Gary in NJ

Alright, now you're an enabler. I'm gonna have to photo shop that BRG with an off-set white stripe.

I do like that Chis. I'm leaning towards a front spoiler and rear skirt with the integrated bumper guards and maybe the side skirts. I've never been a big fan of the bolt-on wheel arches. Funny, these are things I would consider sacrilege on a 240, but I wouldn't hesitate to do on a 260. I'm such a 240 snob, I should be ashamed of myself.

Glenn, When I conduct a differential compression test I put the piston in the cylinder to be checked at TDC, then place the transmission in 1st gear (with the e-brake on and the wheels chocked). If you have a helper. have them sit in the car with their foot on the brake. I then open the valve on the tester to allow 80 pounds into the cylinder. 78 pounds is the magic hold number, but if the cylinder holds within 10% (72 pounds), you have a good/OK cylinder. Below 72 pounds listen to the exhaust, carb or crankcase breather for escaping air. Based on where air is escaping from will tell you where you have a problem, i.e air at the carb is the intake valve, air at the exhaust is the exhaust valve and air at the breather are the rings. If you don't hear air from any of those and can not maintain at least 72 pounds of pressure, spray soapy water around the head gasket.

Chris, you've read my mind. Except for the wheels and sound system, my 240 is stock. I was thinking aerokit, stroker engine & some interior updates (limited to the seats and sound system) for a project car. This would also give me the freedom of painting the car black or BRG, either with a cream interior. I might even add AC to keep the wife happy. I'm selling myself pretty good here. Can somebody please stop me?

Mechanical fuel pump circled at the bottom right in the photo.

Pilot pilot hole, then a NEW step-bit.

I love the interior. Awesome. What's it worth? Did you buy it as an investment, or to enjoy it? If you are like most of us, you bought it because you HAD to have it. In that regard it's worth whatever you paid for it.

I got two...on ebay. So I over paid, but I can't seem to find them in my local Walmart. I'll keep looking. I have an orange one at work. It's off the stand. Everyone that comes into my office picks it up and marvels what a great looking car the 240 is. I predict that the model wont have the antenna and wipes by the end of the year.

I love my Z, but I'm always looking through Craigslist, Ebay, Penny Saver, etc looking for a Z bargain. This week I spotted a 260 (74-1/2). It's in the process of being restored and is about 85% complete. The owner has lost interest in the project. The body is straight, it appears to be rust free (frame rails & floor boards are new, no rust under the battery) and most of the parts needed to complete it are there. The car has recent paint, but I think I'd have it resprayed. The flat tops have been replaced with round tops and it has a 5 speed tranny. With a little effort I could have this car done. Here's the thing, I've never been a fan of the 260. I don't like the way they sit and I don't like the bumpers. Bumpers can be fixed/switched (I may even consider the front air-dam that has the built-in bumper) and the right springs can make all the difference in the way a car sits. I wouldn't mind a project, especially one that's off to a good start. My concern is; get I get all of my 240 love from a 260. Have any die-hard 240 guys ever found some love from a 260?

Indeed it could. The fuel line down stream must be "wet" (inlet above the outlet), otherwise fuel flow will be interrupted and the engine will cease to run.

Be methodical as you strip the car. Bag-n-tag everything and even take a photo to create a photo database of what you have. I do see a lot of decent body shells for sale, but they are typically in California.

Is the red car the parts car?

Timing. Have you checked the timing with a strobe? If so, was the idle set correctly with the vac-adv disconnected and plugged?

Healey I like the tune-up parts that MSA carries. It's all the same quality of the stuff I use to get in the 80's. They also carry NGK plug wires. I've always liked those too.

I just replaced both master and slave this evening. I used the parts out of the box without swapping any older parts. I did measure every thing before installing and the parts acquired from MSA were spot on. Regarding bleeding, my son sat in the car while I worked the bleeder. I had him pump three times and hold. On the 4th cycle it moved the slave and by the 6th I was pumping pure Dot 4. An straight forward job if ever there was one.

Perfect compression I'd say. Were those fresh plugs? A proper plug reading should be performed with fresh plugs. #4 could be dark for some very simple reasons; i.e fouled plug, broken wire, defective cap or a spark plug wire that wasn't properly seated. I'd perform a proper tune up (including a valve lash adjustment) and see if that doesn't cure the rough running.

A leak down test (aka diffential compression) is the tell-all method. Harbor Freight has a tester for around $30. Not professional grade mind you, but it is something you will not often use.

Outstanding. I'm really diggin' those seat covers. Are they custom?

No. Is your fast idle screw out at all? That should be fully retracted after the fast balance is set.

I use K&N filters on everything but my Z. I just don't put enough mileage on it to justify the expense. The paper filter does a better job of filtering, but I make that trade off on my other cars and motorcycles (my airplane too). The job of the idle solenoid is to increase the idle and to keep the engine from stalling. At night there is more load on the engine due got the lights

Shouldn't the grose jets (float valves) be changed in pairs? I suggest looking at both carbs. Once you see how easy it is to set the front, you'll see that it's worth the effort to check the rear.

My money is on a stuck float valve.

I would install a higher capacity radiator before a trial-and-error prone electric system.

Looks like you have yourself a good parts car.

A mettle of a sports car (especially those manufactured 30-40 years ago) is not measured with a stop-watch, but by the feedback and "excellence" they return to the driver. By your example, a Toyota Camry is a better sports car then a Mazda Miata. The 280ZX made good use of 10 years of track time and advances in tire/suspension technology that were unavailable when the S30 was designed in the 1960's. Also, when the 240Z went on sale in 1969, the average car price was US$3,900; the 240Z was US3,500. In 1980 the average car price was US$7,200; the 10th Anniversary 280ZX was US$14,000. The ZX was clearly designed for a different buyer.