And older 'Z' owners/experts out there?
 

After a long time of humming and hawing about getting into a nice older 240-280Z, I think I found one that just might fit the bill. This car......
1978 280Z, 2 owner, 60K org miles, rust free, collector plates

To keep this short, anybody here either have one, or have had one in the past? If so, how was your experience with it?

Cheers!

Looks like a good car.
Check for the usual for an older car. Rust etc. Check out DNBC, Datsun Nissan BC club.

PM Yodamaster, he's doing a complete rebuild of one
Here's his build thread http://www.revscene.net/forums/67896...tsun-240z.html

280z has thicker sheet metal in some areas than the earlier cars, so it should be a tad better when it comes to rust...

common rust/rot areas:

floor pan
frame rails (the part that connects to the floor pan, they rot as well)
the dog leg (the section of rocker right infront of the rear wheels)
the drainage area under the wipers where the wiper motor is


the later 280z has a heavier, stronger body. crash bumpers adds unwanted extra weight.. and they look hideous compared to the earlier blade bumpers.

2.8 motor is nice, but nerfed with emissions / smog equipment. earlier fuel injection is okay though, but can't beat the sound and response of a set of side draft carbs...

its a good car to build, the one in the pic, but gonna take some effort, money and motivation to get it to the point where you want it! those louvers gotta go!

https://scontent-b-sea.xx.fbcdn.net/...54171788_n.jpg

I wonder where mine went... :okay: I miss her. :okay: :okay: :okay:

.

i have one. The 113k kms, car cost 5500, parts to fresh it up cost 20k. Fun car, but it's not really something you can just fire up and drive daily, gotta tinker with it and do lots of maintenance. Worst headache is rust and electrical problems. Major rust problem areas are under the battery tray, doglegs in rear quarter panel, and under the front fender where it meets the body. Also the 280z's chassis is pretty soft compared to modern standards. If you plan on tracking it you'll need a full cage. If you don't know basic mechanics, I wouldn't recommend getting this car because you're going to be spending a lot of money getting a shop to fix it.

old pics:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v3...MG_6494low.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v3...t/IMG_6496.jpg

Thanx for the input guys!

I did see and drove that car today and got a very good impression of wht it was like. As the owners ad states, the car is very structurally sound with only a very little bit of surface rust between the tails where the hatch closes...again, very minor. The body is solid, as far as the typical wheel lips/lower doors/shock towers/lower rockers, etc...as far as I could tell. there's been no accidents on the car.

The motor is out of an '81 ZX and pretty much anything he deemed 'in need' has been either updated or tended to/replaced. It is clear this is a very low mileage survivor and from the ones I've seen over the years, this car gave me the best vibes....they're usually spot on =)

I did notice that these things didn't have the quickest or most responsive steering in the world! I'm coming from an '02 BMW 330ci but still, I did expect a more 'darty' response...it was pretty floaty, though the big fat tires probably don't help!

She idled beautifully, shifted crisply and there were no squeaks or rattles. The one wierd thing is the drivers door is literally right there - like an old 911 - so it is snug. But again, I'm going from a spacey coupe, so....

Has anyone had experience with the Z shop, as far as working on these? Or is there another shop that's good with old Datsuns?

Thanx again y'all!

Nice rides, by the way you two! Both sweet examples...and the big bumper definitely is a drag!

I'm also not a big fan of the cars wheels, though I know they're period correct. I think some 'minlites' (?) would look sweet. Not sure how common the bolt pattern on these is? 4 X 114.3?

Also, I never even considered removing the louvers as I assumed they were pretty much permanent? Will removing them leave hideous holes?

4x114, something 0 offset and 7-8" wide and it'd sit flush... flares will require wheels with negative offset.... ($$$)

Dan is a great guy to deal with. he is quite the Z guru.

the other thing nice about these S30 chassis Z's are they have plenty of space to work with. simple hand tools at home can assemble and reassemble the car. although you would have to fight with rusty bolts and nuts once in a while.

bushings, tie rod ends, ball joints could use a refresh on those cars after almost 40 years of hard work... the ball joints on my Z were almost no existent! beefier, fat tires make it slightly floatier. chassis also flexes quite a bit as well... so they wont feel as sharp as the E46... but when it comes to styling, the S30's have great curb appeal.

my car's sitting on 15x10 4.5" backspacing and it's flush to fender wells with 4mm from the factory struts on the inside.

Dans a great guy and very knowledgeable, albeit his prices are a bit high because he's literally the only person left in the city with parts and all round expertise on these cars. I got my fender flares from him that cost $325, found the same ones for $125 online afterwards..

There's also Ross Corrigan on marine drive that engineers aftermarket parts for this car out of his home garage like aluminum rear control arms, diff mounts, and big brake kits. Very quality and high performance parts.

There's also a mechanic in coquitlam that knows z's well and I had my transmission replaced with him. He also helped me solve my "no brakes" issue when I swapped in 240sx disc brakes in the rear when 5 other mechanics couldn't figure it out. Not sure he has much Z parts left as he told me he sold all his parts to Dan 3 years ago.

This is pretty much the only forum you need for info if you plan on getting this car. Everything from restoration to crazy LS1 and viper V10 engine swaps, guys on there have literally been tinkering with these cars for 30+ years, engineers, mechanics, enthusiast, etc. Just make sure you use the search function as they are pretty elitist about that. I went from having 0 knowledge of what a S30 was to finishing my build just from using that forum.

HybridZ


gluck man, it's a sweet car, but just remember: don't give up no matter what!

edit: there's no such thing as "surface rust" on these cars, I'd start poking at the hatch with a screwdriver after you buy the car and soon you'll find a penny sized surface rust area will turn into a twoonie sized rust hole. These cars rust like no tomorrow, to the point where the brand name was changed to Nissan because they thought the Datsun name was cursed for easily rusting cars.

My old room mate and I worked on a tonne of Z's throughout the years. Fun cars, but lots of rust that can set in quickly. I remember one time I drove home a Z that we were just using for parts, so I drove it like it was stolen and when we got it jacked up to remove the wheels, I noticed the A arm was held onto the frame with thick chicken wire - my heart was racing.

Anyways, I know my old room mate was making modern day 350Z brake conversions for years, not sure if he still makes the kits and sells them as he has kind of moved on to Mustangs now. Every year I still dig out a convertible Z that him and I made - spent a lot of time doing body work on this girl. It now has a Shelby Cobra motor and 5 speed - she goes like a raped ape.

http://i459.photobucket.com/albums/q...rtable/082.jpg

http://i459.photobucket.com/albums/q...rtable/073.jpg

http://i459.photobucket.com/albums/q...rtable/071.jpg

It has a Triumph rear deck lid/trunk, BMW roof mechanics, 350Z brakes, Custom race coils/suspension, Mustang motor/trans/rear end, Japanese tails (nice touch with the amber), and the bumpers have all been tucked. I think it turned out well.

^http://packetpushers.net/wp-content/...ut-no-bear.jpg

I actually like the louvers :alonehappy:

Ive done various levels of restomodding on three now. Great cars and if this one is as nice as advertised it will save you thousands over restoring a local one. You can fit the earier smaller bumpers to this one cus the giant aluminum ones ruin the lines.

That's nuts! Nice work...I imagine it must be a drag being so slow though? ;)

The car has so much tubing and gussets to make it stiff, that the suspension gets worked but is quite smooth. :) No power steering, though - you gotta keep moving fast to enjoy the ride. Perfect S2S car on a sunny day.

Listing off the differences between 240/260's and 280's

Fenders, doors, and quarter panel dimensions are different than early Z's.

Generally heavier, uses thicker steel for the floors and frame rails, more provisions for collision protection.

Interior is different, parts can be used from early Z's, 280 interior is generally consided to be less elegant.

Engine is gutless compared to early Z's because of emissions, custom work is required to open up the heads if you're going for power on a stock engine. Stock FI system is garbage, recommend a switch to ITB's with standalone fuel management if you aren't going for carbs.

Early Z taillights will not fit a 280z without custom modification of the rear panel.

Early Z bumpers will not bolt on to 280's, they require additional mods to install.

You will see less rust on 280z's because they are newer, but they eventually still suffer from rust due to poor design, the rule of thumb is that no unrestored Z is rust free.

You are looking at a headache if the quarter panels, dog legs, or rocker panels are rusted through, they are layered together so that you have to dissect multiple layers to access what you want to repair.


280z's are the fatter, slower cousins of early Z's, they are worth less and do not give the same feel as early Z's without lots of modifications.

Early Z's that are either restored or original in very good shape will run you 13-15 grand, Z's with bad rust should only run you 2500-4000 if all the bolt ons are in good shape, Z's that require reconstructive surgery and 100 trips to a junkyard for parts are worth a six pack of beer.

Oh yeah, good luck finding certain parts, Nissan doesn't give two shits about early Z enthusiasts. :(

I unfortunately concur.

OP, good luck with your search. I still have my '73 sitting in my garage waiting for me to restore it as well.
Pic of the bitch:
http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y81...p/misc/NR8.jpg

I want to echo everything everyone else has said, make sure you get one in as good condition as possible, as it will end up saving you a lot of cash down the line.

Rust and electrical are the real headaches on these cars.

Jackson, Ross is no longer in the business, apparently he passed away from cancer in the summer of 2012 or 2013.

awe man that's horrible! I haven't been into the scene for a while. My car's sitting back in my garage in vancouver. RIP to ross, a great guy!

haha I bought mine from a guy that lived in whistler...

first drive home was s2s! :fullofwin:

Ross passed away last year i believe. i am restoring one as well. but i do not have any recent pictures, we should start a sub forum for it here haha

Rob Ford is into Z's - cool!
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Hey, I think I know that car! Was it grey with a set of Rota wheels on it? I took a look at it and a test drive but passed on it. I decide I wasn't ready to but a vintage car and bought an S2000 instead.. How has it been for you?