new member long time owner

[Thecabtsmith]

Well hello everyone,

I have really been enjoying the technical information and community here.

Its been a blast checking out all the z's. So here we go...

I bought my 71' z when I was 20 years old. The paint was cracked all over due to a really poorly done paint job. The clutch was slipping, but the interior was in pretty good shape and she ran well overall. I borrowed $800 from my then girlfriend to help pay for the car. She was a daily driver for the next 4 years. I found a great mechanic, and spent every extra dime I had fixing her up. It was a really early 71. still had the vented rear hatch and the 240z emblem behnd the rear window.

Unfortunately I blew a head gasket and she spend several months in the garage. I decided to save money and do the work myself. Several months later I took it to a shop so they could reassemble the parts and get her running. (I wont go into the details...but a manual would have been helpful)

Again drove her for another year or so.

One beautiful day I called Greg Scott at Scott Performance. He was the mechanic I used when I first bought the car, but I had moved about an hour away. Foolishly other mechanics touched my baby...causing the phone call. He told me about this motor he wanted to put into a z. It was a 3.1 liter.

That saturday my wife and I met Greg at his shop. We went over possible configurations of heads and othe juicy options. I decided it was also time for the paint to be fixed. After many hours of going over options...and many days of me kissing my wifes arse(yes this is the same woman I borrowed the money from to buy the car originally, and no I never paid her back:)), I called him and setup a day to drop off the car.

Many thousands of dollars later...not to mention the 3 months of waiting, I went to pick her up. I had her painted Lexus pearl white. I have actual photos, but I need to scan them to post...I will have to work on that. Anyway words cannot describe the differences in the handling and power.

The motor was brand new from Nissan. The motor was strong, but took a few thousand miles to really show its potential. I put it on a dyno and it averaged 189 rwhp. One day at the mechanics, we were discussing what the engine would be like if we installed a cam. After thinking it over he had a am taken from a 280 that was built. The guy went to a bigger cam and this one was almost new. We swapped it in(he did it, I paid for it), and what a difference.

Before the car really pulled off the line to about 4500 rpm. With the cam it pulled hard all the way to 7000 rpm!!! The torque was incredible. This was still my daily driver and I loved every day I had to work. I drove the car from California to Washington a couple of time. Even drove cross country to the midwest. (Got arrested at 3am on a deserted highway. Car impounded till they could wake the Judge. Apparently 130mph was not appreciated in Kansas)

Anyway paid the fine, finished the trip.

Sold the car when I found out my wife was pregnant with our second child. Too many bills to pay. Mortgage to high blah blah blah....

Now its the second time around.

Its been almost eight years since I sold my z. I just purchased another 71 a couple weeks ago. build date 3/71 hls30-025xxx. I dont have it in front of me, but if interested I can post actual sn. I feel like a giddy school kid with a new christmas present.

I live in Western Wa. and the moisture up here can be tough...this one has some issues, but overall is a survivor. I have a great neighbor that is going to show me how to do the body work, and I plan on doing alot of the wrenching on this one. I LOVED my old z, but I didn't build it...and when people asked about it I didn't have all the answer because my mechanic built it. I have alot to learn, and a long way to go.

I posted picks of the car in my gallery. It ran when I bought it, but I am plagued with another blown head gasket. Found a running engine on craiglist for $100.00. Bought new Tokico Illumina shocks and springs and new urethane bushings. Should do the trick while I pump out the original motor, and save for paint.

Lucky me:)...glad to be here:D

[gogriz91]

Post some pics, I'd love to see the car. Western WA would be a great place to enjoy your Z, you only need the heater to work!

[Carl Beck]

Hi Gregg:

Great story - you were born about the same time as the Z. Might as well go right for the 3.1L again... Good luck with your project.

FWIW,

Carl B.

[Thecabtsmith]

Well here are some photos of the car. As you can see the previous owner welded on a new battery box. Did an ok job, but didn't clean up the welds at all. Later on we found the entire box in the wheel well was siliconed in. He did the welding, but instead of using autobody caulk he just used a silicone caulk. That was all painstakingly removed. Welding new piece in back corner in order to finish the job properly. Por15 entire area including top of body under the fenders on both driver and passenger side.

We removed the front suspension in order to change the bushings and new shocks and springs from Tokico. I went for the adjustable Illumina series, and Energy suspension poly bushings. It's also time to clean up 37 years of road grime and neglect. Quick paint job. and back to work. should make a big difference.

Let me also mention this car is a daily driver. I work 6 miles from work, so mileage wont be bad, but I thought I would mention this so you understand why some things weren't done yet. I need this baby on the road soon!

[Thecabtsmith]

Here are some of the latest photos. Front Suspension rebuilt and installed.

finished welding of battery box, Por15, primered and painted. Finished one side rebuilding lower fender mount area...

I realized I never mentioned after driving the car for 3 days the winshield wiper motor stopped working. It was very slow to start with, but the plastic gear stripped out. Found a motor at the pick and pull from a 77 280z. The motor itself was different, but I took it apart and found the plastic gear is the same but installed upside down on this motor!!??!?! Anyway swapped out the gear and it works now...still slow of course.

Thanks to everyone posting about the Honda civic wiper motor. I picked one of those up the same day, and will make those modifications toward the end of summer.

Once this was fixed, I drove to work the next day only to find the head gasket was leaking:disappoin Found another motor on craigslist for $100.00. Apparently rebuilt with only 40k on it. Guy said he replaced motor with hi perf engine...and then sold car w/o engine....we will see:paranoid:

Thanks again for all the old threads about reviving an aged engine. My new one(which looks very clean inside) has been sitting for about 3 1/2 years.

I appreciate any comments or advise. I am a professional woodworker. This automobile/metal thing is new to me. I have never done this much work to a car before in my life. (I always paid someone else to do it.)

[EScanlon]

Doing the Honda Wiper upgrade will NOT solve problems if you do not clean the wiper pivots themselves.

While you have the linkage arms out, clean and lube the connecting ball and rods as well.

FWIW

E

[Thecabtsmith]

Thank you....great advise. I'll add that to the checklist of things to do. The list keeps growing, but that just means I'm learning more about me car:)

[EScanlon]

Just to clarify my points on the pivots: This means DISASSEMBLING them.

The pivot shaft through the holder is notorious for getting real S T I F F with age and with both corrosion and old hardened grease. Just by disassembling, cleaning, and re-lubricating alone people have had good results on their OEM wiper motor (including myself).

I vaguely recall an article by Bambikiller 240 (RIP) on the total disassembly and re-build of the system. Otherwise someone else may have downloaded a copy.

FWIW

E