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I just recovered my seats back in the fall. I can say from experience that hot vinyl is the best way to stretch it over the frame, particularly the steel back. Get new foam--your butt will never believe how great it can be! I used the foam and vinyl from Classic Datsun. It fits perfectly for my 240Z. Not sure about 280Z applications--call and find out! Good luck, Steve

Thanks, guys. The DeoxIt question was tossed in at the last minute, as I was perusing the Eastwood catalog while submitting the thread. Clearly, after a search it's obvious it has met with such good success--I'll order myself some tomorrow! Now, for some fun with soldering..... Steve

Haven't experienced this problem myself, but have noted other folks who have electrical issues after paint seem to be attributed to painting over grounding points or similar type issues. Any belligerant overspray in the engine compartment? Check along the passenger firewall and frame rail and be sure the grounding ponts for the harness and negative battery cable look OK. Of course, it may be coincidental (association with painting, I mean) and could be bad battery, battery/alternator connections, failing VR or failing alternator. Good luck, Steve

Thanks for the tips. I've seen the environmental splice, and think it may be a bit overkill as this is for a non-daily driver garage-kept restoration. Not a lot of salt and water in my garage, you know... The thought of bare copper connections underneath some wiring tape has me nervous, so I'll definitely put something to insulate it from the outside, though.... I'll look into the dental pick idea for sure. Steve

So I've been doing a lot of searching and reading about what folks have been doing in regards to their wiring harnesses, and the answers are pretty varied. There have been some nice threads 3-4 years ago about remanufacturing harnesses, (link) but it appears they all really went nowhere... ...Now I'm in the position to deal with my harness and I'm looking for some advice/input on how to proceed. Basically everything works on my wiring harness. The courtesy light switches in the A-pillar were corroded and intermittently functining, so replacements have been bought. The defroster is non-functional, but I also think it's basic corrosion at it's attachment to the hatch. The loom tape is old and grungy, so I bought the replacement listed on Eastwood's website http://www.eastwoodco.com/jump.jsp?itemID=1368&itemType=PRODUCT I figured since I had the harness unwrapped I would tend to whatever problems lurk beneath...but what do those problems look like? I know from some cheap, cut-up harnesses I bought earlier that the splicing of circuits is sub-par, many with exposed copper wire. I think I probably should solder those connections then insulate them with heat shrink tubing or use "liquid electrical tape" type insulation. Would that be OK to protect those splices from corrosion/shorting out? While I was at it, I'd run the wires looking for burned spots that might signal high resistance or shorts, and repair them as needed by splicing in new wire, soldering and insulating... Then come the connectors themselves. I have visited EagleDay and looked over their terminal connectors, but I'm resistant to snipping off the originals if the terminals themselves can be cleaned...Is there a method for cleaning these? Has anyone used Eastwood's Deox-It product with success? Can the individual spade terminals be removed from the terminal blocks and replaced? Would the use of Kopr-Shield (or something similar) on these connections be of any gain? I figured since my car is totally apart I would do what I could in regards to maintenance on the wiring because I sure don't want to have to pull these harnesses out after the car is reassembled! If I can prevent an imminent electrical meltdown, then I want to do what I can. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks, Steve

Mike: That's an SU intake on your car...what happened to the Mikunis? Are you selling them? Price? Certainly impressed with how things are coming along...I'm sure you're eager to get in and drive it! Keep up the good work, Steve

I made the error of buying ball joints off EBay as well...one didn't fit also. Went down to NAPA and got a pair with little trouble. A bit more expensive, but at least the holes were in the right spot! I see you're in the Netherlands...Not sure what parts companies you have there, so I would try a Nissan dealer first. Good luck!

Not to poke at ya too much, but are you new to the bodyshop game? Ignore all quotes a bodyman tells you about when it'll get done. Just. Ignore. Them. Period. Your project is just that--a project. They know it, you know it. On an undervalued car, no less! Unless they are a boutique, niche market classic restoration shop, you will be worked in between the insurance jobs. If it is a boutique shop, then kiss your $$$ goodbye because they command a major premium over usual bodyshop rates. Insurance jobs pay the rent, the lights, the paychecks. And, since (IIRC) they bill a set sum to the insurance co. for a particular job, they can maximize profit by maximizing efficiency. With your job, it's strictly by-the-hour and cost of materials. There's no way to be "over-efficient" with the shop's time. Your job will get some attention when they can get to it. $4100 is a low estimate for your job, mainly because it's 35-year old car where there is the great Unknown Quantity of Time to fix the problems that may lurk beneath the surface.... My unsolicited $0.02 is to cool the jets. Show up once in awhile with bagels or doughnuts just to say hey and see how the job's going. If no activity, ask why not and when they expect to get to it. Then show up when they say they'll get to it. With bagels. If no action, consider their sincerity in doing the job, and weigh your options. If they're too busy for your job, they won't do it. And yes, they can afford to be rude because your job doesn't represent the profit level insurance/collision repairs do. I was quoted $8500 to strip, straighten and paint my car at a shop which caters to the import scene. I think it's an underestimation, more likely to come in around $10-12000. Dropped the car off in August--He said it'll take until December to get it done, now it's looking more like February. And he hasn't even had to do any parts ordering! It's the same everywhere, so please be patient. If you rush them, they'll do a crappy job, charge you full price, then act smug as your paint bubbles and your Bondo cracks.... Like I tell myself: Enjoy the process...enjoy the process..more about the trip than the destination...... Good luck, Steve

No problem. Thanks for clarifying. It's all good!

McKrack, If you use the program cars as reference, you may be on a bad starting point. Forum search for those Factory Authorized Restorations shows fairly extensive documentation of variations between what is truly original versus what was used to create the restoration. Best to use photos from 1970-1972 or so to get an accurate depiction. Perhaps Carl Beck could chime in, as I think he was selling the car when it first came around...

That's an uncalled for post. No point, no value to the discussion. Ad hominem attacks are bad form.

I think Barrett-Jackson is the wrong venue. Too many muscle cars. Needs to be auctioned at a place like The Mitty (if they had auctions) or somewhere a bunch of import enthusiasts are looking for to make a purchase. I hope he gets his 25k. I hope he gets two bidders who can't live without that car. Best of luck to him! Steve

Wick Humble states (in reference to the wheel cover paint color) that the "gray textured area is just paint and is similar, if not identical, to that used on the back-panel finisher..." (p.193) Since his is a well-known and near-authoritative work, I'd say this is a reasonable place to get accurate information. On what do you base your assertion to the contrary? I have an NOS grill, and it's color is an exact match to the paint from CDM. I suggest paying the $28 for a can for what is probably the closest match available... Steve

Now that OEM windshields are NLA, if all other factors are equal, how much of a hit does a car's value take for having aftermarket replacement glass instead?

Hey Bears240 Thanks for the tip--I appreciate the effort it must have taken to get to the bottom of the problem...I am looking into this upgrade myself, so if something similar occurs I'll now know where to look first! Welcome to the club, Steve

It is absolutely ethical to help a club member by inspecting a car which is local to you, but distant to the interested party. I would expect it of other club members, and I hope others would not hesitate to ask me if they felt I could do them a favor. If you find the car desirable to yourself, I (as the distant interested party) would like to know that. Once you look the car over, be as factual as you can. The inspector can't possibly know the capabilities or risk the interested party is willing to take on a particular car, so the interested party is best served with lots of photos of key areas, with some explanation if the picture is confusing. If an opinion is wanted, then make it obvious to the interested party that you, the inspector of the vehicle, are giving an opinion... +1 on discerning seller intent. It's OK to give an overall judgment of the deal in question, but I would avoid pejoratives or personal impressions. Let the car and the price for it speak more loudly... $0.02, Steve

Hmmm...boosters should not have any fluid in them...They are air tight devices that use manifold vacuum to augment the pedal effort to compress brake fluid and actuate your brakes. Have you done a vacuum check to see if the booster holds vacuum? Have you checked the check-valve? Be sure you got an early (1970-72) 240 booster; boosters for 1973 and later are slightly different. That may be why the clevis doesn't fit right? Consider returning it and paying a little more for one from Black Dragon or MSA if you're at all in doubt... Steve

What symptoms do you have that make you think your booster is "bad?"

Bobs77, Sorry if this only appiles to 240s, but my 240Z seats have plastic adjuster nuts on them to alter the seat height...Have you removed yours to lower the seat onto the rail? May help if you have them... After installing my new foams and vinyls, I can say the new stuff is substantially more comfortable than the original. It fully fills out the vinyl, making for a nice, taut, like new appearance. Steve

Seems to me a good way to determine HOW MUCH benefit a particular style airdam/spoiler has in affecting drag and lift. We all know the shortcomings, but the data is lacking. One can proclaim this or that effect all he/she wants, but now's a chance to find out QUANTITATIVELY what works better or worse or not at all. http://zccw.org/Tech/Body/early_aero.asp Nice article giving a tour of stock-configured 240Z aero issues, but with a palpable dearth of hard data. Would be nice to know if BRE's spoiler does a better job than MSA type 1,2 or 3, especially for racers. Why shoot in the dark with a bunch of choices that probably look better than they actually perform? Waste of time and money trying to find the right one....And here's the kicker: once you have data, you set the foundation for improvement and innovation, possibly resulting in a better product for racing/safety applications... Will, not many of us have the 1974 issues of C&D, perhaps you could scan and post the relevant discussion so as to better establish baselines? As for the 280ZX, it appears no S130s will be used during this testing. Being local to this event (Triangle Z Club) I plan on providing support where I can. I hope others would be interested too.... Steve

Two thoughts: 1) "Header replaced last year" and rusted/seized nuts and bolts don't seem to go together unless you're in a real humid environment. Seems more plausible the nuts got cross-threaded by the impact wrench and mechanic who may not have been paying attention.... If that turns out to be the case, you may have to have the manifold studs cut to remove the header, then each stud manually extracted, followed by (maybe) retapping the stud hole... 2) If they are truly rust-seized, I would affirm the above-mentioned techniques. After soaking with penetrant (Kroil or PB Blaster) consider tightening the nut slightly (1/4 or so turn), then loosen. Once it begins to loosen, tighten it up a little, then loosen it some more. Use this "two steps forward, one step back" approach to slowly work the nut off. The shearing force of the friction produces some serious heat and can snap off the bolt if you're not careful. Brute force is not your friend, finesse and patience are.... Good luck, Steve

a7dz has a great point. Once rust is cut out, the car always looks worse than it should, but that's just how it goes before welding in new panels. Buyer saves a bunch of time and $$$ from that work, provided it was well-done... With that said, he left out key pics (frame rail, floors, batt pan etc) so I wonder if he got to this point, then got overwhelmed by the degree of damage. $2000? Hmph. Probably not based on what he's shown us (and more importantly, left out), but could be the base for someone's cool resto-rod...might end up being a diamond in the rough, but I'm always optimistic

+1...and it reminds me that my car (a) currently sucks compared to everyone else's and ( won't for much longer.... Steve

Guys, Thanks for the clarification...It seems conceptually similar to the ratchet mechanism of winches, particularly those I know of on boat trailers, but I'm sure the concept is ubiquitous in application. So, if we hear about "lift failures" where is the break point? Poor design in the securing mechanism? Hydraulic failure on lift/lower function? What would cause them to fail? If the engineering is like what Bill shows us, I would feel pretty confident in my lift's ability... What recourse would one have if the lift failed and crushed an expensive item resting underneath it? Homeowner's insurance? Auto property insurance? Sue the lift manufacturer? Steve

Rich, Bill I am in a similar situation, especially in regards to risk of hydraulic failure of the lift...Do you think it's feasible to bolster the posts with removable 6 x 6s while the lift is at max extension? Is there a metal flange that flips into place so the load is born by the posts and not continuously exposed to the hydraulic cylinder? I'm obviously ignorant of a lot of these details, but the diagrams I have looked at in Hemmings Motor News, Hemmings Sports & Exotic, etc don't really address that very well... Thanks, Steve