jcdozier

I guess I'm just one of those superficial types, but I believe life is too short to drive an ugly car. (I'm also one of those who thinks every change Nissan made to the appearance of the original 240-Z was for the worse.) I have been following the picture trail and IMHO, the 350-Z is just plain butt-ugly, both inside and out.

$20,000 is a lot to pay for Z-car that's almost 30 years old. Most of us with grease under our fingernails either don't have the $20,000 or or wouldn't spend it for a car that we can't tinker with. I know I would rather have a Z that I could "improve" with things like electronic ignition, Suspension Techniques springs, Tokiko strut inserts, etc. than one merely to maintain in pristine original condition. I know there are those out there who value the original restoration, and I can respect that - life would be pretty boring if we all had the same values and opinions, wouldn't it?

I think the heat problems started with the 260's that had all of the new emisions controls, although some 240's (mine) and some 280's have also had heat problems. My early 240Z would overheat in stop-and-go traffic during the summer. I back-flushed the coolng system, went to a larger radiator (the original 240 radiator was pretty wimpy) and installed a thermostat-controlled electric fan on the radiator and cured my overheating problems. There are hundreds of Z's out there running with the plain bonnet. So long as your cooling system is "clean", you shouldn't have a problem. The electric fan is an easy installl that can provide extra cooling in high temperature situations.

Before you buy new from MSA, why not check some of the on-line Z parts folks for used ones? A couple who come to mind are the Z Barn in Tennessee (www.zbarn.com) and Eric Nierling in Pt. Richmond, CA (www.zparts.com). There are others as well if yo search around.

DANIEL points out the "problem" with the early Z's thin "wooden" wheel. I have long been looking, albeit casually, for a thicker wheel but haven't found one yet that looks as nice as the original. My son has a built-up-wood wheel in his Mustang that is nice, but it is only 13" in diameter. With the Armstrong Power Steering in the early Z's, the 15" diameter original wheel is more than just a luxury. I don't think I'm up to parallel parking the Z with a 13" wheel.......... You might try driving a Z with the "wooden" wheel before you make your decision.

Don't know about the swap, (although I believe it can be done) but there was a string of IZCC posts recently that went on almost forever about whether the wheel was wood or plastic. Turns out it is plastic, I think. There was a good article on refurbishing the plastic wheel in an issue of SportZ magazine last year.

If anyone is interested in more SU information, go to the IZCC site (www.zhome.com) and scroll down the left side to the "Index of Technical Articles, open it and go to the article on "SU carburettors for the early Z". Here's a bit from the article by Scott Fisher: "You can also modify your car's throttle response characteristics slightly by adjusting the viscosity of the oil in the dashpot damper. SUs are set up so that a thicker oil will resist the piston's attempt to rise in the dashpot for just long enough that the engine's increased load (when the throttle is opened) will pull more fuel across the bridge; this enriches the mixture and temporarily bumps power up to help the engine achieve higher speed more readily." Happy Tuning.

IMHO, any time you have made any changes to the suspension or steering, an alignment check is a pretty good idea.

From the pictures and description, I think $3,500 was a very good deal. You should be able to eliminate the backfiring with some carb work, but the cold sluggishness is probably not going to go away - early Z's are notorious for their cold-running characteristics. My 240 has taught me patience with that first cold start of the day - we don't move until the temperature needle moves. The $500-$600 clutch job reminds me of the statement I heard years ago - "A man can afford a wife or an old car, but not both." Enjoy your new ride.

If it's a Type-I (vents in the rear hatch, storage on the floor in front of the back deck instead of in the deck, etc.) it might go for a little more than a later 1971 Type-II. However, I think anything over $5,000 is too much, and it would have to be in great condition for that much.

$4,000 doesn't sound bad. When I totaled my '71 back in 1992, I got $2,800, but it was a pretty rough car, not in good shape like yours was before the accident. Good luck finding a replacement.

If it looks good and runs well, I'd set the asking price at $2,000 instead of $1,700 to get more bargaining room. The biggest "questions" will probably be the extent of the floorpan rust and frame damage. The other "dings" should be easily taken care of by most any Z "enthusiast".

Haynes manual says 20 weight. That's what I use and it seems to work well. You can go lighter or heavier, depending upon your driving demands, but don't use a multi-grade oil. If you search the IZCC site you will find posts that offer all kinds of opinions on alternatives to the 20 weight. I've even heard that some folks use different weights for winter/summer driving. Here in S.C. the 20 weight seems to work well all year.

You can surf around the various Z sites and find lots of opinions on headers and big exhaust systems, but I haven't seen any posts that indicate a significant power increase. IMHO they don't give much "bang for the buck" when it comes to increasing horsepower. I have to agree with Marty Rogan - headers tend to warp and leak. I have Hookers and after about 60,000 miles they had leaks at 5 of the 6 exhaust ports. They were so badly warped they had to be "weld-filled" before they could be machined. I also have a 2 1/2 inch exhaust with no pre-muffler, and it's pretty loud. If I was doing it all over again, I would forget about the headers and find a local muffler shop that can do mandrel bends to install a 2 1/4 exhaust system. I would go with a flow-through muffler, and if the system was too noisy, add a bullet-type glass-pack pre-muffler.

Glad you could walk away. Can the damage be repaired? The roof/windshield area looks like a major challenge.

2ManyZs is asking the right question - what kind of oil are you using? halz's explanation of viscosity change applies to single-weight oils only. If you are using a multi-grade oil, you shouldn't see a significant pressure change with temperature change. A 10W30 oil, for example, will "act like" 10W at cold temperatures and like 30W at operating temperatures. That "constant viscosity" quality is why multi-grade oils are recommended by the manufacturers for four-cycle engines. Single-grade oils are typically used only in two-cycle engines (lawn mowers, etc.) or for special applications. I agree with 2ManyZs that a 10-20 psi drop indicates an internal problem that should be checked out before something bad happens.

I replaced the old points-type distributor in my 71 auto-trans 240-Z with a Mallory Unilite distributor. No change to the timing was required. As part of the conversion, I also installed a Mallory Promaster ignition coil and a set of Mallory's spiral-core, suppression-type spark plug wires, (I think their brand name was Sidewinder). Installation instructions provided with the distributor and coil were clear enough for a bonehead like me to follow, and the car has run well - once we remembered to re-connect that little green-white wire, the tachometer even worked.

As I read your post, the 1-2-3 cylinders have good compression, strong spark, dry plugs with no smell of gasoline. That all sounds like no fuel is getting to the cylinders. Air flow through the front carb doesn't necessarily mean there is also fuel flow. That the 4-5-6 cylinders are running well says the timing probably isn't the major culprit. I suggest checking the fuel lines to the front carb and the carb itself.

Alfadog: The storage bins do point to a Type-II car, despite the 1970 registration. As EScanlon noted in an earlier post, "Items or features of the car that are not easily removed or replaced are easier to use to "type" the car than items that are a known weak spot and hence easily and commonly replaced". When one considers what is more easily replaced, items such as the rear hatch, the seats, the doors and the center console do come to mind. The interior rear deck, where the bins are, doesn't seem as likely a replacement. Since you haven't been able to locate the MVSS tag that lists the build date, (perhaps an indication that the quarter panel, including the door pillar, has been replaced??) I guess all one has to go on is the "replacement logic". I suggest you check the door detents. pillar vents, retractor pockets and the vapor recovery tank. Then look at how many, (and what kind of) Type-I and Type-II "indicators" you have and make your judgment call. Good luck.

Alfadog - I don't know about the right-hand-drive models, but the Zs here have a metal plate above the door latch on the driver's side that has the build date on it. EScanlon - looks like you understand some of us aren't real bright and have some bad habits - thanks for your patience. Your "registered as 1970" logic parallels mine - if Type-IIs weren't built until 1971, then a 1970 MUST be a Type-I, (or rather, started life as a Type-I). Your point about replacement parts is well taken. I know my Type-I has had a number of parts replaced that weren't from another Type-I. If Alfadog can't find a build date, perhaps some guru like Carl Beck can shed some light using the serial number?

I've added my $20 to Mike's fund, and I like EScanlon's suggestion that donors be identified, either by the "Supporting Member" tag or some special icon. However, I suggest we make sure we don't do anything that looks like we're creating an elite clique here, something that might discourage new members. What may be "Hey, it's only $20" to some could be "Holy Mackerel - $20?!?!" to others. I place much more importance on growing and maintaining an active membership participation than on some personal ego boost, and I suspect that thought is shared by most of us. I think we should by very clear that the $20 is a VOLUNTARY DONATION and not a membership requirement. I also think we should clearly point out that paying the $20 doesn't get the donor any special privileges other than the identifier on his or her member heading. Enuf' Soapbox.

Perhaps someone else knows a high-tech and/or easy way to check for cracks, but I used the old-fashioned Mark-I eyeball on my 240-Z. Put it up on jack stands, crawled underneath and started cleaning/inspecting. One of my sons and I did a "running-gear re-furbish" last summer. We pulled darned-near everything out from under the Z, cleaned everything up, replaced all the old rubber bushings with polyurethane, swapped out the 30-year-old springs (Suspension Techniques), replaced strut inserts (Tokiko), etc. and painted everything that didn't breathe. With everything out but the engine and transmission, I was able to inspect the underside pretty well. I know there has to be a better way than the Mark-I eyball method. Thanks for asking the question - I'm looking forward to the answers from the pros.

ALFADOG: Just when I'm getting comfortable with right-hand-drive Zs (HS designators instead of HSL) having their "own" serial numbers, you tell us your 240-Z is a Type II. Your Profile lists a 1970 240-Z. Since the Type-I Zs were built into early 1971, I'm getting confused. It has long been my understanding that ALL 1969 and 1970 Zs were Type-I. My Type-I 1971 240-Z (HLS30-17559) was built in 12/70. Do you have more than one 240-Z? Am I wrong in thinking that all 1970 240-Zs are Type-I? This isn't some kind of metric thing, is it?

XYZ: The Z caliper has two pistons - one for each pad - the Toyota 4WD caliper has four pistons. The calipers you want for the "upgrade" are from 1979-84 Toyota 4WD trucks. The swap requires cutting the backing plate (also called the splash plate?), which I did with a Dremel tool. The "S"-shaped brake lines on the caliper will also have to be bent slightly to line up with the brake hose bracket - not a problem so long as you do it slowly and carefully. I did not change out the rotor - I don't race or autocross, so I don't need the additional heat dissipation provided by slotted or drilled rotors. I did change out the rubber brake hoses to steel braided hose, but only because I wanted the stiffer feel. There is a good brake article, including the 4WD conversion, on the Z-Car Club of Washington's web site. Go to www.zccw.org/tech/ then open the "Brake System" section and click on "Z-Car Brake Systems & Modifications".

In reading through the posts, I note 2MANYZS comments about brakes. I did the upgrade to Toyota 4WD front calipers last year. It's a simple upgrade, even for the mechanically-challenged like me and doesn't have to cost much either. MSA now has an upgrade "kit" for about $300, but I just got used calipers from a Toyota 2WD truck and rebuilt them. Used calipers, new seals, etc. and I was still under $150. The caliper upgrade was part of a general suspension "project" in which we replaced the springs, the strut inserts and all of the old rubber bushings with polyurethane bushings. The 1971 240-Z handles much better now. JIM DOZIER