his clock and two gauges are going for. I've already got one of these clocks, so if you're looking for one and have more cash than you know what to do with, you might check this out. Do it soon, though, as time is flying and the auction ends in less than an hour. http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&category=34206&item=2459426376&sspagename=STRK%3AMEABBI%3AIT I thought I might get another one on the cheap in case the untested one I have doesn't work. This one has the seperate oscillator unit which according to past forum discussions are missing on some people's clocks. Good luck.

Great, never even heard of the number one hit in the UK on my birthdate, then again it was the very early 60's and some of the best music of that era was yet to come. There were still some great songs like Cathy's Clown by the Everly Bros., Are You Lonesome Tonight by Elvis; and Only the Lonely by Roy Orbison; and probably my favorite from 1961 Runaway by Del Shannon. The other sites listed on "Your Day of Birth" are pretty cool, I see W.C. Fields, Hugh Hefner, Dennis Quaid, Paulina Porizkova and the founder of Mad Magazine were all born on April 9 as well. Never heard of the two French guys and the Russian painter. I already knew that the Confederates surrendered on that day, because my little brother used to go around saying how General Robert E. Lee shared the same b-day as him, Jan. 28 and telling him that was the only way to get him to shut up about it. Gas was 31 Cents a gallon, if only.

One final question, any changes suggested for cam or should I run with the one that came with? I want good performance and reasonable fuel economy, not trying for a street racer, but want to be able to get out and pass when I need to. One last pic:

And what about porting? New valves springs? Different Cam? I'm lost, but only want to have to do all these things once. I'm sure most is just a matter of opinion. I've downloaded the engine calculator, and with some combinations of the L28 and E31 with flattop pistons it seems like the compression gets awfully high. Here's another shot of the E31

I've got an E31 head on its way from Portland. It appears to be in pretty good shape and I was thinking of putting it on an L28, preferably with flat-top pistons. Are there any problems with having too much compression? Should I be thinking about bigger valves. OR.... I currently have an E88 on my L24, would it be better to just swap the E31 onto it, rather than going with the L28? I have a 1971 240Z with a build date of 12/70 and has most of the features of the first gen. Series 1 body, interior, etc., but the engine numbers don't match and someone has already swapped a 5 speed in, so doing a total restore to make it original is not what I have in mind. I like the early look with the hatch vents in back etc., but prefer the five speed and perhaps the greater displacement of an L28. Any ideas? I'll attach a couple pictures of the head to show you what condition it is in now. Thanks, Gary

Yes, the strut bar is adjustable on both ends. It does this by screwing in or out on a threaded bolt, with a nut to lock it in place. I still haven't modified mine, just checked it for fit and looks like it will work just fine. Hope this helps. Gary

Howdy Kmack & the rest of Y'All. I went back to the zcar.com site that I linked in my original message and found this picture -- for some reason it didn't seem to load the first couple times I was there. Also, I asked for further info on modifying. From the picture it looks like you drill one hole and one hole that is used on the Honda doesn't get used for the Z. Looks pretty good to me, altho I am no expert. From the setup it appears that it would function just the same and as well as one bought specifically for the Z and as we have all stated, the price is right. Who cares that shipping is $15 (really $17, when they add insurance), it is still less expensive than buying it in the autoparts stores I checked out and considerably less expensive than getting at MSA or any Z-specific bars I've seen listed on ebay. I rec'd the strut bar yesterday, but haven't had time to do much more than eyeball it and it looks well made. If I mess up on the drilling I guess I'll have my first project for my Community Schools welding class -- Yes, at age 42 I'm going back to take that shop class I should have taken in high school. Boy can ones priorities change.

Howdy, I was asked about my comment about buying a Honda strut brace that could be modified for a Z. I can't remember where I first saw the posting on the Honda Strut bar (92-95 Honda Civic Front Strut Brace), someone on some forum said they had just bought one on ebay for their first generation Z and they posted the forum below. You must drill a hole. I havent received mine yet so don't know how easily this is done. But they are cheap. I just hit Buy-It-Now for $7.50 and then shipping was $15 (plus the $2 insurance). I've posted some comments from zcar.com. http://www.zcar.com/forums/read.php?f=1&i=433913&t=403545#reply_433913 Here's a listing from the place I got mine. You might want to check it out. They sell same, or similar at Schucks, but they're about $38. http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=33591&item=2459201458 Gary

IMHO several e-bay sellers I have dealt with have added to their shipping costs to make up for not getting the price they had in mind. I no longer bid unless shipping is listed or the seller is willing to e-mail me with a shipping cost to my zip. My last bad experience was buying a part for $7.50 and gladly paying the $15.00 shipping cost (long package) and then being charged $2.00 insurance when UPS automatically insures up to the first $100. I complained, but was ignored, even though the auction said insurance was optional. In the end I just gritted my teeth and sent the purchase price, shipping and insurance as it was still an incredible deal (those Honda front strut braces that fit early Zs w/ modification). But seller may not get a positive feedback, maybe a neutral, but most likely none at all. I sell lots of Z parts and other items on e-bay and have never charged for packaging (or handling), just shipping. I buy so much off e-bay I have a large collection of packaging materials, boxes, etc. And I also use priority mail a lot and send with the free USPS boxes and labels. I feel packaging is just part of doing business and where else can you reach millions of customers around the world from your own home in rural America? E-bay has been a great place to shop and sell, especialy when you're stuck out in the sticks. I suppose if I sold something really big like an engine block some special handling fee might be involved, but only if I was assessed that charge first by the shipper. Gary

Why waste your time actually turbocharging your early Z when you can just add one of these (said with tongue firmly in cheek)? http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=33742&item=2459342352

Check out this nice early 240Z, it's a 1971, but looks like a 1970 build date. Yellow isn't my first choice for a color as you can probably tell, but would be a nice starting point for a restore, not much work to be done. However, not original motor or tranny, but who's complaining about an upgrade to an L28 & 5 speed. Pretty high starting bid, tho. Wish I had the scratch, but will just have to keep working on my project. http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=6187&item=2457747414

Yes, I discovered a site that had a way to convert Yen to US$ after I posted my reply and was just too lazy to go back and edit it. I really like the look of the chrome rimmed headlight covers, but feel $300+ (used, ebay) to $700 (new) could be much better spent elsewhere on my project. It seems like they wouldn't be that hard to make for someone with the right skills, which of course unfortunately I don't have. Any takers out there? You could make a small fortune. There would certainly be a lot of buyers I think. Heck, you could just make the chrome rims and we could buy the less expensive covers with the thin, black trim and use the plastic/Lexan. I find the covers give a finished look that is very appealing, even with the black trim, especially with dark colored cars IMO. If chrome is too expensive, a highly polished stainless steel trim might work too. So, any creative types need an extra source of income? If they look authentic and for the right price I'll buy the first set. Just thinking out loud. Gary

:classic: Here is a site that someone came across and mentioned once, but don't ask me how much 55,000 Yen is and how much it would cost to ship overseas, but these are for sale and appear new to me. It appears to be a website under construction especially where the translations into English are concerned. http://www.datsun-freeway.com/products/index.html If you can afford them and buy a set (wish I could), please let me know how the transaction works out. And if you get tired of them, give me a shout. Gary

What kind of price are you looking for? Are the floorpans solid? Thanks for the pictures. Wondering how I'd get it from where you're at to Wash. State. Gary

Nice to hear a happy ending. Been following this post, and the frustration really came through in all the posts. Now if we can find a way to make early Z cars harder to steal, can't make them a less attractive target. Gary

Sorry, I have a buyer for the carbs and manifolds, that is if he finds the time to send the payment. They are not the carbs in my gallery, those are going on the car when I take off the Webers. The ones I am selling are not as shiney and probably need a re-build, but they are complete w/most (if not all the linkage) and the heat shield. I may hang onto the Webers for awhile, haven't decided yet. Check back in a week and if I haven't rec'd the money we might be able to make a deal. Thanks for asking. Gary

:stupid: Sorry, I should have PM'd the other person from BC. I'll keep a lookout for any 240Z for sale nearby and pass info along if I see one. Gary