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Whats the G in G nose stand for?


Guest l28et

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Guest JAMIE T

Wow, someone needs a drink. Alan, you must be getting tired of all the mis-information about ZG's and 432's becuase I've noticed you remarks becoming more and more snippy. Not saying anything... Just an observation. I for one thank you for you vast knowledge. It has help me in the past.

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Wow, someone needs a drink.

 

Jamie,

If you're in the chair, I'll have the house's best Martini - cheers! :-)

 

Alan, you must be getting tired of all the mis-information about ZG's and 432's becuase I've noticed you remarks becoming more and more snippy.

 

True I get tired of misinformation, but short answers are just me trying to be succinct and cut to the chase. Seems the more wordy I am the less info gets through to where it is needed most.

 

Don't you remember the thread started by our friend 'manntis' a few weeks back which ended up in the Tool Shed? That's the kind of thing that makes my teeth loose and hair fall out. I think at one point there were three people on that thread insisting that the OEM G-nose was made from metal. Urban myth like that just seems to spawn on the 'net.

 

Thanks for the thanks ( always ) by the way. Mark of a gentleman. Old school.

 

I agree that his response was kind of non-productive. But Ghia has been used for a variety of things including several cars.

 

I already gave the answer to the question. The G in ZG and G-nose stands for 'Grande' according to Nissan, and to Mr Yoshihiko Matsuo - who designed it.

 

Where you got the idea that Italian coachbuilder and styling house Ghia was involved in the Fairlady 240ZG design I don't know. I'd be intrigued to hear the answer. Could be the beginning of a nice new internet myth.

 

Alan T.

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Some people just take Alan the wrong way. His succinct candor comes across as a dude with an attitude. Which is not how he is. This guy is a wealth of information and is very helpfull on the forums and off.

 

Thanks for sticking around Alan and correcting all the misinformation. I have learned a lot from your posts.

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Some people just take Alan the wrong way. His succinct candor comes across as a dude with an attitude. Which is not how he is. This guy is a wealth of information and is very helpfull on the forums and off.

 

Thanks for sticking around Alan and correcting all the misinformation. I have learned a lot from your posts.

 

Ditto

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i have no idea about the coach builder, but several companies have used the name Ghia in the product line. Cars, boats, a plane, a kit car, and I am sure a few more. Ghia is not strictly used in Italy as mentioned before. A quick internet search shows over 2.2 million hits including a German car manufacturer. I think one search would put this to bed for anyone interested. Also, one old fiberglass kit manufacturer (I am not sure but I thought it was Bob Sharp and I could probably find the old catalog) called it a Ghia nose which is where I remember it from like 20 years ago and it was the same G-nose that we call the G-nose. They probably used it as a name that they could sell and not cause issues with the G-nose name.

 

I did find it interesting that G-nose stood for Grande. Even motorsports in California once said it stood for Ghia nose, so more people had the same idea for waht ever reason and it is good to know what the literature stood for.

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Thanks Alan for the reference to the Tool Shed thread. An extremely informative thread. Too bad many people may miss it now that it's been moved.

 

I too was under the false notion that the original G-nose was steel. I had seen an imported RHD Fairlady Z with G-nose that was the victim of extensive rust. The top center panel/hood extension was as badly rusted as the rest of the car. I believed the car to be original and that formed my misinformation.

 

I'm now one bit less Z ignorant than before.

 

Sorry for this off topic jaunt, but being such a conasuir of rare and original Z's how do you feel about us bodgers that fit 'Merican V8's in them?

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Yeah, that was a great thread...I'm glad we were finally able to squash the myth that Mr. Ed was really a zebra once and for all. What ever happened to good old Manntis? Did he ever get a grande nose for his HID project? I like Alan, he doesn't take crap from anybody, and he can always back stuff up with pictures...

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I'm sorry, I have to answer this:

 

i have no idea about the coach builder, but several companies have used the name Ghia in the product line. Cars, boats, a plane, a kit car, and I am sure a few more.

 

The original Ghia ( Carrozeria Ghia SpA of Torino, Italy ) was named after its founder's family name. That's the only Ghia with a capital 'G' that I'm talking about, and it is a shame that Ford turned the Ghia name into something that wasted its rich heritage.

 

Ghia is not strictly used in Italy as mentioned before. A quick internet search shows over 2.2 million hits including a German car manufacturer. I think one search would put this to bed for anyone interested.

 

See above. The "German car maker" you mention ( ? ) would most likely be Volkswagen I presume - which had Karmann building Ghia-designed bodies on Type 1 and 3 VW floorpans for them. I used to own one of each ( the only proper Ghia-designed cars I'm ever likely to be able to afford ).

 

Also, one old fiberglass kit manufacturer (I am not sure but I thought it was Bob Sharp and I could probably find the old catalog) called it a Ghia nose which is where I remember it from like 20 years ago and it was the same G-nose that we call the G-nose. They probably used it as a name that they could sell and not cause issues with the G-nose name.

 

Maybe that is where the seeds of your confusion were planted. Bob Sharp could call it a Gnu-nose for all I care. What matters to me is the original factory stuff.

 

In situations like these it sometimes seems pertinent for us to remind ourselves that these are Japanese cars that we are talking about here. The activities of the likes of MSA and Showcars are kind of 'tits on a bull' in the grand scheme of things when looked at from a historical viewpoint, don't you think?

 

The original Fairlady 240ZG design was created by Yoshihiko Matsuo ( Chief Designer in the team that produced the S30-series Z range ) expressly to homologate a model ( the 'HS30-H' ) and associated parts for the factory Group 4 race cars. The 'HS30-H' was never an Export model, and was only sold to the general public in Japan as a limited edition in order to make the homologation legal.

 

The original Fairlady 240ZG model was a Nissan factory product, and so were the original OEM parts that were sold as Race Option and Sports Option parts in Japan. Everything else - all the replicas, knock-offs, lookey-likeys and version excursions - just ride on that fact. As the owner of a genuine and original factory Fairlady 240ZG ( the only genuine one in Europe, incidentally ) you can imagine that my personal viewpoint on the parts that people call 'G-noses' might be a little different to that of others. I feel like I have to stick up for the heritage and identity of The Real Thing in the same way that the owner of a genuine Plymouth Superbird or BMW CSL 'Batmobile' might want to stick up for theirs. Any aftermarket or non-factory "G-nose" parts have to live or die on their quality, fit and finish. My car would turn its nose up to them, I reckon.

 

Can you see where I'm coming from on that? It might sound snooty, but try to imagine what your viewpoint would be if you had a genuine factory car in your garage.........

 

Sorry for this off topic jaunt, but being such a conasuir of rare and original Z's how do you feel about us bodgers that fit 'Merican V8's in them?

 

Dan,

I like a lot of things, but mostly I like cars - and I like to think I have a very all-encompassing and catholic taste in them. I can appreciate most of them in some way or another, but my particular interest - and one that I don't think I'm ever going to grow out of - is race cars, and especially old race cars. That's something that was planted in me a long time ago, and might very well have been in my DNA when I was born. Everything I like kind of revolves around that really.

 

I think two things count when it comes to modified cars: Taste and good engineering. If they are well engineered it is a pleasure to look closely at them, and it helps if they work well too. Taste you either have or haven't got, and you can't buy it.

 

I don't have a problem with anyone fitting American V8s, Mexican V8s, Italian V8s or even inline 16 Zeppelin engines and two-stroke lawnmower engines in S30-series Z cars - as long as it is done with taste and good engineering. I take them on a case-by-case basis. Seems to work for me.

 

 

 

 

 

To Mat73GNZ and Sparky: Many thanks for the encouragement. :-)

 

Cheers,

Alan T.

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well alan i must say i already respected your knowledge and opinion but to hear your comments on v8 converisions i am truely impressed i never expected a owner of such a fine car as yours to respect well engineered v8 conversions

as the owner of a modified 240z for over 20 years i have found the predjuice towards v8 conversions especially in the club and some other internet sites to be at least very disappointing an thats putting it nicely

 

I fully respect people to there own ideas of perfect car and for those that can afford a genuine orginal 240z or even a 240zg please buy them and cherish them for the cars they are

But what i want from my car is not to leave it standard i find pleasure in improving it (at least in my opinion) i know my car was well past ever being restored to std orginal engine and gearbox gone more than likey would have been wrecked if i hadnt been young and stupid enough to start the rebuild

 

at least on this site conversions are welcomed and supported

 

so i say thank you alan for your knowledge and opinions

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