Anyone bought their old z back years later?

[ZCarLife]

I was wondering about this because I wonder how my 77 or 78 280z is doing these days. Got it in high school and had it during part of college. Loved that car, sold it to a 15 or 16 year old guy and his dad. But now I'm looking for a new baby and wondered if anyone had any stories (and pics) of z's that they used to have and then got back at one point or another.

I'm sorry if my topic isn't right for this section, I'm very new to this site..

-C

[Oiluj]

I looked for my first 240Z, but with no luck. My 2nd Z is certainly scrap metal after it was totaled while parked. I settled with the insurance company, fixed it up, but it was never the same. It was bent and the doors and hatch wouldn't seal properly, even with new gaskets.

I finally sold it, (with full disclosure), to a young airline pilot who wanted a car he could leave in airport parking lots year-round without any worry. I saw it about 4 years later and it had small amounts of visible rust in the usual spots. I expect it's in Datsun heaven now...

[george71z]

Best story I ever heard about this came to me at a local car show. Seems a young soldier just back from Vietnam bought a 70 240-Z, and had it a short time, before he was sent back for another tour. Not wanting to just sell the car to anybody, he sold it to an Army buddy. One thing led to another and the second tour turned into a military career. Shift to the late nineties. The now-retired soldier was looking for a vintage truck to work on as a project. Found one on-line and he and his son drive to the west coast to check it out. It didn't meet his expectations, so he decided to take a tour of the Ca. wine country on his way back to Fla. While passing through one town, he remembers that this was his old buddies hometown. Lo and behold, he still lived there and was a successful restauratour(?sp) They went to his home for dinner, and after, the friend said, 'I have a surprise for you'. In the garage was the Z. Still stock, unrestored, and in perfect condition. It was sold back to it's original owner for the same price it was sold to the second owner. ($3,400?) It was then DRIVEN back to Florida, with no problems, where it resides today, and sometimes comes out to car shows. ( No, it is not my car. But it is a great story.)

[Pleiner87]

Not as great as the last one but still... Back on Dec/22/2005 I had found a 240Z at a little sleazy car lot in the city and had told my dad about it. We wanted a project to work on and for him to relive his Z days (bought a early 260 new had it till it rusted completely out) we went and looked at it and could not beleive what good unrestored condition it was in, we put money down on it but the battery was dead so as part of the deal the seller would put a new one in it. Here comes Christmas eve my dad gets a call on the phone from the dealer saying "someone broke into my lot and stole 3 cars... the Z was one of them", Yeah right. We got the money back and started looking for another Z, weeks later we found a late 260 and brought it back to original condition. Just back in June I was surfing the web and came across an ad on our local Z club website (Gateway Z Club) and saw an ad describing with no pics what sounded like the 240. Checked Creigslist and boom pics of the Z... It was IT! Years later the Z is MINE, the car thought to be gone for good is back, but now in my hands! And when we were first looking at the Z I had grabbed the owners manual, warranty/radio/Ac booklets which I was able to reunite with the Z. So Thats my story

http://www.flickr.com/photos/42150949@N07/sets/72157622312413735/

Edited September 23, 2009 by Pleiner87

[z2go]

My 72 Z was originally bought by a family friend of my step-dad's when he was young. He bought it when he was in high school from that family friend, and had it until he married my mom, when he sold it to his buddy on the stipulation that if he ever wanted to sell it, he would come back to my dad first. Sure enough, a decade or so later, he wanted to sell it, and my dad bought it back. At this point, I was in Junior High, and fell in love with the car. I somehow convinced my dad to sell it to me in my senior year of high school, at which point I drove it for a year and the summer after high school I started to tear it down a bit for some replacement bushings, motor work, etc. I ended up joining the Air Force, and my dad graciously bought the car back from me in its half-dismantled state, and it sat on a concrete slab on jack stands for about eight years. He had planned on resurrecting it, but never got around to it. Finally I got stationed back in the area about a year and a half ago, and he offered me the car back again, with no price tag, just the title and the hopes that it would be back on the road again. So, the car is once again mine, going through rehabilitation, and will probably stay in the family for another 30+ years!

[Galaxybj]

Here is a link to a thread about how I got my first Z back http://www.classiczcars.com/forums/showthread.php?t=31481. Here is a link to the story as Carl Beck documented the trip to pick her up for me http://zhome.com/Carl/BJ71Z/FindingAnOldFriend1.htm. Bought new July 1971 in Spokane Wa., sold in June 1984 in Kennewick,Wa and found in August 2008 in Georgia. All the stars in the universe seemed to have aligned for me to get her back.,

[e-tek]

I was going to buy mine back - but it rusted to nothing before I could!

[mylar]

I've lost track of mine but have often wondered about the stories it could tell (or the past owners could tell) about where it has traveled and who's been in it all these years.

[WDILL]

I bought my 1970 Vin 3435 from Jack Ingram Motors, Montgomery, Al 15 Aug 1970. I had followed a fellow AF Flight School class mate from Craig AFB, Selma, AL to Montgomery to leave his car for some work over the weekend. While waiting for him I toured the showroom and noticed a car I had not een before. i asked a salesman what it was . He explained that the 240Z had just came to the states that year rom Japan. The price tag was about $3000 and since I didn't see any on the lot, I asked if it was available. He said it was special ordered by a dentist but had been on th floor for over 2 weeks. He went to check on the car and came back to say it was available, the dentist did not like the white exteriorwith blue interior and had ordered another.

I traded my Ford Fairlain on the spot and drove back to Selma with my new 240Z. (See first photo)

After getting married and having our first child we decided we needed more room and traded the Z for a station wagon. Scott Gregory, a lieutenant going through flight school, bought the Z and on graduation he stayed at Selma as a Flight Instructor and happened to move next door to me on base. I saw "my Z' everyday until leaving in July 1975.

In August 1989 I was stationed at Shreveport, LA and received a letter from Scott who was an airline pilot. He used the AF personnel system to forward the letter to me. He stated he was selling the car which was still his dailey driver and wanted me to have first choice on buying it. My wife said lets go get it! I made a deal with Scott to buy it for $3000 the same as I paid when it was new.

We went to Dallas and picked up the car and all the parts Scott had saved. He still had all the original paperwork, keys, warrenty book in my name, plastic warrenty card in my name, showroom brochure that I had left with the car, maintenance receipts and log that he had kept up to date for 27 years. My wife followed the Z which I was driving and said when we got home that if she could have caught me in Dallaswe would have given the car back to Scott since tears were rolling down his cheeks as we drove away.

Eighteen years later (see second picture), I decided I needed to do some serious work on the car or find someone to do it for me). I started sanding and priming (see third picture). I found Garvin Hershey at Rod Shop of Memphis who agreed to do the restoration (of course for a good price). The car went to the shop April 2007. (picture four).

Hopefully the car will be ready in the spring so I can make to Nashville for the convention. (see picture five and six).

More pictures at www.rodshopofmemphis.com.

Wally

[WDILL]

I'll have to resubmit pictures.

Wally

[WDILL]

Here are the pics.

[sblake01]

I tried for years to find the 70 240z I bought back in the day (1970) and sold less than two years later (back to the dealership I bought it from) but I've concluded that it's just not around anymore.