240znz

As I need some advise on the resto on mine, I'll contact the owner of "HOTZED" and ask if he will release the info. I'll keep you posted via PM. I've been waiting for an excuse to see this green beast in the flesh.

NEVER LOOK AT POTENTIAL PURCHASE WHEN ITS DARK!!!!!! You will most certainly miss the little areas that could make all the difference. What you should also do is go down to the post office with the rego plate no. in hand. Pay them $3 and show some ID and you will get a VIN confirmation and the owners name and address. Ask the owner to confirm the name and address in some way. That way you know that the person in genuine. It also means that you can confirm the VIN....zweet!!!! I used this when buying my ZED. Better to be safe than sorry. You can also get full owners history online. Have you done that? It will show you if indeed it was imported and where it has spent its life.

Ask him why the underside of the bonnet is painted as well. Check the paint code. It is located on the radiator.

GET IT UP IN THE AIR AND LOOK UNDERNEATH IT !!!!!!!!!! Take it for a full inspection at a Vehicle Testing Station, if the owner objects, then can it. They will get go through it well and help you to make a more informed decision of its worth. Ask them to perform a compression test for you also. Yes it will cost you a little but I don't imagine you have costed parts from outside NZ yet. Part prices are OK but freight is a real killer. Brake vacuum hose from inlet manifold to booster (without the check valve) will set you back $150....yikes!!!! $11500 is up there. For that you should expect a very clean and original example. There is a 73 here in chch that has had a full body resto back to bare metal and he has come down from 26K(what was he thinking!) to 14K I think. I know that it will cost you more than 2500 to get to the same condition. I'll drag out his details if you want, not too sure if its sold or not though. Rust will be an obvious one for you being from Invercargill. So be careful to look at all the usual water pooling spots. Lift up the door rubber seals and look for surface rust in the seams. Water can track under the rubber and munch away happily. Make sure everything electrical works, including the gauge backlight dimmer. The reostat is a huge PITA to replace (small japanese fingers and olympic standing skills are required). Heh, if it were in chch then I'd be happy to help you check it out. Good luck and keep us posted. James

I lowered my old Datsun 1200 coupe by installing Hillman Avenger rear springs in the front after gas axing 2.5 coils off. The result was great except for the fear of the coil jumping out off the tower base when I got the car in the air over a hump. You MUST to get the coil under tension or it could cause a very nasty crash. Yes it handles great but it was a major worry. Face it, you WILL dirve this car to the limit on occasion, so why not do it right and negate the possible risks. Save you money until you have enough for coilovers. Not too sure about the camber change as you have so much already. You could slot the tower holes or I heard of the struts being bent to get the extra. Where are you planning on using it James

Heh TRS, How are the new seals? Are they what you expected? Did they fit OK? I'm thinking of buying from VB or MWZ, so any feedback would be great. Cheers James

I agree with many others in saying paint it what you want. You really only have to answer to yourself. It is yours! Be careful when selecting the colour though. Darker colours will show all the little dents more than a lighter colour. So that will mean longer prep times for you or your wallet. Metallic shows up more too vs flat colours. My Zed is a colour that I am not happy with. I may every intention of changing it to a colour that I want. Only problem is that I have changed my mind twice already and I haven't completely striped the car. Geeeeezzzzzzzzzzzzz!

Well done on the safe arrival Allan. My son weighed in at 2lbs 14oz. He was a wee bit unwell but now he is a boucing 2 year old. The best thing about low birth weights is that they stay babies longer. I know that sounds like a silly thing to say but kids do grow up too fast. Many congrats and it DOES get easier. :sleepy: :sleepy: :sleepy:

Hard luck about the Camry. We have a novel solution to helping young drivers here in Christchurch, New Zealand. The Police hired out the local rac e track and invited all the "boy racers" in their skylines, 240SX's and alike for a all day blast. The Police and car club organisers were very surprised with the amount of control that these guys had. So much so that they are going to make in a regular event to encourgage track time. Only one lad rolled his SX and totalled it. There is no insurance for cars that are on the track. So that is also a very expensive leason. So Mark.......be thankfull that your son didn't take the Zed to the track....... :sleepy: :dead:

Isn't New Zealand in a remote part of Prince Edward Island? :stupid:

Those door external handles break easy of you force the handle from the outside. The diecast metal is very weak. Either the lock mechanism is full of dirt, or the lock plate isn't adjsted properly. This is the usual cause of the lever breaking on the cavity side of the door handle. You can do one of three things. Not on budget - Buy and fit a new handle (not very expensive from MSA or VB..somewhere around $15. Have budget but want less work - pull the door handle and make up a steel repair brace and fit it to the broken flange. Have budget and time - swap door handles as they are fit on both sides and then you will have a non-broken one. I did the 2nd option but I will be buying new ones when I get the car repainted. My handles are scratched to bits but I need was sick of using the passenger side to gain entry. I would urge you to remove the entire door lock mechanism and wash it out and re-grease it. It will work like new. It doesn't take long.

Panic over then....... I have a transition car between the S1 and S2. It has some starnge things in it that I am finding that my Haynes manual doesn't cover. There is certainly more to these cars than meets the eye. Cheers:classic: :classic: :classic:

Reading the old post it details that there should be a expansion tank behind the RHS rear side panel. I don't have one in my 71. Did some 70/71 240's come without expansion tanks or maybe the PO removed it. Help :mad:

Having a little fuss deciding if the change out to the later model master brake cylinder (MBC) would be a good idea in my series 1 240. Have a S1 240z with a "passed its best" MBC. The PO gave me a new later model MBC and I'm thinking of installing it. Apart from the swapping of lines, what else could be an issue. Bambikiller240 posted this reply. Can you assist us to expand the knowledge base.

Will the length of the servo pushrods have any effect though? Was there any changes to the front or rear brakes from S1 240's to S2 240's that would prehibit the use of S2 master cylinders???

Has anyone purchased from the company before? If so then could you give us an idea of what they are like to do business with? What is the product like? What is the quality like? Are the panels a like fit? After sales service? Do they have any nasty gremlins lurking there? Would you buy again? Cheers

Cheers Carl, I could have cocked that right up if I hadn't known they swapped them around. The car will be totally stripped then put back together. I'll see how the budget is before installing new lines. Problem is that the more you look into these cars, the more the re-build budget creeps up..........arrrggghhhhhhh.

Cheers Abas, I thought they would be but I had to make sure. I have a master brake cylinder for a 72-73 240 that the PO hadn't fitted. He got it in the US. It looks different to the 70-71 and my VB catalog confirms that they are different. The VB catalog also tells me that the 72 costs 69.95 and the 70-71 costs 189.95. Yikes. Will I have issues if I fit the later cylinder to my 71 ZED? eg brake pressue problems? The only cosmetic difference is that the fluid reservoir is larger.

Looking to order in some replacement heater hoses. The VB catalog is for LHD cars, are the hoses identical for RHD 240's? I'm guessing they are, but just want to be sure before I take the plunge. Thx

Welcome. Great to learn that another low VIN is being saved. I have #352 and the colour is baffling me somewhat. I call it a plum colour but mine has a metallic fleck in it also. You should be able to confirm the colour my looking at the paint code sticker on the radiator. Post a pic of it and also some of the car when you can. My radiator has been recored and the sticker has been painted over....damn that PO. Cheers, James

Cheers