bobc

Mark, after reading your post, I rest my case. Exactly the type of discouragement we don't need in the hobby. I hope you hang in there. I'm sure the people on this site will be glad to assist you whenever you need some advice or encouragement! Bob

Note the "dealer option" louvered hood, overspray on the paint job, filled in area in the rear hatch panel area, suspect rust in the drivers door sill area. Suspect battery area, etc. etc. etc. And this is a 2? http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Datsun-Z-Series-240Z-1973-Datsun-240-Z-61K-MILES-Super-Nice-Sports-Car_W0QQitemZ260190369499QQihZ016QQcategoryZ6187QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem Sorry for the rant, but I would hate for someone entering our hobby to get a lemon and then drop out of the Z community because they got burned by a description like this. I've seen it done twice before to young people and it just really ticked me off. We've lost them to what could have been the next generation of Z owners because of the bad experience they had with junk cars someone sold them. It broke my heart to tell them that their $8,000 purchase wasn't even worth half what they paid for it. Anybody disagree? BTW, I wrote the seller, but I doubt he'll respond or do anything to change his listing. Best, Bob

Carl, Just let me know which two you want and I'll get Tommy to bring them back with him the next time Randy buys something out here. Happy Thanksgiving from California to all the Classic Zcar Club members! :classic: Bob

What tire size do you guys recommend? It appears that 175X60X14 tires have very limited availability. Anybody got a good source for this size. If not what size and brand do you recommend?

Mike, Let me know your price. I'd like to buy maybe a half dozen myself. Thanks. Bob

This looks very similiar to the faceplate that came with the Vintage Z's that don't have factory radios. They are nice, but don't really look like the plastic piece. Much thicker and not quite the same appearance. If you looked through the driver's window at the radio, you would notice it's not quite right. Again, not bad, but not the same. Bob

I'm getting ready to paint my "D" hubcaps. Just wanted to see if anybody had any hints on getting the job done. So far, it appears that most are advocating just taping carefully. Any other suggestions? Thanks, Bob

It was on my watch list too. I wrote the seller the first night it was posted with some questions about the car, but never got a reply. If anyone learns what happened, please post an update. Best Bob

Chris, You don't have to look for HLS30011553 any longer. It's listed in Carl's web site, in Pete's book and resides in my garage from time to time when it's not in storage.... If you have any records related to it, I would greatly appreciate getting copies and would be happy to reimburse you for any costs to do so. Regards, Bob

Doug, Wasn't your car actually owned by the President of Nissan USA at the time? And I believe it was stored in the museum not a warehouse. I actually told Pete the number for the VIN in his book didn't belong to a VZ car. He was a bit surprised at first, but called his sources at Nissan who researched Doug's car and that's when the story of an Admiral owning it surfaced. Carl can come in here anytime, but I believe that's why some believe there are only 37 VZ cars, but I think Pete believes he just got one of the numbers wrong and there are 38. Bob

Randy, Hey if you're still looking for that 907 green there have been a couple on ebay in the last week or so that looked pretty good. I don't know if they sold or not. I don't think anyone (maybe Pete or someone at Nissan) knows the actual colors of all of the Vintage cars, because they were made at different locations. Pierre Z did most of them, so he could probably tell you how many 907's he did. The Green automatic was restored by Pierre and sold to a gentleman in NY. It was recently purchased by a collector in Atlanta, but I don't think he'd be interested in selling it. That's the only one I know of that was done in Green. There was a partially finished car that was going to be one of the Vintage cars that was 907 green. It wasn't finished when the program was shut down so it isn't considered one of the vintage cars. It, along with most of the parts to complete the assembly, sold on ebay for $18K about two years ago. Bob

My wife and I will keep and eye out in Orange County! Sorry for your loss. Been there done that many years ago.

Well, it sucked coming in second, but the buyer must have really wanted them. I bid $975!!! The good news is I found a set today in fully restored condition with new caps for $700. I was pretty disappointed last night, but feeling much better today! And, under the lesson's learned catagory. Alcohol and bidding on ebay do not mix! Bob

You guys are right. Lance was clear about the "kit car" conotation. They are pretty sensitive about it. I still want one, but I don't see this as an investment, just one heck of a lot of unadulterated fun!!! I'm just not sure it's worth that much, when I've got two Z's and other toys in the garage to play with! Sure wouldn't mind driving around in one though. They do have a/c! Bob

I'm 99.9% sure that's a Superformance Shelby Cobra Daytona Coupe. It's definitely not one of the 6 original cars. Interesting history on these new replicars. Superformance is the only company licensed by Shelby to make these and use the name as is underlined above. A man named Lance Stander bought Superformance from Hi-Tech (the company in South Africa that actually makes the rolling chasis). Superformance is the distribution company. Superformance's headquarters is about 20 minutes from my home and I visited them last Saturday. I got the bug for one of the coupes when I saw an original Cobra Daytona at the H.B. Concours. This was a very interesting car, because it was built on one of the original chasis and was made by Carol Shelby exactly like one of the orignal six. The guy who was showing it has a letter signed by Shelby dated in 2004 that certified it was an original chasis. I didn't drive one, but I did sit in the Coupe they are putting together for Carol Shelby himself (pssst...don't tell Shelby I did this!). Anyway, they are putting in an automatic transmission with paddle shifters for him. The workmanship on these cars is better than anything I've ever seen in a replicar before. Simply beautiful. The coupe will top out over 200mph. The chasis without engine or tranny is priced at $69K. With installation of a Roush engine and 6 speed tranny the out the door price is around $95-$100K. For what the car does in comparison to similiar cars, that sounded pretty reasonable. However, I'm probably going to pass. The more I thought about it, I just can't see these getting more valuable or even keeping most of their value (one was just on Ebay for $70K and didn't even get a bid), and the first time someone said something about "kit car" around it, I know I would kick myself. Opinions? So, sorry for the length of this, but thought some of you might be interested. Oh, at the H.B. Concours a very nice guy engaged some of us in conversation about our Z's. He went on to say he had one of the anniversary Gold/Black cars and he still missed it to this day. It was his favorite car and the best sports car he had ever owned...then, he went back to his gorgeous black Ferraii 308 he had entered in the show!!! True story! Bob

A.J. All the tips above are good ideas. I was able to get a box end wrench (craftsman) around the nuts, but I had to rotate the shaft around to find the best location to get the most leverage. It was a while ago, but I remember that I was able to get to two nuts at the 11 o'clock position and it seems the other two were either at 8 o'clock or 4 o'clock (sorry, don't remember exactly on the second set). Anyway, I was under the car for all four nuts. I put the wrench on the ones at 11 o'clock and then climbed under the car and pulled down (in gear, parking brake on) to get them to loosen. The other two I could get to from under the car and rotating the shaft until I got the best position (again seem's like it was 8 o'clock).

If it was an earlier Vette, sure I'd consider it. But the later 70's Vette's were dogs when it came to speed and realibility. Seems I recall they had some electrical problems, but I can't say that for sure. Check some Vette sites. Really heavy (nice ride), but not a sports car in my mind. At least you won't have to worry about body rust with a Vette! But for my money and I'm very familiar with both, I'd stick with the Z.

I've got a 134 system in my Vintage car and it works fine. All the parts were designed for 134, so it's not a retrofit of 134 parts in an original r12 system. I think MSA's system is the same thing, but I'm not sure on that one. Ask Sal at MSA. Bob

Randy, I've got the sandeen compressor kit one of my Z's and it works fairly well. I had the old York compressor on my original Z years ago and it worked ok, but I don't recall it being anywhere near as efficient as the new units. Check around and see how hard it's going to be to get an r-12 recharge in TN. In California it's next to impossible and if you can do it, you'll need a bank loan. Lastly, to avoid a possible unpleasant surprise and protect the environment, take the car to a shop that services a/c systems and make sure there's no freon left in the system. If there is, have them vacuum it out. You haven't said if your belt also drives anything else. On mine the compressor is on the driver side and it drives the smog pump too. Don't just take off the belt. Running the car without a belt on the smog pump, just screws up the smog system (especially the pump) over time. You'll need a smaller belt to keep the smog pump running. With your compressor being on the passenger side, I think your belt just drives the a/c. If so, just taking it off would be ok. My other Z doesn't have A/C. If you're selecting the day(s) you're going to drive your car, then I don't think having a/c matters that much. Just be prepared not to drive it on 95 degrees days! I think you'll find after you change to a 3 core radiator, you'll be fine. Bob

I think it depends on what car you are talking about. Big Blocks, convertibles, L-82's, and highly optioned Vettes are surely appreciating faster than the normal Z. Just look at the prices. Granted, I think the Z is a sleeper and someday will be appreciated for what it is really worth, but for right now I'd argue that any of the cars above, 1974 and earlier are a better investment. Bob

I drove a 1973 454 t-top Vette for 10 years as my daily driver from 76-86. I bought it after I sold my 1972 240z. I used to drag race with a friend of mine that had a stock 350 in his 69 Vette and we were about equal, but I don't think there was anyway my Z could have kept up with the 454. Handling wise, unless you want to go pretty fast (notice I didn't say very fast!) in a straight line, there is no comparison. The Z will outhandle the Vette in a heartbeat. Ride wise, the Vette is a big, heavy, smooth riding car. The Z, as you know, is a sports car. From 1973 forward the Vettes got more and more anemic, but the weight stayed pretty much the same, so an early 240Z or a 280z would probably outrun a later Vette. Embarrassing! Outside of the engine, expense wise, the Z is going to cost you a lot less to repair than the Vette. Get a Vette catalog and do some comparison shopping on parts. Investment wise, I'd have to say if you get a 454 or an L-82, I think you'll do better than a Z. There's still that Japanese thing going on with car values, even though I think the Z may come around one day. Which one would I pick today? Well, I've got 2 Z's in the garage and no Vette's

Like some of the rest of you, I've got a cabinet full of waxes and polishes. The Viper guys turned me onto Zaino about 9 years ago and I've used it ever since. I try others from time to time, but I seem to always come back to Zaino. My experience is you can get the depth if you put on multiple coats. I've put up to six coasts on at one time. It looks like the car is wet, slicker than snot, and lasts a good 3 months or longer. And last but not least, it is not a was or polish so it does not scratch the paint or take off any paint when you put it on. With clear coats these days, that's important to me. Bob

Matt, I just looked at some of your previous posts and realized that I know your car. I live in the same neighborhood where you bought the car. I was driving out of the neighborhood about six months or so ago and saw it parked in the driveway and the owner was outside, so I dropped by to talk and take a look. He said it was his wife's dad's car and he had passed away, so they were going to sell it. I think the guy wanted to keep and restore it, but his wife was hearing none of that. It dissappeared for quite some time after that and showed up about a month ago. I went by again when they were outside and she said they had put it in storage, but now were going to sell it, which is where I guess you came in. Rust wise, I remember the car to be in really good shape. The passenger fender was bent upwards, but I thought it could be pulled down without any body work. The only negative I recall was it was apparent that someone had played around with some of the wiring under the dash and console. It had a non-Nissan electric fuel pump and a few other wires that were a bit out of place. The only problem with working on something like that, is only the guy who did the wiring knows what he did and no schematic is going to help. You'll just have to trace wires to figure out what they do. PITA (if you know what I mean). This could be part of your fan problem. Sorry, I didn't mean this to be so long. I'll still be glad to help, but the electrical stuff won't be fun...If you can make it back to the same neighborhood, you're good to go. Bob, P.S. When you're ready to have it painted, I've got a really good connection.

Hey Matt, Just saw your post. I'm in Orange, Ca. If you want me to take a look at it just let me know. I'll check out the linkage, try to set up the carbs, check and adjust dwell and timing for free, and I promise the work will be worth what you paid for it! :laugh: I do 99% of the work on my 70 and 71. Seriously, I haven't touched flat top carbs in a long, long time, but I'm willing to give it a go if you are. I still have the manuals. Just remember, you get what you pay for and I'm not making any guarantees! Send me a phone number by PM if interested and I'll give you a call. Bob

I think Arne may have this one diagnosed. Sounds like a battery to me. Have you tried to jump it or replaced the battery? A quick test would be to jump it from another battery. If it starts and runs well, you can pretty much say it's the battery.