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Thanks for the good words! In HTRYDZC I tried to keep to the names Datsun gave parts in the factory shop manuals, though not in every case; some were too silly. I can't think of a lot of good things to say about the dash removal chore; I just did my new 'restomod' '71 project a couple of years ago, and I still have the sound system, alarm, and A/C to finish wiring up. Not that it's so difficult, but once the thing is back in, there is so little room to work even with the glove box still out. Not impossible, but my joints aren't what they were back in 1987 when I reassembled HLS003547. Oh well... BTW: Howard Fisher and I are working on a complete revision of the Restore book, to celebrate the 25th anniversary of it's being 'in print', and thank goodness, still selling pretty well. Who'd have ever guessed? My pal Steve Pettersen (Pettersen Motorworks, Chico CA) is collaborating, and we hope to have some color shots, esp to replace some of the murky ones I did on the old Nikon Ftn 35-mm. back in the day. Besides some nice cars and parts, he has several spectacular Z's under restoration -- if he could get all those funny old roadsters out of his resto shop! Wick PS/ anybody want to buy my NL320 trucks? Both '65's, one nice red one, and a rare black project for a lot less dough. I want to build Kustom! Happy Z Trails!

@Wick Humble The Z Community will be really excited about your HTRYDZC revisited Title. Your book has been invaluable to me and many, many others in our quest to restore these Z'z. It IS the definitive work on the subject. I can't tell you how many times I have wished for clearer photos though! Right now--- I want (hope/ wish/ will pay for) an autographed copy as soon as it is released. So glad to see you "name drop" Steve as a collaborator! What a great combination,--- you two! He is my "go to" guy out there in the "Land o' Plenty" for hard to find Z items and has helped me numerous times. We chat by phone every few months. Steve clued me in on his projects some time back, but I am "sworn to silence" even though you mentioned it. I would say he has one in particular that is the "project of a lifetime". Thanks Wick, for everything! Jim D. "Zup"

You and the pooch are always welcome Cliff.......Millie would love a pal.

I'm sticking this one in just for fun, not because anyone would or could buy one. This is the 1st generation BRE "Spook", used only in the 1970 competition season. It was already installed by the dealer when I bought the car. Its been suggested by a knowledgeable source it may be the last one in existence. This design was replaced by the version in post #30.

I bought mine back Peter Brock lived here in Redmond WA. It came in black gelcoat. I used it that way on my blue 71 for years. When I built my 72 i painted it the same black as my taillight surround. It is a custom color of black with a bronze tint. Don's iPhone using Classic Zcar Club mobile

I used the link Mike suggested. Worked great. I had never done this before and I think the dash was out in under 2 hours. Also label screws and wires. And it's easier to have a friend help you to lift it out and back in. I was alone and it wasent that heavy but next time I'll get someone to assist. /Andreas

For some time now I've been wanting to re-route my spark plug wires around the front of the engine area so it cleaned up the top of the valve cover and provided an overall cleaner look in my engine bay. However, all of the installations that I have seen essentially use tie wraps to hold the wire bundle together as it is routed along the passenger side of the block and around the front to the distributor. Typically there is also some sort of clamp in the front part of the engine that holds the bundle to either the valve cover or the front cover plate. The notion of using tie wraps for this application just didn't sit well with me mainly from an aesthetics standpoint, but I also did not like the idea of the wires being held tightly together and the possibility of crosstalk between wires (although I suspect this is pretty rare these days given the quality and size of the plug wire used in modern applications). So I did a ton of research to look for aftermarket solutions that would provide a clean look and keep the wires separated to some level. I even purchased a couple of options to try them out on my car, but they were just not delivering the look I was searching for. Unfortunately most of these solutions are designed for V type engines and they just don't lend themselves very well to our straight line sixes. So I spent some time with my son Alex (a mechanical engineer) discussing the problem and he devised what looked to be a pretty interesting solution. So I purchased some aluminum stock and set about machining the pieces he designed. I also made a couple of small brackets for the front part of the engine so that I can ensure that the bundle stays tight and close to the block. Given that the bundle runs under the top radiator hose I also needed to make sure that there was ample clearance between the wire bundle and the hose itself. I just finished this today and thought I would share it with the forum so you can see what we did and also get any feedback on our implementation. All in all I am very happy with how it came out and it met all of my criteria both from an aesthetics and performance viewpoint. Here's a few pictures so you can see how we implemented this. Look forward to your feedback. Mike.

Remember the engine and drive train vibrations in early 240z road testing in USA/Canada. Well Honda has it in their 2017 F1 cars: "We did some good progress in the mono-cylinder on the dyno, but as soon as we complete the V6 engine we had many issues. "What we achieved in mono-cylinder is at a very good level, but when we transfer exactly the same specification to the V6 engine it doesn't work. We are very disappointed. But it was too late that we noticed that – at Christmas. "After we understand the issues this was the time we need to confirm the final specification - we needed to have some compromise." Honda has encountered further problems with instability and vibrations since the engine was installed and run in the McLaren MCL32. "We have huge vibrations," added Hasegawa, who says Honda's new engine currently produces "almost the same power" as the 2016 unit. "The only thing I can tell is that on the dyno we didn't have such a big issue - when we have a gearbox, driveshaft and tyre it has some resonance. I'm not blaming the chassis; we have to realise the situation on the dyno as well."

A V6 in an F1 car I long for the sound of those screaming V10s.

You better be careful. If Randy thinks his car will be more historically accurate with your spook, he'll stop at nothing to get it.

Here's your standard Xenon air dam in the "I'm too cheap to paint it" black.

yes when I was young I bought the 260z in 1979 and after changing the bad headlight bulbs several times I left these off of the car as they were a pain to remove and install . my other choice if I can not locate a used pair I will make a set from flat plastic mud flaps and bolt them back on for protection . the ones that came off back then were plastic .

It's the noise that concerned me the most. I went ahead and bit the bullet and picked up a 2015 STI diff with 17k miles on it here locally. I paid $600, and have ordered the stub axles for another $375. At the moment I've got more money than time with things getting even busier at work later this year, so I made the call. I finished painting the suspension parts yesterday and my big orders from MSA and Courtesy with bushings and everything should arrive soon. I may be able to get everything back together by the end of the weekend if everything shows up on time.

Kats, I don't want to clutter up your thread with a big off-topic diversion. There was a recent thread here (now much edited and revised, and even with some of the photos I posted in reply subsequently cut-and-pasted back into the first post, a habit which makes nonsense of much of what we do here) in which I attempted to answer some of the same questions: It's impossible to answer such questions without going into the complex interdepartmental politics at play (ex-Prince Murayama/Ogikubo vs Nissan Oppama et al) and the conflicting interests, power struggle and growing pains that soundtracked it all. Nissan and Prince were only a few short years on from their (forced) merger, and basically the ex-Prince guys were never really happy that *their* blue-blooded race-derived engine was being used in an S30-series car in the first place. A lot of what we observe was simply a function of that... In trying to undrestand the 432 and 432-R (especially the 432-R) I always find it helpful to look to Nissan's clear inspiration: The Porsche 911S and the 911T/R and 911R. The 911R in particular was a big reference point for Nissan when they created the 432-R, and there are many parallels. I sometimes hear - and read - people talking about the 432 and 432-R as though they were some kind of failure because "Nissan gave up after making just 420 or so". I don't think I've ever heard the same thing about cars such as the 911R, 911RS or 911RSR, and that's hopefully because people understand a little more about the reasons for their existence and their context. These are homologation specials that we are talking about here. Cars created and sold to the general public with the specific purpose of legalising them - along with many of the parts they used - for race use in certain categories. The 432 was created to qualify for sports car racing's 'G.T.' class and the 432-R was created to qualify for sports cars racing's 'Prototype' class. The minimum requirement for the Prototype class was for 25 cars of the same specification to be manufactured, which Nissan satisfied with the 432-R just as Porsche had done with the 911R. Nissan - like Porsche - never had any great intention (let alone the capacity for production or projected sales...) of churning out thousands of such cars. Rather than looking at production totals for the 432/432-R as "only" 420-odd I'd say that - all things considered - the whole thing was a success as a halo model, as an exercise in homologation and racing/rallying and an important step in becoming a world class auto maker and I'm actually surprised that they managed to sell as many as they did. Once the 432-R had been created, and had won, it had served its purpose as far as Nissan were concerned. The parts, specs and knowledge lived on through 1970 in domestic circuit racing and through to the end of 1971 in international rallying (the FIA outlawing the 432-R's legacy parts for the 1972 international season). 'Job done'.

Hi , today I found a plastic fan for L20, this is a good chance to make a tribute engine , "L24 with triple carbs for 240Z" Nissan did not sell that engine, just planned. I have got a inlet manifold, people saying this is made by NISMO, looking at some details, it is different from the others. I can not find any manufacturer's stamp or marking on it, the most interesting thing is the lever which is welded to the shaft. With this inlet manifold, plastic fan, and a race option exhaust header, it is going to be looking good. Kats PS tool boxes, they are old ! ニッサン & DATSUN .

I have responded to your requests Philip and Jim. Thank you for the compliments on the clips. Just glad I could solve one of my own problems and help others at the same time. I was not able to find any barrel clips that were small enough for the holes as everything I had on hand was too big. Knowing I will remove these at some point in the future to paint the car, I did not want to do something so secure that it would break the pins off when I remove them. I ended up using some black RTV gasket maker to essentially glue them in place. Using some blocked of styrofoam and a few bungee cords wrapped around the hatch to apply pressure on each end, the final result looks fantastic. They sit nice and flush against the body. I tried pulling up on them and so far they seem pretty secure. Below are some pictures of the end result. Job done!

Same as 7tooz