26th-Z

Not to step on Alans' toes, and recognition to Alan for my appreciation of this topic, but the many pieces he speaks of concern the suspension and drive train. This might be a great time to drag them out and conduct a slight tour. Alan has a great picture of the front suspension equipped with the Halda time keeping pieces. I wonder if the car has a "factory" roll bar? I don't recall ever seeing vent windows on the works cars. What a shame it is equipped with Weber carburetors and not Mikunis.

The site looks somewhat current. http://www.ameliaconcours.org/ But it's e a r l y to think about the event other than talk it up. Hell, I don't even have a 2009 calendar yet! Congrats on the poster, Will. Many years ago when the "autograph session" was first conceived, it was a lot of fun and I managed to collect some really nice stuff. At one of the Rennesport Reunions, Dan Gurney signed a model car of mine and I had the chance to chat with him for a moment. Nowadays, the autograph line is like a heard of cattle on their way to eBay speculation. Even the lines at ALMS races are production series. The most enjoyable part is standing in line talking to some kid who is there with his dad. That was me 50 years ago!

Click on the pictures and you are taken to http://www.classicdriver.de/uk/find/4100_dealers2_results.asp?next=4100_dealers2_results.asp&lCarID=1763597&lCurrency=2&dealerid=1337 The only thing I recognize is Kevin Bristow Motorsport. I'll bet Alan knows about this car. (edit: right)

Congrats, Bonzi ! And welcome to the low VIN club! There's no sticking point to the definition of sold, Carl. A sale is when a transaction takes place - meaning delivery of the vehicle. It doesn't matter when the order was placed. If that were the case, Her Majesty the 26th would clearly be the first 240Z sold in America...and I can't prove it either! I'm also curious about where all that gobble-D-gook about vintage / historic racing came from. You should come to some of these events with me some time. We gotta see pictures, Bonzi. I'm expecting to see all the usual stuff from an early car. Too bad about the engine, but that can be dealt with. Great find and "way to jump on it!"

Sounds good, Will. That's the weekend before the Sebring 12-hour. You'll be down in my neck of the woods, Ron.

Monday morning e-mail... 8.25.08 FYI...the convention staff has managed to secure 25 single-car garage spaces and are available for track day at Mid-Ohio. If you are interested, please send us a note ASAP. Payment can be made via Paypal or check. The fee for the garage will be $50 - first come, first serve! Regards, Christopher Karl 21st Annual ZCCA Z Car Convention Chairman Event info: www.clevelandrockz.com

Last year the car show was at Daytona Speedway and not open to the public. You had to register for the whole convention to get in to the speedway for the car show. Evidently, this year the car show is open to the public. Some info I got in the morning e-mail: Greetings from your 2008 Z Convention Team! This year's "Cleveland RockZ" convention is shaping up to be a very memorable convention. We have a variety of surprises in store. From now through Convention our team will be forwarding additional details for the variety of Events throughout the week and help you to be prepared...and have FUN at this year's convention. Our team can be reached at info@clevelandrockz.com for any questions prior to convention. At convention, look for any of our team members wearing blue & black convention-team shirts with the "Cleveland RockZ" logo. Hotel registration will be available along with the "Z Store" just inside the hotel and off to the right. Signs will be posted to help direct convention visitors. For those participating in the Mid-Ohio Performance Driving Event, please be sure to prep yourself and Z car per the instruction packet which can be downloaded from the convention website here: http://www.clevelandrockz.com/Mid-Ohio_Perf_Driving_Event_v11.pdf. Safety regulations & tech-inspections MUST be completed in order to participate - please be sure to review the requirements! This year's car-show will held at the Cuyahoga County fairgrounds which is only 20 minutes from the Embassy Suites - Independence host hotel. Hoses will be available for last-minute cleanings at the fairgrounds. As this is the 21st ZCCA convention, new-comers will definitely want to review the judging rules in preparation for this year's judged car show. Rules can be found at the ZCCA website, here: http://www.zcca.org/downloads/JudgingRules_rev2005.pdf If you're coming in Sunday, the 28th be sure to sign up for our downtown tours being provided by Lolly The Trolley, a Cleveland-area tradition or join us for the "Mad Mike" party for food and music. Please be sure to visit our Sponsors page off the convention website - we have a ton of goodies to auction and raffle off throughout the week. Note - 50/50 raffle proceeds this year will benefit the Make-A-Wish Foundation. Our team is putting final touches on details for this year's convention and are very excited to be able to be your hosts. Stay tuned for more updates and tips regarding this year's "21st International Z Car Convention" ! Best Regards, Christopher Karl 21st Annual ZCCA Z Car Convention Chairman Event info: www.clevelandrockz.com

I wondered if that was Z-point.

Contact our member Ron Carter.

Sad news, indeed. According to John Morton, Paul is not expected to last more than a week or 2. Picked up on the Healey list from the Vintage Race Group List ... "8/13/2008 ... Lime Rock Park was closed down for an hour & a half today to honor Paul Newman. He was attended by his family, close friends, Skip Barber, mechanics on his race team, & those who happened to be at the track. PLN toured the track in his Corvette race car w/his Buick V8 powered Volvo station wagon following. He had come to say goodbye. Diagnosed w/terminal cancer, he is not expected to live beyond September. Race driver, actor, humanitarian, family man & friend - they did not come any better."

Tower Paint info@towerpaint.com

Oh! The national convention is first class, Jeff G! Everyone gets a name tag on a neck lanyard. Even if you don't rececgognize someone, the name tag is a big help. Frankly, Tomo, the title of this thread is w-a-y too negative. It should be "Why are you going!" I hope they have a Hooters in Cleveland. Wouldn't want to miss the party at Hooters. You can't miss me. I usually have on one of my "26th-Z" shirts and I'm the one partying really hard. I'm trying to figure out what to bring, Will. I guess I should make some more copies of the DVDs and I might make up some posters. I talked to Beck this morning and he is thinking of having some posters made to sell and donate to the DHM. I might do the same.

I have yet to take my Z to a convention and this will be my fifth. Ya'll hop on a plane and come party with us! I'm coming up with Jim Frederick and I talked to Beck yesterday. He says he's coming. $303 round trip from Tampa, 2-1/2 hours - beat that! I'm part of the ZCCA judging team now which means I'll be at the next few conventions. Commander Buoni is bringing his car and I'm hoping to team up with him for another rally trophy. The rumor I hear for next year is San Diego to celebrate the Datsun Heritage Museum however I only heard that rumor once and no one else seems to know anything about it. Conventions are a blast - a week of activities and socializing. The Ohio people are way cool and the Cleveland schedule looks to be fun. Mid Ohio is the race track! Lots of Nissan racing history there. We plan to eat and drink like pigs, wallow in the mire of Z, and Rock-N-Roll on down the road. Let me know if you are going and would like me to bring anything for show and tell.

Storm damage from Sarasota...

Couple of comments: Thanks to Mike who takes the brunt of this sort of thing for keeping this site. I appreciate how time consuming it can be and the effort he makes. I don't agree with the poor 16-year-old's approach and think she created well over half of the controversy. In that respect, I agree with "welcome to the internet". It was all I could do to keep Her Majesty from bashing her to pieces. After all, we KNOW that Her Majesty is the sexiest... Tough call, but I don't think her pictures should have been approved. You don't like his attitude...so? What's your point?

I like your car with the covers, Kats. Thanks for the comparison drawing. Thanks for the correction, Alan. That bit is confusing to me.

This topic has been covered :surprised quite extensively several times. I was interested to hear the comment about the lens shape - the "harder edge" description. I DO notice the difference! Headlight covers in America were legeslated out around 1967 or 1968 and we never got them. They were standard fitment on the S30 / Fairlady Z-L model and optional on all the other models. They were also standard on the Fairlady ZG or HS30-H. I bought a set several years ago at the going rate of about $500 for new. I also bought a set from Eiji - reproductions - and they were around $300 at the time and did not include the hardware. Both sets fit well on my FRP headlight scoops. I don't have metal scoops to compare. I would imagine these pictures have been posted before...

I'm glad you posted the map, Kats. Some day we must organize a road trip for all Zs to take on this journey!

I loved this picture. That's Osawa and Uemura in the lower left corner. Of course, Yutaka Katayama behind the car in the middle. In the upper right, behind the car, is John Parker I believe. Now, is that Johnnie Gable? I'll bet that's Johnnie Gable. I don't know who the rest are. Pic - 2 - Here is a picture of the team, I guess. Mr. Uemura is crouched down in front and it looks like the picture is being taken by Mr. Osawa. He has a camera in his hand in the other picture. What does the caption say? This picture came from "All about Fairlady", a Motor Magazine Mook, celebrating the Z's 35th anniversary.

26th has a history of living on the beach however she was garaged. That's why I dipped her, though. She was rusting from the inside out. I cleaned sand out of the frame when I took the hatch hinge seals out. But getting back to the original question, and thanks for the compliment, it is my understanding that Nissan N.A. (or Datsun at the time) maintained a facility to make repairs as necessary. Remember that Mr. K was quite service oriented in his approach to marketing the Datsun brand in America. The fellow who represents him at American functions (ZCCA conventions), Mr. Osami, was originally in charge of service. Also, by the time the 240Z arrived in America, Datsun had been importing cars and small trucks for quite a few years. I can easily see small repairs being made prior to distribution. And I would expect them to be within the paint and body realm. Anything major would have been sent back or scrapped.

I'm glad you did a little research about your car, Scarab. The one on eBay had me stumped for a little bit. It has some honest original Scarab pieces and one wonders how those found their way to the car. I have heard that Morrow didn't keep good records and that it contributed to the demise of the Scarab. All part of the colorful story. Your paperwork is your savior in this case. You seem to have much more convincing evidence to substantiate what you own. The car on eBay has some shady characteristics that make it a much more difficult example to believe in. But a great story! I keep meaning to talk to ZRush about this but I can't get ahold of her at the moment. I will say that her Scarab is being restored by the same guy who did ZRush and that there is talk of selling it when it is complete.

Yes, Calgary

Hey JohnnyRock! That's what the owner of #16 says about his car. Don't feel bad for the blunder. The very correct statement would be something about the lowest VIN sold. We have no idea if #16 was sold first or not. For instance, 26th was actually sold in May 1970. Hardly the 26th HLS30 sold. So where's Wick Humble's car, Carl?

I'm a huge fan of the BRE racing success with the 240-Z. I was there with a GP Austin Healey and a GP Triumph Spitfire. As much as I enjoy this print, I always chuckle at the thought that the scene never happened. This is what the first two laps looked like. Tullius' TR-6 went South on the third lap and Morton as well as Sharp and the Porsches went by him on the back straight. Remember at about the same time, Datsun 240-Zs were winning the East African Safari and Monte Carlo. Pretty remarkable for the same chassis to rallye as well as road race. Here is the Nissan produced Monte Carlo poster. And I thought you'ld get a kick out of a 1975 Road America poster.

Well, this thread has taken an interesting turn! Nice work, Will. See how the graphic is folded? I'm betting it's not a poster but a folded brochure. I said earlier that I had all of the BRE / Interpart catalogs but I don't know. What I DO have is: August 1972 September 1972 January 1973 February 1973 January 1974 The poster you are buying from Peter and Gayle was part # 2852052 - "BRE / Racing Poster, A Pete-Brock-designed, multi-color poster highlighting the 240-Z racing success. Previous posters have become collector's items. Order your large (23"x30") poster now." It cost $1.50 And yes indeed they have become collector items. I paid over 100 times the original cost for mine. I have other posters of the BRE Championship 240-Z as well. One was produced for Road Atlanta in 1971 celebrating the American Road Race of Champions. It is signed by John Morton and I got it from Henry Costanzo in Atlanta. (It's framed, hanging in the house, and way too big to scan) There are about 20 of those floating around. Another is this booklet that I bought at Road Atlanta at the 1971 A.R.R.C. Then I have this original water color (way too large to scan - sorry) that was made into a series of prints. I saw some of the prints for sale at The Walter Mitty a couple of years ago. Probably the previous poster mentioned in the catalog included this poster. I'm not sure who published this.