AZ-240z

Arne, Carl Beck came up with 8 1/2 inches for this measurement. That was in a thread about his reproduction spring project. So............are your measurements from your car when you had stock inserts with original springs? Dan

John, I am not at home right now, but as I remember, the difference was minimal and insignificant. You radius measurement may have been an eigth or quarter of an inch taller. Dan

Thanks, John. With original stock springs and KYB-GR2 inserts, your measurements are averaging about 1/4" less than stock. With this combination, others have had results that increased the ride height an average of 1/2". The variable is spring sag which may be the prime mover with your results. Thanks, again, for your information which will a help in anticipating results when using GR-2 with original springs, new, or reproductions. Dan

David, glad I could help. I've already spent my wad of cash at Banzai and worth every cent. Dan

David, I think I can help. If you go to Banzai Motorworks web site, www.zzxdatsun.com, and check out his catalog menu, I think you will find these item in reproduction form. They are of excellent quality. Listed under rubber, the item numbers are: Front bumper end bracket insulators BO-52 Rear bumper end bracket insulators BO-53 He sells them for $10 each, and, as a disclaimer, I am in no way associated with this website. Dan

So, I guess we will need the measurement from one of your wheel centers to the ground so as to adjust ride height to compare to the use of 195HR70x14 tires on stock steel wheels.

John, When Carl Beck had the OEM stock springs reproduced with the help of Courtesy Nissan, here are the stock factory ride height numbers he came up with. With 195HR70x14 tires: Ground to front wheel well arch 26 5/8 " Ground to rear wheel well arch 26 1/2 " Ground to bottom of rocker panel front and rear 8 1/2 " Is the 26 3/8 " ride height measurement you came up with measured at the wheel well arches? Please let us know what all of your ride height measurements are. Thanks, again for your follow-up on this. Dan

John, let me know how the GR-2s changed the ride heigth of your car. My springs are the new reproductions for our domestic imports so no sagging springs here. The Mulhollands on my car put the ride heigth right at the stock profile as described in earlier threads and measurements posted by Carl Beck and others. Are your springs stock originals or aftermarket? Dan

Thanks, Arne. Yea, the inserts presently in my car are some NOS Mulhollands, and the rears are groaning whenever the car is driven. The ride has, also, gotten even more harsh. I am guessing that these have been sitting on the shelf so long that the seals have dried out, and, or, are now binding and causing the groaning noise. Guess the only option is to get Konis and hope the ride is acceptable and not as harsh and jarring as with the Mulhollands. I'll let you know when it happens. Dan

QUICK!!!!! But seriously, I am curious what strut cartridge, or shock, you installed. Were they KYB-GR2? The reason I ask is, I am going to put new shocks in my car but want to retain the stock ride height with the stock reproduction springs. I have been told by my very old and experienced Datsun mechanic that the KYB-GR2 struts are the low pressure KYB shocks and should not increase the ride height. My other option is to get Konis which are just oil shocks which shouldn't affect ride height, but am concerned about getting a super stiff, harsh ride from them.

I second everything Diseazed said. Just replaced my sending unit and it was quite simple. I would jack up the rear, under the differential, drain maybe 5 gals. from the tank into a clean container, and change the O-ring. The sending unit fits into a notch on the drivers side of the tank opening so you can't screw up the installation. Just be sure to put a little lub on the O-ring so it won't tear. Got mine from local Nissan parts counter. I would hesitate using any sealant because it would need to be cleaned off eventually, and it would be my luck to get a piece of sealant stuck in the fuel line. Good Luck Dan

Hello Arne, Following Kats lead, I made mastervac hoses for my car with the braided fuel line hoses that kats used. They turned out perfect and indistiguishable from original. (Thanks Kats) Instead of using solid brass rods, though, I used 1/4" copper tubing from my local hardware store. After inserting the tubing, I was very careful not to crimp the tubing during shaping and they work very well. I, too, was concerning about the collapsing of hose around solid brass rod material, thus the use of copper tubing. When available, I, too, will be getting the repro hoses, and my creations will find a new home on ebay. Dan

I believe the answer to your question in the picture is, yes, they are all the same fasteners. A total of 8 of these fasteners and the associated through bolts, 4 to fasten the center valance to fender aprons, and 4 to fasten fender aprons to fenders. From your picture, I am assuming that the fasteners are the same as in my picture in item #2 above. If you have the parts CD on page 105-3: item 28 part #63140-78500 is the fastener item 29 part #77720-89908 is the machine screw Dan

Are these the fasteners you are looking for?

Since there was some mild interest in the vintage photos of my 918 orange car, I added a few more and thought I would bump this back to the front page. Dan Original Owner hls30-20419

These aren't necessarily vintage photos, but were taken at the 2004 ZCON in Los Angeles. You may recognize the gentleman posing next to my car as Matsuo San, the designer of the 240Z. The last several attachments are pages of an article featuring my car published in the book shown. If anyone can provide a translation of this article for me, please let me know. I think that these pictures are a pretty good representation of the original 918 orange used by Datsun. Dan

Here are a couple of more pictures from the same vintage as the above three.

Hi Phil, Here are a few pictures of my car just after I purchased it 40 years ago. It should give you a good look at the original factory 918 orange. And, yes, those are the original Bridgestone superspeed-20 radial tires mounted on the dealer installed aluminum mag wheels. Dan

Very nice find, Zup. I've had to ask myself the same question for unreplaceable NOS parts I have found. Sometimes the simplest solution is the most effective. I use a rag impregnated with WD-40 to clean and preserve metal finished parts. I believe WD-40 was originally developed for the military to keep rust and corrosion at bay in unaccessible recesses of aircraft and similar machinery. I have a set of NOS bumpers and plan to use WD-40 to provide a moisture barrier to the inside surfaces rather than using a silver paint. I'll be looking for other ideas coming from this thread. Dan

Thanks for all of your responses. Yea, I did go to Ace hardware and they had a selection of oil drain plug washers but didn't see any crush washers. I'll pull the tank drain plug today, take it to Ace and see what will work. I'm afraid I sometimes get hung up on original or stock when it really is not necessary. Dan

I recently drained my tank and installed a new fuel sending unit. Thought I could get a new drain plug and washer from Nissan but they have been NA for some time. I do need a new washer, drain plug stays wet, (aren't they crush washers similar to the oil plug drain washer?) and thought someone might know of a source or something that would do the job. Thanks Dan

WOW, real interesting information, Arne. As a frame up restoration, there are many parts on my car that have been replaced with NOS parts. My main purpose in the restoration, which was done by Pierre-Z, was to have a car that was as close to correct as possible with the quality and reliability of the car as new from the factory. I guess what I am saying is, I would label the fuel pump as a consumable part, periodically in need of replacement. A factory NOS part, whether Kyosandenki, or Nikki, for my purposes, does not detract from the originality, quality, or valuation of the car as a total restoration. I have been following the other thread about "240z collector value" with great interest. It has also been discussed in the past about how you evaluate a car that is a totally original survivor vs. a total ground (frame) up restoration. No need to get into that bucket of worms, now. I guess the question boils down to, if my pump was originally a Nikki with the correct date code stamp on the top and it exploded on a pleasure cruise to Tucson and is not restorable, what are my options? For me it is the reliability of OEM NOS parts correct for the period. The really neat (I can say NEAT and COOL because I am old) thing about this place is the depth of information available here. If I don't key in all the correct wording in the search function, so much can be missed until Arne or someone else is able to offer up the secret archivial passwords. Dan

I appreciate the offer, but I would also need the two fuel hose pipe fittings that are yellow plated too and screw into the pump. I can just take all the yellow plated screws and pipe fittings from the original and put them on the replacement, but thanks for the offer. Arne, I don't see a date code on the top plate of my original, but it, I am sure, is a NOS replacement when the car was restored. Dan

I purchases a rebox Kyosandenki pump from my local Carquest supply store, $18. It is identical to the factory unit, except the screws and hose pipe fittings are silver instead of yellow plating as mentioned by "ajmcforester". I will just swap out these fittings and screws from the old pump which will do nicely until, and if I can ever find an original NOS pump. Thanks for everyone's input; it wasn't nearly the problem I imagined. Dan

I would offer a word of caution if you ever attempt to change the water pump yourself. Sounds like you may not have done too much wrenching and it can be costly. One or two of the bolts securing the waterpump are fairly fragil (long and slim). It is very easy, with a little corrosion, to snap one of these bolts off in the head. I would highly recommend having your mechanic doing this which may save a lot of money and aggravation for what it's worth. Dan