Arne

The modified lever looks like one of these:

Mine is currently the original black gelcoat. I'll paint it red to match the car when I get around to painting the car some day. Probably add a flex agent when I have it done.

Both sides are the same, so you don't need a "driver's side" specifically. You'll need one from a 280Z, the spline count on the 240Z are different. Last I checked, new ones were still available from Nissan, but they aren't cheap...

Profile says a '78 280Z. Do you mean the stub axle? No threads to strip on the half-shaft. If it's the stub axle you need, both sides are the same. You'll need one from a 280Z, the spline count on the 240Z are different. Last I checked, new ones were still available from Nissan, but they aren't cheap...

This looks like it might be a good buy for someone. No connection to the seller. http://seattle.craigslist.org/est/car/446170260.html

Don't rush it, Bryan. You've done a great job so far, you don't want to cut corners now.

I'm of the same opinion. I don't mind modifications, as long as they can be undone if later desired.

I've got no problems with detailed, polished and color-coordinated engine compartments, but bone stock is so rare that it's a "must have" for me.

For the five speed in a '70, you need the transmission itself, and all the clutch parts should come from the same car - pressure plate, thowout bearing and collar, clutch fork and slave cylinder. Simplest is to use all your current clutch parts with the newer five speed. You will also need to either enlarge the hole in the tunnel and use a 280Z shift lever as-is, or have a 280Z/ZX lever modified to fit your existing hole. If you stuck with the existing forward mounted R180, you could use your existing driveshaft. But if you go with an R200 you'll need a longer driveshaft from a '72 or later Z. For the R200, you'll need the diff, moustach bar, lower rear suspension cross bar, front differential crossmember, and possibly a pair of halfshafts for an R200. I think that's it. Somebody chime in if I missed anything.

Hard to say for certain. You might want to consider having a pair of front strut bearings on hand, just in case. Not much else that you might run into while doing struts only. If you were doing the rest of the suspension too... well, that's a different story.

I believe 280Zs had the boot, but 240Zs did not. Boots are OK, but not required unless you are driving in really nasty road conditions.

Bump stops for certain. Two boxes of Energy Suspension part number 7.6104G (graphite-impregnated black) or 7.6104R (red poly). If your brake hoses are not up to snuff, do them now also, as you'll have them all apart anyway.

Not all Maaco shops will do the better type work, some only want to crank out the generic repaints that they are famous for. But since they are all franchises and independently owned, some shops will do the type of work that most of us want as well. For example, there's a member her (jackboxxx) who actually owns a Macco franchise in Moreno Valley, who will do top notch work (from what I've heard). Some of the background is in this thread. And you are right - good materials alone will be expensive. I'm preparing to get the rust cut out and new paint on my yellow 240Z, and that is going to cost over $3500 without the engine compartment. Nothing fancy, just decent quality work in the factory color. And if your local Maaco is going to do that type of work for you, expect it to cost about the same as any other good shop would charge.

There's a blanket statement that is very unfair. There are Maaco shops that will do fine work. Just don't expect that type of work for the cheap prices that they advertise.Don't rule out your local Maaco franchise until you've talked with them.

I had a similar problem with my first '71. It suffered the typical melted fusebox, and the resulting short(s) melted a number of wires up into the dash harness. I replaced both the dash harness and the fusebox with good used parts. It is not difficult, but can be a bit fussy and awkward work. First step is to determine for certain whether or not the dash harness needs to be replaced, or if it can be repaired. If it must be replaced, start hunting for the right harness. It turns out that there are at least 4 -- or maybe 6, I can't recall for certain -- different dash harnesses for '71 240Zs, depending on transmission and build date. Some of them are interchangeable directly, a few of them can be used in any '71 as long as you change a few other parts to match. It's been over a year since I did mine, but post some details back here and I'll try to help figure out what you can use. Yes, you will need to remove the dash to do this. It's not too tough, again just tedious and awkward. Start by removing the steering wheel, seats and probably the console to make more room. Disconnect the battery, then crawl underneath and label all the connectors, both on the bad harness and also on the switches and stuff that the harness connects to. While many of those connectors will only connect to one thing, labels will be very helpful. Disconnect all the wiring and unbolt and remove the dash pad. Then you can fish the old harness out of the dash. Lay it out and match it to your replacement, make and attach matching labels for the new harness. Fish the new harness back into the dash pad, then begin to reverse the process. Good luck, and ask for more help if you need it.

Yes, I was using the 4-way hazards in each case, but the result is the same for either turn signal. The mod is much the same as the old 510 site post, with the exception that since I HATE the thought of using wire taps on 35 year-old wiring, my car is using a prototype of a new adapter plug/mini-harness. In addition to not requiring any existing harness modifications, the process will be totally reversible. Also rather affordable. More details soon. I may have jumped the gun a bit with the movie, but I wanted to test the new multimedia site too.

It's not worth that much to me. Nice car, but a bit over the top, and not to my taste. But that's just me. I wish him luck selling it.

Asta, looking at your pictures with the experience of someone who has a pair of '71s, here's my take on it. First, the seat webbing that supports the bottom foam is either shot or non-existent. You'll need to take the driver's seat out of the car and replace the seat webbing. (Webbing was only used in '70 and 71, springs from '72 on.) A discussion about replacing the webbing can be seen in this thread - http://classiczcars.com/forums/showthread.php?t=25479Secondly, from my experience, I don't think you'll have much luck re-sewing that split seam in the driver's cushion, as that's not really a seam, it's quilted. There's no extra material there to re-sew. When you add in the fact that the reason it has split open is because it has gotten stiff and hard with age, and I really think you'll be better off buying a set of the replacement seat covers. They look great, and are soft and flexible - which the old originals are not after all these years. Replacement covers are between $200 and $250 for the set for both seats, and will be well worth it. With new covers and replaced webbing, you might be able to get by with adding a bit of foam to the existing foam cushions. Replacement cushions are just under $100 per seat.

I bought a 3 row core unit from a local radiator shop. Did not have the fan guard, though. About the same price as mail order, and no shipping cost. I'd call a couple of your local shops for prices.

Look for people in Sacramento, Redding, or Southern Oregon. Say, Medford/Ashland/Grants Pass.

ROFLBrian, that made my day!! Can't see the keyboard because my eyes are watering from laughing so hard!

Talk with Escanlon on the grill badge idea, he's been working on that thought for quite a while now.

Yup, there are. Lots of cars have had those tabs (or hooks) cut off or bent so that they don't interfere with frames. If you look closely at this closeup, you can still see them on my red car, barely peeking out from under the frame. I have a bit of adhesive foam stuck to the back side of the frame to prevent it from damaging the tabs.

I too think it's a good idea, but as Mike hinted at, it's really tough to do it right. First you have the obvious problem of the finish - while lots of us would want chrome to compliment our bumpers, others will want black because that would look best with their particular cars' appearance. Then you have the issue over what style of frame to offer. Some states locate their stickers (tabs) at the top, others at the bottom. Most (if not all) require that the stickers not be covered by the frame, even if they seldom enforce that. So do you create a frame with the logo at the top? Or the bottom? How much of the plate do you cover? How will that look with today's modern graphics-covered plates? I will admit to being more than a little anal about my plates and their frames. Considering what I had to do to get the vintage plates on my red 240Z, and also that one of the defining features of those vintage Oregon plates is the embossed yellow border all around the edge, I really didn't want my frames to cover any of the plate at all. Not just for appearance, but also because I don't want the frame to damage the plate's paint. So I bought a frame that the plate sits in, rather than one that covers any of the plate. And that's the kind of frame that I'd want from the club, too. Probably hard to get, I doubt that any of the companies that make promotional frames make anything like I have. Like I said, more than a little anal, to be sure. But I bet I'm not the only one...

No, that's backwards.The 240Z pillar emblems were used up through 12/70 production, as well as on some 1/71 built cars. Mid-way through 1/71 they changed to the round Z emblem. The 240Z pillar emblems are emblems only, while the round Z emblems are actually vent covers. When they stopped using the vents in the hatch, they put the vents in the pillars instead. That's when and why the emblems changed. Your car built in 12/71 was well after the change to the round Z emblem. The earlier 240Z emblem won't fit your car without modification anyway.