cygnusx1 Posted April 1, 2006 Share Posted April 1, 2006 There is not alot of info out on the web about doing this swap. Well, here I go. I purchased a set of nice '72 240Z bumpers from BLOZ UP here at the forums. I took the bumpers apart, ditched the dry rotted rubber strips and polished up the chrome with some off the shelf chrome polish. I am in the process of installing them onto my early 1976 280Z that has the big heavy bumpers, shocks, and tons of rubber trim. This morning I removed the 76 front bumper and shocks. Then I hung the 240 one with some duct tape off the hood. The side holes line up, but, the '72 brackets will not work as they are. After some pondering, while laying on my back under the nose of the car, I could see that the original bolt holes for the 280Z bumper shocks were the best bet for hanging new brackets. The 240Z brackets were no where near correct for this fit. I had to bend, cut, and weld them to fit. I will post pics as work progresses. Stay tuned as I complete the front and move to the back bumper. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cygnusx1 Posted April 1, 2006 Author Share Posted April 1, 2006 Here is the bracket after being modified. I still need to drill two holes in it to match up to the two holes on the 280Z body shown behind the bracket. The one hole in already in the bracket will not be used. Here is the bracket cut shorter, cut and twisted, ready to be welded at the bend. Two holes will be drilled in the long leg of the bracket to match 280Z body holes originally for the big shocks. I hesitate to give any dimensions because you have to hang the bumper where you want it and then make the brackets to fit. I will make the all the bracket holes larger to allow for plenty of adjustment later. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BARACU Posted April 1, 2006 Share Posted April 1, 2006 Dave; I just did the same thing on the 280RoadZter that I'm building. The 240bumper fits perfectly using the 240 bracket with some bending and drilling , as you're doing. For the rear bumpers, I had to fabricate a new bracket. It's basically a "H " shape, with one flat leg attaching to the rear valance mount and the other leg to the bracket on the bumper. I thought I had pictures of the bracket, but apparently I don't. if you need some dimension, I can measure it for you. With the 240 bumper on the front, I found that there's a considerable gap between the lower valance and the bumper, that gives an unfinished look. I'm modifying a 240 grill to fill in that space. BTW, we were next to one another at the national in Syracuse, last year.I have the red V8 280. AL Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cygnusx1 Posted April 1, 2006 Author Share Posted April 1, 2006 Hi AL, how are you? Yeah I remember that gorgeous red Z. As far as the rear bumper mount, I did't think that the 280 has a mount on the rear valence for a bracket? I figured I would have to drill into the valence and make a backing plate with threaded holes. Hmm. I will find out later this week as I get into it more. If you have any photos or can snap one it would be a big help. Otherwise, I'll figure it out eventually. The front bumper definately leaves a large "mouth" open underneath. I have the original lower grill that I may put back. If that doesn't look right, I'll have to get more creative. BTW, I run an insect screen on the back of the grill all the way down to the valence/spoiler to keep crud and rocks out of all my expensive hardware in there. Thanks. Post more pics of the roadster! -Dave Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BARACU Posted April 1, 2006 Share Posted April 1, 2006 Dave; I just took a pic of the rear bumper bracket. It was shot looking straight up at it from underneath. IIR, i had to drill one of the holes and tap it . For the front grill, the lower two bar grill doesn't even come close to filling the hole. With some modifications, the 240 grill fills up the entire space. I should have it finished tomorrow. I'll take some pictures for you. Yesterday was the first time the RoadZter moved under it's own power out of the garage. I took some quick photos for the insurance company. it seems like it was 9 months of he**, building this car. Except for the engine machine work, I did every bit of it myself, including paint, in my garage. AL Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BARACU Posted April 2, 2006 Share Posted April 2, 2006 Dave: Finished up the lower grill today. The 240 grill, that I had laying around, worked perfectly. I transferred the brackets from the 280 lower grill to the 240 grill, did some trimming and welding and made two L brackets to attach with the upper brackets on the 240 grill to the frame. I was going to make up a screen to attach to the radiator to keep the bugs out, but I like your idea of putting it directly behind the grill better. AL Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cygnusx1 Posted April 3, 2006 Author Share Posted April 3, 2006 Looks good. I see that the original valence does leave alot of room but the 240 grill fills it up well. My original valence is hanging in the garage rafters. I use a urethane air dam. It closes up that gap quite a bit. I am just using screen and it looks pretty good. I must say, the car handles much better with the lighter bumper. I was pleasantly surprised at how much difference in steering response and steering ease it made....or maybe im nuts. It definitely feels better though. http://album.hybridz.org/showphoto.php?photo=6671&size=big&cat=500 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cygnusx1 Posted April 3, 2006 Author Share Posted April 3, 2006 Why pay a fortune for original Nissan rubber strips. I found these. These strips should be long enough to cover all the holes in the bumper including the ones for the vertical pushbars. They are also narrow enough to fit on the thin ends of the bumper. Bumper Protection Molding kit - Model M112FE http://www.autoamenity.com/Body-Molding/Bumper-Molding.htm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cygnusx1 Posted April 4, 2006 Author Share Posted April 4, 2006 It's official. I weighed a front and rear set of early (1976 280Z) bumpers and shocks, with all the rubber trim. It's right around 80 pounds with about 4 more pounds in the rear bar than the front. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DavyZ Posted April 5, 2006 Share Posted April 5, 2006 Why pay a fortune for original Nissan rubber strips? I found these. Bumper Protection Molding kit - Model M112FE http://www.autoamenity.com/Body-Molding/Bumper-Molding.htm Awesome. I was wondering how the heck do I replace those ugly things when voila' date=' here it is. Thanks for posting that. It's official. I weighed a front and rear set of early (1976 280Z) bumpers and shocks, with all the rubber trim. It's right around 80 pounds with about 4 more pounds in the rear bar than the front. USEFUL INFO! That's why I love this site. Again, thanks for posting that info. Davy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cygnusx1 Posted April 7, 2006 Author Share Posted April 7, 2006 By the way, the rubber trim I linked above is 21" long. It covers all the holes on the front 240 bumpers but the back will leave two holes exposed on each side unless you use the vertical push bars which fill in one of the holes on each side...use a tape measure and you'll see what I mean. They look nice anyhow. Well, I finished mounting the rear 240Z bar. After lowering the fuel tank I was able to get the bumper shock out. Then I ordered some rubber plugs from McMaster.com to plug the holes in the hatch where the bolts for the shocks were. The original 240Z brackets worked. They bolt to one hole on each side of the rear valence. You need to re-bend the brackets about 1.5" towards the drivers side to get it all centered up. There is no problem with the corner pieces fitting around the back of the 280Z. You will need to drill a new hole in the rear quarter panel and thread a screw from inside the panel to hold the bumper ends in place. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cygnusx1 Posted April 17, 2006 Author Share Posted April 17, 2006 Job done. 65 pounds less! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Drax240z Posted April 17, 2006 Share Posted April 17, 2006 65lbs lost and a whole lot better looking! Very nice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BLOZ UP Posted April 17, 2006 Share Posted April 17, 2006 very nice looking. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
j260z Posted April 18, 2006 Share Posted April 18, 2006 very nice looking car. i never really liked the postion of the signal lights on the late 260z and 280z. but now i've seen your car i think it was a combination of those huge bumpers and the signal lights. it looks very clean and sharp not to mention 65 lbs is a great weight loss. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
john kosmatka Posted April 18, 2006 Share Posted April 18, 2006 Good post, i think im gonna do this to my 280 as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pennyman Posted September 11, 2006 Share Posted September 11, 2006 I want to do this as well. Would it be possible to make front bumper brackets from some strap metal? Also, do we know whether the rear brackets from a 240z will work on a 280z? Gotta find some bumpers. I hope it doesn't cost too much to get stuff rechromed... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wedge Posted December 30, 2007 Share Posted December 30, 2007 quick question did you use a 280 or 240 Z air dam in the front ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slownrusty Posted December 30, 2007 Share Posted December 30, 2007 Wow...very Sexxxxy Dave...I love it!!! Now I know what my 280Z will look like with these bumpers. Great Post. Yasin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
S30TRBO Posted December 30, 2007 Share Posted December 30, 2007 Here are the brackets for the rears: http://store.datsunspirit.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=67 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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