jeromio Posted April 9, 2001 Share Posted April 9, 2001 Can anyone point me to pics of a Z with the rain gutters removed? Seems like this would definately improve the looks of the car - and possibly reduce the wind noise. ------------------ 240Z.jeromio.com Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DavyZ Posted April 9, 2001 Share Posted April 9, 2001 I can't point you to pictures of such a car, but I will tell you that it looks like the bomb when they are gone! I was at the ZONC sponsored Z/510/Roadster show & shine this weekend in Palo Alto, and one black Z there had the gutters removed--totally awesome. It also had the side vents filled in and the door handles shaved as well as no seams or battery doors near the hood. Totally sweet looking. This came up a long while ago here, but the biggest drawback to getting rid of the gutters was that the roof is apparently spot welded on the rail to the top of the car, which means that if you grind off the rail completely, there will be nothing holding your roof on. A guy in this forum was doing it and putting very small welds as he went along so he wouldn't warp any metal. Don't fool yourself, it is a big job but very well worth the "look." David Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Fast Frog Posted April 9, 2001 Share Posted April 9, 2001 jeromio: Check out Blueoval Z's car in our Featured Car section. It looks like Terry disposed of his. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blueovalz Posted April 9, 2001 Share Posted April 9, 2001 I'd love to take credit for doing this, but no, the drip rail is still on the car, and yes, I did strongly consider their removal. I have kept the integrity of the unibody thus far, and was very concerned about the loss of strenght and flexing (causing the re-welded seams to show thru later in life) at these locations. I am again considering the mod since I have to re-paint the car anyway. I did fill in the vent hole, and never regretted the looks of doing this though. Terry Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeromio Posted April 9, 2001 Author Share Posted April 9, 2001 Well, if/when I do it (long time from now for sure), I think their ability to keep rain off the side glass is far outweighed by the turbulence they create. I actually don't believe that cars really need "gutters" (most modern cars don't have them) - they're there because of the manufacturing techniques used to form the body structure. I have a feeling the car would look much better without the gutters, but it'd be nice to see it first. As to the structural issues, I'd want to re-enforce the area, probably with some square tubing: weld the 2 ragged steel edges to that rather than butt welding them to each-other. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeromio Posted April 9, 2001 Author Share Posted April 9, 2001 Aha: <img src="http://www.1upautomotive.com/zcarsonline/art/carshows/cs040801/Disk2/Mvc-025s.jpg"> I think it looks pretty good. ------------------ 240Z.jeromio.com Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Drax240z Posted April 10, 2001 Share Posted April 10, 2001 One more thing, that gutter is functional if you are ever going to let your car see rain. I wouldn't be removing it in that case. ------------------ "Nothing is fool proof to a sufficiently talented fool." Richard Lewis - 1972 240z, Powered by a Nissan 2.8L Turbo Inline 6. Drax240's Turbo Site Beginners Turbo FAQ & Answers Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andrew Bayley Posted April 10, 2001 Share Posted April 10, 2001 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aviatorx Posted April 10, 2001 Share Posted April 10, 2001 Rain gutters stil exist in new cars - they're just intergrated behind the top edge of the door frame, which these days are carried into the roofline for improved aerodynamics and reduced wind noise ....just take a look by opening the door of your late model auto and see for yourself. Of course, triple weather stripping also helps! As for removal of the drip edge, wouldn't it make sense to tack weld a rod to the inner roof seam to maintain the unibody stiffness before you remove the gutter? Seems like a logical measure to provide a good seam and outside finish. None-the-less, a very cool mod that certainly updates the look of the car. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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