bfg Posted March 5, 2013 Author Share Posted March 5, 2013 Awesome, It's always fun to see a thread with lots of great picts. It looks like you're mostly just bondo'in things to fix your body panels. I would liek to see what the underbody looks like especially the floorpans out there in NH, you'd be lucky if they're still in decent shape. Reason I ask is that if they're okay, They undercoating likely is not for the age of the car. Not to mention the Ferris Bueler you pulled with it. If the floor pans are intact, then you can just scrub the underbody down, let it dry then get some cans of undercoating and rubber it up. That'll put off the rust a while hopefully. Next it'd be a good idea to pull off the front grate just below the windshield, and seal up the seams in there. That prevents moisture from seeming down the firewall and soaking your carpets. You can lube your wiper arms at the same time. An idea for that shop. You could stack the firewood by the wall and put your car in the "storage" bay. It's awesome you have such a great place to get to work on it. I only wish I had access to a lift like that. not to mention tools and sandblasting etc etc etc... Yeah the quarter panels were replaced but done very poorly. the driver side had a hairline crack going across so I originally thought it was a goner. after some picking and prying this is what I found: here is whats under all the new bondo. pretty rust free just done real shitty. As for the underbody, the floors have a couple patches but they are still solid. It's not the prettiest underneath the car but I'm hoping to clear it all up eventually and do like what your saying. Unfortunately I don't own the garage so making changes isn't really my call. I only get to use the lift and space in the garage when my friend and his dad are not using them. They go through a lot of cars and the bays are almost always in use. With me only working on the weekends that means I have to do what needs to be done to the Z and put it all back together before leaving on Sunday. I'm hoping to use their facilities until I get the Z on the road this summer and then I can make a Z Base in the 2 car garage of the house my parents are buying this month. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Xnke Posted March 5, 2013 Share Posted March 5, 2013 That's how my car was done. Nearly 3/4" of bondo in some spots, it's now down to 1/8" in the thickest areas. That's the best that could be done and keep it reasonably decent looking. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pharaohabq Posted March 5, 2013 Share Posted March 5, 2013 Wow, Ouch that was thick. the repair isn't pretty but it's much better than what was there. The best part is that you know what was there, rather than wondering. Yeah I understand about shop area in the garage. It'sno fun having to work then stop for the week, but at least you have access. that's really a big deal. When you get you parents garage, make sure you keep a schedule up, it's easy to get out of sight out of mind. Also try not to stockpile too many parts "for future projects" until you've got your base all sorted and working. You don't want to eat up too much space around the car and not get to drive it when you're able. Your project is awesome, Keep up with the pictures, we love seeing what you're doing and of course are always happy to offer constructive advice. It's your car, you always have the final say.. Since you have access to the lift I'd still reccommend you buy a couple cans of undercoating and at least touch up the underbody. it can't really hurt, compared to doing nothing. There's a lot of salt on the NH roads this time of year as you know. Did you say you found an Airdam already? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bfg Posted March 5, 2013 Author Share Posted March 5, 2013 Yeah I'm definitely grateful for having access to all this stuff. Someday I'll find a way to thank my friend and his family for everything. No airdam as of yet. No 240z front bumper either but I got the rear bumper in my room now. Just needs a bit of work to put it on. I'm looking forward to the day I can get my hands on a front bumper and airdam though! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bfg Posted March 9, 2013 Author Share Posted March 9, 2013 Wow, Ouch that was thick. the repair isn't pretty but it's much better than what was there. The best part is that you know what was there, rather than wondering. Yeah I understand about shop area in the garage. It'sno fun having to work then stop for the week, but at least you have access. that's really a big deal. When you get you parents garage, make sure you keep a schedule up, it's easy to get out of sight out of mind. Also try not to stockpile too many parts "for future projects" until you've got your base all sorted and working. You don't want to eat up too much space around the car and not get to drive it when you're able. Your project is awesome, Keep up with the pictures, we love seeing what you're doing and of course are always happy to offer constructive advice. It's your car, you always have the final say.. Since you have access to the lift I'd still reccommend you buy a couple cans of undercoating and at least touch up the underbody. it can't really hurt, compared to doing nothing. There's a lot of salt on the NH roads this time of year as you know. Did you say you found an Airdam already? I'm on spring break this week so I think I'll try and touch up the underbody like you said. I'm hoping to get a lot done again this week. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bfg Posted March 11, 2013 Author Share Posted March 11, 2013 Rear bumper and door sill, carpet plate thing getting a little paint Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zohanisback Posted March 17, 2013 Share Posted March 17, 2013 Nice! The black is a good choice, in my opinion. Glad to see you got around to updating us again! I still need to update my custom dash thread... :-/ Been so busy with school and working on a blasting cabinet, lol. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bfg Posted March 18, 2013 Author Share Posted March 18, 2013 Yeah it can get difficult keeping up with updating. I've been getting real busy with everything lately including Z stuff which is nice I tried getting some more stuff done this week but it was a pretty bad fail, starting with my inability to work inside the garage. I got some of the interior stuff I painted installed and then tried removing the rear bumper struts. I started with the driver side one since you don't have to drop the gas tank. The interior bolts came off fine but as soon as I looked underneath I knew it was gonna be trouble. The other three bolts are rusted into shapes that can't be removed with wrenches. So after a few hours of PB Blaster and lots of banging I decided it was a lost cause and decided to compress the struts instead and mount the bumper to those. Unfortunately the bumper seems a little bent out of shape but I'm hoping I can fix it. After I get the into my own garage I'll try to drop the gas tank and exhaust and just cut the struts off. until then the struts will show underneath the bumper. So that was 2 days I thought I was gonna get a lot more done on. I didn't succeed though so I was left a little demotivated. Especially since my door handle stopped latching right after all of that. However a couple days ago I ordered some awesome fender mirrors and picked up some 240z turn signals Which have certainly lifted my spirits. I just hope I can use the turn signals along with my 280z front bump because I can't afford and 240z bumper anymore. One of my current turn signals Is rotted out almost completely which is the main reason I picked these up. We'll see what happens though. I'm hoping I'll be able to get her on the road this summer. Zcon is pretty close to me this year after all. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AU-Z Posted March 18, 2013 Share Posted March 18, 2013 To break loose rusted fasteners try using 1/2 Acetone and 1/2 ATF (Automatic Transmission Fluid). Works better than any "pentetrator" product out there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bfg Posted March 18, 2013 Author Share Posted March 18, 2013 To break loose rusted fasteners try using 1/2 Acetone and 1/2 ATF (Automatic Transmission Fluid). Works better than any "pentetrator" product out there. Cool. I'll give it a try. thanks for the tip! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pharaohabq Posted March 18, 2013 Share Posted March 18, 2013 As for those bolts. Since they're rusted and you're not going to use them, just cut the heads off. I'm not sure if you can fit an angle grinder in there with the gas tank in the way, but you may be able to dremel them out or dremel them into something you can put a wrench on. I've never seen a 280Z stock bumper used with the 240Z front lower lights. I like the 240z version. You'll need to get the 240Z version of the airdam with those lights anyway. Why not just remove the 280 bumper and go bumperless until you get the 240z bumper some time in the future. (you may have DOT regulations requiring a bumper. ) Oh don't forget to treat the rusted areas you clean up with a rust inhibitor. (even if it's nothing more that using vinegar and water.) then put on your primer. It's better to have primer on there than bare metal if you're having to leave your car out in the weather. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bfg Posted March 22, 2013 Author Share Posted March 22, 2013 Got some more good stuff! first of all I refinished the turn signals I got: And today these got delivered! (Insert maniacal happy laughter) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jesse OBrien Posted March 23, 2013 Share Posted March 23, 2013 Were those the cheap mirrors you had been looking at? How much were they, including shipping and such? Are they reasonably solid? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bfg Posted March 23, 2013 Author Share Posted March 23, 2013 I got them from bdw73. They are the genuine Nissan mirrors from a 510. They're all metal so they're definitely solid. I got them for $135 shipped. They're not as long as the original 240z ones but for not that much more than the crappy black plastic ones on ebay I figured I would grab them. plus I filed my tax return My only issue with them is that one of the sections has a brushed finish and the others have a chrome finish. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jesse OBrien Posted March 23, 2013 Share Posted March 23, 2013 Sounds like a really good call to me, I'm a little jealous. Actually, I suppose I'm jealous of anyone who has a running car that they don't hate ... but right now? Especially jealous of you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jesse OBrien Posted March 23, 2013 Share Posted March 23, 2013 These louvers I have for you are interesting; they actually have little locks holding each corner on (I guess they used to get stolen a lot?), they're here in Manchester for you though. We'll have to meet up soon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bfg Posted April 8, 2013 Author Share Posted April 8, 2013 So in a bid to avoid doing homework (which worked) I went to work on the Datsun yesterday. I brought the louvers, mirrors, and turn signals to attempt to install them all but didn't have time to do the turn signals. I have to say the louvers and mirrors make it look even better and I'm very happy with them. I'm gonna see if I can find a cheap 240z front bumper and maybe an air dam if I can make some money somehow. keeping the original front bumper doesn't look too good when pretty much everything else is from a 240z. It was too dark to get pictures of the mirrors outside by the time I finished. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jesse OBrien Posted April 8, 2013 Share Posted April 8, 2013 I say just toss the bumper. Why keep it in the first place? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bfg Posted April 8, 2013 Author Share Posted April 8, 2013 If I can't find a 240z bumper I'd like to have it to pass inspection. As soon as I can that thing is gone though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jesse OBrien Posted April 8, 2013 Share Posted April 8, 2013 (edited) I honestly doubt a typical inspection center would even notice that you're missing a bumper, unless you have the late-model s30 bumper shocks sticking out there really isn't a good way to identify that there was a bumper there to begin with. Also, the 240z bumper didn't really do anything (other than get mangled) in a crash. It's more of an accessory than a safety feature. Edited April 8, 2013 by Jesse OBrien Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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