Carl Beck

One would think that a change such as adding a Summer/Winter setting on the air cleaner housing - would have an associated TSO or at least be added to the Owners Manual - so that owners knew what it was and how to use it. I could swear that I had seen instruction in an owner manual somewhere related to that Summer/Winter setting... The Part Manuals show the Assy-Cover Exhaust Manifold and Duct-Cover to Air Cleaner starting in 05/72. Was there an Air Cleaner with the Summer/Winter switch - that did not have the duct from the exhaust manifold? hummm..... Anyone have any documentation of the addition of the Summer/Winter switch being added to the Air Cleaner Assy? FWIW, Carl B.

If I owned it - I wouldn't sell it for less than $27,500.00 Start with a Vintage Z at $26K+, then add $10K to $15K of modifications.. and the original owner was most likely into it $35K to $40K+. Although highly modified - it IS A VINTAGE Z. If the right buyers show up - it could easily bring $25K+.... if the right buyers aren't in the market today - it won't sell. $25K would be a super deal "IF" that is the type of Z one wanted. I personally do not believe that it needs a 4.44:1 rear gear.. that engine should be able to easily pull 3.9's or even 3.7's... Gobs of torque and HP there... Even in the present economy 90% of the people are still working. About 12% of them have incomes above $100,000.00 per year - that's about 16,000,000 people.. E-Bay is all about reaching that one, two or three of them that wish they had a Datsun 240Z ready to drive and enjoy. FWIW, Carl B.

1. It looks like the tow truck driver - did not have the wench hooked up, when he removed the front tie-downs. 2. NEVER get close to a car that is on a tow truck. Only after the car is sitting safely on the ground and the tow truck has pulled away should you touch the car. From the video - the owner could be held at least partly liable for the damage - as he seems to have reached in the car and kicked it out of gear, or released the E-brake. If he did or not - it makes for a case in court... As mentioned - it looks like he was drug along with the car by the car's door - he could have been killed... Good lesson for all of us - STAY CLEAR. Take pictures from 20 ft away as well. FWIW, Carl B.

I'm beginning to believe that all 240-Z's have "the start of rust in the doglegs".... They rust from the inside out and it starts at the Factory as soon as they were built. Right above the tail lights is another area... but sometimes it isn't so much "rust" as it is the acid from the exhaust pipe gases that eats the metal from the underside. There usually isn't any visible "red" iron oxide there on otherwise rust free cars - what is there under the paint is metal that crumbles when you probe it with a screwdriver.. All things considered - given the initial price of the car and the exceptionally thin sheet metal - it is actually amazing they have held up so well for 36 to 40 years. The dog legs and threshold plate for the rear deck lid are usually pretty easy to fix - "easy" as far as metal patching is concerned. Serious rust under the battery tray, in the wheel arches, rocker panels, frame rails and floorboards - can and usually does lead to the crusher... FWIW, Carl B.

Not a bad idea - one doors have been NLA since about 98.. and it is getting harder and harder find good used ones. A couple small door dings can be worked out fairly easily - Over time they are money in the bank.. FWIW, Carl B.

My first ride with Mr. Morton was in a pure stock 1972 Datsun 510 at Portland International Raceway... He and several other professional drivers were there with 2 240Z's, 2 510's and 2 1200 Coupes all dead stock. Nissan had them and the cars there to demonstrate the strength and reliability of the 72 Model Line up - for the Northwest Datsun Dealers Association meeting. The six cars & drivers took everyone for three or four laps, in every model. All morning and into the afternoon - it was full throttle on every car. Only tires were changed, because they were completely gone every 24 to 30 laps... Nissan had an 18 wheeler there, just to carry the pure stock spare tires/wheels... It was an amazing demo - yes - drifting around 90 degree turns - was done for fun - and with less effort than a Sunday Drive... It was truly amazing just how proficient these guys were. All of us "civilians" were talking at lunch about how deep the dents in the passenger floorboards were - from us "braking" as we flew into the turns!! Those were the days - when you walked into a Datsun Dealership - and were meet by real, enthusiastic DATSUN salesmen, and when you wondered out into the service area - the mechanics would talk your arm off about how wonderful the cars and trucks were... The days when the person that actually owned the Dealership - was THERE, and glad to see the Datsun Customers every time they returned... Wouldn't we all love to see Penske turn Saturn around like that again?? Also sad that most of the people on this forum - never experienced just how magical it was. You get a little of the flavor whenever you drive a pure stock 240Z, 510, 1200 or 720 Pickup... but in 1972 the whole was greater than the sum of its parts. FWIW, Carl B..... ok so I am an old geezer...

Hey...."AN old Geezer"? Perhaps you were really referring to "A wise and far more experienced gentleman"LOL Seriously - search this board for "My Car Was Stolen" or "Stolen Z Car"... or "Damn":stupid: FWIW, Carl B.

The door frames on the 240Z are quite different than the 78 280Z - you can't swap doors between them - even if you changed the latch. In Canada - I would "guess" that a rust free - dent free - 240Z door would be at least $350.00 FWIW, Carl B.

"OUTSIDE" !!! Ye GAD, you can't leave that car OUTSIDE in San Diego!! - it will be in Mexico in a heart beat!! A Friend left his{three weeks earlier it had been mine} 79 El Camino SS with 21K original miles - OUTSIDE the local AutoZone store, when he went inside to buy some polish/wax... when he came out less than 5minutes later - it was GONE. I had held that El Camino for 15 years and to this day it makes me sick that I sold it to him in the first place.. The only way to leave that Z outside anywhere - is to leave an armed guard with it... FWIW, Carl B.

Hello Basel: The American 260Z's were equipped with two SU Type side draft carburetors. As far as I know that is the case with the European Spec. 260Z's 74-78 as well. According to Brian Long - The US/Canada received the Fuel Injected L28E for Model Years 75-78, and Japan had an L20E for Model Years 76-78. The Euro Spec. 260Z's used the SU Type carburetors. So either some previous owner installed the fuel injection unit from the L28E on your L26 - or more likely swapped in an L28E in place of the L26. If you look on the side of the engine block - below the #6 spark plug - the engine block should be stamped with either "L26" or "L28" and then followed with an engine serial number. FWIW, Carl B.

There were two - one with Carb's that sold for $125.00 mol.. and a second air cleaner box only that has a Buy-it-now of $100.00 What is your customer expecting to pay for the air cleaner box? A complete set of used SU's is worth more than $125.00 aren't they? In which case the air cleaner box that was with that set was free (Yes/No?) Just curious... Carl B.

Hi Basil: Great to hear from you. Your 260Z looks fabulous!! The picture is a little small for my old eyes - but that looks a lot like an L28 with Fuel Injection in the engine bay. {aka 280Z}. A 10 day Road Trip in a Z with Jess - - - No man should be that LUCKY!! Be sure to Post lots of pictures from your trip - - {mostly of Jess} ... Your "English" is perfectly good enough for US. You said you are "living in Switzerland".... Where are you originally from? Enjoy The Drive.. Carl B.

Hi Dave: All the 12xxx VIN cars I have collected info on - have build dates of 10/70. The Series I cars ended production in 01/70 with VIN's in the 20xxx range. Then the Series II cars started production in 01/70 with VIN's in the 21xxx range. The last car sold and registered/titled as a 1970 240Z here in North America - that has been reported so far - is a 13,xxx car with a build date of 11/70. FWIW, Carl B.

Hi John: If you plan to drive the car in the winter, or in the mountains - I'd say that not having hot water going through the carb.'s could cause a problem. With the right temp. / humidity mix, you can wind up with carb.'s icing up, and/or very poor air/fuel mixtures. Not to mention prolonged warm-up times before the engine starts to run properly. In Idaho I would not recommend elimination of the water flow through the manifold. FWIW, Carl B.

I'd put the engine in - after the car is painted if at all possible. Otherwise, you'll end up with overspary all over the engine and engine compartment, which will just cause a lot of un-necessary work later. There is LOTS of room in the engine bay - and it is very easy to drop an L24 in there without hitting anything as long as you have a couple of people doing the install. I also agree with Adam - plate or paint all the bolts/nuts - as they will develop surface rust quickly. I take it that you do not plan on running a heater/defroster? Or do you plan to make some other sort of "T" for the heater/defroster take off? Overall it looks like you've done a pretty good job.. now just take your time as you go forward with the project. FWIW, Carl B.

I had the BRE Z glass bead blasted. The car's sheetmetal was in amazing rust free condition, and it only had a couple small door dings that had been skim coated before. I would have had the body shop strip it by hand - and that is really what they wanted to do. The probem was that the PO had reinstalled a complete stock interior.. and in so doing he had glued the jute pads to the metal, then glued the new carpet to the jute pads. What a mess... I tried stripping the glue off by hand with a very strong glue remover - but after doing a small area I decided it just wasn't going to happen. So I really sent the car to be bead blasted - to remove all the glue on the interior! I believe the shop said that they had to use walunt shells to get the glue off - as the glass beads were not good at all for removing soft, sticky materials... like the glue or body sealers etc... Whatever they used - it came back clean as new metal... After doing the interior, there wasn't much more to do on the exterior, and what the heck might as well do the engine compartment while it's there... The main problem is - when the body shop got ready to shoot the epoxy primer... we had media blowing out of every crack and crevasse... STOP.... take the day and blow or vacuum the hell out of the body.. blow and vacuum some more. The next day it was again ready for primer. After the paint job was done - and after I got the car back together - The first trip down the road resulted in medial blowing all over the inside of the car - don't ask me where it came from - it seemed to come from everywhere.. Got home vacuumed and cleaned again. For the next five to seven road trips as I was trying to break in the engine and brakes.. same thing... media blowing out of everywhere... If I had it to do again - I wouldn't. I would just pay someone else to strip the interior of glue... You might have an easier time - washing the soda off - and out of the hiding places... FWIW, Carl B.

This might help some in the future: http://Zhome.com/ZCMnL/tech/69-83TrannyShifterDrawing.jpg The one on the Left is not out of a roadster, as they used the Type A transmissions in both 4 and 5 spd. versions. As I recall most truck transmissions were shorter.. ie had shorter tail shafts... FWIW Carl B.

If I had to guess - I'd say it was for an early 78 280Z most likely produced at or near the end of 1977... FWIW, Carl B.

Hi Rich: That is even more amazing!! It looked like it had less than 30K miles on it before you started detailing it. Your Father must have taken exceptional care of that car.. way beyond exceptional.. FWIW, Carl B.

Looking GREAT - don't forget that you'll have to take the intake manifolds back off - to get the Air Injection Tube's back in... Keep the pictures comming - BTW - did you ever say how many miles your Z has on it at this point? FWIW, Carl B.

Hi Bo: I should have said "the largest set of wheels/tires that would fit on the 240Z without modification - was a 215R50x16". Nonetheless it's good to see/hear what can be done with minor modifications and the right size/offset wheels. Many people don't want to cut the body up and add flairs...

Hi Jerry: If it is "ready to install" - why are you - or why do you have to modify it with connectors from VintageConnectors.com? Post some pictures if you can - I'd like to see it... BTW - did you really mean Vintage Connections - www.vintageconnections.com/ FWIW, Carl B.

Hi Guys: For decades it was "common knowledge".. that the largest wheel/tire that would fit on the 240Z was a 215R50x16... usual wheel was 15mm offset. Are there no 215R50's available? Just curious...

Hi Guy: Copied below - simply for information purposes, is the note I sent and the reply I received from WeldCraftWheels.com . If anyone has any interest feel free to contact James directly. = = = = = = = = = == = = From: "James" <james@weldcraftwheels.com> To: "Carl Beck" <beck@becksystems.com> Subject: Re: Wheels - Panasport Aluminum Date: Mon, 6 Jul 2009 07:56:14 -0400 Hello, I have welded forged and cast aluminum wheels as well as spun aluminum wheels .... no problems. What size are your wheels and how much do you want to add? James ----- Original Message ----- From: "Carl Beck" <beck@becksystems.com> To: <James@Weldcraftwheels.com> Sent: Friday, July 03, 2009 2:46 PM Subject: Wheels - Panasport Aluminum Hello James: I was looking at your Web Site - because a friend of mine ask about widening his Panasport Aluminum wheels. Another friend tells us that the Panasports can not be widened/repaired because they are Forged Aluminum Wheels. I don't believe that is the case, as everything I can find indicates that they are cast aluminum alloy. Nonetheless - I don't see any exception noted on your Web Site related to "Forged Aluminum" wheels. So I thought I'd contact you to see what you say? If one had a set of Forged Aluminum wheels, is there any reason they couldn't be modified? thanks, Carl Carl Beck, President Internet Z Car Club Clearwater, FL USA http://ZHome.com

Hi John: Welcome to the group. I bought my first 240-Z from Paul Jaremko at Valley Datsun in March of 1970 {now Jaremko Nissan/SAAB} and I've been driving them ever since. Paul and I are friends to this day as well. I still have the Metallic Blue 72 240-Z that I bought at the end of 71, it's the only car I never wanted to get rid of. If you have metal fabricating and welding skills - you are in better shape than most of us. The mechanical aspects of the 240-Z are very easy to master. As mentioned, Post some Pictures A little rust in the rear threshold plate {below the deck lid} and the doglegs are pretty common on the 72's. But in general they didn't rust nearly as quickly nor as extensively as the Series I cars did. Pre-fabricated patch panels are available for the dog legs {area at the front lower part of the rear quarter panels}. Remember - this is supposed to be fun. Enjoy the process and the end result will take care of itself. good luck, Carl B.