1 tuff z Posted February 22, 2009 Share Posted February 22, 2009 been working on getting another z in the stable-this one is a family project. in the pic are my kids. alan is 13, emma 11 and we'll soon embark on a dad-son-daughter z project. i made them a deal and am splitting everything down the middle for the entire project. the kids have been saving all summer and are ready to put down their hard earned cash in trade to own their first z! began teaching alan how to drive a stick shift summer '07 when he was 11, does pretty well now. emma's turn is this summer. they also both had some "ice" drive time [drifting, donuts, etc.] when we were out watching ice racing a few weeks back. it will be nice that they'll have a car to call their own and something that we did not just give to them. we plan to get all the safety stuff taken care of first and make certain that it is a competent daily driver, then it gets taken apart for paint and bodywork. i'll show them how to organize, bag, clean, restore, prep and more all the parts that are removed. i also have a stash of parts that have been set aside for the project. overall it's in pretty decent shape. dark green, 12/71 mfg date, tan interior [planning to convert to black]. even has the original window sticker and wheel covers! here's the first pic Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
misterZ Posted February 22, 2009 Share Posted February 22, 2009 Noice for a starter! Can't wait to see the progress... GL, mister Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cygnusx1 Posted February 23, 2009 Share Posted February 23, 2009 My son is two years old and he tells me that he wants a yellow Zcar with black wheels...so he says. He can already put on lug nuts! I lifted the Sportmax wheels into place and he started the lug nuts. I am amazed. Besides the thrills of driving them, Z's are good cars that can keep the family together. When it's bedtime, we have "talk time" and nine times out of ten he wants to talk about Zcars. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
qwik240z Posted February 23, 2009 Share Posted February 23, 2009 Nice Dave. Sounds like a great project. A bit scary to let a 16 year old drive a nice classic Z car though. Z cars are tin cans and don't offer much in the way of safety protection. Unless you plan to install a full cage like it your LS1 car. Maybe a 77 Cadillac Fleetwood Brougham or a big hummer or something would be better for the beginner drivers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1 tuff z Posted February 28, 2009 Author Share Posted February 28, 2009 the z arrived at her new home this past thursday evening. did a quick cleanout yesterday afternoon [before the snow started to fly again]. found some interesting items inside. original window sticker-z arrived to the united states via port of entry at jacksonville, fl january 1971. base price was $3596 + dealer prep & delivery bringing the total to a whopping $3686. color, 907 green, sold by godding & clark motors in gainesville. the z also came with the datsun dealer list, warranty & service booklet and a dealer directory. there is a bit of maintenance history. original owner paid $6.40 for the first oil change [no filter] at 698 miles. car had a/c installed-looks like when new. 2nd owner had installed an aftermarket cassette player and cd changer but hung onto the original am seeking radio. came with zx 6 spoke wheels, as well as the orig steelies and wheel covers. someone had installed weber dual downdraft carbs, car came with the orig su's as well. i plan to put the su's back shortly. didn't have too much time to look the z over but it appears to be in pretty decent shape, showing 119k on the odometer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MJLamberson Posted March 1, 2009 Share Posted March 1, 2009 I think what you are doing for your kids is awesome. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1 tuff z Posted March 4, 2009 Author Share Posted March 4, 2009 some pics... front view rear view interior Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1 tuff z Posted March 4, 2009 Author Share Posted March 4, 2009 I think what you are doing for your kids is awesome. thank you. i wanted to do a father-son-daughter project that we would all remember for years to come. some folks may think it odd but my children are paying for half of everything we spend both to purchase and restore their z. i want the kids to be proud of their z as well as be able to know that it was not given to them and that they worked both financially and [on] the car for it. there is a also a caveat that when older brother goes somewhere that many times sister will go also-this way i have two somewhat responsible beings in the car. no back seat for their peer pressure friends to ride and egg them on. hopefully my rationale will work. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VinhZXT Posted March 4, 2009 Share Posted March 4, 2009 David, My son and daughter are 11 and 13 also. I have more Zs in my garage and I wish I can get my kids to do a project with me. All they want are the Zs I already finished. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ARZ_ Posted March 6, 2009 Share Posted March 6, 2009 Nice Dave. Sounds like a great project. A bit scary to let a 16 year old drive a nice classic Z car though. Z cars are tin cans and don't offer much in the way of safety protection. Unless you plan to install a full cage like it your LS1 car. Maybe a 77 Cadillac Fleetwood Brougham or a big hummer or something would be better for the beginner drivers.I agree a big huge old GM car might be a bigger car and seem somewhat safer, but I worked in a Z Junkyard while I was going to college and I saw dozens of crashed Z's and as far as I know there were no fatality crash vehicles, (the insurance company's legally had to disclose this information). There were many vehicles we had where the original owner recognized his car and told us the story. Every one of them (where we heard the story) walked away from their cars. Some it was their fault and others it wasn't, but all remarked on how well the car absorbed the impact. One car was a head on so violent it broke each SU manifold in half and drove them and carbs and air cleaner through the firewall. It was amazing and sure enough a customer came in and he knew the original owner and said the guy walked away. One friend zipping though an intersection got tagged by some old people that didn't know they weren't supposed to turn left when there wasnt an arrow. The A pillar was less than 4 inches from his head when you sat in the drivers seat and the drivers side foot well was crushed almost to the trans. He hurt his wrist and never even bumped his head. He was always one of those guys that ALWAYS wore his seat belt. Of all the things you can do to an S30 to make it more crash worthy the one I see most often overlooked is protection around the foot well. If you weld a bar from right in front of the feet (outside) to right above TC rod and basically build a small box of tubes around your feet, you would be wise to do so. Its something you never see and the chances of someone turning left into your side of the car are relatively high. This is more for a race car with a cage, Im not advocating you do that with this car. thank you. i wanted to do a father-son-daughter project that we would all remember for years to come. some folks may think it odd but my children are paying for half of everything we spend both to purchase and restore their z. i want the kids to be proud of their z as well as be able to know that it was not given to them and that they worked both financially and [on] the car for it. there is a also a caveat that when older brother goes somewhere that many times sister will go also-this way i have two somewhat responsible beings in the car. no back seat for their peer pressure friends to ride and egg them on. hopefully my rationale will work. I think thats a wonderful thing, I hope it works out. I would also encourage you to enter them in Autocross, as early as SCCA rules would permit. I was (and still am) a speed demon and having a vent like that would have prevented so many tickets. My parents bought my brother and I a car to share (we are one year apart, am the oldest, I was 17 years old at the time). We got it the summer before my senior year in high school. The plan was we both pay for the car and who ever pays it off first gets to keep it. It all would have went perfect except for the fact that I had a job and LOVED cars and he had a love for neither (a job or cars). In 1985 my dad had a friend at a used car dealer and found a great deal on a beautiful black 1977 Olds Cutlass 2 door, it was a very nice car that had just been painted and had the motor rebuilt. It was a VERY cool first car, I waxed and washed it every week, sometimes twice a week, the muffler fell off and I fixed that, it needed brakes I fixed that, it needed a radiator hose and some shocks, so I fixed those, it needed a car stereo so I did that. If it needed to be done "I" did it and paid for it. I also saved all of my money and was making payments to my dad and dreaming of the day when it would be all mine. My brother DROVE the car, that's ALL!!! Oh wait, he drove the car to his girlfriends that lived down a dirt road (it wasn't even his girlfriend he was just stalking her and she was stringing him along LOL). Also he left his golf clubs in the trunk.... and well, you know I didn't take corners like it was a Cutlass I took corners like it was a Z car. One day I noticed all these little dents in the back... I was like WTH. I popped the trunk and broke every single club in half, my brother caught me while I was breaking the very last one over my knee and we had it out right there in the front yard. LOL. Needless to say, my brother thinks of a car as a way to get from point A to B. I think a little differently!!! Today he drives a Buick Rendezvous for god sake. All I can say is, if one kid shows quite a bit more interest and respect for the car than the other you might want to revisit the original agreement and see if a compromise cant be reached. My parents weren't the best a fair treatment, and my brother and I still dont get along like we should, but maybe your kids get along great, and wont have any problems. I am jealous of others that have a good relationship with their siblings, Im sure if they get along good and work things out that this could work great. If they dont, make sure to step in early. Oh I almost forgot about the end of the story. One week before I get to drive my own car to school for the first time, I went on a hiking vacation in Isle Royale national park in the middle of Lake Superior. When I returned, the car was sitting in the driveway in the rain with a tarp duct taped over the passenger side. I lifted the tarp and the left side of the car was caved in to almost the middle of the passenger seat. My brother had turned left in front of someone and TOTALED the car. Luckily his friend in the passenger seat wasn't hurt to bad. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1 tuff z Posted March 6, 2009 Author Share Posted March 6, 2009 i greatly appreciate all the advice. as fathers we come to the realization that our children do not come with the ever helpful fsm's [factory service manuals] and each day brings challenges. we rarely make perfect decisions but always try to do what is best. i began teaching my son [the eldest] to drive my honda accord 5spd when he was 11 [church park lot] and my daughter began this past summer. my rationale is that driving involves many facets-mechanical operation of the car, traffic/other drivers and the rules of the road. if i could build the 'car' skills of my children to a decent level of competency prior to them actually hitting the road, they would have more "attention brain space" available for the other parts. i sure hope it works! they will both attend this event when they are new drivers: http://www.tirerack.com/features/motorsports/street_survival.jsp in addition to autocrossing and many hours driving with dad & mom instructing from the right seat. i was just accepted to the local bmw instructor school at watkins glen, which means that they will also attend events there once eligible [18 years old for wgi]. the idea of them exercising their speed desires on the track vs. street is very important to me and i want to provide the outlet for them to do so [as well as them becoming more competent drivers]. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1 tuff z Posted May 3, 2009 Author Share Posted May 3, 2009 began pulling the necessary parts to begin the bodywork & paint process. so far; taillights, bumpers, marker lights, exhaust [was even able to remove the downpipe without breaking the studs!], hood & hatch latching hardware, lower valence, door handles & locks, fender bolts, radiator, carbs & exh manifold and gas tank, drip rail stainless trim. to go; windshield, 1/4 windows, door latch hardware, weatherstripping, engine/trans [then remove items from eng bay], headlights, hatch, hood and hatch hinges [for plating!] and some other small stuff. then, off she goes. we anticipate that it will take the summer to complete the job. each panel will be stripped to bare metal, straightened/fixed/etc then primered. once the z is all in primer we then shoot a single stage period correct 907 green. color sand, buff then begin the reassembly process. while the z is in paint jail the plan is to polish the bumpers, clean up the engine and ready other parts that were removed for installation. i'll post some pics soon... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1 tuff z Posted June 3, 2009 Author Share Posted June 3, 2009 z is ready for paint and should head off next week. i will try to post a few pics of how she sits now without the majority of parts as she is naked and ready for new 907 green! surprisingly clean and nearly rust free. will tidy the engine while out and take care of the other 'while i'm at it's' while at paint jail this summer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zedsn Posted June 3, 2009 Share Posted June 3, 2009 very nice find indeed! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
S30TRBO Posted June 3, 2009 Share Posted June 3, 2009 Nice David. You are doing a great thing for your kids. It is something they won't forget! Any parts going to Batavia? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1 tuff z Posted June 3, 2009 Author Share Posted June 3, 2009 i did go to batavia but they didn't seem to want to plate the parts i have [i think too much prep work-surface rust, grease, etc] so i went back to my place in rochester, we spoke at length and things have been going pretty well. i have been doing most of the prep work-wire wheel then scotchbrite wheel prior to plating. Nice David. You are doing a great thing for your kids. It is something they won't forget! Any parts going to Batavia? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
S30TRBO Posted June 3, 2009 Share Posted June 3, 2009 The owner told me as long as they are clean and if you want to do any prep work prior it will help the process. I did it on a piece after they coated it and I wasn't happy and sent it back it turned out so much better. I guess it's all in the prep work ahead of time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EvilC Posted June 12, 2009 Share Posted June 12, 2009 I was at David's house last week and snapped some pics of the kids car before it goes to paint jail. This thing is going to look great once done! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1 tuff z Posted June 12, 2009 Author Share Posted June 12, 2009 clive, thanks for posting the pics. mine are still on the camera... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
two40zjunky Posted June 13, 2009 Share Posted June 13, 2009 awesome!! can't wait for more pics Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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