cfg240z Posted December 21, 2007 Share Posted December 21, 2007 Hey guys. Found a local 260Z owned by a little old lady who kept it in, what looks to be, excellent shape....aside from one very big issue - the front of the passenger side frame rail is rotted out. It's so strange because the rest of the car is so solid and clean - almost the perfect barn find...just in a city garage . It's just been sitting in a parking garage collecting a thick layer of dust for 2 years or so. I'm not actively in the market for a project, but hey...if something interesting comes along like this...I'm going to look So I know this is a vague question, and there is probably no perfect answer....but: Based on the pics, what would you estimate (roughly) for cutting this area out, and welding in appropriate pieces? I'm trying to figure out if even a low offer on this car will be worth it (a few hundred bucks) - considering the repair of this area (which I would have to farm out) and the thing hasn't been fired up in a couple of years. BTW - this is the Northeast. Thanks for any thoughts. Cheers! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikeatrpi Posted December 21, 2007 Share Posted December 21, 2007 Hi I would check the battery tray and firewall too - that's probably why you have rot on that section of the subframe. On my ZX, I made patch panels for that section. I actually replaced part of the floor, and then made two sides and a "top" for the boxed part of the rail. I mig welded it all together. Took me a weekend per side. Yours looks similar. There are photos of my repair at the website in my signature. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
primadonna z Posted December 21, 2007 Share Posted December 21, 2007 From the first picture, it appears that there is some bondo in the front fender. Hence the break in the body work. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slownrusty Posted December 21, 2007 Share Posted December 21, 2007 Your pictures are not really all that good, can you snap some overall pics of the car to give you the best determination of overall condition. The rusty framerail is very typical for these cars and can easily and inexpensively have a new section "spliced-in". Yasin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pop N Wood Posted December 21, 2007 Share Posted December 21, 2007 You can fix that with a set of bad dog frame rails. JohnC has posted what he charges to do a set of BD rails. Do a quick search. Be warned: rust is always more pervasive than the initial look may reveal. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
myplasticegg Posted December 21, 2007 Share Posted December 21, 2007 That looks like it might be centralized in the rails... Looks like a REALLY good encounter with a speed bump. If the rest of the car is solid (bat tray, firewall, floors) I would say go for it. Maybe the speed bump encounter just weekend the metal and the harsh NE winters took over from there? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cygnusx1 Posted December 21, 2007 Share Posted December 21, 2007 Is that the Z from Craigs list in Brooklyn? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Powerglide Posted December 21, 2007 Share Posted December 21, 2007 Mine looked like that on the pass side too. I didn'r skomp and replaced the entire rail. The rail was $300 shipped and the work was $1100. I'm certain it would be MUCH less just to replace the bad section on your car. Lots of the work entailed removal of the seat and carpet and moving the FUEL lines and clamps. REAL important when welding near a gasoline supply! Funny thing is...the rest of my car was solid too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Six_Shooter Posted December 29, 2007 Share Posted December 29, 2007 If you don't want to buy that car, I might be interested, but would liek more details on the car. PM me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EvilC Posted January 2, 2008 Share Posted January 2, 2008 That is the Z from BK, NYC. I just got called back for that car today because no one has picked it up yet. I was thinking l28et swap DD until I want to get rid of it. I was thinking no more than 300- 400 bucks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cfg240z Posted January 2, 2008 Author Share Posted January 2, 2008 Yeah, I got an email seeing if I wanted to put in an offer. I think for a few hundred bucks, it's probably a good deal if you have the resources. I wish I had more garage space and some welding skills. Funny that the car is literally about 15 blocks from me, hence it made things really tempting (= Good luck with it if you go for it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EvilC Posted January 2, 2008 Share Posted January 2, 2008 Yeah, I got an email seeing if I wanted to put in an offer. I think for a few hundred bucks, it's probably a good deal if you have the resources. I wish I had more garage space and some welding skills. Funny that the car is literally about 15 blocks from me, hence it made things really tempting (= Good luck with it if you go for it! If you want it let me know. Figure we can work the price down =) I have enough Z's around...lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thezhead Posted January 16, 2008 Share Posted January 16, 2008 I picked it up last weekend, from the original owner. The car other than the frame rail appears to be rust free. Battery box is perfect - albeit missing the bracket to hold down the battery. Dash is mint, interior is mint. Starter, alternator, electric fuel pump, plugs, wires, tires and battery appear to be less the 3 years old. The car came with 33 years of receipts. Most from the Brooklyn Datsun dealership. New springs in 1990. Exhaust cant be more than 3 years old either. Original radio, antenna and single speaker, all working! Oh yeah, and it has AC too! I still cant get the stupid grin off my face. I bought it essentially site unseen. I have friends that told me about it, they know the original owner. It was her pride and joy. And, not a drip of oil, gear oil, gas or water in the parking space floor or my garage! I drove it thru a car wash while still on the trailer. wow. what a difference. It had more dirt then you would believe on it. Ignition switch is busted, wont turn stuck in "on" position. I filled up the empty radiator, turned it over 5 or 6 times, and then pulled the choke hit the gas, and it started right up. Drove around my neighborhood. Tach is a 50/50 sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. It shifts smoothly, pulls in all 4 gears. What a find. It's funny I should find this here- I came to this site when I found out about it. I was investigating a conversion. I know these have the undesirable flat top carbs, and if the engine was abused, or toast, I wanted to do a conversion. I have a series one 240 Z that I updated with an 835spd, L28NA lower end, a 4.11 R180, and the original SU's. Its a blast but always thought it would be even more fun with 300hp instead of 175. I haven't decided anything. Still waiting for the other shoe to drop. http://thezhead.googlepages.com/datsun240z2 Looking forward to the spring... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rturbo 930 Posted January 16, 2008 Share Posted January 16, 2008 I picked it up last weekend, from the original owner. The car other than the frame rail appears to be rust free. Battery box is perfect - albeit missing the bracket to hold down the battery. Dash is mint, interior is mint. Starter, alternator, electric fuel pump, plugs, wires, tires and battery appear to be less the 3 years old. The car came with 33 years of receipts. Most from the Brooklyn Datsun dealership. New springs in 1990. Exhaust cant be more than 3 years old either. Original radio, antenna and single speaker, all working! Oh yeah, and it has AC too! I still cant get the stupid grin off my face. I bought it essentially site unseen. I have friends that told me about it, they know the original owner. It was her pride and joy. And, not a drip of oil, gear oil, gas or water in the parking space floor or my garage! I drove it thru a car wash while still on the trailer. wow. what a difference. It had more dirt then you would believe on it. Ignition switch is busted, wont turn stuck in "on" position. I filled up the empty radiator, turned it over 5 or 6 times, and then pulled the choke hit the gas, and it started right up. Drove around my neighborhood. Tach is a 50/50 sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. It shifts smoothly, pulls in all 4 gears. What a find. It's funny I should find this here- I came to this site when I found out about it. I was investigating a conversion. I know these have the undesirable flat top carbs, and if the engine was abused, or toast, I wanted to do a conversion. I have a series one 240 Z that I updated with an 835spd, L28NA lower end, a 4.11 R180, and the original SU's. Its a blast but always thought it would be even more fun with 300hp instead of 175. I haven't decided anything. Still waiting for the other shoe to drop. http://thezhead.googlepages.com/datsun240z2 Looking forward to the spring... where in NJ are you? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EvilC Posted January 16, 2008 Share Posted January 16, 2008 Glad you found the site, this is Clive who you spoke to earlier today. Do you mind me asking how much did you get it for? rturbo 930, how far are you from zip code 10956? I am having a Z meeting if you can make it this week. Clive Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rturbo 930 Posted January 16, 2008 Share Posted January 16, 2008 Glad you found the site, this is Clive who you spoke to earlier today. Do you mind me asking how much did you get it for? rturbo 930, how far are you from zip code 10956? I am having a Z meeting if you can make it this week. Clive 2 hours according to google maps. pretty tied down with school work though, this week is the end of the semester. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cfg240z Posted January 16, 2008 Author Share Posted January 16, 2008 I had a feeling it would clean up nicely. If I had garage space (and a welder friend), I would've picked it up the day I saw it. Other than some overspray, the interior was perfect. I just couldn't believe there was a Z tucked away only a few blocks from me. Enjoy! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thezhead Posted January 16, 2008 Share Posted January 16, 2008 According to the person in charge of the estate, I offered $100 more than the other offer she received, $500. It cost me $60 in gas and another $70 to rent the trailer. I'm trying to hook up with John from Bad Dog frame rails next week. I'm ~55 miles west of the GWB. I'm in the southern tip of Sussex County, Andover, NJ. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EvilC Posted January 17, 2008 Share Posted January 17, 2008 I offered $500!! lol Glad it is still in the area. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HowlerMonkey Posted January 17, 2008 Share Posted January 17, 2008 Usually it's leaking battery that causes that but one thing many people ignore is rust from within. Anybody who's eaten drive-thru fries can probably remember brushing the salt from said fries onto the floor. Combine that with wet feet on a passenger and you end up with salt water.........inside the car. Car's aren't designed to combat salt water on the inside so the passenger floor rusts out first on most cars regardless of make. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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