Arne

The mesh wheels are Appliance brand, not Westerns. The Appliances are the only ones with the smooth (not stepped) lip.

The numbers seem low, but they are very even across the board, which is good. The lowness could be as simple as a low-reading gauge.

Been there, done that, didn't even get the t-shirt. http://www.classiczcars.com/forums/showthread.php?t=30409

May I recommend pulling the number tag also? The engine compartment tag on my '71 is attached with small Phillips head screws, not rivits. You should be able to remove and replace it tracelessly, and that will give a much nicer job.

Several of us. I'm about 100 miles of fun back roads away - what do you need? Others who are closer include the Ztherapy crew and beandip, among many others.

That is a very common bumper replacement - but will not pass impact testing. It is available at the catalog link I posted above.

It is an over-simplification to say that the body-shell was unchanged from '70-78, but the the basic shell design is all the same. Lots of detail changes like bumper mounts, etc. A good site to begin your research is at http://zhome.com/ as a single point with many easily located FAQs and such. Much easier to get the basics from than using the Search here. As an introduction to what is available, try looking through the online catalog at http://www.thezstore.com/page/TZS/CTGY/70-96 (a site sponsor). While these people don't have everything, nor are they always the best place to get parts, the catalog will give you an idea of what you can expect to buy off-the-shelf. There are several bolt-in (more or less) V8 kits for Z cars. You may wish to read through this site as well, as a start: http://www.jagsthatrun.com/Pages/Datsun_Z_V-8.html

If a V8-powered Z in the style of the picture is your goal, I'd recommend using one of the later 280Zs as a platform. There were many improvements over the lifespan of the original Z body that make a later car (say, '77 or 78) a better starting point. The 280Zs will all have rather large bumpers, but those can easily be replaced by the aftermarket parts used on the picture car, or something else similar. But the later cars are (slightly) less rust-prone, have better wiring, many will have stronger diffs, etc.

Merged the pair of identical threads.

Those may be the best looking skunk stripes I've EVER seen on an S30! I love how they start at the hood bulge and don't extend down the rear valance. Well done!

I was also disappointed in the Mitty coverage. While Ron's car was pictured, I don't recall any ink on it.

There should have been a pair of shipping tie-downs (note - tie-downs, not tow hooks) when the car was new, one per side. They were supposed to have been removed by the selling dealer prior to delivery to the buyer (during PDI). So the strictly correct answer for a correctly prepped and delivered 240Z is that they should not be on the car at all. But in the real world, many cars were delivered to owners with one or both of the rear tie-downs in place, as the PDI guys got lazy and did not take the time to remove them. My car still had both rears and the left front tie-down still in place when I got it in 2006, for example. (Note - there was no right front tie-down, they used the real frame-mounted tow hook instead.) If you only had one rear tie-down on yours, that means the PDI guy removed one of the rears, but not the other. If so, I'd guess that your single one was on the left side, as that one is much more time-consuming to remove with the exhaust in place. If a lazy PDI guy is going to remove one and skip the other, the left one would have been the one to skip.

Flights?!? It wouldn't count if I didn't drive my car...

Damn! I'd have to leave right away if I was going to be there by 10:00 tomorrow and still get any sleep tonight. And since I'm at work today...

I don't think the Zombi has either. But it wouldn't take to much development to install some sort of small electric-powered heat pump, I suspect. But I agree with the above thought - the sound of my Z with the windows down is one of the great things about it.

Here's a PBS video segment on the car in question. May help some. UAYrsEOxqYc

Sorry, doesn't wash. If you had said, "not for many years" or "not for a long while" instead of "NEVER", I might have been able to strain a bit and buy it. But the use of the absolute ("NEVER") indicates either omniscience or opinion. Since neither you, I, nor any human are omniscient, opinion it must be. Calling it fact doesn't make it so.<hr> Back on topic - regardless of opinions about the present viability of electric cars for daily use, the White Zombi (which I have seen in person) is an interesting example of home-grown engineering and ingenuity. The fact that it started life as a Datsun is almost inconsequential - it could have been built on any number of different chassis. But logically, the choice of a B110 makes sense - it is simple, affordable, light-weight and rear wheel drive. And unlike most purpose-built race cars, the very nature of the electric car is such that the Zombi can be (and frequently is) driven as a daily around-town car. Totally tractable and civilized. The fact is, should electric vehicles ever become more mainstream, it will be in part because of the enthusiasm and innovation of people like John Wayland.

Deep Purple - either Smoke on the Water or Highway Star. Both on the album Machine Head.

I'm THIS close to locking this thread. Let's get back on topic. It was started as a discussion of one particular electric Datsun. Not to say whether electric is the future, whether electric can replace IC, and certainly not about where drilling should be allowed. So if we can get back on topic, this will stay open. First move back into off-topic stuff and I'll close it off.

Converted to images so everyone doesn't have to download them.

Yup.

I could have sworn the Toyota shanks were not the same diameter, but I'll take your word for it, Jon. Please ignore my previous post!

I've never seen the Nissan factory-style mag lug nuts in any other thread in all my years in wheels and tires.

Call them and ask them??

The "tweak and peek" method never works, in my experience. Try this instead - http://www.classiczcars.com/forums/showpost.php?p=301600&postcount=27