Carl Beck

Hi Wayne: Your description was fine - my memory was not. The Mk I Spooks were for the roadsters... and the Mk II's were the first for the Z's. Yes, originally the Z Spooks had the tops of the ducts in place when shipped, then they left them off, but still included the upper half of the duct with the Spook, then finally they eliminated them altogether. sorry for the confusion... Carl B.

Because the brake isn't "really" off. a) if you pull your e-brake when you park the car - it's possible that the rear brake shoes are hanging up - ie. sticking in the full open position. quite common for the front brake calipers to stick as well Normally if it's the rear brakes that are sticking - when you force the car to move forward - they release. If the front brake calipers are sticking - you usually need to remove them and clean out the piston cylinder walls. (ie rebuild the front calipers). a) faulty master or slave clutch disk rusted/stuck to the flywheel They are each independent variables, related to the time the car sits not being used. They are not dependent variables. The cause - time, corrosion - related to the front calipers and clutch disk. The "self-adjusting" feature of the rear brakes - adjusts the brake shoes too tight if the e-brake is pulled too often and the car hasn't been driven enough to wear the rear shoes down. Corrosion in the rear brake cylinders is another cause - as they stick or hang up and won't allow the rear brake shoes to retract. To break the clutch disk loose: Hold the clutch pedal to the floor Put the car in 3rd gear Pull the e-brake and step on the brake pedal firmly Bump the starter several times Normally the above procedure will break the clutch disk loose. If the above procedure doesn't break the clutch disk loose; Start the car - out of gear - and let it warm up to full operating temps. - then shut it down. Re-Start the car in 1st gear and get it rolling about 20mph. Make sure you have clear roadway ahead when you start the car in gear - so you can get it moving. Hold the clutch pedal to the floor Yank up hard on the e-brake to stop the rear wheels from turning, and at the very same time give the engine some gas to rev it up. You may have to repeat the process several times... but the clutch disk will break loose..... FWIW, Carl B.

Hi Goose52: Sounds like you got one of the last Mk 1 Spooks. They did come with the "tops" of the brake ducts and the leading edges were wider. BRE started shipping the Mk II's about mid year 1971 as I recall. Anyway - here is a copy of the installation instructions for the BRE Mk II Spook... The three bolts at the back edge used existing captive nuts in the bottom of the radiator core support. All others had to be drilled through the Spook and into the lower finisher panels on the car. FWIW, Carl B. Carl Beck Clearwater, FL USA http://ZHome.com

I love my 72 510 Wagon... almost as much fun to drive as the Z and gets every bit as much attention and comments from people. I'm sure you'll love the sedan... FWIW, Carl B.

Hi Guys: Given its location and current condition - I'd say it should bring between $4,500.00 and $5,500. All stock, original paint and un-molested by unknown previous morons - - makes the ideal basis for a really fun "Refresh" or full up Restoration. Cost to Refresh in a first class manor - $12K to $15K Cost to Restore properly $20K to $25K All of the above is based on the next owner having a pretty good idea of what he's doing and that he is doing all the "grunt" work himself. If it was carefully restored, with full documentation of the restoration process kept along the way - it would take two to three years for the average guy to complete. Two to three years from now properly restored Datsun 240-Z's will be easily selling for between $25K and $35K... Hold on to it for another 10 years and you'd see #1 and #2 240-Z's in the $65K price range.. Let's hope they don't try to start the car - let the next owner get it ready to restart... Just my opinion... Carl B.

Hi Bo: That wouldn't surprise me - my 11/71 build 72 Model Year has one too. I put it there when I switched to an electric pump - VBG - Are you still running the mechanical pump on the engine as well? Carl B.

Hi E. / everyone: That first picture looks like the installer was an Authorized Dealer using the Factory supplied parts. The little clips on the side of the fuse block were also included in the Factory 73 Modifications Plus Program package here in the US. I don't know if the Factory Actually installed the same parts later in the production year ot not - they easily could have.. It is nice that one is clipped to the side of the fuse block - but I haven't seen too many of them done that way (even by the dealers mechanics taking short cuts and leaving the fuse holder next to the other two in the wiring harness behind the dash. Usually- if you find an in-line fuse holder - that wasn't installed by the Dealer - the installers didn't have the same color coded wires to use.. or the aftermarket fuse holder simply had black wires on it.. FWIW, Carl B.

The 73 240-Z's did NOT come from the factory with an electric fuel pump, until the last part of the production year. At first Nissan had great problems with the 73's and their Emissions Carb.'s. This in turn lead to a series of "fixes" that were developed over time and implemented in Stages. If one has an early build date car - and that car wasn't taken into an Authorized Dealer for the Modifications Programs - it is quite possible to have a 73 with no electric pump, no in-line fuse and no relay etc. - - or some odd combinations of all or some of the items. On many of the early cars - the mechanics just activated the existing pre-wiring for the electric pumps by putting a jumper wire in place... if the mechanic was at all smart he put an in-line 20amp fuse in the jumper. There is a green wire and a I think a red/blue wire in a female connector that has three wires in it, - - it was taped up to the outside of the harness with blue tape - that has to have two male ends from the jumper wire - it's in the harness behind and to the right side of the fuse block.. Anyway - the point is you never know what your going to find on a "73 240-Z" in regard to the fuel pumps... So it should not be a surprise if Weasel73240Z doesn't have a relay, nor if he's having a hard time finding the in-line fuse that "should" be there. FWIW, Carl

Hi Guys: Terms, terms, terms.... they have to be made more specific if we are ever to really understand one another. 71 Calender Year - same as "Production Year".... 1 Jan. though the end of 31 Dec. 71 Model Year - varies by Manufacturer and Country. ie... the first regular production 1970 Model Year Datsun 240-Z's were built in Oct. of 1969. The first Series of Datsun 240-Z's were produced from Oct. 1969 into Jan. of 1971. They were sold and titled as 1969 Model Year 240-Z's, 1970 Model Year 240-Z's and 1971 Model Year 240-Z's. These are the cars with the fresh air exhaust vents on the rear hatch lid and the 240-Z Script Emblems on the rear quarter panels. The Second Series of Datsun 240-Z's began production in Jan. of 1971 and Nissan restarted the Chassis Serial Numbers for the HLS30's at HLS30 21000 and the HS30's at HS30 00501. Nissan called these the "Late Model 1971 Datsun 240-Z Sports". These are the cars with the fresh air vents moved to the rear quarter panel and the Circle Z emblem. (among other changes). Yes - there is a large overlap in the VIN's and Build Dates of the Series I 240-Z's that were titled as 1970 Model Year Datsun 240-Z's, and those Titled as 1971 Model Year Datsun 240-Z's. That is to say; that it is easy to find cars with lower VIN's that were titled as 1971 Datsun 240-Z's, than many that were still sold and titled as 1970 Model Year Datsun 240-Z's, here in the States. How the car was sold and then titled, depended upon what month it finally reached the selling dealers, and how the laws of the State within which it was sold were structured. The Series I Datsun 240-Z's meet all the Federal Safety and Emissions standards in place for 1969, 1970 and into March of 1971. So they could legally be sold as any of the three Model Year vehicles. All that changed when the Federal Government's Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards and the Federal Emissions Standards set production dates that implemented the specific changes in the laws. So from about April of 1971 forward - only cars meeting the 1971 FMVSS and Emissions Standards could be sold as "1971 Model Year" vehicles, likewise only cars meeting the 72 Standards could be sold and titled as 1972 Model Years, 73 etc etc. FWIW, Carl B.

Hi mally002: Using a general term like "71 model" - the answer to your question as ask - would be: One or the other of the two emblems you ask about, might be correct on any specific car. In order to get a more useful answer to your question - we'd have to know more detailed information about the specific Z, or group of Z's, you are asking about. 1. What is the VIN. 2. What is the Date Of Manufacture displayed on the Data Tag on the Drivers Door Jam. Rear hatch lids can be changed, holes in the rear quarter panels can be either filled in and/or covered up with the 240-Z Script Emblems. Who knows what some previous owners have done to any particular example over the past 37 years. FWIW, Carl B.

Hi E: Pinch welt molding on the hatch seal???? Not on any 240Z I've seen. They are glued in place with weather strip adhesive.. You must have been thinking about the door seals??? FWIW, Carl B.

What are the serial numbers on the engines you have? Nissan begain using the 9mm rod bolts at L24-096181 and the engines would be found in cars built starting in 04 or 05 of 1972. Most likely both the engines you have would have had the 9mm rod bolts - but check the serial numbers anyway. Carl B.

Nate, the Integra seats do not touch the center console, nor the doors. Mount in the stock seat holes in the body. If you measure the distance from the seat cushion to the roof both the stock seats and the Integra seats are the same. "HOWEVER" when you set in the Integra seats, they do not compress as much as the stock seats, because the Integra seats are more firm to begin with. So it feels like you are sitting about 1/2" higher.. FWIW, Carl B.

Scroll down below the "box" where you type in your Post or Reply. Below the "Submit Reply" and "Preview Reply".... To the section titled "Additional Options" You will see a box titled "Attach Files"... hit the "Manage Attachments" hyper-link. Then simply select the pictures from your computer files. They should be .jpg format, and they have to be within the specified sizes..... that you will see listed in the Manage Attachment Box after you hit that hyper-link. Max Width 1281 and Max Height 1025.

Have the seller take them to the U.S. Post Office. The U.S. Post Office uses Fed-x for their oversea's shippments anyway and the U.S. Post Office rates are less. Fed-X was twice as much as the U.S. Post Ofiice to ship a tire to Japan - and it was there in three or four days. FWIW, Carl B.

Broken bond on the damper pulley - or loose crank pulley bolt. Teeth on the oil pump/distributor drive broken/missing. FWIW, Carl B.

Hi Filipe: Like any Classic, Collectible or Special Interest Car - the specific condition it is in has a huge impact on its selling Price. If the Vintage Z has been kept in the same condition as it was when the selling Dealer delivered it - then it would sell for between $30K and $37K today. If on the other hand the first purchaser drove the car for several thousand miles, got a minor door ding, a minor scratch, or if the engine compartment lost its "as new" shine... then that car could sell for $20K or less. The original documentation is considered a part of the car, so not having a complete documentation package can cost the seller 10 to 15% of the value of the car at the Top End. At $30K today, the Vintage Z's are still a bargain. They cost less than half what it takes to restore a 240-Z to like condition and if history is any guide, in the future they will demand higher prices than most other 240-Z's. FWIW, Carl B.

Reinstated...

The poor guy just might be telling the truth - hacking into e-bay seems to be a new passtime for some ... We'll see if E-Bay reinstates him or not.. time will tell.. Carl B.

Hi Mike of the Mire.. Leaded gasoline is still "available" in the USA - just not for road going vehicles. So you don't see it for sale at local Gas Stations. Aviation Fuel is still available with trace amounts of lead, as is Racing Fuel (now about $10.00 per gallon for 107 octane). NASCAR has committed to running unleaded now and that will most probably be followed by the other sanctioning bodies in the not too distant future. I haven't a clue as to what TomoHawk saw...Avgas maybe?? FWIW, Carl B.

Regular Unleaded gasoline was introduced to the American market in 1976. Lead was eliminated from all gasoline for road going vehicles here in the US by Jan. 1, 1996. That year 30% of the gasoline sold in NSW, Australia was leaded fuel. Regular Unleaded petrol was introduced to the Australian market in 1986, to enable new vehicles there to operate with a catalytic converter. The sale of leaded petrol was phased out in Australia by the Commonwealth Government on 1 Jan. 2002. FWIW, Carl B.

Put another way - is it "necessary" to give the original factory wiring, the new load from a Super Watt Amplifier at all? Does the power drawn by the Amplifier and then replaced to the battery by the alternator, have to run though the original wiring and thus though (past) the Amp Meter? What happens when you run a heavy gage wire directly from the alternator output, back to the battery? Would that split the load... half returned from the alternator to the battery through the original wiring in the harness - and half returned through the new wire outside the harness? Is it a good or bad thing to see your Amp Meter "dancing" with peak loads from additional power consuming devices not originally planned for the car? humm....... Carl B.

The original engine serial number on the Datsun 240-Z's, in addition to being stamped into the data tag under the hood, is printed on the original Window Sticker and it is supposed to have been recorded in the Owner's Warranty/Service Book that came with the car when new. At least here in the US. This may or may not be the case on later models after 1975... For What It's Worth... Carl B.

Hi Walter: Gee.. I don't remember it being that way. I was thinking that in 1975 only certain new cars equipped with catalytic converters required unleaded fuel, and thus they had the restricted fuel filler, with the required "Unleaded Fuel Only" label, to protect the cat. Indeed the 75 280Z didn't require a catalytic converter to pass the US EPA Emissions Standards - and only the Z's sold in California required a catalytic converter to comply with the stricter CARB standards- and thus the restricted fuel filler. The Parts Catalog lists different part numbers for the "Federal" model and the "California" model... from Dec. 74 to July 76 FWIW, Carl

That car was at one time advertised as a very early 240-Z.... Did you get a chance to look under the hood at the firewall VIN? Granted - the tail lights aren't from a 240-Z... The "asking" price on that car was $275K... FWIW, Carl B.