vekford Posted March 15, 2010 Share Posted March 15, 2010 I purchased a 1975 280z from a friend when he picked up a Porsche 951 and needed to make some space in his garage. I have always liked the lines of the Datsun Z cars and I could not beat the price. I am officially the second owner of the car although it has changed hands several times before reaching me. The car sat in a barn in Michigan for ~10 years before my friend purchased it. There is a large amount of rust to be dealt with, but nothing that cannot be done. Starting reading Hybridz about 6 months ago when I got the car and have learned tons of great stuff about these cars. Not exactly sure what direction the car will be taking (mostly budget dependent) but it should be fun. Anyways, on to some pictures: The car the day it arrived at my house. The car had an original un-cracked dash, I even removed it without it cracking. Then I stored it while I was back at school between breaks, came back, and sure enough it cracked. Oh well. Motor about to be pulled over fall break. Original window sticker from the vehicle. Fast forward a few months of general work, and this is how the chassis sits now. Now that I have graduated and am back home, I have been able to work on the car quite a bit more. Due to living in the snow belt and the amazing weather we have, I have mostly been working on individual parts and assemblies. More to come soon! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vekford Posted March 15, 2010 Author Share Posted March 15, 2010 This is the first time I have attempted to perform work at this level for a street car, so it is quite a good learning experience for me. As such I decided to disassemble the transmission and clean/inspect everything. Replaced gaskets, oil seals, slave cylinder and clutch hose. Reassembling took longer than I expected due to unclear instructions in the fsm about where the shift rod needed to be positioned in order to catch the shift forks correctly. Got it all together and tested all the gears to make sure forward=forward and reverse=reverse. Transmission as removed. Guts. All cleaned, painted, and assembled. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
leftover z Posted March 15, 2010 Share Posted March 15, 2010 I'll be interested in watching your progess. Keep posting pics, and keep up the good work Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vekford Posted March 15, 2010 Author Share Posted March 15, 2010 (edited) After finishing the transmission the differential was next on the list. Same thing as before, tore it all apart/cleaned/inspected. Replaced the oil seals and rear gasket. Got it all put back together about a week ago. Diff fresh out of the car. Diff itself looked good. I would like to upgrade to a LSD, but my budget as pushed that off for a while. All cleaned up and finished. Edited March 15, 2010 by vekford Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
datsun723 Posted March 15, 2010 Share Posted March 15, 2010 Nice! Both the tranny and diff cleaned up really well with paint Keep it up man! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vekford Posted April 3, 2010 Author Share Posted April 3, 2010 (edited) Progress has been slow, but things are getting done. Too much time is spent waiting for parts only to find out that they are incorrect. Anyways, I finally finished the first of the suspension assemblies, only waiting on back ordered brake pads. Tore the assemblies apart, de-rusted and cleaned everything. Painted all the components are replaced both wheel bearings, the inner wheel seal, and ball joints. Upgraded to ARP wheel studs. Decided to go with Tokico Blue's, Eibach springs, rebuilt calipers, MSA bump steer spacers, R1 Concept rotors, stainless lines, and Hawk Pads. The driver side assembly is currently being cleaned and hopefully will be assembled shortly. Edited April 3, 2010 by vekford Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johndaniel.b.coffin Posted April 13, 2010 Share Posted April 13, 2010 You are providing great inspiration for me when I finally get home to work on mine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
T-Bone028 Posted April 13, 2010 Share Posted April 13, 2010 Vekdord, Can you tell me more about the R1 Concept rotors? I looked them up on the web, and they looked like they were vented rotors in the pictures. I'm assuming that the pictures are just a representation and not actual. So are these rotors just cross-drilled and slotted? Are they pretty much direct bolt-on fit? Did you have to modify/fabricate any brackets or change your caliper? Any details you can provide regarding the quality and installation would be appreciated. Looking good btw! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vekford Posted April 14, 2010 Author Share Posted April 14, 2010 As far as the R1 rotors go, I believe they sell 8 different versions of the rotors. They have two different categories, I bought the premium rotors, and then they offer them in either blank, slotted, drilled, or drilled and slotted. The rotors are solid, just like stock. The pictures show vented ,but if you click on "specifications" for the rotor, they are listed as "s" for solid. I have the drilled and slotted versions, I think I paid ~$100 for the pair. They seem to be good quality, I cannot comment on how well they work as my car is still a few months from driving, but the overall quality seems good. They are a direct fit, nothing needs to be modified on the stock setup. I have rebuilt calipers and Hawk pads and everything lines up and spins smooth. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
T-Bone028 Posted April 16, 2010 Share Posted April 16, 2010 Awesome, thanks for the info. I've heard different reviews on how well cross-drilled and slotted rotors work. I'm starting to hear some pad squeal from my front brakes and figure, if this is my weekend only car, might as well spend my weekend money on it. I think I'll definitely be looking into these rotors in the next month or so. Looking forward to seeing some updates as the project progresses. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vekford Posted May 7, 2010 Author Share Posted May 7, 2010 Progress went from slow to a crawl recently as I started a new job...but at long last, some progress has been made. Both front suspension assemblies are finished, and I am starting to clean-up the rear assemblies. For now, the car is going to be taking a budget build/get it back on the road type approach. I am seriously taking it down the heavy mod path this winter though, after I enjoy it some. Decided to join the rotisserie club recently Started removing the floors. I think I am going to attempt to fab up some simple sheet floors with some bead rolled reinforcement, as it should cost ~$200 including bead roller. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vekford Posted June 12, 2010 Author Share Posted June 12, 2010 Well, the project is dead. I no longer have the time or patience to deal with the insane amount of rust. I am going to be spending my money prepping a Spec 944 instead. As such, everything is for sale. All original parts I have and all the new parts I have bought, Tokico Blues, Eibach Springs, R1 Rotors, rebuilt calipers, Hawk Pads, Zedd Floors, rebuilt trans, rebuilt diff, triple Webers, almost perfect dash (one barely visible crack) everything must go. Shell, body parts, and engine will be gone Friday if nobody wants them. PM offers on parts, pickup preferred, but most smaller parts I am willing to ship. Just make an offer, I need this stuff gone! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zinpieces Posted June 13, 2010 Share Posted June 13, 2010 Shame you bought all those parts. Maybe you should look around for a better car and start over. Check my build, "Let the games begin". I found this roller for under 2K and I sold off the original drivetrain so my actual cost is below 1K. Just a thought. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vekford Posted June 13, 2010 Author Share Posted June 13, 2010 I have been looking for a rust free shell or roller, but living in north-east Ohio...rust free cars do not exist. I am still looking out west, but shipping ends up nearly doubling the cost. On top of all that, I have to move in the next two weeks, so this Friday is my deadline. If I cannot find a shell I would be happy with, out comes the sawzall. If anyone is willing to come out, I would be willing to give away most of the original parts off the car even the L28. The stuff will be gone this weekend one way or another. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Naroko Posted June 16, 2010 Share Posted June 16, 2010 Sent pm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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