Carl Beck

Hi Randy: Good For You!! I'm always happy to see someone get the Ferrari they lust after. I will hope that the members of the Ferrari Club in your area, are as great as the members here in Florida were. Second only to the people you'll find in the Classic Z Car community, the Ferrari Club members were a great group of people to hang out with. {of course there are always one or two exceptions that prove the rule}. No question that then and now - the styling on the 308's is simply beautiful. It just reeks F E R R A R I.... As luck would have it - I just happen to need a good side view of a 308... so I'm going to steal yours... Good luck with it... Carl B.

Hi Paul: Well - - not quite. The Policy states that you can NOT use your Classic Car in lew of your Daily Driver. In effect you can't use your Classic for transportation purposes. As in most of our laws in the U.S. "intent" is a major factor in reaching a legal judgment. Doug has it pretty well pinned down. Classic Cars are NOT used for "transportation purposes". If you intent it to get to work and home that day - then NO the Classic Car Policy offers no coverage. Doesn't really matter if your DD was running or not, because that didn't change your "intent". If your intent was to take your Classic Car to work - to show it to your co-workers, or just to show it off - then YES - your Classic Car Policy provides coverage for Pleasure USE. The average person would say; "what's the difference - in either case you are driving your car to and from work?" The difference is your intent - and the specific words you use when you tell the Insurance Company what happened matter. 1. "Well I was on my way to work and this moron ran a red light and hit the car in front of me, I couldn't stop fast enough so I ran into them both." 2. "It was a beautiful morning, so I decided to take my Classic Car to work for my co-workers to see. On the way this moron ran a red light and hit the car in front of me. As both cars collided and spun directly in front of me, there was no way to avoid them. Make statement #1 to the cop on the scene, or the insurance company - and chance are good that your claim would be denied. There is also a chance that the cop would give you a ticket for "Failure To Maintain An Assured Clear Distance Ahead"... Saying "I couldn't stop fast enough" is admitting that you didn't allow a safe distance from the car ahead.... Make statement #2 to the cop on the scene and the insurance company and chances are good that the claim would be paid. Saying that "there was no way to avoid them" is a statement of the situation, but it is not an admittance of improper behavior on your part... ie not tickets.. Your WORDS matter - to the cops and insurance companies specific words and statements have very specific meanings. They listen for statements of INTENT - - That is why any Lawyer will tell you - the ONLY statement you have to make to a Cop is " I have nothing to say without my lawyer present". Speaking of "intent" - don't get a Classic Car Insurance Policy with the intent of pulling the wool over the insurance companies eyes... If your co-workers tell the investigator that you drive that car to work two or three times a week - you could be in a world of hurt with legal fees, to avoid being charged with insurance fraud.. The insurance companies don't have to "win" to drive you into financial hell... Were I worked for many years - we had "Bring Your Daughter To Work" days, "Bring Your Son To Work" days, and yes - "Bring Your Classic, Collectable and Special Interest Cars To Work" days. FWIW, Carl B.

I'll just put a satellite up-link in the car trailer.... Or better still - find someone with a huge motorhome that already has one... FWIW, Carl B.

I can take a video camera, a portable Mac and we can hook him up live from Atlanta.. He gets a real kick out of video conferences... I'll be looking forward to seeing everyone there... FWIW, Carl B.

Hi Ron: Yes - I talked to the guys at Grassroots/Classic Motorsports a week or two before this years Mitty - as I was trying at the last minute to make arrangements to get the Z up there - - at my age/with my health I don't like putting anything off for a month, let alone a year... Anyway - we talked about 2010 being for BRE - and I told them I'd do whatever I could to help put them in touch with with Mr. Mason and son etc. At least one of the BRE 510's is still supposed to be in Georgia somewhere - it was still being raced a few years ago. I talked to several guys a few years ago, when I was tracking down/ verifying the Monise roadster here in Florida. Until I found it - the owner of the 46 car thought it was the 44 car. I notified Rob that his history was wrong... I verified it was the 44 car after a discussion with John Morton about the technical details of the car. I was located near Orlando at that time. One of the guys in South Florida bought it and raced it for a time... Then it was shipped out to Les for restoration.. So it will be great to see it again... FWIW, Carl B.

Hi Ron: I'll be looking forward to that!! BRE & Lotus are a great pair - since BRE raced a Lotus/Ford... FWIW, Carl B.

Petro Canada 94 octane should be fine for anything in the 9:1 to 9.8:1 range with factory cam and proper timing etc.. I hasten to add - as long as the filling station is actually selling what they claim on the pumps... Most mechanics have a machine shop they deal with - without knowing the exact size of the combustion chambers - you have no way of knowing what your C/R is. In that case - Overkill - is a last resort. Adding head gasket thickness is perhaps the least expensive way to go.. I just hope that when you are done - the problem has in fact been too high a C/R... and not simply a case of having the wrong timing curve in an unknow distributor... Here a again, any good mechanic can measure and tell you exactly what you have... IF the mechanic doesn't have a distributor machine, he should know a shop that does.. good luck,... shooting in the dark you'll need it. Carl

True. I've seen two in the past year. I've seen perhaps 4 in the past 4 years. If you bump that number up to say a range of $16K to $16K... the number of cars could go as high at 15 over the past 5 years. The problem is - most of the people that found and purchased such 240-Z's, spent a few thousand traveling and looking at cars that were rejected. If a couple thousand dollars is worth waiting a year or two for - I guess that makes sense. It isn't worth it to me. I'd rather spend the $20K up front, and drive or enjoy the car for the year or two... Nonetheless, it shows us that Supply/Demand do work in the 240-Z market today. There will be 50 $15K to $20K 240-Z's out there, for every 1 $30K-$40K 240Z that comes to market. When was the last time we saw any 240-Z with less than 10K miles - in stock/original condition - right down to the original tires... Personally, I wouldn't sell that car for less than $29K today.. because a serious Collector that loves original condition cars will come along tomorrow and consider that a bargain... They are only original once... FWIW, Carl B.

But it seems you did not read the description. Keeping in mind that the seller is a Collector, not a hobbyist, nor shade-tree mechanic... and therefore everything listed as done, was done at $75.00 per hour in a professional shop... and done without regard to the time it would take... you could quickly see that thousands and thousands and thousands of dollars were spent on the car to put it in "road ready" condition. The person that sold the car - in Florida - never had it running. Nor did the lady he bought it from... If this Collector gets $29K out of the car - he might get his money back. FWIW, Carl B.

Hi Arne: Jim Wolf gathered the following info - and it has been verified by several of the top engine builders that specialize in the L series engines. I'll add it to this thread so if anyone in the future reads it -the information will be constant The heads with casting number E88, found on the late calendar year production Series II {Late 71 Model Year} and Series III {72 Model Year} 240-Z's had the exact same combustion chamber as the E31. 42.4cc's so compression stayed the same. The 72 Model Year E88 has the same combustion chamber shape/design - only it's 44.7cc rather than the 42.4 of the E31. Casting improvements to the exhaust valve seat area, and exhaust port improved the flow of this head, and today you see far fewer with cracks around the exhaust valve seats than is common on the E31's. Yes - the combustion chamber shape/design was changed significantly for the 73 Model Year - this is known as the Emissions Head - as it was designed to meet the strict 73 Emissions standards.. This head has a 47.8cc combustion chamber - You can easily see the difference in combustion chamber design for these and the 74 heads.. Not good for performance... Correct - FWIW, Carl B.

A picture of the combustion chambers would "help" us see what he's got. Big difference between the 72 and 73 Model Year E88's in combustion chamber design. But it really would not supply exact answers. Also a big difference between an E88 with stock valves and one with 280Z valves - as far as the total size of the combustion chamber goes. Installing larger valves and unshrouding them can add 2 to 4 cc's easily. A picture would help us "guess" what was done... We really don't have enough information to know if the problem he has with "ping" is related to the compression ratio - or a screwed up timing curve - or simply the gasoline he has available in his area. He really needs to know very exact and specific information about the engine he has - now that it's apart - is the time to find out. -Measure the cc's of the combustion chambers - take the head to a machine shop and have them do it. -Measure the bore -Pretty safe to believe that it's a stock stroke... Summer or Winter blends of gasoline, some with or without "E85" ratings in Canada can vary by 3 to 5 octane points. Bottom line - I run an L28 with +0.5mm, Euro Spec. Nissan Pistons {plus 2cc dome}, and a 72 E88 head with 280Z valves {unshrouded/reworked chamber}, Nissan Cam Kit, triple Webers and Unilite distributor - - no problem at all with "ping". My compression ratio is right at 10:1. FWIW, Carl B

No - captive nut - actually welded on - is in the center only. Open holes on the ends.. that is why you needed the nuts with the clips to hold them in place for the four holes {two on each end} in the end - where they mate up with the end pieces... FWIW, Carl B

I had a claim with Hagerty - I wrote a Post about it.. a few years ago.. Wonderful experience!!.... First time in 35 or so years of driving 240-Z's that I bent a fender, hood, bumper, front spook, lower finisher... Everything replaced with NOS parts..car repainted.. at the shop I wanted to use...Absolutely No Hassle.. they just sent me the check.. They also do a lot to support the Classic, Collectible and Special Interest Car Hobby... FWIW, Carl B.

Does the part you have - have the same mounting points as this one? Mine seems to have different mounting brackets, than the one used one shown earlier in the thread.. Also note in the last picture - the captive nut in the center mount... This is the correct part for a 72.. as it is identical to the one on both my72's .. original owner and second owner crs... See picture of my Spook's marks for drilling.. that I forgot to put up earlier.... FWIW, Carl

Maybe you missed this: "Car in 100% perfect condition. New Panasport wheels and Michilen tires.(original wheels and covers w/ new tires come with car).1972 carbs New brakes, struts, shocks, all hoses, gas, a/c,and water. New electronic ignition, plugs, quiet free flo exhaust. Car needs absolutely nothing. Ready to show or drive anywhere at 100mph." Doesn't sound like it needs much... FWIW, Carl B.

The first time I heard that story - the 280Z's had been painted Black at the factory, but it was a non-Metallic paint. The Metallic Black Pearl paint to the exterior surfaces was said to have been applied after they arrived in America. DAS was the facility that was supposed to have done it.. Given that DAS at L.A. handled some 83,000 Datsuns in 78 -I guess believing that they painted the exterior of one or two out of a hundred cars - wouldn't be too far fetched. They installed 12,000 AC units in the 79 280ZX's.. On 22 acres it was a huge opperation.. But who knowns... As far as I know, any manufacturer could repaint a car before they sold it to the Dealers. There was no liability associated with paint - no Lemon Laws on the books in 78. None of the transport damage that was repaired had to be disclosed to the end customer... It is interesting that the Black Pearl's had non-metallic paint in the engine bay, as well as inside the car. That is usually one way you can tell if the car has been restored rather than original - the engine compartments in the restored cars are usually sprayed with the metallic paint.. Unless we find one of the Painters, that worked at DAS in 78.. we may never know for sure.. FWIW, Carl B.

Humm..... Very Interesting... the S211's must have been repainted in Japan, did Nissan actually export any of them? According to Long only 20 of them were built. Would the "SP213" also be Right Hand Dive Models? Again according to Long the SPL212's and SPL213's were sold in America. The SP310 being the first Fairlady sold in Japan.. Long seems to indicate that the SP310 was the first Right Hand Drive Fairlady... But speaking of Nissan repainting Fairladys... According to Brian Long: "Bruce Morikubo bought the first of 123 SPL212's destined for America, eventually taking delivery from Speedway Motors in Tucson, AZ, in the middle of Aug. 1960. Being the first car, Datsun offered to paint it free of charge, any color Morikubo wished, so it was finished in Cherry Blossom Pink. Katayama also give the owner honorary life membership in the Sports Car Club of Japan." FWIW, Carl B.

Hi Mike: The rear deck area was so high in Crossfire - that it prevented the seat back from reclining more than just a couple degrees.. If you were willing to crank the nob - the Series I/II seats would lay back. FWIW, Carl B.

If it checks out as having "perfect" paint - and the undercarriage is as clean as it should be - - $19K is a bargain. The problem is that usually when go see the car - with 40.000+ miles - it turns out NOT to be the "perfect" show winner you had in mind... The seller isn't misrepresenting it - its just that we get this mental image of the "perfect" 240-Z that doesn't match up with the car we go look at.. Nonetheless - if you keep in mind that it HAS been used for 40K miles..you most likely can't put a 240-Z in that condition for any less money... Not to mention years of work.. FWIW, Carl B.

Hi Guys: Please let me know when you can buy an electric sports car that you can jump into and drive from Seattle to Tampa in 48 hours. At that point you'll be driving a hydrogen fuel cell, supported by all filing stations with a gasoline, diesel and hydrogen pump... circa 2075. I suppose if think of a "sports car" as one you don't want to go much farther than 50 miles at time, or one that can weight over 4,000lbs to carry the batteries... it might work for you. IMHO - The next affordable "sports car" that will shake the world - will be one that weights less than 2000lbs and is powered by a very small displacement turbo diesel. If China cranks up the baking ovens, they could produce a full carbon fiber/aluminum honeycomb Sports/GT that would be a game changer... most likely from VW.. FWIW, Carl B.

Beautifully put - ahmen... I would only add: In addition to exceptional styling and affordable performance the Datsun 240-Z fit the average American like a glove, in both size and utility. A Sports/GT that could eat up thousands and thousands of miles crisscrossing America, while delivering its driver and passenger comfortably refreshed at the end. The additional utility of its cavernous hatch back and its daily driver comfort and reliability put its value to its owners - far in front of any other offerings at the time. Still true today... The beauty of the 240-Z is far more than skin deep. If the Crossfire had the room and comfort that the 240-Z had, my wife and I would have been driving it home... We actually went to the Chrysler Dealer to buy one... Couldn't recline the seat backs more than a couple degrees, it had about half the cargo area of 240-Z, and less shoulder room,overall we felt cramped in it ... damn... We went home very disappointed.... FWIW, Carl B.

Hi Mike/Chris: Here is a picture of the item in HLS30 00016. That is two owner car, and as I recall it has about 70-80K miles. Always garaged and cared for.. We drove it back to Florida from Ohio with the original 1969 Spark Plug Wires still in place.. As you can see, compared to the Black Dash,and Heater Control nobs - the Heater Control Panel is gray. FWIW, Carl B.

Anyone that is restoring a 240-Z to Pure Stock will need the Air Pump if they don't already have one working order. So I sure wouldn't throw it away... Nissan needed to use the Air Injection system to meet the U.S. EPA's Air Quality Standards. So no matter what State one was in - for the Z's to be sold in the U.S. it was part of the engines Emissions Control System. You may be thinking of the Gasoline Vapor Recovery requirement that existing in California in 1970, but which wasn't yet required by U.S. Regulations. Nonetheless that requirement was in the "draft" legislation in D.C. as well, put their by pressure from the environmentalists... So the auto industry knew it was coming. Canada on the other hand, had no legal requirements for either. So several 240-Z's but strangely not all - arrived without one, the other or both.

Hi Arne: hummmm..... When I was at Les's shop around 1999 - he had just begun to reproduce the Spooks.. I bought four of them because I was so happy to get high quality reproductions, rather than having to rebuild mine for the fifth or sixth time. Plus I knew some of the guys around here would want or need one sooner or later, and Les needed to move a few to pay for the initial costs of startup.. Anyway - I still had one on the shelf. I went out and took a look and sure enough the circles that indicate where to drill for the core support are clearly present. I'll see if I can get a clear picture tomorrow with some indirect sunlight. {hard to get clear picture of an all shinny black surface with a flash}. Even in 71, in order to get that first couple of bolts threaded into the captive nuts - one had to push up with one's right hand with a lot of pressure - and start the bolt on its way in with your left hand. Just holding the Spook in place - it is about 0.5" of more below the core support. As it is flexed up and the three bolts are tightened down - it spreads out to the sides a bit as well. Not knowing much about the design of fiberglass structures, I don't know if this pre-stress is intentional or not. I do know that the original held up on my Z without showing any stress cracks etc - at least until I destroyed it on parking stops.. Like I said - that was around 99 - so things might have changed since then.. FWIW, Carl B

Just use fresh and good quality Masking Tape - over the paint where you intend to drill though. Use a sharp center-punch to start and hold the drill bit in the correct place. The BRE Spook bolts to the bottom of the Radiator Core Support - with three bolts that go into the existing captive nuts. Look at the underside of the core support and you should see them... If you look closely at the Spook - it should have three little circles scribed in the fiberglass - where the Spook overlaps the bottom of the radiator core support.. If the body shop sanded and then painted the Spook - you may not be able to find the scribed circles that show you where the bolts should go though... See BRE's mounting instructions... FWIW, Carl B.