26th-Z

So, I'm in a vigilante mood this morning, and I read Alan's post, and I look at the website, and agree with Alan. So I write to Casey Annis, editor. I just got this reply: Dear Christopher: We had some question ourselves, but when we directly asked the director of Nissan Italy, he insisted that this was the car. Obviously it leaves us in a strange position when one of the directors of the company tells us that this is the car he claims it to be. Is there any chance, in your mind, that this actually was the car? Thanks for the input, Casey

Alan, I too, feel the need to write, phone, fax, and e-mail the publication to point out their error. However I wish to clear up some confusion stemming from your post and defend an excellent publication - VINTAGE MOTORSPORT. Vintage Motorsport, published in Lakeland, Florida, is a superb journal dealing with the subject of motorsport history. Their current issue chronicles the history of IMSA as part three of an on-going story. I highly recommend the magazine and it's coverage of historic racing events throughout the country. VINTAGE RACECAR JOURNAL, on the other hand, apparently needs to be corrected. A quick visit to the website link will demonstrate your concern.

Serious encouragement, seerex. There is a haven of Z restoration in the Tampa area. This Fairlady is here and I would be willing to help with part sources and shops. RETIRE THAT CAR TO FLORIDA FOR SPA AND RESTORATION!!!!!

Ah yes, good 'ol floor tar. Use a heat gun - hot air - to get it warm and it scrapes right off. The tar mat is used for sound deadening and the car will be pretty noisy without it. It also acts as thermal insulation. Of course, the problem with the floor tar is that any moisture will get trapped and rot the floors out. (Which is probably why you took it off in the first place.) Ask Chloe at MidwestZ if she has any more left. She had authentic Datsun stuff some time ago. Or, try automotivecarpet.com

What has me dumbfounded is the rear red marker light. None of my photographs of Fairlady Zs show this marker light and I thought the red marker light was for export. The vented quarters would make sense - except for a '69 car. The steering wheel is not stock. I wonder what this model really is! Japanese market Fairlady Zs came with a 2 litre, six cylinder engine until October 1971 when they were replaced with the 2.4 litre. A title is a government registration of the ownership. It records the owner and the serial number of the car. Without one, the car can not be registered to drive. Of course there IS a title somewhere, but it may require a significant amount of research to find it. That car is in seriously bad shape. Wayyyyy beyond "tender loving care", it would require a complete chassis up restoration and compared to my project, I would guess in the $30,000 range to make it pristine again. The engine is seized? Zowie! That poor thing is a parts car. And I see a few things I would like!

Before you bid, ask for the documentation. I would be amazed to find this car as the seller says. One quick internet search "Bob Sharp Racing" will give you a list of sites to visit including a club. Here is a photo of what Bob Sharp Racing 280Z's looked like. I would imagine these cars are in collector hands and just think of this logically. No one would put an authentic Bob Sharp racer with racing heritage back on the street.

That's nothin! You caught it just in time! Yea, that undercoating does deceive, but you have little to worry about. My encouragement! Now, you may be having some problems inside the frame rails and I suggest you drill holes in the bottom of the rails to clean out what is inside and inspect. Best of luck. :classic:

Hello halz, I have a couple of Competition Parts Catalogs listing headers and exhaust systems for the 240Z. These catalogs are fairly early, addressing the L24 engine through 1972. Datsun USA shows a part number listing "240Z Exhaust System" - a complete muffled dual pipe exhaust system from the engine to the back of the car. 99996-E1045 No photograph is shown. The Japanese Competition Parts Catalogs "HS30 Sports Options Parts" 12/73, as well as "Fairlady Z, RS30 / HS30 Sports Option Parts" 3/76, lists 14004-E4620 for the headers and 20000-E7276 for the exhaust tube kit. Other parts such as gaskets and hangers are shown and noted, but the descriptions are all in Japanese. Hope this helps. NISMO indeed is the performance / racing arm of Nissan.

There's a lot of info on the net about using acids for rust removal. Some of the more concentrated acids such as Naval Jelly (35% phosphoric acid) can do some damage if not cleaned off properly. Acid in that high concentration will eat the metal. Something like OPSHO (less that 12% phosphoric acid) is considered a rust encapsulator because it is so weak.

Vicky, Yes probably as my parts fiche lists superceed numbers up to 12 / 79. It gets quite confusing, but just dealing with the right side of the car, and both inner and outer panels are involved, the outer panels are: 73120-E4100 - roof panel 73270-E4100 - tail rail 78100-E4600 - rear fender There are a number of inner panels as well as a corner brace involved that make up the box section through that area. I could look, but I'll bet there is an inner panel seam to match the outer. In my Chassis and Body Service Manual, this area is described through section E-E of Figure BF-59 "Sealing Body Panel Joint" and appears on page BF-31. Of course, this is all early series information, but it seems to be all the same up to 1979. I have had this area down to bare metal before and the seam in Her Majesty is filled with lead. It does crack and heating the area is done to fill it again.

Bob, Spots are usually bigger once you get in to them, but if they are less than 1/2" diameter, you can drill them out an exact diameter and weld a flush "punch" back in. Look for a slug punch tool from some place like Eastwood that makes a metal slug in a specific diameter from sheet metal. There are a range of sizes available and it beats trying to make a patch. Drill a hole that is much bigger than the rust bubble to get the rust around the edges of the bubble. The slug fits flush and it is a true metal patch. Watch out with acids. Make sure you clean the area to get all the acid off.

Vicky, That seam laps multiple sheets of stampings and on the early cars is a real lead filled joint.

And this is the racing variant. It is lighter and spends money faster.

You need to get the Magic Datsun Money Clip. It never runs out. This is the restoration variant.

Sent you a PM

The Blues Brothers As long as you are going to mention LeMans with Steve McQueen (don't even talk to me if you haven't seen it 20 times and bought the DVD), don't miss Grand Prix with James Garner. The new BMW films are pretty good, too.

I'll confirm that!!! I spent $6500 on Her Majesty in 1991 and I'm about to do it again. And she's been in storage for five years! I guess if you are going to take your car down to a stage that you can sand blast, you won't abuse it so much by letting it sit out in the rain. Down here, it's not good to let the car see sunlight.:classic: I might suggest that a car completely stripped is the best candidate for sand blasting because the mess can be cleaned up the easiest. I aggree it's too messy to blast areas without taking the car apart. And there are areas in the frame that would trap media and be difficult to clean out.

The plastic interior panels are held in by plastic expansion rivets that attach by pushing the pin in after the rivet has been secured. You need approximately 25 to do a car. They are usually available in any color you want as long as it is black and I'm guessing they run $1 each (usually in packs of 10). There are some areas that use screws, and the screws are either chrome counter sunk phillips head or black anodized counter sunk machine screws. This also depends on the model. A few areas require a chrome scew and grommet, either chrome or clear plastic. Here are some blue 280ZX rivets on eBay now

Oh...Here we go again!!!!! ROFL

Thanks. Lets see how this works. Edit: Perfect! Thanks Old dog just learned a new trick!