BD240Z

Thanks for the compliments Zak/Escanlon. MDBrandy, I used a two stage system and the primer/paint is PPG Omni, these are catalyzed products. It's their low end series but it's what I wanted for my first time painting a complete car. I also chose a 2-stage system because it gave me the opportunity to sand/buff-out any mistakes or runs that occurred and yes I had a few. I do recommend an HVLP system because the transfer efficiency is higher. I used about a 1/2 gallon of base coat and 3/4 gallon of clear to do the job. That's 2 coats of color and 4 coats of clear. Good luck with your decision and efforts.

Thanks for all the feedback, advice and encouragement! If/when I get a title, I'll bring the car home. I'll get it cleaned up as much as possible and will post some pictures of the cars current condition. Like the 78 I just finished, I'll make every reasonable effort to keep the car stock/OE. It will be determined upon the availability and price of the parts that I'll need. Unlike the 78, I plan to document and photograph the effort as much as I can. I'll post updates as they happen. Again, thanks for the replies!!

Hi All, Just finished painting and re-assembling my 1978 Black Pearl 280Z. It doesn't really qualify as a Black Pearl anymore because I used 2005 Nissan Altima, (Super Black) for my paint. But the car still has the original paint sticker with the 638 number. The car was an Arizona desert car which means rust was very minimal and I'm aware of all the places it can be a problem. I went through the entire vehicle but the body/painting work took 75% of the time involved which is why I'm posting it in this section. I've been a member for a little over a year now and have read hundreds and hundreds of posts while completing this task. The entire suspension is new with the exception of the springs. I also replaced the seat covers, carpet, windshield, complete weatherstrip kit, rack & pinion, tires and many, many other items. The engine produced some pretty solid numbers on a leak down test so nothing was done to the internal engine. I did replace all of the sensors including the electrical connectors, the fuel pressure regulator, fuel pump, auxillary air valve and one injector. I kept a reasonable record of my time and I have a little over 300 hours and $5,200, (that includes the price of the car) invested in the project. I did the bodywork and painting in my garage. Like others have said, there's a reason a good quality paint job costs as much as it does. I did the Skim-coat, block-sand, guide-coat routine, over and over and over until I achieved flat/straight panels. Overall, I'm very satisfied with the results. There is a huge sense of accomplishment in painting your car and having it turn out right. When the body was finished and ready for paint, I was thinking of having it shot by a paint shop. I'm glad I forged ahead on my own and I encourage anyone contemplating the effort to give it a try. Preparation is the key. Tony D, a member here suggested using a self-contained Turbine HVLP paint system from Harbor Freight for painting so that's what I did. The unit costs $100 and it worked out, I had my doubts but I was wrong. I still have some faint traces of orange peel here and there but I'll wait until the fall to guide coat the clear and buff the paint back out. For now, it's driving time. Hopefully these pictures upload and look OK.

Hi All, I'm the luck winner of this auction. I inspected the car this morning and evaluated the rust condition. Like AZ 240Z posted earlier, the car is pretty original/rust-free and should make a good restoration project. I spent about an hour looking it over and used an o-ring pick and a flat screw-driver to poke everywhere I could to determine where rust was. I was satisfied that what rust existed could easily be welded/repaired. Honestly, I was pretty pleased with the condition of the car. I also removed everything from the rear of the car to inspect the spare-tire well and found two scorpions but no rust. The car is located in a remote area, about 20 miles north of Phoenix. The seller has quite a collection on his 5.5 acres of land to include a forklift that I hope we can use to move the car out. He also has a BMW 320i and a Merkur, not to mention several other vehicles. The seller claims the car has been sitting for 3 - 5 years in the spot it's in now and has no title or any other documentation for the car. I stopped at DMV on the way back to Phoenix to get some advice on getting a title. The car wasn't in the DMV system but the Clerk claimed I could get a Bonded Title as long as the Seller gives me Power of Attorney on the car. The Seller explained he would cooperate any way he could. My plans for the 240 right now is to park it in a friends shop. If I can get a title, I'll bring it home and start working on it. If not, sadly I'll be parting the car out and will post that decision here. I just finished my 1978 Black Pearl 280Z, (another Arizona desert survivor), I'm going to create a post in the Body/Paint section, and post some pictures of that car. Have fun everybody!

I'm having the same issue. I replaced my rack with a reman unit and new bushings from VB and then went in for an alignment. The mechanic said the rack was moving, therefore no point in doing the alignment. When I replaced the rack, I also replaced the outer tie-rods, ball joints, control arm bushings, struts and sway-bar bushings so I'm confident the movement isn't related to another component. Anything's possible though. The mechanic recommended Nissan, OE rack bushings. I'm going to call VB and get some feedback, if possible. Also, my old bushings had strips of rubber wrapped around them, seems the previous owner had the same problem. Good luck with your car.