Cxracer

We have made a deal on the car and the few small rust spots seem manageable. However, he can't find the pink but he does have the registration and renewal form from 2003 and a bill of sale and release of liability. I have never been in the situation of not having a pink to turn over when registering a car but I know it can be done. So what is my best move? Should I get it towed home and get moving on it right away to get it running so I can smog it and then go to the DMV and get it registered (pay back registration etc.). Or should I run straight to the DMV and get it registered NON-OP until I can get it running? I heard somewhere that registering NON-OP is harder to reverse when you get it running again and want normal registration. Any help on this would be appreciated. Any help on this would be apreciated.

I checked out the car and made an offer. I need to get a little more info about the reg etc. I know the first thing my wife will want to do is get it painted once it is running. What price do you think Macco will charge for a paint job as you describe above.

Thanks Ttiger, I'm looking at this as a good project car for my wife. I don't think she will be wild about the color but if I can get it running reliably I wouldn't mind getting it painted (hopefully not to expensive since it's more about a fun car than a show car). I am a little concerned about rust since it is near the shore but the price seems pretty reasonable if I can get it to run.

Thanks Mike. So it sounds like if I do pick up this car I should just start changing the fluids and checking anything rubber. That is pretty much what I thought but I wasn't sure if there was any particular problem to look for. What should I do about bad gas before I try to start it up? Should I dump in some injector cleaner or fuel stabilizer and cross my fingers or is there something else that should be done? The guy's ad said that it should run with a new battery. Should I try jump starting it to get a chance to listen to the engine (if it starts) or could this cause serious problems? Is it better to inspect the car as best as I can in its current state and just hope that I can get it started one day?

Tomorrow I am going to look at a 78 280z. The ad said that it was last smogged and registered in 2003 and was stored since then because it needed new brakes and the owner didn’t have the time or cash to deal with it. I live in California so I’m hoping for no rust but what else should I be worried about with a car that has been sitting around for 5years?

Hi I just started looking at Z cars as my wife told me that she always wanted one. I have been working on cars on and off since I first started driving. Until recently it was about survival and not fun. A little over a year ago a friend of mine talked me into getting a Miata as a project car. I always wanted to drive a car on the track and I knew it wasn’t going to be my daily driver (too stressful). Well the timing belt snapped less than a month after we got the car and that kicked off my mechanical learning curve. After successfully completing a timing belt change (including all seals, water pump etc.) I started diving into every other aspect of the car. Pretty much everything else has been upgrades over stock (adjustable shocks, intake and exhaust system, break system with stainless lines, multiple chassis braces, motor mounts, etc) so my most of dealing with the car weren’t because it wouldn’t run. I don’t have a lot of money to spend on the car purchase so I know I will have to find something in good running order that I can slowly upgrade over time. I have done some body work way in the past on my first car in NJ (Datsun 810) that was a rust bucket. I must have added 20-30Lbs of fiberglass and bondo to that car (it was missing most of the fender swells over the wheels). I’d like to avoid that experience again. Since I am in the 2,000 to 3,000 range I’m wondering if it is better to look at the 280z cars instead of a 240z. It seems that the high demand for 240z cars is making them expensive even if they have a lot of problems. The 280z cars seem in better shape and if I get a 1975 car it will be smog exempt. I heard that the 280z cars are heavier than the 240z cars but if you replace the front bumper and mess with the engine the can be as fast and fun to drive as a 240z. Any advice would be helpful. By the way, is there a section that has step by step instructions with pictures to guide people through basic repair and install projects on this Forum? On Miata.net they have a “Garage” section that I use quite a bit. What are the best repair manuals to get for Datsun Z cars? Thanks, Andy