26th-Z

Yes, it could have an automatic. It looks like it has been painted. It once had A/C but the compressor is missing? Well, no A/C then... It doesn't appear to have a roll bar in it. If he has a 'factory' roll bar, really, it would be fairly rare. But do your homework about a 'factory' roll bar. They were quite unique. Those aren't 'factory' wheels. Yea, could use pictures of the engine bay and confirmation of the engine #.

Don't agree with your numbers and I would value the car at well above $30k. More like $50 - $60k.

762 isn't all that low but it's a bonified early car with that rare, OMG rare, gas door knob. This picture is the hallmark of provenance. The description says that the engine is "sized". What does that mean? Re-bore oversize or seized? I think you would have to buy this for half the asking price to make a restoration work $. The rear quarters are going to be expensive. Door, floors, front fenders... I would leave the CB antenna on the roof. Ha! Provnance! Love the back-up light.

Yea, this doesn't look very promising.

BTW Racing green with a butterscotch interior rules!

Oh, that dog just ain't gonna hunt! You are not going to find a series one with " something less than a quarter million miles". Or, you're going to pay dearly for a restored example. I have been wondering what all the obsession over mileage is all about. Yea, the dealer's a schmuck. So what! You can't just take someone's word and buy a car from the pictures. Well, you can; just look at how I bought 27th. As Beck put it; "How much worse could it be?" I would encourage looking at the car and dealing with the dealer. Point out all the non-original pieces and get him off his 'all original' spiel. We could make a list of all the stuff that is a replacement and not "correct". And the serial # is not that low. Hell, you know a guy who has 26 and 27! If it turns out to be a good running, soild car, it's probably worth the $20 grand. Offer cash and be prepared to turn and walk.

What is that hose thing with the orange shut-off valve? It could use some critical early pieces but it has a lot of correct stuff. The seats look newly recovered and the door cards look new. Could use a rear deck carpet. Clean the overspray off the gas tank.

Nice car! Don't be fooled by a claim of low mileage, however it's still a nice looking car. And, of course, I love the color scheme. It could use some cleaning and doo-dadding. I can see many items that have been replaced over its life. It appears to be a nice solid car. Always best to look at it before you buy it. Changing the radio back to stock is no more of a problem than it was to install the radio in it now.

Just finished reading "Road to Modena" which I got for Christmas. Recommend it. Pete Brock writes with interesting detail the process of design and body building the Italian way versus the traditional methods used at the time. He also writes about his relationship with Caroll Shelby and the Shelby organization during the mid-60s. Much discussion about the Cobra Coupes and the very beginnings of aerodynamic considerations in automotive design.

Take a look at the Service Bulletin. It wasn't the first 1000 engines. And the Kaku-U "vibrations" you guys are referring to concerns the suspension, not the engine.

"were you involved developing the 240Z for racing with the NMC competition department here in the USA" No. I raced an MG Midget in SCCA F-Production from 1971 to 1974. Then I raced an Alexis Formula Ford in 1976-1978. Before I got my license in 1971, I hung out with a group of guys racing mostly British products and a Brabham FC from around 1967. I was 14. One of the guys who hung with us at the races drove a Fairlady 1600 and later in 1972, another friend started racing a Datsun 1200 in C-Sedan. When his car ran well, it smoked the Mini Coopers. But I digress... The NMC competition department was nothing more than parts distribution. Datsun Competition Department, Nissan Motor Corporation in the USA distributed parts. The race teams we are discussing (BRE and Sharp) were East coast and West coast supported racing teams under private ownership and contracted to NMC USA directly. There was an amateur support program which paid money for victories and at certain races, the Datsun Competition Department had a support truck with parts. There were parties and beer as I recall. In about 1966, Lee Wiley, under the direction of Mr. Katayama, set up a parts distribution of Japanese imported competition parts for the SPL-SRL Fairlady Roasters. In 1967, d*** Roberts was placed in charge of the department. Information from the competition department came in the form of bulletins, 10 - 20 pages of part numbers and descriptions and prices sent to Datsun dealers. I have two distribution bulletins; one from "The Auto Works" in Granada Hills, California and another from Bob Sharp Racing in Danbury, Connecticut. Informational bulletins were also issued. I have one here; "U20 Racing Engine Oil Flow Improvement" issue RB-168. It's a three-page description, tools required, parts required, illustrated, step-by-step set of instructions. The Datsun Competition Department Bulletin from May 1, 1971, is my earliest "Datsun Competition Parts Catalog" although it was little more than 30 sheets stapled together. It includes parts for the 240 Z HLS30 both from the Japanese Sports Option Catalog, September 1970, and the standard parts catalog from November 1969. The first bound, published competition parts catalog, the red one, came April 15, 1973. It included Japanese Sports Option parts, standard parts as well as domestic manufactured competition parts. Flywheels, for example, were manufactured by Tilton. There is nothing in any of my literature that mentions the PS30, PS30SB or the S20 engine.

NVZEE, this forum is a drama in its own way and always has been; at least as long as I have been here. It's still the best game in town and after all the arguments, put-downs, sarcasm and revolts, this forum has the best information about the story of the 'Z'. In my opinion, of course! No one withholds information. Not on purpose, I would say. The information is all here in the library anyway. Where do you think Hoover gets all his pictures?

Well, I was there. I was racing in the SCCA at the time and both Bob and Pete were racing way before the introduction of the S30. Here's what Peter Brock was doing https://bre2.net/the-racing/hino/Bob Sharp was racing his Fairlady 1600 and 2000 roadsters throughout the late 60s. The Datsun USA competition department was established (bare with me, I have to look up the year. I have copies of the original Bulletins) so Nissan was not " setting up a new race program in a foreign market ". Further, the SCCA didn't have a class recognition for the PS30 or the PS30SB because it wasn't imported and sold in the USA. And the crankshaft vibration problem; do you wonder how little is heard of Bob Sharp's problems with the crankshaft? What does Bob's engine builder have to say? I might suggest that you take Peter Brock's presentation with a grain of salt. If you know Pete... My point wants to be that the "armchair" guys have spent a lot of time, invested a lot of money (a big, fat lot), spent years discussing issues (how long have we been corresponding, Alan a decade?), and compiling libraries to have a pretty good understanding of what seems to be what. Laddie, when I started in this forum thing, we were discussing Milbrecht Goertz! In all probability, this forum is the definitive book on the S30. There have been all sorts of topics discussed ad-nauseum within this library. Oh! If you want answers from Bob Sharp or Peter Brock, why don't YOU ask them? Tell us what you hear. Thanks for the pictures, Blue, Mr. Hoover.

I found the reference and it surprised me. I have paid pretty close attention to the stories about the North American testing and the cars imported for the North American introduction / car shows. I have not heard anything about a PS30 or a PS30SB brought to North America. My first question would be why? Neither of the cars were ever intended for export to my understanding. Let alone crashing one. I have seen an S20 engined LHD prototype crashed in Japan for crash testing purposes, but nothing about a production example. I'm also aware of what was taken to Europe for racing-rally purposes, but again, not a PS30SB.