280z1975

Ok, for those of you out there who don't like the look of the 280z bumpers, you won't get any argument from me. But I still have to say that I love them ... So yesterday I was just coming back from the store and my neighbor at my apartment complex (a small building of only 12) asked if she could park in the spot on the street I just took (she tends to part there most of the time) and I had no problem with that as there was plenty of other parking available. Well right behind that spot was sitting my 280z. So as I pull out of the spot I watch her in my rear view back into the place I was occupying and then all of a sudden she bumps my 280z!! I watched it move over 2 feet! luckily I hadn't set it in gear and the parking break wasn't pulled to hard (all the streets are quite flat). I swear I just about had a heart attack! She wasn't going that fast and the weight of the car combined with the rolling and the 80 lbs bumpers absorbed all the impact (I guess they really are 5mph bumpers!). She got out of her car and was like, "Oh, did I hit your car?" I was like, "Yea, it rolled back 2 feet!". She went on to explain that she didn't realize my bumper stood out that much and how long the front of my car was. She isn't the brightest one in the apartment. Anyways. The car is fine and all is well, less a some skipped heart beats. I had thought about going bumper less on my car, but I don't think that will happen. If I get rid of the original bumpers I am still going to fashion some sort of bumper system on the car!

Just what I was thinking ... paperwork, dealing with 2 countries on the start and another one that is full of more paperwork on the other. This will be a fun time! What I am willing to do for my Z!

Oh yea, one other thing ... does anyone know if, or how long, I can drive my car, with Texas plates, in Europe. I saw a New York plated Land Rover while in Paris in November. talk about doing a double take while walking around! :surprised :surprised :surprised I assume you just need to have an insurer who will and is willing to cover you within the EU.

I hope someone out there will know the answer of this question. Currently I am located in Hamilton, Ontario (an hour from the border with Niagara Falls, NY). My car is registered and has Texas plates as I haven't imported it into Canada (it's here like me, as a 'visitor') while I was waiting on my immigration paperwork. But now that plan is stopped as I am moving to europe (see post above). Now, can I ship my car and household goods from Canada, or do I have to ship from the US (buffalo??). I can't seen to find an answer to this question online ... -Gregg-

I agree, but it still doesn't take away from the fact there WILL STILL BE STUFF in the tank, which will cause problems later ... Ryan, everyone here will help out in any way they can, and people here have been wrong in a diagnosis on before. The website is a Wikipedia of car knowledge, experience, and mechanics ...now that the car is running, make sure to drive it at least once a week (Z cars like to be driven) and if you have the time focus on one weekend project each week day (drop the tank and have it cleaned; replace fuel filters; clean, test and if necessary repair electrical connections). Your Z will thank you, you will have less trouble with the car and spend your time enjoying the car and not having it being repaired or stressing over it's problems. A Z is always a great present! PS: I would also suggest you drive the car around for a while, 3-6 months, before you start any major restoration/renewal. Also start a list of things that you notice that need to be repaired.

I would suggest you search the forums over at hybridz.org (http://forums.hybridz.org/) as they specialize in the modification of Z cars more than this site, which has more focus on the restoration of Z cars. I use both sites, as each has it's specialty.

Well it looks like my wife and I will be moving to Europe (Belgium) during the year. It's going to be a permanent move, so I REALLY want to take my Z with me. I would like to hear recommendations for shipping companies? The costs involved, the issues, etc. ... I am planning on shipping in a 20 foot container and packing some extra stuff with us (family stuff, clothes, etc.). I figure this is the best and cheapest method. Thanks for any help in advance.

Most Z's are reliable, but you should always have a back up plan when your car is 35+ years old, no matter the make or model. My Z is a semi-daily driver, as I have a regular car a share with my wife. It's much more reliable for the long trips and a bit more room. Also, as stated before, driving your Z in the winter is not a good thing ... water can get in different areas and combined with the salt leads to problems. These cars won't last forever, but they can and will outlast you if the are taken care of properly. My Z is currently off the road till the snow stops.

My friends who have GPS (I have yet to find 300 bucks extra that I wouldn't rather put into my Z) all have used glass mount ones. They work fine and keep the GPS at eye level.

I think if there was a separate forum, where people could post what they have seen in a car with photos and their opinion of a car that would be VERY helpful. The last thing we want is a person feeling bad about buying a Z car then giving up on the car and letting it go out to pasture at the junk yard. As they say in Dragnet, "Just the facts Ma'm" REAL PHOTOS, taken from the angle of someone who is going to buy a car and NOT someone who is going to sell it will tell more than most opinions can. I can take a real junker of a car and photograph it to look much better than it actually is in person. Same goes with a house ... how many of us when looking for a house have seen the house photos online then scratched your heads when you saw the place in person. Same goes for cars ...

I am in the Austin area for Christmas with the family and would like to know if there are any junk yards with some 280, or 240,260 z's in them. I am looking for some arm rests and a few other small misc. stuff. Up in Canada where I am most of the year there are very few to be found. -Gregg-

I will second this opinion as there was A LOT of rust build up in my Z's tank when I got it. And it's tank was boiled before it was stored and it stayed in a garage for four years. I probably got out two full hand fulls of rust. If this doesn't work there might be a wiring issue, but since you Z runs then cut's out, it is a fuel delivery issue. The fuel injectors might also be an issue since they are fairly old.

I think I know my next Z upgrade ... Christmas is going to come early :laugh: Thanks for the heads up ...

I quickly cut and pasted the BEFORE and AFTER photos of the spring change for those involved ... this is something I will definatly do on my Z when the time and money happen ...

If anyone goes to save parts to these cars I am looking for a few small things. No rush on getting them to me as it's winter time here and the Z is stored for the next two months. PM me if you plan to go and I will give you a list. Thanks in advance ...

I to have pondered doing this upgrade, but have sidelined it for the million and one other things I want to do to my 280z. You might find the answer you need using the search feature on this site, or another Z site, Hybrid Z @ http://forums.hybridz.org/ ... this site deals more with the upgrade and modification of Z's as apposed to this site which is more the restoration aspect. Both sites do cross a little into the others strong points at times though, so they are both worth searching. Hope this helps.

Crap! I was watching Dream Car Garage last night but didn't see any Z's as I was switching around and eventually turned off the TV. What a shame ...

I saw a show the other day on Primordial Dwarfism the other day. http://www.primordialdwarfism.com/ It's one of the rarest of all the types of dwarfism and also the smallest. It's amazing how these people adapt to life and adjust. I think they would be able to fit inside the ferrari and be able to experience the thrill of driving a high performance car with this ferrari, which is something they would probably never get to experience. Still, imagine what kind of patience it took to do this ... way longer than a real restoration on a ferrari would have taken in my opinion.

Vince, As with any classic car there comes the times when they just don't seem worth it. But then you have a day like today where I took my Z out on the road and it was great. I really enjoy driving it despite some kinks it may have. Top it off with the fact I was complemented 3 times about what a cool car I have. Hang in there and sort out the issues. I still have to figure out why my car doesn't like to cold start well, why it only will wipe with the windshield wipers once when I turn them on and why my AC/Heater which worked before I took the car apart to refresh it won't turn on? It's a 30+ year old car, issues come with it, but try to take them in stride.

I don't know if you have done it, but make sure there are no oils or solvents on your painting surface. The differance between a surface treated with a good wax and grease remover and one that hasn't is crazy. Let us know how the painting goes, lots of people have been interested in this process on this and other forums.

Mull, You are my hero

If your connections seemed really bad before you cleaned them you might want to replace, not just clean, the connection heads as the rust can ruine the wire inside. There is an idle controle switch on the EFI cars, mostly for the cars with AC. It's so that when the AC goes on it will idle faster and create more power, maybe this is the source. There might also be a problem with the cold start valve which adds more fuel to the mix when you start the car. You can disconnect it from the car and see if the car runs any better. The valve is only supposed to work for 12 seconds and then turn off, but it could be bad. The EFI system is really realiable till something goes wrong, then it's just a pain in the a$$ compared to the carborator system which is much easier to trouble shoot, but can at times be unrealiable with some set ups.

That is a cool site, but it still doesn't have the right model year for me ... it has the 76 and 77 280z. It does have my other car, a 96 Sentra ... so I'm still glad you posted it.

Everyone, I am looking for a 75' FSM for a 280z in PDF. I have the hard copy but it's about 25+ years old and is falling apart quickly with some pages missing and most out of order. I want to buy a 75 FSM in PDF so I can print them out and put it all in a binder and if a page goes missing or is damaged, I just print a new one. Courtesy Nissan has the CD's on the site, but the currently unavailable and it says 4-8 weeks till they come back ... I think I remeber someone telling me have been NLA for a while. Also I have been unable to find a 75' FSM in PDF from ebay. Anybody got any ideas on where to locate one? Thanks for the help...