SpeedRoo

Another interesting titbit from the program is that all the nuts and bolts etc were cad plated.

Dean I don't think that is your car. The Master list has a revision date of Jan 1998, it shows your car as #18 and having been finished. The date in the video of the red car being driven out for test is late April 1998 and the red Vintage Z has silver mag wheels. I think it may be 40904.

Have a look at the Larry Chen's Vintage Z video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5_TjHwA1xgE at the 27:24 mark you can see the Master list. There is a column that lists Matching# and M for yes, N/M for no. There are 14 N/M listed. There is also a column for engine#.

Where can a copy be obtained, please advise. @26th-Z is it available as a digital download?

Did @26th-Z ever complete the document/booklet Chris was doing on the Vintage Z program? He mentioned it back in 2005!

I always enjoy it when our resident armchair expert (RAE) from across the pond makes assumptions that turn out to be wrong. To assume he knows the people I speak to for my background information is the level of arrogance, Just as he has done here: "In contrast, one of your "people involved in the program" has knocked out a couple of hardback books - to great fanfare - but which are packed with enough misconceptions, mis-captions and plain old mistakes as to make them all but worthless for entertainment let alone reference material. You'd be well advised to take care in choosing your gurus." I've never spoken to or been in contact with that person, nor do I have his books. Yet again RAE has gone far off the beaten track. Even the people I have spoken to didn't have a lot of good things to say about the program manager you refer to. It's obvious from the photos from the Japanese magazines they are early cars, the cars in the pictures are instantly identifiable from the master list of the Vintage Z build. If you watch the videos @deanhuff posted links to you can see them at Pierre's shop. It's no great mystery but documented evidence. Just as they put the engines in conventionally at the beginning of the program, they got more efficient fitting rebuilt engines supplied by AER from below by lowering the car onto the assembly. Oh I forgot, RAE worships at the house of Japanese superiority and how could they be wrong having put some photos in a Japanese magazine. The VZ program was an American program, done in the USA and sold in the USA, not sure how the Japanese had much if anything to do with it.

Have uploaded the file to the archives.

Love the videos, lots of detail on how they built the cars up. Great find after all these years.

The document is 34 pages long, it doesn't mention who did the work. It also doesn't mention who did the body restoration, paint and assembly. There were at least 5 Datsun restoration companies involved in the program. There is a master sheet listing all the cars and the companies responsible for each one. Two of them confirmed to me the engines and gearbox were sent out to be rebuilt, that's from people involved in the program and not armchair experts who had nothing to do with it. Now that doesn't mean every single engine was sent out, the early ones may have been built up to check the process and parts required. If you watch the videos @deanhuff linked to you can see the different companies involved. @zspert was one of those who worked closely with Pierre and also supplied parts to the program. I tend to listen when he speaks!

I love the fact you get the kids involved in rebuilding the Datsuns. Keeping the hobby alive going forward is getting harder to do. Let's hope they keep up their enthusiasm.

From what I understand the fist batch of rebuilt engines were rejected and returned to be rebuilt. Metal bits from machining were found in the engines. Everything was done to time and budget constraints, quality may have suffered because of this.

Doing another 3d print run for @pjczc8 this weekend. Dug up my old files from 6 years ago. Have a SLS metal printer now, should be able to come up with some interesting pieces!

There's two ways of doing things, the right way and the stupid way. Recreating and 3D printing the gaskets is the right way....enough said.

Managed to find a couple of the BRE cast aluminum adapters recently. https://www.ebay.com/itm/317146279997?_skw=Datsun&itmmeta=01K22V8ZHVKDFD1YZ2R67FYVVG&hash=item49d764303d:g:5ZgAAeSwYvNokRsm&itmprp=enc%3AAQAKAAAA4MHg7L1Zz0LA5DYYmRTS30kCoKfIwvB5xxhwqLfQsN2nCxk2lPQjX3YKVMYwrxYpvqUj44P448Su9W0IOyv9xeIAWjVrCeP8Fr2QU1TY9e7pNLlaT0BG9tj5zLexgY7byGGuH2yDK0OiyU3vR5fkXWKKN3IQdcSYmXNnnPXjRhXS2So%2FSPgQZXBaYiIZLQCVX3X7Vna%2FqJOosiRjsA69htfeltceq2Cf7k2gmZCY6J8H8hKNyQdK0sBnsetXbfjln%2FMlmTzAAStHKN2erVuANzBT9%2FZ1nAhivjZ33R04f%2B9W%7Ctkp%3ABk9SR4z5o9uQZg

One thing I never skimp on is fire extinguishers. I'd go with this one for your Z. https://www.h3rperformance.com/products/halguard-pro-halon-clean-agent-car-fire-extinguisher-1-25lbs Not cheap but very effective. Love the registration tags, part of the cars history @Captain Obvious Mine still has the original license plates from when it was new in Roseburg Oregon in October 1970, found the original plate frame from the selling dealer Burness Datsun. Even got a copy of the original title from the DMV.

Well done @Captain Obvious another one saved! I did the same with my August 1970 that languished in a garage from 1983 to 2018. Engine was seized and brakes stuck on. Dragged it home and rebuilt the suspension/brakes and got the engine going. I use it as my beach bomb to go windsurfing. One day I'll restore it but until then it gets used.

I know you are a stickler for details @26th-Z so happy to help.

Here are the original Nissan parts fresh out of their bags. Note the negative side only has the protective rubber cover. Yazaki was the supplier and their name is screen printed on the cables, just like on original spark plug wires.

I don't think they are quite perfect @26th-Z there was no protective cover on the negative terminal on the early 240Z, just on the positive side to stop a short with the inspection cover.

Do you want me to measure it? You'd be amazed the stuff I've found on EBay and Craigslist!

Keith buy a battery bolt and round off two of the corners with a grinding wheel, https://www.amazon.com/Wilmar-W1680C-Battery-Terminal-Bolt/dp/B0076EVKO8

Keith I picked up a NOS 240Z battery cable off EBay and it has the rounded head.

I had one of my masters re-sleeved, due to pitting in the bore. Works great with new seals and been trouble free for over 4 years. I'd rather rebuild and refurbish original components if they can be, newer parts don't seem as well made. Thanks for checking your clamps, I'll go with what was on the Green 5/70 BAT 240Z as it was low mileage and relatively untouched.

@Captain Obvious I'm always on the lookout for NOS OEM parts, sometimes they have the right part number but are not in Nissan boxes...you just have to know where to look. I have a spreadsheet with all the period correct cross reference numbers and keep a look out for those on a regular basis. It seems the Nissan part suppliers of the day back in the early 1970s had no qualms about selling the same part to Lazorlite/WorldParts/BeckArnley. I wont try and reproduce the coating, too many other parts to restore at the moment but will keep it in mind for the future. I will use the master cylinders with the cast in letters on my 8/70 and 10/70 240Z, the engraved one will go on the 5/70 for period correctness. The fun anomaly I have discovered in the wire clamps. Some people say they should be all clear zinc, other say gold zinc...what's correct. Again referring back to the Green BAT 5/70 240Z, it has gold zinc wire with clear zinc screws...go figure that one out as it's totally original. However the large ones on the radiator hose are clear zinc.