gnosez

I have fuel cut-off and battary switches on my '72. The battary switch is the SCCA type and is located under the hood. I take the red handled key out and put it on my keyring whan I leave the car anywhere I feel worried. You can't stop someone from breaking in but you can stop them from being able to drive it away. Of course a tow or flatbed truck thief can't be stopped either. Clubs and similar locks are easily defeated by cutting the steering wheel and slipping off the bracket Look for another layer of protection coming out this summer for 240-280s(www.baddogparts.com) that will make driving your Z off nearly impossible. Shameless plug.....going back into my hole now.

I doubt you will be happy with lowering springs since most Zs sit low after all those years of bad shocks/springs and when new so-called lowering springs are put in the Z ends up being higher not lower! It is indeed lower than stock (7-9 inches) but I went this route and ended up putting in coil-overs (GC) w/camber plates to get the look and ride I wanted. My Z sits are less than 6-inches (3.5 at the larger oil pan). You can see my car at both www.zccne.org (go to members' ride and look under John Jeffery) or at www.baddogparts.com (scroll down the ride side to get to the two short vids of the car on the track).

Spray weatherstripping with silicone, wipe off excess, close door(s) leave for the day. Redo until door(s) close right. It works as mentioned in about a dozen earlier posts....

Tony - thanks for bringing up Trey's car at the Texas convention. I forgot about that one. Now when are you going to let me in on the secret of releasing hot air in the engine bay??

If you have some suggestions please either post or PM me. thanks....

This topic will be discussed by members of the ZCCA judging team over the next few weeks. I'm proposing that a simple statement be published as an addedum to the official rules that addresses this issue, so if it does actually happen we would have an existing policy position. We (I) did judge Japanese Zs at the Vegas convention and most had so many detailing issues that there was no question that non-US spec items would affect the final scores or ranking. Was I qualified? No. Did the owners care? No.

No, replaced OEM parts do not count, unless they are the wrong part. Stop it. As to wheels, tires = no mods. I'm sorry but what is the exact nature of this question/comment? I will respond but I have no idea what you're trying to say.

Ed, if more people were like you then putting on and judging a car show would be more fun for us too. One of my favorite comments to repeat as a mantra is: " Buying in bulk,a trophy costs about $10. each. I'll give you the money if you'll just shut up".......

Ed - there's nitpicky and then's there's not nitpicky. It would be great if the rules were that detailed but they're not. There is a certain amount of leeway that a judge can exercise in determining the number of mods. First your car would never be entered in stock class so the issue now is how to do the counts. A strict ruling would be at least 8 mods and maybe you missed a few. Skipping ahead, the most important issue is the total number of mods your car has. You may have, or think you have 8 on just the carb assembly but if you go over your whole car you could come up with 15, 25, 30.....? It really only matters if you're close to each classes cut-off limit. The one that bumps you into the next class. One of the things I introducted at the 2003 ZCCA convention was an owners/entrants meeting to go over the rules with people interested in knowing more about the process. We covered was how judges judge, what they look for and what they don't look at. Read the scoring sheet very carefully and total up the number of parts on your Z that don't recieve a score. The other thing we did and repeated at the 2004 convention was a pre-show look-over by a panel of judges. People had a window of time to come to our inspection stations the day before the show and have us go over their cars. We made suggestions on what class they should enter and where they needed more work. It has cut down on the number of people who become pissed off at the shows. Hope this helps.....

Let's take Alan's question first. If he or anyone else showed up with a non-US Z then judging would be based on what was stock (and I assume we are talking stock here since a non-US Z with mods is just another Z with mods) for that car at that point in time. The only problem and it is a real one would be that there might not be a qualified individual(s) to assess the "stockness" of said vehicle. As to other examples of mods, the list is very long and I can easily come up with more than 50 on my 240 alone. Other than a V-8 transplant, roll-cage, etc., which move you to ultra mod even if you have not made any other modifications, the other biggies are engines and seats. Check the ZCCA Judging Guidelines for more information on what each class allows. Which mods you make is between you, your sense of style, and your wallet. Does painting the engine block a different color constitute a mod? Yes and no. For cars in stock classes, it would result in 10 points (max deduction). Remember that in stock no mod is a good mod. In any other class it counts as a mod. So whatever you might call it, a deduction is a deduction.

Not unless you your 260 came with FI....

Okay, let's try and start from the beginning, where in all Zs were created as "stock". Then things happened and it was no longer stock. Why, because someone added (or took away) parts that weren't there when it came off the assembly line ( nother major point as stock does not, repeat, does not include dealer options, unless you can show a factory build sheet with the mods listed). And yes, stock is the hardest class to score high points in and judge. You can enter any Z in stock class but if you have more than 3-5 mods you'd lose too many points to be competitve with other "stock" owners. And no, there is no tie breaker with door bolts lining up. A tie is just that a tie, more than one car can win the same trophy (1st, 2nd, and 3rd place). As stated earlier, a clean car wins, period. Attention to detail in both the correct parts, how you put on the mods, and how clean they are determines if your car has a high score. Now, as to what counts as a modification, that's simple. If it isn't stock for that model and year than anything you replace it with is a mod. For example, you install new wheels and tires, how many mods is that? The nitpicky answer is three (3). Wheels, tires, and lugnuts. I've been away but will try and monitor this thread closer for the next few days if there are any more questions. Hope this helps.....

I'll take six (6). PM me with costs. Not in a rush.

So the percentage of people who actually listed their mods is statistically so small as to be un-reportable. In an attempt to increase them here goes: Body: - ground up restoration - custom rear flares - gnose (MSA) - BRE rear spoiler - Nissan gunmetal gray w/15% more flake - rear FG bumper - all new emblems (w/Accura 3.2L) - passenger side mirror (identical to OEM driver's side) - all new glass except hatch - all new weatherstripping - Zeddfinding floor pans and rear valance Suspension: - GC coil-overs - GC 2.5-inch springs (250/275lbs) - poly all around - T/C kit - 5-way adjustable shocks - 1-inch front and 3/4 rear sway bars - bump steer spacers - front and rear strut bars - Custom Wheel 2-piece 16X8 - Potenza - 03's (225X45-front/245X45-rear) Drivetrain: - 5-spd ('83) rebuilt - quaife diff (3:90) - CenterForce Dual friction clutch - new master, slave, hose, bearings, boot, u-joints Interior: - Cobra seats - Autopower rollbar - SafeQuip 5-way camlock seat belts - replaced dash (uncracked) - Panasonic radio/CD player - Cambridge Sound speakers - all new carpets - all new vinyl trim - new headliner - new plastic trim - armrest w/cupholder - new visors, armrests, handles, etc. - firewall insulator, brown bread insulation Engine: - 3.2L w/triple mukunis (304hp/269lbs torque@crank) - euro pulley - MSA headers coated - MSD 6A - Euro distributor w/pertonix - 8mm wires - ITG airfilter - gear reduction starter - lightweight flywheel - AZ 6-qt oil pan - turbo oil pump - AZ AL radiator W/electric fans - Coolflex hoses - Moroso fuel pump - Holley regulator & gauge - 24F battary - moved positive away from body) - GM one-wire 95 amp alternator - "kill" switch Brakes: - toyoto 4X4 w/cross-drilled rotors & porterfield pads - front - 240SX calipers rear w/brembo solid rotor - proportioning valve - new MC - SS lines - vacumn can Misc: - PIAA driving lights - H4 headlights - reconditioned gas tank - all new gas/vent lines - single point jacking plates - custom made g-nose hinges - custom made seat brackets - rebuilt wiper motor Other than that it's mostly stock. Planned for spring of '05: - AZ big front brake kit - AZ front chromolly suspension - electric vacumn pump - replace front bearings (280 hubs) - Hella horns - Nissan OEM gnose light covers w/SS trim - reweb seatbelts - tune and dyno - alignment - heatshield and air induction - O2 sensor installation w/AFM readout - drive it (first stop - Tail of the Dragon) You promise my wife will never see this list, right?

From the Z fans in New England congrads!!! We look forward to reading the article and looking at the pics. It's come a long way from the MSA show last year......

Walter - they are still available for about $100. (plus labor). In some locations it might take a few days to get the glass delivered to the shop.

Back in high school there was a guy who'd take orders for say a 327 or 454. His van had a portable engine hoist, jacks, and the all important "blue" wrench. In less than 15 minutes he and a buddy could remove the hood, hook up the hoist, cut all the connections and raise the engine/tranny out and into his van. Midnight auto parts supplier.... I learned at a garage that towed vehicles off the interstate and the owner would take possesion after 30 days if they hadn't paid their bill. We'd strip them for parts in less than 4 hours. Give me another 2 hours and I will cut the frame into pieces I can lift myself for disposal at the scrapyard or for use later (good rear deck, etc.). I do this using one bay of my garage without a lift (just stands and 2 jacks) and no "blue" wrench. Since I sell the parts, my time is uncompensated until they get sold, so speed is important. There are exceptions to the rule for special parts (uncracked dashes, radios, plastic interior pieces in better than just good shape, etc.) Plus in the winter months my wife car has priority in the garage so I need to make it a fast process unless I want to wake up 2 hours early and warm her car up before she leaves. I know I was not thinking straight when I made that promise.....but she does let me keep a ton of parts stored away.

Way too complicated in my mind. A box cutter and about 15 minutes of your time and it's out. Plus you can save the trim for possible future use. Cut the trim out first with angled cuts from both sides. Then make deeper cuts at the edge of the glass all the way around the windshield. Keep at it. The corners are the worst part. Now place a cushion of some type on the cowl and push just enough from the inside to make the window move outward. This will let you see where the moulding needs to be cut more. Do the rest from the outside with a soft wedge between the window and the body pillar. make sure you wear gloves and have a place to put the windshield once you get it out. Seventeen removed and more to follow.......give me 8 hours, a compressor, an engine hoist and I can strip a Z to it's frame. No body panels, no drivetrain, no suspension, no wires, no fuel or brake parts, no interior and no glass. Then they all get cleaned, tagged, and stored.

The best way I've found to remove the trim is with a box cutter. You make a cut on both sides of the trim and it will come right out. Once you have it all out, make deeper cuts along the edges of the glass and body. The corners are harder to do. I put a camping foam pad down on the cowl and push from the inside but not enough that the window falls out on its' own. Once it's loose I remove it from the outside. Have a place to store it ready. As to solvents, I used Prep-All after I had scrapped and sanded most of the left over rubber moulding away. I never have seen much adhesive, however.

Heel-Toe is not used to slow a car down it is used to downshift to get to the right gear to exit a corner. You do so to avoid unsettling the car. The sequence is as follows: 1) full throttle 2) off the throttle 3) on the brakes 4) clutch in 5) shift to neutral 6) clutch out 7) blip the throttle 8) clutch back in 9) shift to the right gear 10) let clutch out, turn in, and relax brake pressure (you've been on the brakes since number 3) 11) back on the throttle, hit the apex, and exit the corner Simple if you have soft bottomed shoes, a gas-brake pedal set-up that keeps them level (must car don't) and you practiced before the big race. Practicing on someone's clutch is always a good idea.

There are no types sold that I know of and there may be more. They are Water-Wetter which is sold at Autozone, so PeP-Boys must sell it also and then there is Radiator Relief that is sold by DEI. DEI can found at most speed shops along with water wetter.

Put a vacumn gauge in line to see if the booster holds its' pressure after the engine has been turned off. Place between check valve and booster.

Inf - have you tried lowering the amount of anti-freeze or using a water-wetter product for your Z? You would need to increase the anti-freeze as winter approaches but it does help. I've done both and noticed a difference.

A nice 240 came up to the pre-car show classification station at the Long Beach ZCCA convention last year and we had a long look. The original owner had entered it in stock class but we found over a dozen non-stock items on the car. One of them was the FG fan shroud. The OEM ones were metal. I haven't seen one of those in years....

They are only interchangeable if your radiator has been changed. The later ones have bolt patterns that match up to the later radiators. You need to measure the points where it attaches and locate one where the bolt holes will line up correctly. Ask the seller for these measurements before buying or ordering. The 70-73 will fit your 240 (new about $70. - used about $35-40). Starting in '74 they came in upper and lower halves. I don't know if any of the aftermarket units for the 240s come as single or 2-part pieces.