240Z BRE Replica Build-Continued

[SpeedRoo]

I would probably print them in ASA. The mirror bracket will need some supports under it when printing, you 3D print guy should know what to do. Also check your tolerances on the file to allow for some shrinking when printing. The choke panel could easily have the BRE 240Z printed in colour if you wanted, see if your print guy can do it. Would look good with red white and blue lettering.

Roo

[motorman7]

I am getting close to the finish on this.  One of the items I had to do was install the door hinge detent springs.  Not sure why, but the hinges that were installed on the car did not have springs and detents once I received the car.  So, I removed the springs and detent from a later model car (different pin size) and drilled out the early model hinge to accomodate the larger pins.  Also painted parts white to match car color.  The only way to install the assembly was to remove the door as the the spring and detent assembly can most easily be installed when the hinge is in the closed position.  Door was removed very carefully with the help of my wife and bucket appropriatley sized for the door to rest on.  I installed the spring and detent on the bench after I drilled the holes for the larger pin.  Once the hinges were complete I re-assembled everything and re-aligned the doors.

   Once the car was color sanded and polished, I started applying the decals.  The larger ones were attached using a light soapy spray on the car before aligning and squeegying (learned this from youtube videos).  The smaller ones are easy enough to do without the spray.  location of the decals was done mostly by eyeballing on line pictures of the original car.  The number on the right front of the hood was the most difficult to install due to the curvature of the hood.  The rest were pretty straight forward.  The BRE on the fuel door worked out better than expected.  We did run into one issue as BRE accidently sent us the numbers for the 510 race car and not the 240Z.  The 510 numbers are about 20% larger than the 240Z numbers and obviously were oversized (see pics).  I contacted BRE and was advised to "cut the numbers with scissors" to make them fit.  Not the best customer service (my wife was a little more opinionated about their response so I will leave that out). Anyway, I had the owner contact BRE to work out the numbers issue, and the correct ones were sent a week later.  I am very happy with how everything turned out.  My first time installing vinyl decals.

I took the car to a local car show just to show it off.  Needless to say, the car went over very well with the spectators.  Boise likes flashy race cars....not so much original stock cars.

I installed two sets of seat belts.  Racing Sparco belts that can be unclipped, and an aftermarket roller tensioned belt system that is a bit closer to stock. 

The heater works great which is a good sign as it is part of the VintageAir system.  I still need to charge the AC system and also get the front end aligned.  I will use outside services for those.

All the electrical is in good shape.  The car has a number of aftermarket electrical items including the Headlight relay upgrade, parking light upgrade, and front blinker/running light upgrade.  All fairly easy to install, 2 independently fused for their respective relays.  The only item that took a little work was the front blinker/running light upgrade.  The housing of the running lights need to be electrically 'floating' and not grounded to the car body.  To make the housings electrically floating, I just oversized the holes in the running light housing so the 2 attach screws did not contact the body and ground it to the fender. 

I will continue to finish up some of the little details here.  Pics are below.  

[Patcon]

Beautiful work as always!

[motorman7]

2 hours ago, Patcon said:

Beautiful work as always!

Thanks! Wishing you and your family a great Christmas and New Year.

[Patcon]

59 minutes ago, motorman7 said:

Thanks! Wishing you and your family a great Christmas and New Year.

And you as well!

[gundee]

I'm curious. What paint colors did BRE use for the red car?

[Diegodonn]

The color codes are actually proprietary.  BRE won't release them unless you register a car with them.  And as such, I'm bound by licensing to not give them out.  Sorry 😉

[motorman7]

So I finally got the BRE replica Z finished up and sent off to the owner.  Below are some of the final pictures of the car and photos of the car in the trailer.  The Z and its' traveling companion, a SEMA McLaren, are headed on their way down to Texas.

Edited January 11, 2024 by motorman7
add picture

[grannyknot]

As always, beautiful work.   I think I would rather have the BRE Z than the McLaren,  more reliable.

[Patcon]

I agree, beautiful work as always!

[motorman7]

Thanks everyone.  I will probably take a short break here and then work on another. I really enjoy the entire restoration process. It's nice to have a hobby that you truly enjoy. Have a Happy New Year everyone 😊