lonetreesteve

What is the best approach to restoring the wood wheels? What is the best process? What is the color of the stain? I noticed that on some of the restored 240s (see picture) that there is high-gloss finish. Did they come from the factory with such a finish? (My son took this picture of #33 of the 42 Nissan restored cars when it was for sale on the showroom floor at Peak Nissan, here in the Denver area 7 or 8 months ago).

I'm not sure where these originated. I only assumed that they were made by Datsun because of the "Datsun" on the black rubber on the driver's mat and that they obviously were designed to fit a 240Z. You can tell that they are very old and were probably designed to cover & protect the original carpets. What you guys are saying make a lot of sense though. I was curious what they were all about and that's why I started the thread. Thank you for your input, I appreciate it!

Here are 2 more pics of the mats. These show a closer look at the type of material the mats are made of as well as the problem areas described on my previous post. The first one shows the hole at the bottom of the hatch area mat, the second shows what the bottoms look like.

Here's a couple pics Bill.....definitely loud early '70s style huh? It's hard to see on the picture, but the driver's mat has a "Datsun" in the middle of the black rubber area on the face of the mat. As you can see, the hatch area mat has some deterioration towards the back, including a hole. The old black rubber on the backs of all 3 mats is flaking off. So, they will need the old rubber taken off and recoated with new. This shouldn't be too hard since the old rubber is flaking off so easily now. The front mats are in pretty good shape and just need a little cleaning in addition to the recoating on the bottoms. The rear hatch mat will take more work and will need to be repaired.

When my son and I bought our '71 240 last May, we got a large quantity of spare 240Z parts included in the deal (basiclly an entire '72 240Z w/o the unibody, hood & windshield). Among those parts was something that we had never seen before.....a set of orange and black checkered floor mats & rear hatch area mat made by Datsun for the 240Z. They are not in the greatest condition, and we were going to throw them away but decided to hold on to them in case someone would be interested. Frankly, I don't find them very attractive, but they certainly do have a nostalgic early '70s look to them. My son and I put them on ebay yesterday just to see if there would be any interest. It's going to take some work to restore these mats. The black rubber backing on the bottoms of the mats is all dried out and is flaking off. So, the rest of the dried rubber would need to be removed then recoated. The mat material is actually in pretty good shape, with the exception of a hole towards the back of the rear hatch mat, which would need to be repaired. Has anyone ever seen or know what these were all about? I assume that these were a specialty item that Datsun sold through its dealers.

Thanks for all the helpful information guys, I really appreciate it!

Oh yes, I thought the name sounded familiar, thanks Mike. Like I said, the higher these parts go for, the more our 240Zs and our hard-to-find spare parts go up in value! The future looks bright!

This "Beck" at Beck Systems who paid over $200.00 for a pair of plastic inspection lid clips must be one of those Wall Street Journal readers we have discussed in these forums. He is probably doing a full concourse restro and wants his '70 240z to be perfect and is willing to pay big money for the rare NOS pieces in hope he gets a big return on his investment. We may not like this, but in the long run, we are all benefiting from it!

Check this out, a set of "D" Series 1 240z wheel covers went for a record amount on eBay (over $300.00 each!!). Here's the link: http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=7935518570&rd=1&sspagename=STRK%3AMEWA%3AIT

Guus, I just got up this morning (I live in Colorado) and saw your reply. I have to go to work, but I will send you pictures of the red interior pieces, including the quarter panels when I get home this evening. The only piece that my son and I decided to put on eBay was the overhead trim piece where the dome light goes. It is the only piece in excellent condition. The remaining pieces aren't in the greatest shape, however, we are willing to sell these parts for a fair price to a fellow Z owner who is in need of these hard to find red interior pieces. By the way, if anyone is interested in the red overhead piece, here is the link on eBay (the picture doesn't do the part any justice, we will probably take another picture and re-submit it): http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=7937078269&rd=1&sspagename=STRK%3AMESE%3AIT

Are the Series I steering wheels tough to find? How much money am I looking at to buy one in today's market? Also, I can't seem to find any 240 horn pads that are not cracked on the mounting area. Are new ones available anywhere?

I think we are going to put everyting on Ebay, escpecially since there hasn't been much of a response here. My son and I have noticed that 240Z parts have been getting much higher prices the past several months!

Bill, We have already purchased the black replacement pieces for the red ones we have listed. However, it would be nice to be able to change the remaining red interior to black. What paint product out there is available that works well?

My son and I are changing out the red interior in our '72 240Z for black and have a few red interior parts for sale: 2 Red sun visors in good condition (one has a very small, barely noticable opening on edge near the peg) 1 Red overhead dome light roof piece in very good condition 2 Red "Hook" panels in fair condition 1 Red rear hatch panel in fair condition with a very tiny tear and a crack on the cardboard backing) We also have both rear quarter panels that have a couple of cracks and a couple of oversized holes, but would work well in a driver.

Does anyone know of a solution to repair those flaking chrome strips on the stock 240Z door panels?? My eighteen year old son and I are restoring two 240Zs, a '71 and a '72. The '72 originally had red interior, but we are changing it to black due to the short supply of red interior parts. We have found 4 original door panels in excellent condition, but 2 of them have a couple of small chips (or rips) on the chrome material. Your advice would be greatly appreciated! Steve & Nick '71 HLS30-25734 (orange w/matching engine#) '72 HLS30-64733 (white w/matching engine #)

Cool!! I'll be sure to tune into that show on 11/7! Didn't the History Channel also feature the Zcar on their series "Automobiles"?

For a pretty much rust-free & original Series I car, it is going for a very low price. With some work, this car has a lot of potential and will do nothing but appreciate in value. You just don't see too many like this one around anymore. If it was for sale in Colorado and not California, I would try to buy it!

What is going on here? I start a thread about a pathetic 240Z ad on eBay a few days ago and I check back to see what the response is and I can't believe my eyes...... one of the most pathetic political debates I have ever seen on the Internet!! I agree with a couple of the level-headed members that have chimed in on this thread....this is a Zcar enthusiast web site, not some political debate forum. I don't care if you guys want to have a political debate, just do it in the general chit-chat section not here! Now, back to this thread.. As Ed mentioned, someone actually bid on this (non-pictured, but the one shown is real close!) Z. Did they not read the ad close enough or maybe they contacted the seller and went and took a look at the car in person? Or maybe they have a VW Bug full of trading cards that they plan on buying the Z with!!

Read this e-Bay link in its entirety. Is this person trying too hard NOT to sell this 240Z or what? http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=2486601602&category=6187

Tom, I wish I had noticed your post earlier, because I would have bought the cover! It looks like it is in great shape! The buyer got a terrific deal! http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=7909067921

My son and I need two rear hatch struts for our two 240Zs ('71 & '72). It is very important that they both WORK WELL and STAY OPEN and do not slide shut when the weather gets warm, etc. If we can only find one at this time, that would be fine, however, it would be great if we could find 2 from the same seller to save on shipping. Thank you! Steve

Chevelle7D2, I live not so far away from you (Colorado) and I know of a '70 (vintage # of around #8000) that closely fits the description of Z-car you are looking for. It has very little rust (just 1 small hole in one rear fender and just a bubble or two in the other rear fender). There is NO rust in the floorpans & frame rails! The owner has plans of pulling the 280z engine & tranny out of it. Even though it is pretty much rust-free (which is very hard to find, especially for a '70) however, it does need a lot of work (new interior, some body work to the rear hatch & front end, has no front fenders, no hood cowl or hood). The owner has a number of spare hoods and other Z parts if you need them. He wants to sell it to someone who will restore it. You can probably purchase the car for a very small sum. The attractive thing about this car is the vintage and the unbelievable minimal amount of rust! I wanted to buy the car, but my son and I are currently restoring a '72 and have a '71 on deck and no more storage space! Private Message me if you are interested and I can give you the owner's phone number. Steve

If you ask me, the dash caps are cheesy and if you were to ever to enter your Z in a car show, judges detest them! Find a replacement dash or have it professionally repaired. Sometimes you can find solid dashes on eBay. There is also a company in Seattle who repairs them for about $600.00 I believe.

Doc, My son and I have a complete set of 4 "Z" wheelcovers. They have been in storage for many years. Here's the story: The original owner only had them on the car for less than a week before he bought some aluminum wheels for his Z. These are not the early 240z wheelcovers with the "D" in the center that were on the Series One '70 & '71 models. Ours have the "Z" on the center which I understand were on the '72 thru '76 Zs. Original Z wheelcovers in this condition go for a lot these days (but not as much as the Series ones do). My son and I were talking about putting these on eBay in the next couple of days. BTW, we just listed a beautiful dashboard from a '72 240Z (totally original with no cracks & no cap whatsoever). Please let me know. Thanks! Steve

Welcome to Clasisic Zcar Club! You are right, 1970 240Zs in the condition you are looking for are rare and rather expensive. However, compared to other vintage sports cars, the 240Zs in good condition are just beginning to "take off" in terms of value. I would check out ebay.com, Cars.com, autotrader.com, etc and keep a constant watch. I noticed that you did not state where you are from. If you live in a warm & dry climate (like parts of California, Arizona, or Nevada, you may be able to find a rust-free one locally. Rust-free 240s can be found in all 50 states, but are much harder to find in most areas. But since you are looking for a good, solid 1970, you will probably need to make a nationwide search. There is a large number of members here at Classic Zcar Club that know a lot more than I do about Zcars and can probably give you some insight as well. Good luck with your search!