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Haha not at all! The work you're doing is amazing. I just hadn't realized that you were going for fully separating the drivetrain and body. It reminded me of a Vette.

I hadn't realized you were going for basically a full body-on-frame conversion. Japanese Corvette?

Agreed. I'm very interested. Between this and the recent leather console post, I have a direction for my interior.

It looks like there is some overhang on the armrest compartment area. Do you think there's enough stretch in the leather to cut some relief and fold it down without leaving big gaps?

Cool, thanks Tony. I already ordered the MSA bolt kit, but I'll keep JeffP's site in mind for future use.

Yeah, I saw a post from someone (might have been you) mentioning how they ruined a couple dampers before figuring out that the washer wasn't seating all the way. Thanks for the advice.

That would work great too. I see they mentioned it being sourced from Japan, but they also say they stock it. Is there a big delay when ordering them or would it be here quickly?

I'm putting a new, 2-groove damper on my car to accommodate the AC I'm installing. I've read that the bolt off a KA and a Volvo washer are improvements over the stock parts. However, I've never been able to find part numbers or the exact applications these parts come from. Can anyone help me out with some part numbers?

JW Speaker makes a 7" LED headlight that is really nice, but they're also pretty pricey. Since Jeeps also use 7" lights, there are quite a few options. I found a comparison awhile back of the most common setups: www.pirate4x4.com/tech/usmcdoc/lights

I guess I should have specified. My car didn't come with stock seats, so I don't have those as a comparison. Right now it has Cobra Imola ProFits in it, but they're pretty harsh for the street IMO.

How much headroom do you have with the R100? I really like the look of those seats, but I'm taller than you are and worry about my headroom.

Parts are starting to show up, but I haven't had as much time as I'd like to dedicate to the car. The AC compressor bracket is here, and the compressor should be here in a couple days. Waiting on ordering the evaporator unit until Summit decides to answer a question for me. Picked up a Champion 3-row radiator and shroud on Saturday, but their fans were out of stock. Should have those this week. Also snagged a 280Z voltmeter from a guy off cragislist, along with a C-pillar emblem to replace the one that I'm missing. Spent a good chunk of Sunday chasing around charging system gremlins. The only thing I glossed over while troubleshooting things was the voltage on the field wire. That's first on the list. My ammeter is permanently pegged, and I'm not getting a warning light at any time. The ammeter is in series with the field wire plug, correct? So if the bulb is burned out or the gauge is toast, that would prevent the alternator from being excited and beginning to charge?

Hello everyone! I don't have a fancy name for my car yet. The thread name will just have to be boring. A couple weeks ago, I drove down to San Diego and picked up my first 240Z. Just a single picture for now. I'll get more this weekend. Currently: Body is straight except for the small bit of damage in the front. Almost no rust, and has had some work done. As it sits right now, the following "upgrades" are on the car: L28E engine swap (converted to carb) Maxima rear brake conversion ZX master cylinder Cobra Imola Pro racing seats CodeAlarm1151 Keyless entry system/alarm EZ-wiring harness and relays kit Crane Cams ignition coil and controller I say "upgrades" because some of those things I don't want. The racing seats will have to go, and I'm not a fan of the CA1151 alarm. Keyless entry is great, but this is a budget system. To make things worse, the outer door handles currently aren't functional. The driver door pops open upon pressing the unlock button on the remote. That'll be one of the first things I try to remedy. Future Plans: This car is going to be mostly a weekend cruiser to take around the beach cities and out on the town. Maybe a bit of daily driver duty when I get the urge. I'm sure it will see a few canyon runs eventually, but I don't think it will ever see a track/autocross. I have a V6-powered MR2 that I get my track jollies with. I'll throw in a picture of that later for those of you who are interested. Since this will see some warm days and traffic, some modernization is in order. Air conditioning I'll be ordering a Vintage Air GenII Mini soon. Southern California gets a bit too warm for a car without AC, in my opinion. A bracket from Nostalgic AC for the compressor and some other well-fitting components should make this relatively easy. I'm excited to not be in the hatchback greenhouse. Locks/windows First, the door handles and locks need to be fixed. Once that's done, I can begin upgrading. Plan is for a Spal 3300-0030 power window kit to let in the beach air when I want. Power locks and a hatch popper will go in and be controlled by a Viper unit, likely the 3305V. Still not an expensive system, but I like the controls it offers and it's equipped with a 2-way remote. This way, I can be notified if someone opens my door without having to hear an obnoxious siren that goes off whenever someone brushes by the car. Cooling The temp gauge currently starts to creep if I push the car passed 65 in traffic on a warm day. There's no ducting on the radiator, and a good chunk of the fins are bent from when the mechanical fan decided to go on a field trip(before I owned the car). Somehow there aren't any holes in the radiator, but it doesn't look pretty. I'll be installing a Champion 3-row rad with aluminum ducting and electric fans. These will also play nicely with the AC system. I should be able to seal it well enough that I don't need a separate pusher fan in front of the condenser. Seats The full-on race seats are alright, but I find them to be a bit much. They're also the only bright blue thing on the car. I'm on the hunt for a set of retro Recaros. Most likely LS-B, but possibly LX-B if I find a good deal. I think the LS-B would be a better seat, but the LX-B would maintain the current style of the car a bit better. Alternator Oh, right. I didn't mention that the alternator died on the way home with the car. Not even a day into Z ownership and I was gifted with my first of what I'm sure will be many problems. While I'm in there, I think I'll upgrade to a CS144 GM unit. They're easier to find and will be able to power all of the added electronics I'll have. I'm picking up a 280Z voltmeter this weekend to swap in. Stereo This is last on the list and will probably wait a while, but a head unit and speakers are planned. 6X9s in the back with an MSA speaker panel. I'm not sure about the front yet. For the head unit, I really like the Retrosound Model Two. It seems to have great features and looks, but I've read some pretty poor reviews of the sound quality. Do any of you have experience with them or know of a similar "old-school" head unit that has modern features? Ok, that's plenty of text for a first post. I hope to get some actual work done this weekend and post an update or two. Here's a picture of the previously mentioned MR2, for those of you that care.

I made a deal with the guy for $3500. Picking it up Saturday.

After driving the car, I've rethought the swap part of it. The car was much quicker on the street than I expected, so the engine is probably good for now at least. I guess I wasn't looking for advice on whether it fit my needs or not, since I'm the one that ultimately has to buy the car and do the work. I'm new to Z cars, so as I gain experience with it my plans might change quite a bit. I was just wondering if a car matching that description was fair market value at $4000. Thanks for your help.

Thanks dan. Anyone else have an opinion?

So I'm back. The owner of the original car I was looking at pulled the ad the day before I went to look at it. He told me he was tired of showing it and getting lowballed. I figured that's all I was going to do, so I didn't bother asking him to show it to me. I went to look at a different car today. 1972 240Z with an N42 and a 5-speed out of a 1979 280ZX. I crawled all over underneath the car and checked everything out. Frame rails had a bit of surface rust, but were solid. Had a few kinks from I assume jacks and bottoming out, but were pretty good shape. There is a dent in the hood where he bumped into something at low speed. Could fix or replace the hood. Wheel wells were really good, and I couldn't see any rust on the fenders or doglegs. The paint on it is not great, but I don't think it's recent enough to be hiding any sanded down rust. The one single spot of rust bubbles I found was an area the size of about two quarters next to each other on the lower deck where the hatch seals. I was able to get one thumb on each side of the metal and pushed very hard, but the metal didn't flex. I assume that means it's decent enough to sand off and seal. The engine starts right up when the key is touched. Almost unbelievable how well it ran. However, the transmission whines a bit and the owner admitted that it probably needs to be replaced in the near future. Bit of oil and gear lube on the engine and transmission. Hard to find leak-free 44-year-old cars though I suppose. The throttle is a bit sticky, but that's just a cleaning issue. The brakes are disc front and rear, but I'm not sure whoever put them on did the best job. They're definitely not great. Do 240s tend to have heavier brakes? This was the first one I've driven. The interior is not the best. Dash has a few cracks. Gauges look great. I think they're replacements. It has new carpet, new sound deadening, and the floor was cleaned and coated with POR15 because rust was forming at the firewall. Door cards are decent, but I would probably try to replace them. One bad part is that the Door handles don't work very well, so he installed remote solenoids with the intention of shaving the door handles. The doors popping open are pretty cool, but a dead battery would make things rough. The great thing about the interior is that he has two FIA-rated seats installed, which are ~$750 new. They're both in good shape, and I'm pretty confident I could sell them for $4-500 each to some of the other people in our racing organization. That would cut the cost of the car down a bit. So to recap the long post: Engine: fantastic running 2.8L Transmission: 5-spd swapped, but should be replaced Brakes: disc conversion done, but does not stop very well Body: Very little rust. Seems to be VERY solid and straight other than a tweaked hood Interior: Needs quite a bit of work, but has ~$1k worth of seats to help recoup costs So after reading all that, does this sound like an alright deal at $4000? I would haggle with him a bit if I can, but not banking on a huge discount.

I understood what you meant and appreciate the help. Rather it be assumed I know nothing and get good advice than assume I know everything and end up with a junker. I was just trying to get my point across that I wasn't wandering in the dark. As you said, probably motivated by pride.

I simply said "I know cars" because I didn't want to list my full lifetime resume of the cars I've worked on and the things I've done. I guess if you want the list, I can give it to you. Different cars have different quirks that only pop up when you own them or get really dug into working on them. Early Corvettes had leaky cowls that would rot out the birdcage structure. Only way to see it before you take the car apart is to jam your head up under the dash with a flashlight. Swapped Mk1 MR2s tend to crack the right side motor mount. 7.3L IDI diesels go through tach sensors quite often, causing people to think they need transmission work when really the computer is just trying to shift repeatedly because it doesn't know where the hell the RPMs are. Yes, all cars rust near the sills, the backs of quarters, back of the cab on pickups, spare wheel well, battery tray, etc. I was looking for something out of the ordinary specific to these cars. If there's nothing like that, you've given me everything I need. Miles, thanks for the tip. SF is a bit of a haul for me to run up and look at cars, but I'll keep an eye out for steals.

Also, if anyone has some links to these clean, unmolested 240Zs for $3-4k, I'm all ears. Everything I find, people want $5-6k for cars that need floorpans and doglegs replaced along with a new interior and paint. I'm far from in love with this car. I'm just going to look at it. I'm having a hard time finding these great deals in Southern California.

Believe me, it's not a pride thing. Like I said, I know cars, just not Zs. Maybe I worded something wrong and gave off the impression that I'm in over my head here, but I can assure you I'm not. That said, I had planned on taking a couple friends with who are part of the race team with me, so there will be more than one set of eyes. I was really just asking if there are any quirks or problem areas that need special attention, as many cars have common issues encountered by many different owners. Thanks again for your help.

I'm pretty familiar with older cars, just needed to know if there are any specific problem areas on Zs that I should pay special attention to. The great links you gave me should cover that. Good point on the parking brake. I hadn't thought of that. My intentions aren't to make a show car, but I want it to look respectable and last.

seattlejester, thanks for the links. I know cars, just not 240Zs. I have the swap (1UZ/W58) priced out for the most part, so I'm not worried about that getting out of hand. I'll check through all of them so I know the problem areas to look at. Here's the thing. I can handle mechanicals. Some friends and I race a V6 swapped Mk1 MR2 that we caged and built entirely by ourselves. Engine, transmission, brackets, etc don't scare me. What scares me is sheet metal. Despite doing a ton of work on cars, I've never ventured into the realm of bodywork. I'm trying to avoid a situation where I get a rusty shell and have to either weld a bunch of sheet metal or pay a shop to do it for me. All I want is a very straight, rust-free car that I can get to work on. Yep, that link is the car. Since everyone can look at it, let's talk about it a bit. I agree that a shell isn't worth 6k, but a full Stage 3 Wilwood setup, new stub axles, and a full interior adds up to north of $4k when you figure in tax and shipping. If those things all check out and are the real deal, then really I'm spending $1500-2000 on a supposedly straight and rust-free shell. To me, that seems reasonable. Feel free to correct me if I'm wrong.

I'm sorry for asking this since I'm sure it's been answered before, but I couldn't find anything through the search function. I've recently found a 240Z in the Inland Empire that I'm interested in. Reportedly no rust and a bunch of new parts to go with it. No engine/trans, but I was planning on a swap anyway. I'll be looking at it this weekend. As this will (hopefully) be my first Z-car, I'm wondering what are specific things to look at on a Z when buying it? Thanks