Richard McDonel

Betty, Someone out there might know the answer to your question; but not me. What I have learned is that detail changes on the 240s did not often follow model-year designations. Mid-year changes do not appear to be uncommon. I guess it gives councours judges something to puzzle over. Cheers,

Siteunseen, Thanks for bringing that up. On my filler hose, the #18 line you refer to has been shut off by someone at some time. The plastic fitting #14 appears to have been heated to the point of melting, then crimped shut. As between you and Dennis, this is becoming more interesting / confusing. If the reservoir is meant to catch fill-up overflow via Line 18, then I should make very sure the tank is sound. Or, if we ditch Line 18, as appears to have been done on my car, one would have to be very careful on refueling. Another thought with respect to the reservoir - if I patch-repair it as has been suggested, would the application of a fuel-tank slush compound (as I have already done on the fuel tank), ensure a good seal? And yes, I should track down the "young fella who lives just south" (about 1.5 hour drive). This is my first 240Z project, and it sounds like he has vast experience. This proving to be an interesting conversation.

I appreciate all this help folks. Question for "Granny." What is that small canister (?) towards the bottom centre of your sketch? Cheers, and Happy New Year.

Dennis, Thanks for writing. Yes it can, but I'm a bit uneasy about relying on a patch job on a plastic gasoline vessel. Am I being overly cautious? I see you are the original owner of the same year as mine. Still running the original tank?

Restoring 1971 (HLS30 28726). I have the believed-to-be original plastic fuel reservoir / vapour tank. It is however damaged, and I'm not comfortable with the idea of patching it. I also have the steel version that came off a later 1973. It is sound, but will take some metal bending and / or cutting to install. Does anyone know if original-dimension plastic units are available? Or alternatively, does anyone have any experience making the newer steel tank fit the earlier car? Many thanks,

Charlie, Thanks a bunch, Start in the middle rather than at one end makes sense. Also the part about enlisting the aid of one's wife! Cheers

In his book on restoring Z cars, Wick Humble makes installing the roof / ceiling liner sound tricky, but not all that hard. But as he warns, once you've stuck the first bit on, you can't go back. Now given that if you are just a few degrees out of perfect alignment when you start, you're likely going to be inches out when you get to the other end.. Does anyone have any tips for getting it right the first time, or alternatively any at-all-costs-avoid-this-mistake warnings? Many thanks.

Thanks everyone! Where the fender seals originated I don't know. They came, unpackaged, with a rusted-out parts car I bought. I'n OK for clips, they with the parts car too. Thanks for the weatherstrip tip. I'll see how the stock material works, and if I don't like it then switch. Best regards,

This has probably been asked before, but I've gone back to 2013 on this forum and haven't found it , so here goes. I'm trying to install the front-to-rear rubber seals that attach to the welded seam between the upper and lower front fenders of my '71 240Z. I'm told they go thick-side down, and curve outward . So far so good. What I'm unsure of is whether they attach on the inboard or outboard side of the welded seam. Also, the rubber seals (new) I have are a bit shorter than the length of welded seam available to them - do I set them to the front or the back of the seam? Or does it matter? Second question is with respect to the battery tie-down. The nearest thing in my pile of parts is an unusual three-sided plastic frame. Is that OE Datsun? If not, can someone describe what a 240 should have as a tie down? Many thanks

I apparently have some serious work to do on my brake hydraulics, and it would seem to involve the front proportioning valve warning switch, and/or the rear proportioning valve. The rear is discussed in the FSM, and I'm about to get to work on that. But as for the front warning switch unit, the manual is quite stern in demanding that you don't even try to fix it - just get a new one. Easy enough said, but unless I've been misled there aren't any new ones to be had. Any thoughts on safety concerns on a DIY rebuild? Thanks

Thanks guys, I take it that the consensus opinion is "forget about 'original' - save the car and run with the plastic fan." Plastic it is!

I am restoring HLS3028726, build date April 1971. Is the steel fan or the plastic correct for this car? Second question; what is the correct finish for unpainted bolts; cadmium, tin, nickle, or ??? Thanks, RDM

Thanks for this. I was not aware the manuals were posted. I'll run with the '70 for now. The '72 manual, for whatever reason, comes in at 282 mb - about 20 times the size of the others - which my computer will not open. I'm putting together a car (same colour as yours judging by the photo) I stripped down about a decade ago, and there are some bits and pieces for which I cannot remember location. This will be very helpful. Cheers, Richard McDonel 09 Ford Taurus; '78 Mercedes 450SEL; 71 Datsun 240Z; 64 Grant King sprint car

CantechZ 1971 (did the manual change much, year to year, for the 240?

Looking for a factory owners (not repair) manual

There is an oval-shaped cam-inspection plate on the front of the head. I have two of them; one cheapo plating, and the other painted to match the block. Can anyone tell what finish is correct for a '71 240Z. Thanks

Thanks for this. I just finished installing this part. Fortunately I had two in the shop, because after carefully cleaning and painting the first one, I discovered that the centre mounting hole was waaay to big. Someone, somewhere in the past 44 years, had apparently tightened the bolt too far, and punched out the hole. Cleaned up the second one and it seems OK.

This not a suspension specific question, but but applies to all parts. Can anyone tell me what colour of finish is correct for nuts, bolts and washers on a 71 240z? Thanks

Much thanks for this gents! Not entirely sure which way I'll go, but I think I'll take a copy of the drawing Chas provided, along with a shift lever to my friendly local machinist and see if he can doe something like that. Restoration? No way. We're going to be hot rodders! Cheers, Richard McDonel

After 10 years off and on with the restoration of my 240Z, I have discarded two bodies, and am left with HLS30 28726, which is now totally rust free and painted the proper shade of orange. I have three transmissions, all of which are of the second generation pattern, that is to say the shift lever rises about 2 - 3 inches forward of the earlier ones, and the lever has an S bend. Problem is, the hole in the tunnel is too far back. So, I have to decide whether to cut a larger hole in the tunnel sheet metal and do everything necessary with the interior attachments, or find an old-style transmission. I'm interested in hearing your thoughts. Should I try to find an early transmission? And of course that begs the question why did Datsun switch -- were there problems with the ratios, the shifting, or the durability of the older model? Or do I just cut an inch or so off the tunnel sheet metal and worry about the interior when I get to that point? Here's a curious thing; two of the transmissions have part or serial numbers on the top of the bell housing (710380 and 7226602), but third is blank. That last one has possibly had a number filed off, but with age it's hard to tell. I appreciate any advice you can offer.

Zed, Thanks for this. Glad I'm not the only one this has happened to! With respect to the durability of the mounting assembly, I'm still a little nervous about sudden acceleration or downshifting, particularly with those 40+ year-old captive nuts. Motor mounts are rubber, and when the engine rotates in either direction, the transmission has to move with it. I'm wondering if anyone has ever cut open the tunnel, de-captivated the nuts, and installed new - perhaps larger - nuts and washers? I have no plans of racing the car (it's a total frame-up restoration), but would like to be confident taking it out for vigorous drives.

Just installed the transmission in my '71. Very lightweight crosspiece I thought, and with only two vertical bolts holding it to 43-year old captive nuts, how much torque would it take to strip one out? I have some parts laying around from a '73 and notice that the transmission mount assembly is much more robust. I have to assume the factory was motivated to make this substantial change. Has anyone had some bad experience with the early mount coming loose? Installing this transmission reminded of something a wise old mechanic told me many years ago. He said "Only a bad mechanic blames new parts for this problems." I've found that to be 100% true - until now. On my first try, with the cross piece secured to the centre cushion mount, I could not get the end bolts to line up with the captive nuts. Out of line by about one and one-half bolt width. The chassis had earlier been measured as straight, and the engine was secure, so now what? Took the whole thing apart, then lined the brand-new, right out of the package cushion mount on the work bench, alongside two old mounts I had. On each, the centre stud came out at a different angle. Further, if you looked closely, you could see that the metal stamping differed slightly, and finally, the new one was made of a heavier guage metal. Checked the Black Dragon catalogue, and it shows the same piece fitting all 240-280 models. So I took the better looking the two used mounts, installed everything, and it fits just fine. If anyone is interested in a brand new transmission mount, I have one for sale. Half price. Cheers All

I have a '71 240. It has the earlier, stamped-metal cross piece supporting the transmission. On the top surface of this piece there are two thumb-sized indentations, one on each side of the centre mounting bolt-hole. They cover about half the width of the cross piece. So my questions is, does it matter whether these are to be at the front or the back of the cross piece once installed? Makes sense I hope. Thanks

Thanks to the fellows who replied to my earlier post on this topic. I'm probably getting a bit paranoid, but I'm still concerned about the movement on the cam gear. I just don't see how the single bolt properly centres the gear on the end of the camshaft. I found another camshaft bolt that is perhaps 2-3 thou. greater in shaft diameter than the first one, but there is still some side-to-side wiggle room. Perhaps only a mm. but nevertheless does having the gear turning in what is effectively an elliptical orbit present any increased wear to the chain and the guides? As for the oil-bar seal, we'll go with majority rules. I'll make gaskets. Curious though as to why they wouldn't be included in either of two gasket sets.

Two concerns regarding the 240Z head. First is the camshaft oil delivery bar. When I took it apart, there were gaskets between the bar and the mounting / oil-feed points. I have two engine gasket sets, and there are no gaskets for this in either set. I don't need them? Liquid gasket material is of course an option, but it's easy to see how a drop of the stuff could get into the passage. Suggestions? Second is the cam drive gear. I've set the dowel on on the right hole, and snugged up the bolt, but there is rotational play around the axis of the dowel pin. I would have thought the bolt would center the gear. I'm sure that once I torque the bolt, I won't be able to shift the gear around by hand, but will things be different at 5,000 rpm? Am I missing a part here? Many thanks.