jfa.series1

It might be that your ignition/steering lock kicked in when you moved the wheel. When engaged, it will usually prevent the ignition switch from turning unless you remove the tension on the steering column lock. Try this: insert the key and GENTLY turn it while moving the wheel a little one way or the other. By turning the wheel, you are taking pressure off the steering column lock so the key can cause it to disengage.

Great looking car - a very nice find and it looks to be unmolested. Welcome to the group and we'll be looking forward to your progress updates. Be sure to share your VIN and build date in a future post.

Welcome to the group and your next diseaZe! As long as we keep filling the owner's ranks of old cars with young owners, these classics will stay alive.

I suspect the folks at Blipshift got their attention very quickly! I just received their shirt and love it.

Crazy, stupid money being bid - now at $10,600 and the reserve not met. I guessed that the seller was looking for $10k but its clear he has his sights set on a bigger fleecing. Seven hours till its over.

BvtnDave - Phil provided an excellent description of Dave's harness benefits. These are really great upgrades for your car and will potentially save your combo and turn signal switches from burnout. So... DO add them to your MSA order for the fuse box, your car will thank you! Also, change out your old, tired turn signal and emergency flasher cans for electronic units similar to this one: Novita/Hazard Warning Flasher (EL12) | AutoZone.com These units are available at almost any auto supply store. No more pokey turn signals!

It's probably going to take a minimum of $25-30k to get this one "right", on top of the purchase price. That assumes the new owner does the work him/herself at $0 cost of labor. It's probably more if there's an attempt at "stock" or "as delivered". Costs can be reduced IF the new owner does all their own body and paint work, engine re-build, ...etc. Even though it's a 3-digit VIN, a $ break-even is going to be a tough road. Current bid is $5,300 with a reserve not met.

That's known as a "trial by fire"!!! Glad no one and the car were not injured in any way. BTW - you have a great writing style, keep it coming.

Sweet looking ride! Welcome to your next addiction (and to the group).

You really need to calm down before you have a stroke! Looks super great - going for that stock class win at ZCON '15 up the road in Memphis???

Winning bidder must have had a change of heart - did not cough up the $ required to seal the deal. Or... perhaps it did not meet expectations upon inspection.

I don't think the BRE spoilers ever had the flat spot - mine doesn't. I suspect that was a Nissan feature for the Fairlady series.

The sale closed out at $10,200. Someone is going to have a super fun project!

I'd suggest that this is something that was sold in the parts dept. and not ever associated with a specific vehicle.

Pretty much describes my physical condition!!! The (used) fuel spills can be especially embarrassing.

If the collar that the cap attaches to is not sealed well against the "rubber ... thingy" you can get a slosh leak even if the cap is sealed tightly. Fix: remove the collar and run a bead of silicone seal all around it, re-install. Been there, done that!

Here's a few considerations when installing a BRE rear spoiler: - Make sure to clean and paint the brackets holding the studs to prevent rust. - Use self-locking nuts when securing it to the hatch. - Consider inserting a small O-ring on each stud prior to mounting to the hatch. The O-ring will help seal the hole thru the hatch and it helps hold the stud brackets slightly above the hatch surface and reduce abrasion to the hatch paint. The O-rings can also be used to help adjust the clearance of the ends of the spoiler against the fenders. As to the rough top edge on the new series of spoilers, here is a shot of the top edge of my old one. It has a flat about 5/16" wide across the entire edge. I don't know if this flat has disappeared from the new units.

I can't see any excuse for the damaged finish along the entire top edge of the spoiler. That is not incidental damage, it has been ground or filed off. I suspect there is a problem with the mold and the edge is not coming out clean and this is someone's very poor "fix". This should be completely finished in gelcoat and ready for installation or paint to color of your choice. As to the mounting studs, one might presume no prior installation holes in the vehicle and therefore new holes would be drilled to the current spec. If BRE assured you that the spec was the same as original, then you have an issue to take back to them - along with the finish item. As an aside, my dealer had already installed the 1st gen BRE "Spook" and spoiler when I bought my car - and they are still with it. The BRE site shows the current "Spook" as the original but it is really the 2nd gen. design for 1971 and after. Here are a couple of pics of the 1st gen. "Spook", used only for the 1970 competition season.

The car appears to be a museum of some sort. It is in Madison GA, perhaps some of our eastern members will recognize the location. As Robert says, some VERY interesting company sitting around this car - an Opel GT, Ferrari Testarossa, ...etc. I especially liked the rear glass shot with the Japanese battle flag reflection.

I have a conventional battery with reversed posts (positive near the engine) and keep a maintainer on it most of the time. I've never had a leakage problem in all the 43+ years I've owned the car but have always had a good tray and drain tube under the battery. If a car is going to be stored/unused for a long period, pull the battery.

That is the door window outerseal with molding. it is available from Black Dragon for about US $50 each plus shipping. It is a left hand and right hand part. It is often called the window squeegee, is attached to the stainless molding. Note that if you buy new ones, the stainless is not pre-curved for the door and will take a bit of effort to warp it into a proper fit. I gave up and ended up removing the rubber and fitting it to my existing stainless molding with some pop rivets.

Here's a document I posted a while back - a complete rundown of all expenses incurred in my resto effort. It doesn't cover all your questions but a lot of them. My car was not bent or broken, and it had no rust issues. Hope this gives you some insight. As to time required, I have 2 1/2 years in my project (I'm retired) but there was 9 months of downtime while the car was at the paint shop followed by another 6 month stay for some paint corrections. The paint shop time was long because it was a collision shop and very busy with fast turnaround jobs while the owner had my car as his personal project. Z Restoration Report.pdf

Here's my side-by-side photos of the OE and MSA fuse boxes. Correction to my earlier post - two connectors were wrong on the MSA: female bullet style vs. OE female blade style - visible in the pictures.

I have the MSA fuse box and love it. True - the OE clear cover will not fit on the MSA box. Since it is under the ash tray cover I don't consider it an issue. At one time MSA had a cover available but no more. The MSA box had one pigtail connector wrong so I stole the correct one from my old box and transferred it.

I had a similar experience recently after a rare fill-up. While on the road I noticed a pretty rapid drop in the gauge, figured I was really burning a lot of gas, and had the "aw sh-t" moment. Then the gauge slowed noticeably and I realized it was the step in the fuel tank causing the different rate of change in the gauge. Most of the time I only give my little garage queen enough fuel for local events and I had completely forgotten the effect of the tank shape. I really need to check my mpg and how much gas I can get into the tank.