ZR8ED Posted October 19, 2010 Share Posted October 19, 2010 Well here is my next project. Albeit a temporary project. I just sold my first Z. The other 15 have come and gone over the years, and this one makes 17. It starts with a solid driveline, suspension, brakes etc. Mechanically it is great. It has upgraded toyota brakes, exhaust, headers, mild cam and cold air intake. The paint is well let me just say it is poor. I got the car with a MSA body kit (facias and sideskirts) My goal is to clean it up, do the body, paint it, then sell it and move on to my last Z project. So here are some pics of the car. The "Before" Ok this may be the first post, but here is my first update. I have taken stock of what I have, and what I need to do. I didn't have enough time to start with the body, but I really wanted to work on it this past weekend, and complete one part of the project, so I decided to work in the engine bay. It sure needed it too! This is going to be a labour intensive project to help offset the low budget nature of the project. Labour invested 10 hours Dollars spent $40 (paint, sandpaper, brushes, cleaner and papertowels/rags) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ModernS30 Posted October 19, 2010 Share Posted October 19, 2010 Looks great. Get rid of some of those vacuum lines, 240sx TB, Maxi-Fuse, clean up the wiring so its not all over, maybe a tuck. Looks great already, just some things I think would make it look even more fantastic! Great start to a new project! I hope the new owner of your old baby really takes care of it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Meph Posted October 19, 2010 Share Posted October 19, 2010 where did you pick this one up from? I usually have an eye pealed for 240z's in Ontario. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZR8ED Posted October 19, 2010 Author Share Posted October 19, 2010 Meph. I'd like to say I have 20+ years of Z connections all over the place so I can keep up on what "may become" available. But alas, this car is from a member of the club, and it was listed on Kijiji, though that is not how I came about this car..... I will tidy up some wiring/hoses over the next few days, but I will get into the body once I enlist some help. I am going to further mod the custom wing/spoiler as I do not like it at all, then its on to install the body kit. I am not likely going to install the California wing, as the one on the car is not removable (bonded on, and not worth the effort to remove it) I see some inspiration ala my old wrap around wing. I got the fibreglass ready, and my skills are sharp (er) after my airdam mod I made last year. Stay tuned... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Two80z4me Posted October 20, 2010 Share Posted October 20, 2010 Z, That is a really beautiful color on the valve cover. what color is it and is it spray paint? and im assuming you used clear coat? I think I may do a dark green in the style paint. Looks great! let me know what you did Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZR8ED Posted October 28, 2010 Author Share Posted October 28, 2010 Z, That is a really beautiful color on the valve cover. what color is it and is it spray paint? and im assuming you used clear coat? I think I may do a dark green in the style paint. Looks great! let me know what you did Thanks! Paint is a two part aerosol spray paint system called "Metal Cast" Used primarily for calipers. There are a few colours to choose from, and uses a ground coat, and what appears to be a clearcoat with the "colour" in it. Nice to use, but need to watch out for mottling of the paint (blotchy) and it is very important to make sure the part is totally clean. I cleaned it several times, and still had a minor problem, but not the end of the world, but it did take a bit more time to repair it. Looks great now! Bodywork is underway. Poor paintjob is an understatement. Someone should be ashamed of themselves. I could not easily modify the crappy rear spoiler, so I chiseled it off. I will use the California wing afterall. Messy work, but will take less time. I'll take some pics once the car "really looks different" Hatch clean up, then rear bumper install is the next task. Once the hatch is primered, I will pre install the mounting setup for the wing so I can simply "bolt it on" once the car is painted. It will be easier to paint it on its own. Moving along..slowly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZR8ED Posted November 30, 2010 Author Share Posted November 30, 2010 (edited) Been a while for an update. Bodywork bodywork bodywork. Sand sand sand. At least I have not found any rust, at least nothing hard to clean up. The rear fascia and side skirts are now installed, and have been blended into the rest of the bodywork. Chiseling off the old wing was a nightmare, along with some minor bleeding, chisels, sawzall, and drill, I got the darn thing off. What a mess too. It was on there good and strong, but I am much happier with the look now that it is gone. Car has been shot with primer, and will be painted a nice medium dark metallic blue in the next few days. Then I'm going to get back into the interior. It will need a full detail job now, and I'm going to replace the carpets, maybe the centre console and some trim, and that will be about it. I'm trying to staying well away from "while I'm at it" which I am well known for. Yes I have some pics, but not ready to post up yet. I will get to them soon. Edited November 30, 2010 by ZR8ED Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZR8ED Posted December 11, 2010 Author Share Posted December 11, 2010 Finally have some outside shots. Unfortunately it was already getting dark by the time I got home from work. I will have to wait for a bright sunny afternoon on the weekend to get some shots that show the colour better. I'm happy with the results so far. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZR8ED Posted January 5, 2011 Author Share Posted January 5, 2011 A quick update so that everyone knows that I'm still alive. Progress has been slow. I don't feel like working on it much in the winter time. I've been cleaning the emblems, and touch up the black backgrounds before I put them back on the car. I have a guy who will refinish the wheels for me, I just need to decide if it is a good bang for my buck investment. I still fully intend on selling the car this spring, and I want to do as much as I can on my own first, then spend money second. It will likely be a while before I update again, but I at least look at the car everyday. Sure looks nice and shiny! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Empire Posted January 6, 2011 Share Posted January 6, 2011 Did you end up selling the turbo monster? New car is looking good. Sell me any parts you aren't keeping. Sean Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZR8ED Posted January 6, 2011 Author Share Posted January 6, 2011 Yes the turbo car is finally gone. Still hard to believe that I sold it. It was at the end of the season, so it will be spring time before it really sinks in that it is gone. It was overdue for me anyways. I was hanging on to it only because I had it so long and had so much invested into it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZR8ED Posted February 14, 2011 Author Share Posted February 14, 2011 Update: Winter may be winding down..or at least it is a bit warmer lately. I'm working on two project cars at the same time these days, and flipping from one to the other while I wait for parts or paint to dry etc. I cleaned out all the rear interior cargo area. I found a large speaker box imbedded in the floor decking with mostly blown speakers, empty holes and some huge horn tweeters. I ripped that all out, scraped/wire brushed, and vacuumed everything up, then painted it all, and installed new spare tire well drain plugs. I cut out new sub floor panels to replace the floor where the speaker box was recessed into. Looks way cleaner now. Oh while it was apart, I installed a new antenae mast. The repainted side vent emblems are installed as well. Feels good to be working in the garage again. Next is to pull the front seats/carpet and centre console. This will be a little bit larger job. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZR8ED Posted April 6, 2011 Author Share Posted April 6, 2011 Warmer weather is giving me more workspace. ( I could pull the other car outside) I removed the seats, console and carpets in the passenger area. Mainly did some cleaning, and spent a considerable amount of time removing what had to be 20 years of stereo wiring! lots of wire and rca cables for multiple amps. I have another centre console in better shape that I am going to clean up and install. I'm not sure how much more I have to do with wiring, but I'm going to inspect it, and clean up whats needs it most. There were several lights an aux switches that don't appear to be doing anything, but I need to trace them back to be sure. I have new door seals and carpets, so I'll be getting into that soon enough. I hope to have it ready to go in another month, but I'm so busy with work lately, I don't know how much energy I will be able to put into it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZR8ED Posted June 3, 2011 Author Share Posted June 3, 2011 (edited) Been a while, but that doesn't mean that I haven't been working on it. The weather has been crap, so I've been working in the garage. I have been a big baby lately, and refuse to leave my P car outside in the elements while I work on the Z. I have done this twice in the past, and twice it has been miserable and rainy overnight!! Well I thought I could get away with it this time, but I was wrong AGAIN. I'm three for three for leaving it outside overnight. Yea ok so I'm a suck and don't want the car to get wet/dirty/water marks on the car. When it is nice, I do pull the car out and centre the z in the garage to make it easier to work on. Ok enough of my bitching! Progress is being made. I have the front hood vents mounted, new battery cables, connectors, fuse panel wiring/connectors and quick disconnects. I spent a huge amount of time putting in carpet throughout the car. I had only the rear deck carpet for a template, so I had to cut the rest of it all by hand with lots of measurements, and final trimming once in place to be sure I wouldn't be short and have to redo it again! I added additional insulation/sound deadner before hand, and have to say the car looks much better with fresh carpet. I have begun cleaning up one of my spare centre consoles, preparing it for the new stereo, and modifing the stock switches for different uses, and added led indicators into the switch. I still have to clean up the wiring once the console is back in, and I cut everything to proper lengths. I have to glue the headliner as part of it is coming down, so that will be a new challenge. I've never done one before. I see the light at the end of the tunnel..God I hope I'm not dead!! Pics to come, they wouldn't be very flattering at this stage anyways, so once the console is in I'll post the pics. Edited June 3, 2011 by ZR8ED Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZR8ED Posted June 23, 2011 Author Share Posted June 23, 2011 Finally some pics of it back outside. I promise I'll get some shots of the interior. It is all back together with new carpet, stereo and speaker box, new door seals, and it is cleaner that it has been in years. I got a deal on refinishing the wheels, so that is the next project, I need to extend the exhaust tip, and that is pretty much it. I hope to have it available to sell in late July. This may be getting ahead of myself, but I would prefer to sell it for cash outright, but I'm a sucker for deals, so I would consider a partial trade for another 1st gen 240,260,280 (don't tell my wife) Cheers! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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