EScanlon

When I posted my "Priceless!" comment.....I was actually referring to Will's comment........... :cheeky: E

PRICELESS!!!

Spoken like a new Z owner..... Just wait, she'll whip you into shape soon. And then, even with your Mercedes and BMW and .... you'll find yourself looking for "excuses" to drive the Z. You've been warned..... Actually, that might work with BMW's, and Mercedes' but that's cause of their German / Bavarian ancestry. The Z on the other hand, uses this as a way of getting sold..... Like V12Horse's signature quote, you get chosen. Enrique

Will said it. As long as the ladies get along, no problem, but ignore the human one for the Z and all hell breaks loose at home, ignore the Z and all hell breaks loose in the garage and on the road. The trick is to treat the Z as a special lady. Show her how beautiful she is with your occasional wash and wax. Take care of simple boo-boo's as you would a young girl's scuffed knee. Don't ignore obvious signs of illness or she'll resent and lash back. (You know, stuff like a leaky water pump, fuel pump, etc.) When you drive her and other people see you in her, make sure that your demeanor says.....Yup, she's my baby! Be proud of her and she'll take note and behave accordingly. Snuff her in the least.....well, let's just say it's not pretty. If you do the above, then she'll actually enjoy you taking a human female out and letting her strut her stuff. Females love to strut, and even more so when they can make other females envious. She'll purr and steer like you've never seen before. Just be careful that you don't push the limits while you have a human female on board. The Z will quickly size up the situation, realize that you are purposedly letting her "strut" and will proceed to petrify the human female with her antics. The end result is that the human female will either do her best imitation of Linda Blair in the Exorcist's fireman's hose vomit scene or will demand to be removed from the car immediately. Afterwards there will ALWAYS be resentment between the two and ....... As an aside, do you know the Chinese Symbol for trouble? It is "Two Women Under One Roof". Now, don't think it's an impossible task, or that the Z is like Stephen King's Christine, they aren't.....as long as you don't invoke the money detector or the b!tch module. Hope this helps Enrique

If you'll look on the door mechanism, you'll note that the "rotary" part, the one that gets pushed by the latch on the car, has two lobes. The first lobe points straight down when the door is open, and the second is pointing at the door. The first lobe SHOULD have a rubber "coat". Almost like if it had been a piece of tubing that got stretched over the lobe. That's the rubber that finishes the "sound" proofing on the door. The cone washers help push the door up and off the weatherstrip, but with metal to metal contact at the latch, you will always have that rattle. Don't extend the screw holes in order to "tighten" up the latch, you won't be doing yourself any favors. The trick is to see how to recover that part of the latch with rubber. Sorry if I can't give you a good suggestion, I scoured the junk yard until I found a pair that had the rubber in good condition, so I haven't come up with a fix. But I'm working on it. Anyone else? E

If you can find a car cover that will ACTUALLY protect from scratches and dingies, I think all of us would buy one and put it on full time...... If you really, REALLY never park the car outside, in the elements, then yes that is the better material for the car. If on the other hand, you EVER even only for one or two nights park it outside, then go with the Sunfogger at least. I do park predominantly outside so I bought the Noah. It's not cheap, coming close to $200 + S&H a couple years back. But it IS custom fitted to the car, and it has pockets for BOTH mirrors. Covercraft has the patterns for the Z. But for indoor use only, the one you've selected is fine......as a car cover. Same for all the other ones, they're just car covers. Preventing scratches when using a car cover is primarily one of keeping the car cover clean on the INSIDE, the part that actually touches the car. The other part is to not rub the car cover on the car. Preventing dings is simple, don't hit the car..... But I know, it's the kid's best friend, Ida that has the most accidents in the house and that's who you need to protect against. A car cover will protect against casual hits by very light items, for more protection you need to step up the padding. If Ida is planning on using the car as a back stop for his skate board....then you have to use at least 1/8" steel, not sure what gage that would be. If on the other hand you're looking at protecting against the inadvertent "open the other car's door" or Mama with her purse, or the "I just leaned the bike against it!" accident, then you need to add bulk and impact absorbing material. You could put sheets of styrofoam, or sponge foam on pieces of velcro attached to the cover, on the OUTSIDE, but not on the inside. (You can buy NEW foam cheaper than a paint job.) You could even go as thick as that thick sponge rubber mat underneath carpet. And although this will do a lot to protect the car, it won't bullet proof it. FWIW Enrique

Just a WAG on my part, but I'll bet that the little rubber bumper on the part of the latch that goes up and around is missing. E

You might check with others around here, but it may be that you have one of the ORIGINAL shift knobs. If it isn't shot, you might post pictures and offer it to another member. One man's poison is another man's treat. Yeah, sure......and she'll respect you in the morning, and she promises to love you forever, all as long as you are willing to display proper abeisance, adulation and worship at required intervals and durations. hahahaha Face it, the Z is like a woman, a very beautiful woman, a very beautiful TALL woman. No matter where you go, there's some other Joe who's looking at you thinking..."What the heck does he have?", while others are envying your luck. And you want to play the part that ~snicker~ YOU are in control....... Face it, only as long as you play nicely will she stick around. Same with the Z. You got to pamper her, without spoiling her. You must be polite and attentive without seeming obsequious or she'll stomp all over you. If you try to act non-chalant.....she'll blow a tire just to check if you're paying attention. Mine decided to loose a Left Rear Tire AND Wheel at 70 mph. It's amazing the kind of things they'll do just to "check on you". The bottom line is to make sure she's safe, then get her sport blood flowing again, fix the mechanicals so that you know you can trust them, then start her make-over. Another way of saying don't paint the car before you fix the rust. You know....this reminds me of a skit on a record years ago: Two Russian soldiers are walking around the compound in the middle of winter, guarding the perimeter. They are supposed to report on everything they find. As they come upon this strange dark substance in the middle of the path, the one in charge is wondering if it might be a well disguised explosive, he orders the other guy to look, pick up, smell, poke with a finger, smell again and finally taste the item. All to confirm that the dark substance that looks like sh!t is in fact sh!t. So, KDMatt, the reason we're telling you NOT to invoke the ethereal money detector is NOT because we want to see you try it, as in snipe hunting in Boy Scouts, or looking for Prop Wash when in the Navy or Air Force, or any one of a hundred initiation rites.......where the goal is to have the new guy do something goofy just to initiate him into the club. But rather because there really IS an ethereal money detector in there...... So, to summarize and paraphrase......There's a huge pile of poop on the sidewalk up ahead.....if you choose to step into it, AFTER you've been warned.......then you must have wanted to. Enjoy the stink, and don't b!tch about it. Enrique P.S.; Welcome to the club. You've been warned.

[quote name=KDMatt... first things I'm going to look into buying (after the Z itself) are a car cover' date=' and probably a decent security system/car alarm.... ! Fast answers back at you: You're welcome. Before you go spending money on a car cover, (even on e-bay they start at $30, and that one doesn't fit well, and the one that DOES is $200+ + S&H), spend a little time with the car. Learn how it starts, or get it started. Before you go making plans on the next edition of America's Extreme Z Make-over, remember that it takes a CHUNK of money AND time to do what you see in the galleries. I am not saying to NOT work on the car, just that you should hold off on getting all psyched up about ..... whatever, only to find that the car has decided on it's own (and they do, don't kid yourself) to need something else. You're planning on a new carpet set, and it's deciding if the heater hose needs replacing. Don't ever put your wallet on the console of the car. It has some sort of ethereal money detector that automatically causes it to need a repair or improvement. If you let her know (and they're ALL female) that you have or are willing to, spend money, she will take over. Before long you will be looking for aluminum cans at the park along with every other homeless wino hoping to find enough to be able to afford that OEM Original Day/Nite blemish free Inside Mirror===HORRORS!=== And everyone on this site is just as deranged, so we're no help there either. There's nothing we like more than the new guy who'se only going to do a few "minor" things, that ends up being the next 5 year tail-light bulb change that costs $15,000 or more. Heck most of us will tell you how to fix all those "Since I'm in here this far...." parts just for the glee of getting to type it out..... But I hope you get the picture. Drive the car first, find out where she fits you well, and find out where she doesn't. Repair SAFETY items first. then MECHANICAL, then start on functional items. I'm not going to list all the items you could do, and in what sequence to do them, I just want you to get out, enjoy the drive, and then decide what it needs. Just don't tell her you're going to spend money on her or you won't like the uncontrollable spender she becomes. FWIW, 2¢ E

That's good that you are covered. Now save some money, have her add it as a second car, but not list you as it's primary driver. Have her keep your designation as a household driver. I.e. you kind of make it sound as though you will be driving the family station wagon, while she's driving the sports car. In this way they don't decide to hit you with the full value of a young male with sports car policy. Believe me,, those can be STEEP. Additionally, unless you are getting a policy with a Value Agreement, i.e. where you are insuring the WORTH of the car, don't get full coverage. Get good old plain vanilla LIABILITY insurance, and store the car out of reach of prying fingers. If you can't park it away from the MidNite 5-Finger Auto Store, THEN see if you can pick up theft and vandalism. Full coverage means they'll pay for repairs done to your car. For the most part, the slightest amount of bodywork / re-paint will usually be reason for the average insurance company to try to total out the car. With liability only, you have made yourself responsible for YOUR cars repairs, but kept the OTHER guy's car insured from an accident you caused. But do be aware that even those small $500 to $3000 repairs on your car are YOURS to pay for and the insurance company isn't going to. The reasoning is simple math, you're going to be paying 40 to 50 a month more (as a minimum, if not more) to have "Full Coverage" on a 30+ year old vehicle. The insurance company will GLADLY take your money, until you have a claim. Then suddenly your car isn't worth the cost of the ink on the policy and that's all they want to pay out. Now sure you can fight them, but if you have the car for any length of time before you make a claim, you will have paid more than you will get back. (or it will be close) If you can store it in a garage (a requirement) then check into Hagerty Insurance (Classic Car Insurance). There your Mom might be able to insure the car for an agreed upon value (and check with us here at this site for info) for only a hundred or so a YEAR. As I understand it, even fender scratches are covered. Now, that's the way to go. 2¢ Enrique

Do so! Or at least investigate if your insurance carrier will insure you on the way home. I heard this story when I was in the service, and as with all of these "This guy I know of..." stories, you have to understand that it's based on a dash of truth, but not necessarily a totally true story.: Purportedly this guy went down to Saginaw Michigan to buy and pick up his new car. He'd discussed it with the insurance company, gotten an estimate and had presented that information to the credit union financing the purchase. All happy that he had everything taken care of, he drove down to pick up his car, and decided to stay overnight and visit with some friends. On his way back to the base, he slid on some black ice and ended up rolling the car, totalling it. Rumor had it that the insurance company refused to pay because he had gotten an ESTIMATE and not a CONDITIONAL POLICY (i.e. insurance on the condition of purchase), therefore they hadn't yet "issued" a policy. Other stories had it that he had to go fight them in court before they relented and paid for it (because they had produced paperwork which the credit union had verified about the insurance). In either case, the "moral" of the story was to NOT buy a car without insurance already on YOU as the purchaser. Since it usually only takes a phone call with a VIN, or at least a good description, it's a good "failsafe" option. 2¢ Enrique

Get Liability Insurance on it right away. The last thing you want is to end up owing someone for years and years because you thought you'd be "ok for the ride home". E

The handle on the passenger door to help in closing it. E

Personally, I like the blended bumper look. Done well, it looks great. Don't know if the original bumnper goes on beneath, or if you lose the bumper completely. (I've never installed one.) Don't know that I would want to lose ALL of the bumper's protection. It's not much, but it's SOMETHING.... Edit: Forgot to mention, make sure you FIT both of those pieces perfectly before you send it off to get painted. If you're doing the work is one thing, but if you're sending the part off to be painted, you're counting on the painter using flex agent (a paint softener) in order for you to be able to mount it afterwards. The main problem in not fitting it BEFORE you send it off to paint, is that you will not know WHERE and IF it flexes. Then adjusting it to the car can be a real nightmare. (I believe there's another post on the subject recently, sorry no answers for him.) E

Interesting how an unpainted and painted front end can look so different. Check the lines of this bumper: http://www.classiczcars.com/forums/showthread.php?t=17886&page=1&pp=15 and the one at the beginning to this thread. There is a difference, the style and location of the turn signal lights, but otherwise, they're the same air dam. 2¢ Enrique

Wow, Daddz! Now that's an explanation all right! I like it. With all that information we could almost add to the Vin # listing at zhome. I wonder if Carl Beck would allow that database to be expanded to. Items such as what the car has now in various categories would definitely go a long way to developing our own "Z carfax" history. Granted it would only be after members here sell their cars to others, but the thought of the benefit down the road is tantalizing. E

I think that it sounds as though you've found a car you could be happy with. Remember, the major part of the FUN of owning a Z is in the drive of it. You can't explain it to someone until they drive it, then they're converts. If in order to drive it you have to change the stereo to something different, well, yeah, I guess it's a shock to the purist world, but if you retain the parts in the garage for whenever you sell the car (if you do) then at least you've not destroyed the car. I think most purists would agree that the problem isn't in the items done to "optimize" (my term) the car to their individual owner, but rather in that the changes are done in such a manner as to be irreversible. In fact, that's what can make a car completely undesireable to the purist, if the changes are such that they've affected structural modifications (sun-roofs) or changed key items (engine, transmission). In my opinion, if you do the changes to the stereo, and addition of the speakers without having to modify anything (i.e. cut, drill, weld) and you keep the old one, then you've made it relatively easy to return the car to it's original (restored/refurbished) condition. With original parts (the ones that came with the car ORIGINALLY) then it is "better" than when you have to go find "replacement" or "or-equal" parts. That is items of the same style/function as what was in the car originally. With the notorious changes mid stream to the production of vehicles, whether you got the auto-scan radio of the Series I or the Cassette or 8 Track player of the later years becomes a regular crapshoot....unless you have the original receipt. So go buy the car, enjoy it's drive, and when you make changes (and you probably will) make them so that the next guy can undo them if THEY wish. Enrique

My thoughts are that at HALF that price, it would still be OVER priced. This may be a case of someone trying to rescue his money from a deal that was too good to be true. Let it go to someone on the East Coast. It's a bargain for them, and the seller can get his money back, and you don't overpay for something you can get cheaper....get my drift? E

AFAIK the only connection to the Tach from the Dizzy is through the coil, as that is where the leads (both of them) from the tach end up. I would definitely question any electrical connections you have recently made / repaired / changed or in any manner is different from when the car did NOT make noise. Aside from that, if you are running the true-blue original system, then you are running points, condenser and rotor. There are various items there that would definitely affect the tach's operation. If the points are starting to arc and make poor contact because the dwell is off or because the points are pitted etc, then the coil wouldn't discharge and you would sense a "miss" at the tach. Is your resistor still functional and not corroded at the connection points? Ask Bambikiller (Carl) and HLS-30 (Will), they're bound to have better guesses than my WAG. I'm not an engine mechanic, I do bodies. But before you opt to replace, make sure that it can't be traced elsewhere. Enrique

Most of us are already confused enough without your throwing gas on the fire..... But your pronunciation of " ...B...one" versus "....b....one" leaves something to be desired, you lisped...... E

One of the pictures on the following site came up through a Roadster Mail List, and when I was looking at it, I came up with this picture listing of the "Officiial" Nissan Historic Car Collection Photo Gallery. The list does show several of the cars that were "omitted" from the poll, as pointed out by a couple members, but the most glaring difference is....no 260's! So now who do we believe? http://www.autobytel-japan.com/special/nissan/z/index.cfm Check it out! Enrique

This I think is the crux of this post. At what point is your "restoration" actually a situation where you've replaced parts to "OPTIMIZE" your car according to your taste / knowledge. I use the new term OPTIMIZE to denote what you do even when you replace a bald set of tires for a new set, you are maintaining the car while "bettering" it's condition. I don't use improve, because a simple exchange of tires is not normally an improvement, but by putting tread where none was before, you've made the situation better. Now an improvement would be replacing the square top S.U.'s with round top, also replacing the stock tires/wheels with new wheels and high-end tires. The key is that in the broadest sense of the term, Breat Bill's car is also a car that is being "optimized". i.e. he's working on getting it running and ....more. Cause by the manner in which the definition is being applied, I also placed one each in Series I and II bone stock that will both be Customized for the purposes of the poll, but are more "optimized" than customized. i.e. I've replaced parts of both with later year parts, therefore rendering both vehicles as being custom. So move one each from the Series 240 to 240 Custom. It should be noted that by changing the HCP to the 73 style (to gain illumination on the panel), swapping the dash with a 72 (no cracks) and upgrading the seats to the 72 (recline & tilt) I was not going for a kaleidoscope of a car but restoring that "stock" look. On the other car, simply changing the engine (with another year correct) will render it custom. Only a knowledgeable person of the marque would be able to pick these things out, but in this forum that's what we promote. On that basis, I bring forth the term "Optimized", do I have a second? E

If you already sanded with 100 grit and that didn't get rid of the paint, then you're either dealing with dried POR or some of the undercoating / rust preventer's shot underneath the cowl (aka Hood Finisher). If it is undercoating or rust-preventer, you might get rid of the main part of the stain, but probably not any discoloration due to the length of time that it may have been stuck on there (don't forget UV paint fade as well as plain old staining due to the petroleum content). FWIW Enrique

As long as the dents did not incur creases the suction cup should work. If they creased, then it will still leave a mark where the creases are. E