Wagz

Take a look at Reaction Research (John Washington) Good guy. Quality stuff. Here are the two options he has available: ]

There have been a few discussions about whether it is best to paint, then undercoat using ruberized undercoating or roll-on bedliner material. I had one person recommend not putting anything over the paint at all. They contended that the undercoating would just retain moisture. If it is done well, it shouldn't be too big of an issue. Especially, if I am using multiple coats of POR-15 first. Anyway, I will be prepping and painting the underside of my car with POR-15 in the comming weeks and I am trying to decide if the paint alone will be sufficient or whether I should undercoat too. If I undercoat, is the rubberized stuff best? Has anyone here actually used the roll-on bedliner material? If so, what were the results like? My VR won't be a daily driver, but I want to give it the best rust protection I can. (within reason ) UPDATE: Cool. That was post number 250 and I notice that I am now a "Senior Member" When do I get my discount? And if post 250 makes me a senior member, does that make guys like Mikelly, Tim240Z and Pete older than dirt itself?

If you have the dollars, Dan is right. You will be much better off starting out with a car in better condition. Having said that, have you checked out the rest of the most common rust areas really, really well? Is the damage to the frame rails caused by physical damage or rust (or both)? It's possible you can salvage the car depending on the condition of the rest of the car and how hard you want to work. More than likely, you will find more rust. Only you can make the call, but if you decide to keep it, plan on doing a lot of work. And cutting. And welding. And fabricating... and on, and on. I purchased a '78 280 for $500 that appeared to be in good condition that turned out to be a rust riddled basked case. I dumped it and bought a '71 240 for 3 times the price. The 240 still required a lot of work to get rid of the cancer. (I also found more rust on that car than met the eye). If you're going to go through the trouble of replacing the frame rails, take a look at Pete Paraska's site and consider fabricating subframe connectors based on his plans. Good Luck!

I'm not a cat hater. Really. But, this is too funny! http://www.albinoblacksheep.com/flash/kittyfan.php

No kidding. Not nice Dan! Throw us a bone. I thought the only new design John was working on was the La Bala, based on a Honda Accord platform...

I don't know of a true aftermarket ABS. Check out the information on the "Anti-skid Braking System" this guy is advertising. I don't have any personal experience, but it 'might' be worth a look... http://www.zspecialties.com/hotdeal.htm (scroll to bottom of page)

Guy - Looking great! That LT1 looks very nice in there. Sometimes I wish I had held out for an LT on my project. Keep us informed on your progress.

Me too. I thought they finally blocked the site from work. I'm glad that isn't the case. I'm not sure I could survive a work day without my HybridZ fix. I was fighting a panic attack...

Thanks CZ, Seriously, the templates only took about 15 minutes to make up. They're pretty basic. No problem mailing a set to you. Email me your snail-mail address in Okinawa and I'll drop em in the mail.

Probably going to be hard to find one. There are a few guys that frequent this board that have McBurnie front clips and might be able to give you specs to fabricate one. Have you tried ThunderRanch?

Yeah, I checked the windshield seal too. I'm sure it was leaking at one time. I found that it has clear silicone sealer around most of the lower part of the windshielld. It seems to sealed well. I went ahead and sealed and painted the cowl/rain pan area like CorZette suggested. It worked out pretty well. Here are some pictures. I also sealed any opening I could find on the firewall and will be replacing some of the weatherstripping around the doors. I cleaned up the floor pan and painted it with 3 coats of Hammerite Rust Cap. I hope this takes care of it. I don't know what else I can do.

Yes - T56 ('71 240) Drilled the spot welds using a spot-weld bit. 30 minutes tops. Yes - TH350 ('76 280). Done by the previous owner.

Does anyone know of anyone that has taken a sunroof out and patched the roof back up? I have a '76 280 that has one of those crappy aftermarket pop-up sunroofs in it. I also have a '71 240 that I am cutting the roof off for a Velo Rossa project. I'm thinking about cutting a patch panel out of the '71 roof and butt-welding it into the hole on the '76. I can't imagine it will be too difficult. Otherwise, I may have to replace the old sunroof with an new electric one.

ROTFL I know I shouldn't be laughing at their misfortune, but Terry's comment was perfect...

I thought about the heater core and hoses. I couldn't find anything wrong and no dampness under the console or on the trans tunnel under the dash. I did find a little evidence of dampness on the firewall where the settering column comes through. I'll double-check those seals too. Thanks for the tip. -Marc

Yup. And just when you think you have all of her rules figured out, she'll go and change them on you. Get used to it. Don't question it, and learn to say "Yes, dear..." Eventually, it all gets easier.

Yeah, but you're in good company...

Perfect description!! It's as if he was writing about my project. Everything in there is right on the money. These are words to plan and live your project by. Nice write up!

Henry - I haven't gotten anywhere near that far yet. I have the Tilton MC, but haven't taken the time to figure out the hose/line from the MC to the throw out bearing. I was going to find a flex line that mates to the TOB and then bend and flare my own hard line to the tunnel and build it with the correct fitting to connect the the flex line. Sorry, I'm not much practical help at this point, all I have is threory. Let me know what you work out on yours. Good luck.

Yup. Me too. I have no more than $50 in the 2x3" material for subframe connectors and sheet material for the pans. Add in the cost of welding wire and gas and I'm still under or around $75. Buying the pans from Zed Findings or MSA would be easy, but fabbing your own is no big deal if you have the tools.

I pulled the cover over the rain pan and inspected things. There is light surface rust. I poured a fair amount of water in there and wedged myself under the dash on the drivers side. I couldn't find anywhere that was damp. Tried again. Same result. The water all appears to be draining correctly. I am probably going to seal-off the top of the rain pan anyway, get some new seals for the drivers side door/window and POR-15 the floor pans and hope for the best. Strange that I can't find an obvious source for the water when the carpet was as wet as it was....

Thanks! Sounds plausible. I'll pour a little water in the rain pan this evening and see what I find out.

I picked up another Z a few weeks ago. I haven't driven it much and it has been sitting outside in rainy Oregon. I pulled it in the garage today to work on some wiring and found that the drivers side floor pan is soaked. The passenger side is dry. It may have been that way since I bought it. It's hard to say. Anyway, I pulled the carpet to let dry out. There are no open holes in the floorpan. The weatherstripping around the door is pretty bad, but I can't find any evidence of water coming in at the top of the doors/windows. The door panels are dry. I checked the firewall and can't find any evidence water is getting in that way. I'm assuming that if water was coming in around the driver's door or window, the door panels or some of the trim around the door would be wet. It obviously has been happening for a while. There is significant rust on the pan. Anyway, there is a fair amount of water getting in. Would the drain holes in the pan let in much water if the rubber plugs are old and not fitting well? I'm at a loss for where it's coming from. Anyone got ideas on where to look?

I received my bellhousing from Weir about a month or so ago. The product looks solid. I have no complaints, although, it is still sittling in a box in my garage. I will pick up my motor from the builder later this month and start putting things together. I ordered a Tilton clutch master from Weir in the same package. The guy I dealt with seemed pretty cool and my stuff arrived when he said it would. So far, so good.

I just wanted to echo Brian's comments. We alway appreciate your insight John! I am also wondering about an updated install manual. I bought mine a few years ago and have the same question about the update cheek panels. I'd gladely buy another if there is any new info.