Project Fairlady z

[LegnaZetr0]

My poor z is still sitting. this thread saddens me... hopefully we'll see some updates soon. Work and school full time havent left me much time. However i'm the process of another z build that i will hopefully finish soon, once i finish his i will get back into working on mine

[LegnaZetr0]

I need motivation my fellow z'ers!! Still have a crazy schedule that doesn't seem to be changing anytime soon so that means I have to make time whenever i have it to work on my z. So hopefully if all goes well ill try and start working on the frame rail this weekend and pick it back up from there. Slowly but surely.

 

If you see this thread not updated bump it up! Harass me! Cause I will see the email update and it will

Remind me to get my butt back in gear!

[EvilC]

Get back in the garage and off HBZ! =)

[LegnaZetr0]

Back from the dead!!!!! I should switch the name of this thread to the zombie build, haha. 

ANYWHO... Its pretty much been a year since my last post, buttttttt i do have some updates 

 

I had to downsize my work space to a one car unit, so i figured this would be a good time to start working on her again.

 

My Fairlady as i moved her to her new home

 

 

 

 

 

After accommodating her into the new space it was time to decide my next move. The following morning i started calling around getting qoutes for sandblasting, i found a guy, talked some numbers and struck a deal! 

 

On her way to get stripped

 

 

 

Turns out i still had a lot more things in the engine bay than i thought, so i headed to the sandblsters and got to work on pulling EVERYTHiNG that i could remove. This included booster, master, clutcth matser, steering, harnesses, brake lines, fuel lines... yeah, pretty much everything.

 

I will be either overhauling and refurbishing the booster and master or just ugrading to new & better parts. We'll see what my pockets allow.

 

Here's the bay stripped of all its guts

 

 

 

After finishing with the bay i went ahead and removed the doors for complete teardown & removed all remaining interior.

 

 

 

 

Well, thats it for now. She should be fully sandblasted and primered by tuesday so stay tuned for updates from here on out! 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[LegnaZetr0]

Alright, so picking up where I left off even though I'm not sure anyone keeps up with this thread. Here she is while she was being stripped.






Finally and very long overdue she is down to her original state


Driver side wheel well and frame rail were perfect, actually there were no surprises period on the whole car.

 

Gotta love the short vin.


Now onto the passenger side (battery side) there are some issues from leaking battery acid.. Nothing to crazy though floors are still solid.








And then on went three coats of epoxy primer.









Well that's it for today, I'll try and update more within the week.

Edited August 23, 2014 by LegnaZetr0

[EvilC]

I am watching, thanks for the update!

[RebekahsZ]

Me too!  Keep at it, looking great.

[LegnaZetr0]

Glad to see people are still watching! Here are some more updates as promised. Installed the bad dog frame rails and repaired all the nasty rust from the leaking battery acid.

 

 

Sandblasted all bare areas (didn't get pictures) and then hit em with primer.

 

 

Finally the car is fully rust free! 😄

[mikey240z]

Very nice!!

[SleeperZ]

Very nice.  I admire those with the determination and patience to do these ground up restores.  I hardly have the time to keep mine running so I can hit the track every once in a while.  Nice going.

[LegnaZetr0]

UPDATE:

 

Okay, well i'm currently living in China. Ive been here since the beginning of 2014 pursuing a long time dream of mine to live at a Shaolin academy and train traditional Shaolin Martial arts. Life here is much different than back home, its been a great experience but i'll soon be returning at the end of this year. I'm really excited to get back and wrench on my lady, reading everyones progress on build threads can be really inspirational.

 

I did make a good amount of progress on the z before coming here that I never got to update, I've tried uploading pictures so I can post a proper update but China has so many firewalls that almost every hosting site is blocked. So just know good progress was made, and I sprayed the engine bay days before leaving but I wont spoil the surprise of my color choice yet, once I can find a way to post photos i will and you guys can see then. 

[LegnaZetr0]

Alright so finally got a VPN working on my computer, so now i can post the progress up that was made before i came here.

 

COMPLETELY off topic but this is my other toy so i thought i would share, She's a 99 R1 turbocharged 

This was my first time racing her at the track since i got her all up and running, I bought her with the turbo kit already on it but the bike wasn't running so she got a head up refresh, new gaskets etc. Fixed a ton of leaks on the turbo setup and redid some intercooler piping. Fixed wiring up a bit where needed, rebuilt carbs and got them somewhat dialed in still needs a real tune by a carb specialist. Dyno showed shes very rich down low and leaning out on top under boost. She made 189rwhp & 202ftlbs tq. @ 4lbs of boost. (I plan to retune her when i get home for 10lbs. and then 14lbs on race fuel) 

 

Here i am wasting good rubber

 

My best time was 10.096 @143mph. I broke 4 teeth off the rear sprocket on that launch so the chain was skipping the whole way down that pass. So considering that I'm very happy with my time 

 

Okay, so the next thing on my to do list now that all rust has been removed was welding in the front camber plates and rear adapter plates for the coilovers. I didn't take any picture of them with just welds but they weren't anything beautiful to show off anyway, just functional. I ground down all the welds on all four strut towers and applied the first coat of filler to start the Beautifying process. I used a product that is called "Carbo-fil" that was recommended to me by the sandblaster. Really like this stuff, dries like metal! 

 

Here they are with the first coat of carbo-fil applied and some primer so the bare spots wouldn't corrode before i got around to finishing it.

 

 

 

 

At this point months passed before i worked on here again. Actually all the following work i did in 2 days before leaving to china, decided i wanted to make a good push before she sat for a year.

 

After relocating her to my brothers garage for storage i decided i was gonna fully prep my engine bay and paint it before leaving, I had already decided on a color so i got straight to work. 

 

This process took a FULL days worth of work, in just prepping. I'm pretty anal so my main concern was making those towers look as smooth as possible. But I'm happy to say I think i accomplished the finish i was going for. 

 

 

The following morning i prepped the rest of the bay. (yes i really spent an entire day on just the strut towers) 

And Then it was time to start laying down base color...

 

NOW i know this color will cause controversy, some will hate it some will love it (at the time i loved it, I'll go more into that in a bit)

 

112 Lime Yellow =D

 

You guys have no idea how good it felt to finally be getting ready to lay down some paint on my z after all this time of her sitting around with no progress. I was like a fat kid at a candy store that was left unattended, happy.

 

Base coat on! =)

 

I gave her three coats of base, then it was time for the fun part to start..

 

Time to give this color some life. CLEAR COAT! (also three coats)

 

 

 

 

 

Not too shabby for a self taught hobbiest

 

And then here's my pride and joy. I'm very pleased with how smooth these towers came out, shows that prep is everything. That long day was definitely worth it.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Gotta have cool angle shots =)

 

 

Sorry for the excessive engine bay pics, but i was very pleased with the outcome so i went picture crazy.

 

After everything dried we made room for her in the garage and i started tacking the front back on to save space while she's stored.

 

Removed all the tape, and reinstalled the crossmember (which my very supportive gf painted black for me while i was doing the bay)

 

 

Then me and my brother CAREFULLY mounted the L swap back in place, again to save room.

 

 

 

And this is how and where she will sit until i get back to the states.

 

NOW my dilemma... There's always a dilemma.

 

I choose this color because I've always loved it (and still do) but at this point i was planning on staying stock fenders, without running flares since everyone is always busting my balls about cutting up the rear fenders on an original Fairlady. But while I've been here I've had a lot of time to think of what i really want out of the car, and fact is i want it to be wide, and i want at least 10 inch wheels on the rear. At the end of the day its my car, my build and although people may not like me cutting up the fenders, thats not my concern because i have no intentions on selling it so i have to build it to my liking. At this point I'm sold on flares, problem is i don't think this color will flow good with flares... 

Let me know what you guys think, but i just don't think it'll work.

 

So as of right now I'm considering going with another color that was a possibility before i decided on the 112 lime yellow.

 

BUT i am open to suggestions, Oh and one more thing. I also plan to use a gnose..  So gnose and flares in 112 yellow? Maybe two tone with dirty silver? I don't know opinions appreciated good or bad!

 

Well i hope you guys enjoy the update, and I'm super excited to get back home and start making progress again. 

Edited August 23, 2014 by LegnaZetr0

[LegnaZetr0]

If you read this please Give your opinion on the color situation, not gonna hurt my feelings! I'm thinking possibly paint matching the flares? Or if anyone has seen a 112 lime yellow z with flares that looks good post up a pic! 

Thanks!

[rturbo 930]

I was gonna bust your balls about flaring thcar, especially considering how solid it is, but I guess someone beat me to the punch. Anyway, what kind of flares are we talking about? ZG Flares? Might look okay with 112 yellow, with black flares. I think Z-Gad's 240z is 919 yellow, which is similar, with ZG flares. but since you're also putting on a G nose, I think 918 orange paint with gray/gunmetal flares and bumpers would look appropriate.

 

Here's some pics... first is Z-Gad's, second is Eiji's (Datsun Spirit) 240z, which isn't 918, but close enough. Paint matched flares can look good IMO - last pic is gmac708's '70 Z.

 

 

 

Edited August 23, 2014 by rturbo 930

[LegnaZetr0]

If I go gnose I will be running work flares front and back with the work front lip.

 

If I don't go gnose then work flares on the rear and then the wide 3.25 zg flares up front.

 

Now, trust me i really don't want to cut up the quarters either... Maybe I can leave them uncut like the original zg's? I can still run wide wheels just not slam it (which I don't plan to either way) And thanks for those pics! I want to stray away from orange just because i saw a nice Rb swapped 432 clone fairlady in a magazine years ago, stateside.

Edited August 23, 2014 by LegnaZetr0

[LegnaZetr0]

For example if you look closely I don't believe that orange z with the gnose and flares has the wheel arches cut. And still has wider wheels on it...

Edited August 23, 2014 by LegnaZetr0

[rturbo 930]

Yeah, his flares are uncut, but the drawback is that your car will always look a bit like a 4x4 if you don't want it to rub. Easier to leave them uncut, than to cut them, and then decide to go back though. Do you have pics of the works flares? If they're the ones I'm thinking of, I think they're a bit overkill.

 

I suggested orange since it seems like you want a fairly loud color. I don't know what you have in mind, but I think 907 green, 901 silver, or the burgandy color that came on the factory 240ZGs would all be good choices if you decide against 112 yellow. You should be able to fit a 10" wheel under a standard ZG flare with the right offset. If that isn't wide enough there's wide ZG flares too.

 

Anywho, more pics. #1, I believe these are wide ZG rear flares. #2, 112 Yellow, with gray/gunmetal bumpers, to give you an idea of how the two colors look against each other. More here http://inzane240.blogspot.com/

 

 

[LegnaZetr0]

Actually, I'm not looking for anything loud color wise.. I guess i could see how it'd come off that way with the lime yellow haha, i thought 112 lime yellow would be a little softer, but maybe i was thinking of 919 yellow. I'm a big fan of the Pastel like vintage looking colors, I will have to decide about the flares. Someone should reproduce a panel starting from below the body line And the whole wheel arch area to make a easier repair for the cut quarters. That way it wouldn't be as big of a deal to patch it back up to original if for some reason i had a change of heart years later.

And thanks a lot for all the good feedback rturbo 930, it really helps to toss around other ideas.

[ZcarS30-00039]

It's been 2 years and almost 8 months since Angel updated the status of his Z above. My story involves Angel.

 

Now I'll tell you my story. First notice my ID here, ZcarS30-00039. The S30-00039 was the VIN of my first Nissan Fairlady Z. Oldest Z I know of. Anyway, she was purchased in Tokyo by a US Air Force officer. He shipped her to the states. Couldn't keep her so was going to trade her in on a Datsun in early 1970. The dealer couldn't accept the trade-in (no smog BS), so a salesman at the dealer bought the Z and put it on the market. This was when there was a months long waiting list for a Z. Anyway I saw and add in the paper for a Fairlady Z. Doubtful then anyone even knew a Fairlady was the Japanese version of the 240. I did because I was telling a fellow I worked with how much I wanted a 240Z, but he had no idea what it was. One day we saw one on the street as we were driving around Miami. I told him that's a 240Z. He said, no. He said when he was just in Japan, they were a Fairlady Z. 

 

Anyway, I contacted the fellow in the ad and got my Z without a wait, although used a bit. I had it until 1992 when hurricane andrew dumped half a pine forest on her. We got the trees off, but she was about a foot and a half tall. Also at this time there were hundreds of abandoned cars in Dade County. The county as well as scrappers were picking them all up. I didn't know it was gone till I got back from a long trip to Ohio. Zero luck finding out what happened to her. 

 

That's the front story, except I still missed my Z. Flash forward to 2001. I see on the internet a '73 Fairlady Z for sale in Texas. After some work, a trip to Texas, and some money exchanged, said Z arrived at my home on a transport truck. Loved that car. I was SLOWLY working on getting it back to as stock as possible. 

 

Then I discovered my love of Harley's outweighed my love of that Z, Kids were grown and lots of free time to ride with the wife. The Z was eventually relegated to not being garaged. Hated that, but that's the way it was. Now I wish it hadn't been, but that was then and now is now. 

 

Well, I wanted to sell her, but not to just anybody. One day I was contacted by this young fellow named Angel. Yes, I am the old dude he first mentioned and his story about his buying the Z is spot on! Well one thing isn't really true. The part about getting in and out was really true. I think we both loved the car so much that I concocted that story to cover my crime of allowing a Harley to push it outside!

 

I've been in contact with him since, very OFF and on. The last I had seen of the Z was on it's way to be blasted.

 

He just told me today about this site, so here I am. My thoughts on the Z. I hope he does not cut up the body and goes with orange which he said was one of the colors he was thinking about. The reason, my original "00039" Z ended it's days being orange. Miami to West Palm, less than a couple of hours. I need a road trip, I think!

 

If you got this far, thanks for reading and I, more than anyone here, including Angel, NEEDS to see the Nissan Fairlady Z looking beautiful and back on the road!!! Take care...Bob

Edited April 8, 2019 by ZcarS30-00039

[ZcarS30-00039]

Just happened to even remember this site after so many years and changes in my life. Haven't heard from Angel in a long time. As I recall he wanted to go live in China, so perhaps he did just that. I'll keep checking back as long as I am alive and see what's going on. Angel STILL owes me a drive in my old Fairlady when he finishes her.

 

Edited January 23, 2022 by ZcarS30-00039
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