I should have a lot more updates and pics here as I have finished my summer home projects. Also, I am hoping the body and paint will be finished in the next month or two, so we should see some good progress.

I appreciate all of the input here. I am always open to advice and the knowledge of those that have seen and worked on these cars in the past. Personally, I will listen to the panel of experts and then move forward with what seems to be the best direction. Also, as most of you know, I own a pretty much un-restored early 240Z that I grew up with since I was 9 years old (in the family for 55 years) , so I have a nice reference vehicle.

That being said, I find it interesting that there seems to be a tendency to hold the ZCON judging in high regard. Personally, I do not have a very high regard for ZCON judges. In reality, many of them have never owned an original Z car or examined one closely. As a result, they make a number of mistakes in their judging, none of which can be contested because you do not receive the judging sheets until several months after the show. One of these days I will start a thread here titled "ZCON Judging Errors" and see who weighs in, in addition to the items I would list. A few examples are the deductions on my early Z for the weld lines on my oil pan. (FYI 0042 has the same weld lines so they will probably mark this off too). Another good example is the Franklin mint car losing points for having the 'Silver zinc' coil holder instead of 'Yellow zinc' holder. I have heard of judges insisting the original brake lines were stainless steel, the rear diff cover was bare aluminum and fuel hoses were not the 'cloth wrap' style. I am sure that I am just hitting a very small portion of the errors as I am only familiar with the cars that I have been involved with and what I can remember off the top of my head. Anyway, just had to rant a bit about the judging issue. Don't even get me started on the non-Z show judging.

Regarding the Exhaust manifold finish, that is an interesting discussion. For most of my restorations, I have always consulted Les Cannady at Classic Datsun Motorsports and never questioned his advice (He was just 10 miles down the road) . If I am not mistaken, I think only his shop and Pierre Z were the only shops approved to build the Restoration Z's. Because of that, I have always used the gray powdercoat that he recommended as the default finish. However, given the current discussion and comments, sounds like there are several other options out there that might be more true to form. After looking at a number of different options and comments regarding the color, I am happy with the graphite finish option. Two of the items that lead me in that direction are pics from the Nissan engine service manual and pics of my own motor disassembly that are pictured below. Both pics show a dark cast iron finish, not a light gray finish. So, I am sticking with the graphite and will probably go with that in the future as well.

I installed the exhaust manifold and intake assembly to the engine. Pics below. (Also looking for a correct rear engine hoist bracket)

I finished up the steering column, and replaced the connector on the turn signal assembly. The main shaft was sanded and re-painted and all the electronics cleaned up.

I re-finished the steering wheel that now looks much better, but not sure I will stick with this. The wood finish should be more redish. Problem is that the wood veneer is very thin and I am not sure how much was removed in the restoration attempt from the previous owner. Previously, the nubs on the opposite side were sanded through unfortunately. I will let it be for now, but may revisit it. The center metal portion looks good though.

I cleaned up the brake and cluth pedal box. Ready for install.

I have no idea what is written on that silver can below.

I am a bit dubious regarding the "correct" finish of the exhaust manifold. I do not think there was any kind of coating put on it by Nissan originally, so... wouldn't it just be a typical cast iron (as cast) color? If so, I think what you have there @motorman7 looks accurate.

Not that this would necessarily be good reference info, but I personally kind of think it is - here are a few pics I just took of my 6/71 car's original exhaust manifold. The car was originally owned and driven in AZ for at least several if not all of its years on the road, and then stored in a garage in Colorado AZ for 30 years...

Honing in on a "least rusted" portion:

Machined (and not rusted) surface:

Edited 2 hours ago2 hr by inline6

Regarding the color of the steering wheel: I've always wondered what the "new" color was and it seems to me that most restorations get it a little too dark. I always compare against the 1972 brochure I've kept, and the photo I took of my 1973 240Z a couple of weeks after I bought it new. Of course, photo colors are not always accurate, and I've never had any judge question my (restored darker than these pictures) steering wheel, so it apparently doesn't matter very much.

Cropped 1973 photo of my then new '73 240Z. Originally a kodachrome slide, digitized by Costo's Flordia lab a few years ago.