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HybridZ

1973 240Z LS1 V8 swap


saki302

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What do you all think of this one?  

 

https://inlandempire.craigslist.org/cto/6001952399.html

 

1973 Datsun 240z.

ls1 5.7 liter v8 from a 2001 trans am

t56 6 speed transmission ground control coilovers with hyperco springs,

front sway bar with all polyurethane bushings, most suspension parts are brand new.

Adjustable lower control arms, j30 disc brakes all around, big brake kit in the front. champion 3 row radiator with dual fan shroud,

r230 v LSD differential with q45 axles,

msd high pressure fuel pump, unitrax one piece driveshaft.

 

Tire size is 245 24 17 in the front and 275 40 17 in the rear (fenders are rolled but look stock. Fresh Datsun orange paint job 5 months ago. Interior is all stock and in great shape with the exception of an intersport made in France steering wheel.
The car has no issues whatsoever. The car was tuned by Izzy Performance and made 305 wheel horsepower.

 

 

 

Seller knows his price is very high, and may have substantial room in it-  what would be a fair price to pay?

 

After the last 2 garbage scows I looked at, this one does look promising- I'd rather pay more (reasonably) for a well sorted car.  Even if I do prefer carbs and mechanical fuel pumps :D

 

Please don't be shy in pointing out defects.  Not sure if it's just me, but the dash looks like it has a cover over the top?   I quite like the outside, but the inside is a little 'red' for my taste, though I could deal with it.

 

A good friend of mine is pushing me toward an LS car- he knows how to tune and turbo them- he has a 10 second Holden he drives daily! (Doubt the Z needs that kind of power)

 

Thanks!!

 

-Dave

Edited by saki302
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I think this is by far the nicest one you've posted. Yes, the dash has a half dash cap (only the top half). Really common since Z dashes usually crack. If you don't like it you can take it off and either have the dash restored or try one of the DIY dash restoration methods posted either here or on classiczcars. The interior is a bit red, but that's easily fixed. You probably want better seats anyway. Door panels you can recover. I think MSA sells the vinyl.

 

I don't think I've heard of anyone using J30 disc brakes, but those front brakes look like the 13" kit that Modern Motorsports use to sell. You can see the logo on the rotor hat.

 

Engine bay looks a little messy, but as long as nothing is suspect, then I'd go for it. Paint looks good from here.

 

I'd certainly take a look at it. I haven't a clue what a fair price would be, but yeah, 23k is too high. A really rough guess says no less than 15k, no more than 20k.

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Car looks a lot like mine.  That messy wiring in the engine bay is pretty bad. Is that blue painters tape on some things? When I see a car with such little care taken on making things tidy and neat I start to look at everything else that was done to make sure it wasn't a hack job. Definitely worth checking out but really go over the car. That motor still has the power steering pump on it...but he doesn't mention he added it...not sure what's going on with that or how he's making that work. 

 

Compare that to my engine pic which has similar mods. I'm no wiring expert but no way I'd have my engine compartment look like that.

gallery_5196_1022_38467.jpg

gallery_5196_1022_11286.jpg

Just washed car so thats not rust in the engine bay fenders...just water drops.  :-D

Edited by Aero Z
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I saw that ad when I was randomly cruising other cities CL for 240z stuff.

 

That's the niceset one for sale on the west coast if you want a restomod.

 

Also, I don't think 23k is too high. It's the ONLY one for sale right now that isn't a hunk of crap that I could find. There's some other ones that are very nice and very original...but they're even more expensive and don't have the appeal to me that this one does.

 

On the supply side, he's currently in a market of one. You can try and talk him down as everything is negotible, but I wouldn't even consider an offer of 15k. I'd personally tell that person where they can put that offer and not talk to them again.

 

Again, I'd find the price of everything you'd want to change with the car. Seats, belts, whatever, and see if you can get some of that cost taken off.

Edited by Neverdone
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Talked to the seller- the pump has a delete bracket he hasn't gotten around to installing yet.

 

It's been up for some time, so there's some room.   I can borrow a few $, hopefully it'll get me up to where he needs it to be.

 

Aero Z-  where did you get your tubing for the 'cold air' inlet?   Looks like a good idea to push the filter in front of the radiator where the air is nice and cool.

 

Thanks everyone!

 

-Dave

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The PS pump bracket is easy to replace so to me that speaks laziness on the swap. IMO. 

 

The 'cold air inlet' is the way most of the LSx swaps are done. Again a little more work running it through z structure but better.  Its just 4" polished aluminum tubing.

 

I also notice he has a gauge cluster sitting on top of the dash. Make sure all the main factory gauges work with the LS swap. If not he took the easy way out again. 

 

Before you spend time to go look at it I'd ask what's the highest offer he's turned down. If its more than you want to spend or still high for the condition its in I wouldn't waste my time.  Unless its A LOT better than it appears no way I'd pay half what he's asking. 

 

Talked to the seller- the pump has a delete bracket he hasn't gotten around to installing yet.

 

It's been up for some time, so there's some room.   I can borrow a few $, hopefully it'll get me up to where he needs it to be.

 

Aero Z-  where did you get your tubing for the 'cold air' inlet?   Looks like a good idea to push the filter in front of the radiator where the air is nice and cool.

 

Thanks everyone!

 

-Dave

Edited by Aero Z
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The main gauges don't work right now.  There's something hooked to the ECU which lets your phone work as gauges?

 

Also, the window rollers need replacement, so the passenger one needs to stay up, and the driver's window can randomly fall down a bit.   Other than that there are no claimed defects.  Says he drives it daily.

 

He's looking for $19K right now.   My other option is to just wait a bit and see if he'll come down later- it's been on the market 30 days now.

 

I was planning to head down there and check it out Sunday.   It's closer than Utah :D

 

Seems like it's a recent swap, and didn't get fully sorted out yet.   He was still in the process of cleaning up the engine bay and getting to the PS pump delete.    I'd definitely want to fix those gauges- that would bother me no end.

 

Thanks!

 

-Dave

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The price he's come down to (19k) might be a decent deal for a properly sorted car where everything works and might have few very minor issues. The car seems more and more like a swap just thrown together to flip, The time to get the gauges working is when you do the swap.   He states the car has no issues whatsoever...except the gauges don't work, the wiring looks like spaghetti, the windows dont work etc etc etc. Probably a lot more you wont see until you go look at it.

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I'm getting that impression..

 

The engine is also off a 2001 Pontiac.   If it were a brand new crate motor or a Vette LS6 motor, I'd probably be willing to overlook the issues.

 

On the bright side, there's a real neat Datsun 510 build locally (12A rotary turbo)  that I may check out.  Actually looks like a well sorted little track/street car :D

Not nearly as good looking as the 240 though.

 

-Dave

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I mean...

If you count up all the cost of the parts you will come out with probably over 19k...

 

Problem is, unless this is a proper era correct restoration... You will not get the dollars you put into a restomod....

 

I'm into mine for $16k in parts. I did all the labour myself ...It is awesome but I wouldn't expect to see any more than 12-15K for it.... Just not THAT type of classic...YET...

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  • 2 weeks later...

Guys I saw this car in person and I like it. I liked it so much I bought it! Besides some of the above mentioned issues the car is pretty squared away. I'm planning an interior overhaul, go through and tidy up the wiring and some other small issues. I haven't had a Z in years and I'm glad to be back in one.

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That's really no ones business other than his and the sellers.

 

Congrats on the pickup of a nice car. When you say interior overhaul, what are your plans for it?

Thank you sir, not trying to be rude but I'd rather not publicly announce what I paid for the car. I've since kept in close contact with the seller, really cool dude.

 

As for the interior, I was thinking stock restore except for maybe the seats. The carpet was red dyed to black and the seats and door panels have red inserts, going to go with solid black.

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could you just dye them black as well, or use a black vinyl paint?

 

I was looking into doing that because it's an order of magnitude cheaper than getting new interior.

 

I havn't seen any pictures of that done before though.

Definitely going to weigh the options and costs, It's been a while since I've had a Z.

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I saw the car in person- it was the best of all the ones I looked at, but still needed little things.

 

I preferred the original orange hood vs. the black.

 

 

I'd get the gauges working- there's a vendor or two that can mod the speedo/tach to work with the LS1 setup.

 

I actually didn't mind the interior.   The red looks better in person than the pics.

 

Good luck with the car!

 

-Dave

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