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Hey all. So I have had my 1977 280z for around 7 years now. Drove it for a couple when I first bought it. Started having issues with the L-Jet system. Spent a while troubleshooting but the more I fixed the more I found items that needed fixing. Ended up moving into an apartment, then bought a house, sold the house, etc. barely worked on it for a few years. My now fiance and I bought a farm house with a big ole workshop (about 2500sqft, 3 bays, 1 dumptruck bay) and I got back into making my dream car just that. I decided now was the time to do it right. My Z had rotted floors, rotted frame rails, rotted fenders, rotted firewall. tons and tons of structural rot. Good thing I am a welding and metallurgical engineer and have plenty of fabrication equipment and experience (I hope). I cut out both floors, the firewall on the passenger side, fender well, and patched the "torque box" area of the frame in front of the firewall...one panel at a time. Most of these welds have been gas backed or flux shielded, or copper backed. Derek Macheski provided the floor support rails for my build (I think hes on here somewhere) as a partial trade for my motor. I am pairing my Z up with a Ford 5.0 small block V8. The donor vehicle was a 2001 mercury Mountaineer which means this is the highest performance factory 302W offered but also brings up some challenges; 1: The heads are GT40P heads which requires special or custom headers. The only headers currently manufactured that fit correctly are long tubes which will not fit the S30 engine bay. 2: The upper and lower intake are quite tall and require the engine be mounted somewhat lower in addition to possible hood clearance modification. 3: The engine is returnless and distributorless and I will be using the factory EFI harness and ECU, tuned with protune and probably a Moates QH chip. The current state of the build: I have completed most of the fabrication work, a few odds and ends that need to be finished but nothing major. I have the engine, transmission, and headers all in the vehicle and everything seems to fit. I am currently working on thinning the EFI harness of all unnecessary equipment using an old factory electrical schematic and some help from the folks over at the explorer forums.

Hello All, I've been looking for a Datsun 280z for a few months now, and with my fingers crossed tomorrow might be the day. With that being said I'm unaware of actual condition and have only seen pictures. If it is purchased tomorrow I will be posting pictures as soon as possible to get a bit of feedback as this will be my first project car. From what I've seen it looks good though👍. My apologies ahead of time, I've never worked on a car so I'm very unfamiliar with things. ALL TIPS & CONSTRUCTIVE CRITICISM APPRECIATED. The Goals LS3/T56 Swap - I plan to buy a total kit from Jegs. (https://www.jegs.com/i/Chevrolet-Performance/809/CPSLS376525T/10002/-1) my only concern is that it says Super magnum I had trouble finding that specifically on google/forums. So if I need something like this (https://www.jegs.com/i/McLeod/673/TUET11009/10002/-1) let me know. A/C - really hoping to be able to make this work with the swap as I do intend to daily the vehicle. Was able to find some people could make something over at Vintage Air work. Air Suspension - This has been another difficult area as it seems the only answer has been custom. I am hoping to be able to get an accuair CVT system to work. Rear End/Suspension - This is an area I do need some help in. what would be good enhancements/upgrades to the rear end and suspension? I know the air will just work as the coilovers but what else should be done to ensure a safe and somewhat comfortable ride around 500Whp? Aero/Bodykit - Rocket Bunny Pandem widebody Frame Reinforcement - Since I will be going for higher HP I plan to take precautionary measures and get the frame reinforced to hopefully prevent any bending if there are any kits or tips in this area much appreciated. Roll Cage - here in SF I was able to find someone to Fab/weld in Comfort/Bucket Seats - want the race look but still want to run a harness and be able to go for prolonged car rides without discomfort. Open to ALL suggestions! 😊 Power Windows/Locks - Found a Kit here (https://www.thezstore.com/page/TZS/PROD/50-4211) seems a few people managed to install without issue. Big Brake kit - not top priority as I'm learning I may not be able to run this setup with air or specific rims (more of a dream) A brake upgrade will be preformed nonetheless. I'm sure that I missed so many things but I figure this is a good place to start and it hopefully gives everyone an idea of what i'm going for. I have some BIG goals for the interior but I need to make sure the car is in good running condition before I worry to much about all of that. please point out anything that I missed out or may not be thinking of when getting into this swap. Just to help those who will say "too much for a first project" or "learn more before doing this" I will be working along side a certified mechanic while everything is being done to the vehicle😃. The budget is going to be $35,000 I understand a large portion will go to the engine but there isn't necessarily a limit just spending will slow down significantly after😅. Hope to hear back from some people soon so I can start to get some better ideas on where to start this project. Cheers!

After much thought on whether or not I wanted to create a full thread of my first 240z build I have decided that it would be worth it in the long run and nice to look back to. I will have about a year to catch up with then I will continue to update as the build goes on. Backstory: I bought this Miata when I was a senior in high school. I wanted to see if I was truly passionate about cars and if I enjoyed working on them/driving them. This car was a blessing and a curse, I quickly found out that I loved cars and all of my money would be taken by them. Fast forward and I had supercharged it with all the basic Miata mods. The car was extremely fun, but it was not a car that I saw myself keeping for the long run and I had this long list of parts/mods I wanted to do to it. I had always wanted a few cars but they were just out of my price range; 240z, s2000 and a few old muscle cars. I thought about it and decided that if I was going to pour tons of money and time into a car I wanted it to be a car I wanted to keep and loved the looks of, not just enjoyed the drive. Once I had made this decision I was a sophomore in college and began the long search for a Z. I spent about 9 months of searching everyday for a s30, primarily looking at 240zs.

So over the weekend I finally found a decent 260z to start my build I've been wanting to do since about 2008. Like most z cars it has it's rust and it needs alot of stuff. But I was kind of looking for one with those needs. I don't have a ton of pics yet but I have started a little of the teardown. The second pic of it is after I got it home and into her new home.

Hi all I've been working on this build for about a year now. This is my first build and I'm tackling it in my apartment one car garage. I figure it's about time I start documenting my build on here but there is quite a bit to catch up on so I'll just dive right in! 1974 Datsun 260z Running a 5.7 Alum Block Ls1 out of an 02 Camaro Fast Wilson intake Clevite rod bearings Total Seal piston rings Ls9 Cam Arp head studs Mcleod clutch (ARP hardware) T56 out of a 99 Camaro These are the upgrades I currently have. Much more to come and I'll do my best to update in real time. Here are some photos of the condition I purchased the car in.

Hey guys been a member on here for a while but haven't been very active. Anyway for a little background, I live in Barbados in the Caribbean which is a pretty small island. Despite the obvious benefits of living on a tropical island like all year good weather and lovely beaches, our duties on vehicles here are crazy (over 200+%) and also there are serious restrictions on vehicle importation for instance nothing older than 4 years which automatically rules out any s30 Zs. However I have always wanted one of these cars so I was left with the only legal option of importing a shell or basic chassis and building a car from scratch. I spent some time scouring the net for just that and finally found a 280z in pretty good condition and the owner was willing to strip it to the point I wanted. He had done a basic restoration a few years back to the point of primer but it was too rough a job for my purpose so I decided a full strip down from the ground up was in order and at the same time I would modify to suit. One of the issues I faced was that there were no other driving Zs on the road and just a couple S30 shells lying around and since the body came missing most parts I would have to educate myself thoroughly on the workings of the car. Also because of the unreliable work ethic of many persons available I decided that for the fun and general experience of it I would undertake the restoration and modification almost exclusively along with a good friend. This naturally required somewhere to work and the tools to get the job done, so my first order, even before I had the car was to start getting the tools I didn't already have. It's been an on and off 3 year project so far and still not done. The car in it's original state when I first got it. Looked decent from far but far from great... Of course after stripping some rust issues were found but all in all was pretty good. After the rust areas were dealt with the next plan was to convert the car from LHD to RHD since that is the side of the road we drive on here. Finding donor parts prooved to be a bit of an issue so we eventually decided that the only real way was to fabricate everything from scratch. So we made up a couple templates and pulled out our spot weld remover bit and got to work. The next step was getting everything stripped down to metal and epoxy coated. Best way for this would be a rotisserie so that was our next project, building one. Then the fun could begin... After hearing alot of horror stories about 'professional' sandblasting services I decided to blast the car myself with a small blaster from eastwood and some glass. It was NOT fun. But the results were rewarding.

I am looking to get a 240z or 260z from 1970-73' and would like to do a complete resto-mod. I am limited on knowledge and experience as well as tools and space. I would like this car to have the reliability of a daily driver, though it will most likely be used as a weekend car. I am looking for a z with minimal rust that runs, i would like to upgrade the suspension, fix any body issues and interior issues, then finally swap the engine. What would be my best option for an engine swap? Things I am looking for in this car. -Street legal in New York -200-300hp -very reliable -preferably na but not opposed to turbo if it is more reliable - Have it professionally done - quick linear throttle response I have been doing a lot of research on swaps but could not come to a conclusion. Which engine/tranny combo would be best for my goals and what is a ballpark price range i would be looking at. I understand the price could vary greatly, but considering I need to buy the engine and all components necessary for the swap and pay a professional to install it. Thanks,

I have been searching for a certain yellow for my '77 280Z as I am getting ready for paint. I am contrasting the yellow with black and carbon fiber. I cannot find a color code for the certain type of yellow I am looking for. The closest I came to deciding on a color was Mercedes Solarbeam Yellow but as I am unable to see it in person, I have my doubts that that is the right color. I am aware that the color will most likely be a pearl and I am fine with that. I'm just trying to stay away from that bright lemon yellow lol. All suggestions or advice would be much appreciated.