tim.d Posted April 19 Share Posted April 19 (edited) Hey Y'all, Right as COVID hit, career, kids, shutdown, and just about everything else took over and I essentially stopped all work on my car, forums, and deleted social media. Six years later, life has calmed down and I find myself with time, motivation, money, and a little bit of energy to work on the car again. The parts hoarding is done, now I just need to work on it. But the state of internet forums/groups has me completely baffled. 1) I have a ton of OEM and aftermarket parts to sell, and aside from Craigslist and FB Marketplace..how do you do that? Like, how would someone on the other side of the country know I have a bunch of parts to sell for cheap that I'll ship? I can't create a parts FS thread here, and we all know that unfortunately forums just don't get the visits they used to. 2) how do I engage in non-facebook Z chats/community? IS there one?? 3) Generally wtf has happened and how do y'all manage it being a Z / auto enthusiast in the current landscape? Edited April 19 by tim.d Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
calZ Posted April 19 Share Posted April 19 If you donate to the site you'll then be able to post FS threads. That said, FB Z groups are the big thing now. Craigslist and ebay also still work, but marketplace and group posting get the most eyes on it in my experience. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michael Posted May 21 Share Posted May 21 It's really become problematic. First we had the "search before you post anything new" exhortation, which very much quieted the forum, already back around 2012. Then we had the Facebook and instagram/tic-toc malaise, where now everything is short-video-format, to the detriment of any genuine discourse. Then, as the OP notes, we had the coronavirus collapse and no subsequent recovery. I moved from the Midwest to Los Angeles, supposedly America's hotbed of car-culture. Well, where is the car culture? I haven't seen it, online or off. And as for Z's, well, maybe every 6-8 months I'll see one on the local highways. If that. And don't get me started on the provenance of this site... the American V8 engine swap into the S30 Z. Everything is turbo now. When is the last time that anyone did anything V8-related? Sorry... no solutions, only gripes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mitchel0407 Posted May 21 Share Posted May 21 I bought my 1977 280z in august of last year and afterwards started looking around at all the available forums and other information sources. This let me to here, the ClassicZcar forum and the WhatsApp group from my local Z/ZX club (Holland). Each I use for a different purpose. - HybridZ: Modified Z projects, technical information, inspiration and keeping up a build thread (mainly for myself). - ClassicZcar: General information and information about stock/original parts or details. - The local Z/ZX club: Meets / rally’s, used parts and local knowledge (we have a few S30 restauration specialists in the group) As the S30 Z is pretty rare here in the Netherlands (and Europe in general) my only option is to use the internet and figure everything out myself. Parts are also hard to come by as my only options are used parts (when they appear online), Zservices in France or importing parts from the USA. As for car culture in general I do agree that it’s slowing down a bit. The cars are becoming more modern, parts are becoming more expensive and complicated and less people have the option of owning two or more cars. In general I’m seeing the economy slowing down and people watching there wallet. That said there are still a lot of interesting S30 Z projects going around. Yes turbo builds are pretty common as they have become easier to make power with and are a relatively cheap power source. But NA or NA ITB builds are also pretty common still among them being the V8 swap. Personally I’m keeping my L28E and will probably end up going the NA ITB route once I upgrade the stock injection (yes I’m keeping the injection and no I don’t want carbs). I do like the sound of the V8 swaps but I also think that they don’t really belong in the S30 Z’s. The Z’s being Japanese cars I find them more suited for inline 6 (NA or turbo) engines. And I just really love the sound of the L series engines. But hé, that’s just my personal opinion. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FastFloridian Posted May 21 Share Posted May 21 4 hours ago, Michael said: It's really become problematic. First we had the "search before you post anything new" exhortation, which very much quieted the forum, already back around 2012. Then we had the Facebook and instagram/tic-toc malaise, where now everything is short-video-format, to the detriment of any genuine discourse. Then, as the OP notes, we had the coronavirus collapse and no subsequent recovery. I moved from the Midwest to Los Angeles, supposedly America's hotbed of car-culture. Well, where is the car culture? I haven't seen it, online or off. And as for Z's, well, maybe every 6-8 months I'll see one on the local highways. If that. And don't get me started on the provenance of this site... the American V8 engine swap into the S30 Z. Everything is turbo now. When is the last time that anyone did anything V8-related? Sorry... no solutions, only gripes. While I wish there was more activity there are still people posting and following/commenting. I’m building a ford 302 for my 240Z right now, hopefully dropping it in this summer and I’ve gotten some good tips from members as I work on my build, saved me some big headaches. Someone else is doing an atlas swap. Unfortunately the S30s aren’t cheap anymore and parts are expensive. That’s certainly a factor when people are looking for a project car. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mitchel0407 Posted May 21 Share Posted May 21 Just like all classic and especially classic sports cars they end up sharply increasing in price once they approach 50 years in age. I always loved the look of the S30 Z cars and I really wanted a classic sports car as a hobby/project car. For me the only affordable option was the Porsche 944 coming in at €10k to €15k for a somewhat decent example. But even those shot up in price the last few years to the point that the price difference between those and S30 Z’s (280z in particular) became pretty low. I ended up paying €22,5k for my 1977 280z at an auction (including auction costs) and put around €4,5k into the car. Mainly comprising of the Apex Engineered suspension parts, body shop (welding frame rails and repainting the doors) and some long overdue maintenance. And yes I overpaid a couple of thousand on my car but at this point I really don’t care anymore as I plan to keep this car for the rest of my life! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ben280 Posted May 21 Share Posted May 21 I'll echo a couple good points in this thread. I came to this board in 2013 after a good run over on Ratsun, but getting deep enough into the Z specific stuff that I was getting more interested in here. Back the, Hybrid Z was already a place of "SEARCH" and "BAD GRAMMAR MEANS YOUR POST IS INVALID". Some very loud voices kept the general discourse to a minimum, even back then. I think generally, as the cars have gotten rarer and more expensive, a lot of the old guard who liked them for the chassis "cool and cheap" moved on. Facebook rose, and HybridZ has been relegated to a reference item. Lots of other thoughts, COVID, the death of Photobucket etc, but on and on and on. I will say, the forum as a model is not dead. I recently joined a Lotus board, and wow are they busy over there! My Tundra too has quite a bit of forum activity. I've said this in other threads of a similar ilk. Be the change you want to see. If you want more content here, post the content! Make it happen. And tell the youth about the resource that is here. There's quite a bit going on out there in the big wild world still. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michael Posted May 23 Share Posted May 23 On 5/21/2026 at 1:39 PM, Ben280 said: Be the change you want to see. If you want more content here, post the content! Make it happen. And tell the youth about the resource that is here. There's quite a bit going on out there in the big wild world still. That is of course an excellent point, but I have ample excuse in my frustrations. Content here hasn't merely waned. It's also moved in a direction away from what I hold dear... that being, the carbureted pushrod V8 in an S30. That's how we (shameless plug: I was one of the founding members) started this site some 26 years ago. Unfortunately, when I post a question about annular discharge vs. downleg-booster venturis, the result is... crickets. Not only because of general attenuation in Forum traffic, but because the frontier of interests has shifted. So yeah, for >26 years I've been trying to get the same Z running properly... and so far, have failed. Some folks build and rebuild to improve, to upgrade parts that they've broken in racing etc. Well, I've taken a Camry to the dragstrip, but have never taken the Z. It doesn't run, let alone, run well enough to be raced. And while some regulars have given up over the decades, I have not. Is that the definition of insanity? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mitchel0407 Posted May 26 Share Posted May 26 No. in my opinion that’s the definition of passion and commitment! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jhm Posted May 26 Share Posted May 26 FWIW...we're still getting 20-30 new registrations every month. The challenge is how to keep them interested and engaged. We've made some changes to the forum admin to hopefully encourage increased participation and minimize spam, and we're open to any and all suggestions to help keep the forum moving forward. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MONZTER Posted May 27 Share Posted May 27 I miss the old days of humble build threads, great comments and passion for building. All the FB and You Tube stuff seems like "hey look at how special I am, I can weld metal... ect" then people just talking shit how they suck and how much better they are. Just self-promotion for one’s self over passion for our cars and community. I think the Me/I generation is the problem mixed with ADD for anything longer than a sentence and complex thought. To ask for help is to say you dont know everything and today that is death. So yes I am an old guy now so look at me just like I used to look at my parents when I was young HA. Ill keep posting here, at least it is one thread that follows my project for anyone interested. I appreciate the comments, critisim, and help. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mitchel0407 Posted May 27 Share Posted May 27 That’s a bit of what I am trying to do with my own build thread. It’s mainly just a log for myself to build a timeline of everything I’m doing to the car but I also like sharing my discoveries on the forums to hopefully help somebody out in the future. And no I’m not some old sentimental person but just a guy with a love for the S30 body style and L series engine (who will be turning 26 in a little over a month). 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flatout Posted May 27 Share Posted May 27 I started my build thread on here for that same reason. Builds, conversation, and sharing the car culture passion. Unfortunately, it seems most of that is gone with most forums. I have a couple real niche cars so the forums are a few old heads that want to keep that alive but everybody just ends up on social media for the instant gratification or whatever. It would be nice to see a little more activity. I think its worth just a small comment when somebody makes the effort to post something. it makes a difference. A comment, a question, some feedback (keep it positive is possible) This forum has so much information imbedded into it which Im sure these social media people use when google brings them here but as soon as they get what they need, they are gone. not realizing that someday that action will lead to the information going away. The 240sx world lost Zilvia recently for this same reason and that really hurt. I'll keep posting until i can't. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tim.d Posted May 27 Author Share Posted May 27 On 5/21/2026 at 4:39 PM, Ben280 said: Be the change you want to see. Amen to that. Just donated, will try and create the time to re-engage my build thread and the forum en large. Thanks everyone for chiming in, glad to see there's still some fire left!! 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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