Bob_260 Posted February 25, 2015 Share Posted February 25, 2015 Hello! I'm new to the "Z-Community" but what I can say so far is that it's GREAT! The enthusiasm and support so far has been fantastic. I recently purchased 1974 260Z with 56,000 miles on it. The car sat, covered on a car-port for nearly 30 years. I have a four phase plan for the car. Phase 1: brakes and Suspension Phase 2: drive train Phase 3: Engine upgrade phase 4: Body and Paint. I look forward to sharing the build with the community and drawing on the experience that is available. I hope that as my project progresses I can "pay it forward" to those that follow. Bob_260 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
98blackbell Posted February 25, 2015 Share Posted February 25, 2015 Good luck with the affliction and addiction Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NewZed Posted February 25, 2015 Share Posted February 25, 2015 There are no verbs in your plan. Are you planning to drive the car while working on it or work on these things over a long time frame? You haven't mentioned what you plan to do with the car when it's done. An engine "upgrade" for drag-racing would not be the same as one for the street or autocross. Might be fun to just get it back to stock running condition before the final plan is set. I bought mine thinking I'd do a small-block chevy swap but found that the L6 is plenty of work and fun. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob_260 Posted February 26, 2015 Author Share Posted February 26, 2015 My plan for the car is mostly street, with a little bit of weekend autocross thrown-in for fun. I will drive it as the projects progress. But to be honest I enjoy planning the projects and working on my cars as much as the driving (maybe more!). My first priorty is making sure the car goes where I point it and stopping! That's why I've started with brakes and suspension. I'll be glad to share some photos as the project progresses.....if someone can give me a tip on how to upload them to the site. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NewZed Posted February 26, 2015 Share Posted February 26, 2015 Click More Reply Options. Then Choose File, then Attach This File. If it has sat for 30 years, the brake fluid has probably absorbed enough moisture to corrode both wheel cylinders, both calipers, and the master cylinder. If you're lucky the brake drums will come off so that you can work on the shoes and get to the wheel cylinder bolts. Should be fun. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob_260 Posted February 27, 2015 Author Share Posted February 27, 2015 The rear suspension is now out of the car. The project has started! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob_260 Posted February 28, 2015 Author Share Posted February 28, 2015 As I said in my original posts, I hope that by sharing my experiences with my 260z build (that's a nice way of saying mistakes) I can help some future Newbie avoid some of the same mistakes. (Why make the same mistakes over and over when there are SOOOO many new ones you can make!) So here is my first "experience". My car was built in 10/73 so it should have the earlier 240Z suspension, but when I checked what was supposed to be the best indicators, the front hubs, I found that the car has the round hubs of the 280z and a factory rear swaybar . So I ordered parts for a 280z. WRONG! So for the next Newbie here is what else would have been helpful for me. The swaybar for the 280z that I recieved is straight across the width of the car, while the swaybar that was on the car has a 50mm bend in the middle of the bar (see attached photos). The other issue is the strut assembly. I ordered Coilovers for a 280Z. But they diameter is too big. The outside daimeter of my strut tubes are 51mm. Measuring the Coilovers that I recieved it appears that the 280Z has a 56mm outside diameter. (See photos) I hope this helps someone avoid the same mistake on their build. If anyone out there knows of other 260 specific suspension differences, I would welcome you input! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NewZed Posted February 28, 2015 Share Posted February 28, 2015 I think that the scalloped hubs were used only on the very early 240Z's, not all 240Z's. The other early/late indicator might be the height of the rear strut towers. But, as you've found, the tube diameter is the best tell. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Leon Posted March 1, 2015 Share Posted March 1, 2015 Early 260Z front struts have slightly lower spring perches than 240Z struts, making them early 260Z-specific. The rears are identical to the 240Z from what I've measured. Most everything else is similar to 240Z. If you ever do bushings, you need 280Z bushings for all 260Z steering racks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RebekahsZ Posted March 1, 2015 Share Posted March 1, 2015 I have a 240z. If you ever need me to measure something for you, just PM me with your phone number. If you have the round front hubs, you may need to use 280z front brake rotors. The bearings are all the same, but the offset for the rotor is different. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob_260 Posted March 11, 2015 Author Share Posted March 11, 2015 Everything is apart. I had to take the assembly to a local machine shop to have the spindle pins removed. (They don't just slide out like it shows in the factory Manuel! Hahahah). I have the original spring perches cut off and will have the new spring perches for the Coilovers welded on tomorrow. Then everything is going to be powder coated. Question for the community: While I have the suspension out and there is lots of room to work, I plan to replace my defective fuel tank level sending unit. Other than making sure that I have enough gas out of the tank to avoid having it run all over the place. Are there any "tricks" that make this easier or does anyone have a "mistake to avoid" that they can share? I have a new gauge and "o"-ring. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob_260 Posted April 3, 2015 Author Share Posted April 3, 2015 With the rear suspension out of the car replacing the Fuel tank level sending unit was very simple. The whole process took 30 minutes or less! Now that I did it I almost embarassed that I asked for advice. The biggest concern was "have I siphoned enough gas out of the tank?" I basically siphoned everything I could out of the tank, and that happened to be about 9 gallons. So I was sure I was below the half full level even if I hadn't been able to get everything out of the tank. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob_260 Posted April 3, 2015 Author Share Posted April 3, 2015 All the rear suspension parts are back from the powder coater and they look great! The new spring perches are welded on strut towers for the Ground Control Coilovers and the adapters are installed for the Silver Mine Stage IV big brake kit. I will also be installing the 7/8" rear swaybar as part of the suspension upgrade. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob_260 Posted April 11, 2015 Author Share Posted April 11, 2015 Given all the trouble removing the old spindle pins, I went to Harbor Freight and bought a long round wire brush and mounted it in my drill to clean out any rust. It seemed to work well, the new spindle pin fit snuggly but,slide in and out without any problems. I plan to apply Never-Sieze to them when I do final install. I don't if it will,make any difference, but at least I tried! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RebekahsZ Posted April 11, 2015 Share Posted April 11, 2015 Antiseize definitely helps and that was great to brush them out. Unfortunately, most of the antiseize scrapes off going into the bore. Also, hopefully you won't have to remove it for 20 years and it WILL rust again in that interval. Lube up the locator pin well too. The hot ticket is to get rid of the Nissan part and replace it with a 5/8" bolt. The bolt has just enough extra clearance to make getting it out easier even if a little rusty. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob_260 Posted April 20, 2015 Author Share Posted April 20, 2015 Things are starting to go back together. I have installed 22mm rear swaybars (the car came with 20mm's on the rear). I had to enlarge the swaybar bushing to accept the larger bar. The kit came with a 20mm bushing. I used a 25mm grinding wheel on my drill and just keep working the hole until the split line just closed. The lower control arms are also installed. Everything seems to be going back together smoothly so far! The strut towers are at the local machine shop having the bearings pressed in and the end-play set. I hope to get them back this week and to continue to reassemble the rear suspension Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob_260 Posted April 20, 2015 Author Share Posted April 20, 2015 Sorry, I meant to attach a couple of photos to my last post Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob_260 Posted April 20, 2015 Author Share Posted April 20, 2015 I have a question for the group. Everything I read says there are no alignment adjustments for the rear. Is that really the case or should I take the car to specialty shop to have it checked? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dat260 Posted April 20, 2015 Share Posted April 20, 2015 There are no rear adjustment possible on stock suspension. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
260zShooter Posted April 21, 2015 Share Posted April 21, 2015 Why do people pull the spindle pins anyway?The lower srut bushngs rarely if evero go bad. Its is just to much trouble toget those pins out.But if you do pull them, make sure you oat the ons with antii-sieze or rust inhibitor. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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