87mj

I live close to auburn Indiana where there is a big annual auction. A couple years ago, a nice '73 went on the block and sold for low $20's to a remote "internet" bidder. The paint was new and nicely done but the sanding of the body work looked like I did it. It also wasn't correct to the car. i wouldn't have called that a restore either. Sometimes the value of these cars can be very confusing.

I'm still hopeful this guy is going to come through. Hopefully we will hear from them soon.

Yes, Yes. I have seen pics of your car every time I log in. I feel as if you are deliberately rubbing it in. The '70 has blue interior but most of the diamond vinyl was too far gone to use. While I still have some of blue interior, I didn't have either door panel so converting to black will be pretty painless. I must agree. I really like the black stripe too. Back in the day, racing stripes were very popular. I am sticking with 14" 195/R70 tires so it should look very dated. Im not sure I am going to like that 1970 transmission though....

I bought a series 1 car a couple of months ago. Vin 5305, numbers matching motor, original transmission, hand throttle. I have it scheduled for paint in July. I want it to be as original as possible but the car is white. In high school, my first z was a white '73 with flat top carbs and we didn't get along well. The car will be rotisseried, blasted inside, outside and underneath. I plan to keep the car until I die but I will have before and after photos in case I ever decide to sell. If I change the color to 918 (still a valid color for 6/70), does anyone think it will make the car less desirable? I cant imagine that it would but changing the color of an early car seems like it violates something but I am not sure what.

Thanks for the post. Most of the lines look correct but the brake line going under the tunnel looks like it stopped about 3 inches too soon before it made the bend to the rear. Then the one running to the right front tire looks way off (which naturally is the line I need the most of course). One line looks like it is touching your steering shaft? The fuel line and the clutch lines look exact.

I have seen photos of a lot of restorations where the replacement hard brake lines are not precise enough to fit inside the rubber frame mount bushings in the engine bay. Has anyone bought brake lines & fuel lines from classictube.com? Are the bends precise enough to fit in the existing frame mounts? Thanks

I have been in the process of stripping a car to it's shell. The wiring harness is removed and the engine will be pulled soon. While I am waiting in queue at the body shop, I thought it would be a great time to check and fix any electrical problems in my wiring harness but electrical circuits are not my strong suit. Is there a way to apply power to an engine harness by using an external source such as the battery or an external power supply without burning it up? If I can do that, thought I could bench test connectors, headlights, taillights, dash, etc and fix anything before I install it back in the car. Thanks Gary

I think that is a great price... but based on the pics the seller shows. If it looks as good as the pics, it would be a great value. Everything looks better in photos. But, you need to look inside the front wheel wells. There are some small 8" or so pieces of sheet metal welded to the frame just behind the motor mounts. Those rust and are the first to go. Then look at the frame rails. In the late '70s, I owned a 73 that had rust so bad on the front frame rail, there was nothing holding the front sway bar. The rails can rot in the back too. The carpets are not traditional in that they are fastened with loops and snaps. So removal takes all of 2 minutes. If you get this far, you are in good shape. Then under the battery tray. If those look good, then you are well on your way. Open the rear hatch and look at the .... hatch sill plate? Not sure what to call it. Where the latch is located. Then take the spare tire out and look at that. Surface rust is fine. Next there are some telltale signs of previous less than stellar body work. There should be weld seams at the rear of the car running from the tale lights down to the bottom of the car. One on each side. There should also be seams at the rear of the rockers to the beginning of the rear quarter panels. Checking for repair work at the rear quarters around the wheel wells is difficult for low skilled guy such as me. But there are two pieces of sheet metal welded together there so it is supposed to be a little thick feeling. Look closely at that area and compare each from one another. I once owned another car that was improperly repaired. I couldn't figure out why one side of the car sat lower than the other. Unfortunately, I figured out later it didn't. One wheel well was welded lower than it should be. I saw the same problem on another post on this forum. Those areas must be difficult for the novice to repair. If it passes all of these tests, bring cash. Good luck.

I was watching that car. From the pics, it looks like the rear deck didn't have tar installed. Was that common on the early VINs? Also I have an early car with a mfg date 6/70 VIN 5305. I am curious if your hood prop rod is black?

The dash on one of my cars is in terrible shape. The PO was classy enough to use dark colored drywall screws. I suspect most other people would use steel colored screws or hex heads. Anyway, mine is in such bad shape, these dashes could suck and I would still be in better shape than I am now. In as bad of shape as my dash is, I would rather it be busted up than install cap over it.

I have an old car that has surface rust on the battery tray area but the sheet metal in this area is very solid. I am in the process of stripping the car to the shell. A body shop will be media blasting the entire shell. Does blasting remove the acid from the sheet metal or should I rinse the area with something to reduce the PH? Am I over thinking this? Thanks

Thanks for the reply. Did you leave the back one alone? I didn't have trouble removing the engine harness but the one that goes to the tail lights runs along the side of the passenger rocker, then up into the inside of the rear fender, then up to the dome lights and back out to the tail lights. I cant see removing that rear one successfully and then getting it back in place even if I ran pull wires.

I plan to get a car media blasted inside, outside and underneath. The body shop asked that I remove the wiring harness. Removing the front harness wasn't that big of a deal. Removing the rear one seems like a major pain and almost an impossibility. Has anyone had a car media blasted while the rear wiring harness was still in the car? Is there a way to protect it and still keep it in the car? Is removing and reinstalling the rear wiring harness as big of a PITA as it looks? especially considering it needs to branch out where the dome light and defrosters are located. Then go back to the tail lights?

If there is going to be one, I will be there.

Sure. I just don't know how effective I would be. I live by Ft Wayne. Honestly, I didn't know Indy had a Z club. I am just saying that up front so you know what kind of person you are dealing with here.

I am always looking to buy parts I will probably never need. Indy would be great. I'm always discouraged when all the cool stuff is out west.

I recently purchased a complete series 1 car...complete except for the rear hatch. Can a series 1 hatch be fabricated from a mid '71 hatch (with vertical defrost) ? I have a '71 hatch. A body shop could easily cut holes to support the hatch vents. It seems like finding a rust free series 1 deck would be about impossible. The body shop can't get me in until July so I have time. i should also mention the donor car i would taking the hatch from is very restorable also which tugs at my emotions a little. Do exhaust fumes enter the cabin through those hatch vents? Thanks

I wonder if they did that because they swapped the transmission? I did that on my '71 because the PO added the later style transmission and the '72 console didn't require cutting.

A couple of weeks ago, I bought #5305 built 6/70. I'm curious if your car has the hand throttle?

knowing my luck, I would win an auction like this and end up with a bunch of 310 parts and a used smog pump for $2,000. So then I would be telling myself, "well you never know. You just might need that someday...".

Personally I couldn't daily drive a 240. I would feel sorry for it. The sheet metal inside the fender and all other nooks and crannies attract dirt. Dampness alone isn't good on them. As was already mentioned if you get caught in road salt, you can see rust form along the edges of painted surfaces in a few days( speaking from first hand experience). If you continue to drive it in road salt, it will be totaled in a few seasons. Mine are fair weather cars primarily used for ice cream runs. They don't see rain and the garage is heated in the winter.

I agree. The conversation has fallen into the abyss.

Wow

It could be me but I was unable to successfully bleed the brakes without adding speedbleeders.

Mike, I just saw your post above. I agree completely. I wouldn't buy a car with mismatched vins. especially after reading all of this. If I cant get a title (and door jam & engine bay tags) matching the firewall, I wouldn't go forward and restore this car. Obviously it is a very hot topic and my paranoia paid off in this case. Gary