EScanlon

The catch is that YOU think YOU are going to be driving that Red Convertible Sports Car...... and she knows better. E

And the last few posts delineate what I'm referring to in my points regarding price-bashing. They've all shown that the price can be discussed as being exorbitant and highly unlikely of being achieved, while yet not devolving into adolescent one-upmanship of nit-picking it on trivial items, which is where I felt Fastwoman's initial post was steering it to. The car is a beautiful example of a well kept ORIGINAL vehicle, and as has been mentioned shouldn't be classified in the same category as a restoration/refresh vehicle. Should it be worth more? Absolutely, LOTS more than a plain old survivor and, in my opinion, more than a restored vehicle. How much? That I can't say as I haven't been comparing what I paid for my cars with current or past sales. I know I got good and bad deals, I don't need to confirm any one of them as being good or bad. I'll leave the assesment to others who peruse the classifieds, craig's list, bring-a-trailer, e-bay, etc. to do. I would like to point out however, that this site is known as a more sedate, mature and intelligent site than another one that just recently changed ownership. Even other sites with more specialized and different interests than the ones here, refer people to us when discussions get down to the "nitty-gritty" of the car. It is for THAT reason that I speak out against the "vehement denigrating posts" as they insult the majority of those who post here. Whether one person will read those posts/threads and walk away from a car is undoubtedly a far-fetched thought, BUT having spoken to both manufacturers of replacement and after-market parts, as well as other vehicle marque enthusiasts, who have perused some of those specific discussions, I know that they've sullied our otherwise good reputation. As one professional car judge put it... "Raw meat in a tank of pirahnas", after I mentioned he should check this site out for further info on the Z. Peace... E

I seem to have struck a nerve with you Mike B. Perhaps because you've been one of those whose posts have been so pointed at bashing pricing?? Your comment: Is bluntly... wrong. I post those comments when it is apparent that once again the "let's bash this sale" mentality pops it's ugly head. That's when the slightest little detail is used as justification to denigrate the car and to point out how the seller is ripping people off, scamming, asking too much, etc. etc. There are many sales where I don't comment at all, both low and high pricing. Only when the "bash this sale" comments arise do I make the comment. It is the same group of people who jump onto the price-bashing merry-go-round and then begin to try to best one another's witty comment. If you feel that only people who are in the market to buy/sell should opine on pricing, then you also should not be commenting. Your comment: Mentions several items; the car's "real" worth, a "bad deal" and a "fair price", yet all of these aren't fixed values. You preface it with "To me..." which says they are YOUR opinion, and therefore not a fact nor actual reference source such as NADA / Kelly / Hagerty et al. Who put you in charge of deciding "fair pricing" for Z's? As far as the price, it does seem disproportionate to what other cars of similar value have been selling for, but I haven't been searching for another car nor trying to compare pricing to prove how over or under priced they are. Your comments about being "naive" are at best... insulting, which I note. Sadly, they do point out your myopic viewpoint... if it doesn't support your theory, the data must be ignored. Opinion DOES drive demand and therefore pricing. Don't believe that? Then why do companies advertise? Why deal with bad customer experiences? Seems to me it's you that are looking at the situation ... naively. Take the time to go to SEMA sometime, ask the various manufacturers WHY they don't manufacture parts for the Z's and you'll find that owner apathy is but ONE reason.... I personally talked to several manufacturers there and found that they simply don't see it as being profitable... not because of the supposed vehicle numbers you cite, but that the price they would have to ask for the part would not be paid. The number of vehicles IS an attractive point, the item that kills the deal... the current owners unwillingness to pay for the parts. And yes, believe it or not, they cite discussions such as this on sites like this to base their decisions on. E

And I insist that you two are mis-identifying the dirty adhesive residue used to mount the hatch seal as rust. And as far as Black interiors... the majority of vehicles had the black interior. Additionally, the sales of these cars were such that you didn't go in and place an order with a list of wants. IF a vehicle arrived with that color and a white interior AND you were next in the line to receive a vehicle then usually your choices were "Accept it or Not". But once again, I point out that the most vehement posts denigrating higher pricing for ANY Z, come from other Z owners. "We have met the enemy, and he is US! Pogo Those who bash the pricing do the car a dis-service. There are undoubtedly people who remember or yearn for a Z, who in turn do research to find out more about them. THIS site is the top site through the major search engines, and then they find the "learned" viewpoint considers the pricing to be exorbitant, and a hundred other reasons why NOT to buy. Any wonder why people such as Esprist and others find it such an economic RISK to endeavour to produce parts for these cars? If, as they see it, those who would presumably appreciate the car, don't VALUE it; then nobody is going to spend money to repair one, hence... no replacement part investment is going to pay off...period. FWIW E

Identifying the year of your car will go a long way towards getting a meaninful answer. Put your Year info in your signature block via your User Panel. Thankfully, for the majority of the Z's, they're plastic rivets with a pin spreader. Push the pin through the rivet (and retrieve it if possible), and then carefully pull the rivet up and out. Take care on the bottom edge of the finisher as it's held to the body with a sheet metal grip that's unobtainium. You should be able to just pull it out of it's teeth, don't use anything to spread it's jaws. FWIW E

Fastwoman: I think that in your rush to jump on the "Price-Bashing" hysteria that erupts whenever a Z is offered for sale for more than salvage pricing, you've identified regular old dirt/ paint discoloration as "rust". See the pictures, and it's plainly dirt/grime. E

Both are electronic. Check the wiring at the coil, if you inverted the wiring from the ignition to the tach (start position) with the Run position (Ig Switch - Tach - coil) then that's a strong possibility. If your tach is a 4-wire tach, then this is very likely the situation. If it is only the 3 wire tach, then this might not be the problem at all. The 4 wire tach ran the power to the coil from the ignition switch THROUGH the tach to the coil. Your car being a 74 260, is the first year (worldwide) that the 260 was offered, and the wiring may be very similar if not identical to the late 73 240. There were also model transition vehicles in both models (i.e. 240's with 3 wire tachs, as well as 260's with 4 wire tachs).

If they truly ARE plastic, the MEK in the stripper would likely deform them or mar the surface beyond repair. Additionally, the MEK would seep under the chrome trim piece on the light opening's edge and cause you trouble when you re-painted. You may have dodged a bullet. E

Regulators? Do you mean the Wiper Pivots and not the Window Regulators? Presuming it's the pivots, remove whatever remains of the rubber boot, and then carefully remove the metal "o-ring" clip that holds the shaft in side the body of the pivot. Then, carefully actuate the pivot while pressing down on the shaft and the body supported to allow the shaft to work it's way out. You might consider your own post rather than tacking on to this one. E

Check the wiring going TO the motor. You might find the IN-LINE fuse going to it being the culprit as Graham mentions. The "AC" fuse is Accessory. E

Before you actuate the wiper motor, and before you mount the arms, put a small "flag" of tape on the wiper pivots and then actuate the motor. If you've installed the linkage wrong, it can only be in one of two positions, the wipers would wipe DOWN first, before cycling back up. If you've used the tape, you'll be able to see that and can then r&r the linkage 180° off from what you had. The wiper motor, if it's operating properly, will have "parked" itself and therefore it "thinks" the wipers are at the bottom of the screen because that is the "Park" position. Only if you've actuated the motor and NOT let it cycle through to the PARK position would this not be correct (presuming you didn't open up the gear case and move things around). FWIW E

Good point Dobber. Dielectric grease by itself does not create or improve a poor connection, what it does is stop it from corroding, but it must first be a good mechanical connection. E

And let's leave it at that. Those last 4 words come close to being political commentary. E

The BIGGEST obstacle to Datsun/Nissan Z's selling for higher dollars are other owners.... Case in point: But I'll bet that they would be deeply offended if you offered them the same deal to buy their car. "I won't offer you much because I hate to get b!tch slapped." My personal take is that there are far too many previous owners who sold their cars for less than what is CURRENTLY being offered and therefore feel they have an inherent interest in keeping prices "real". That's right, a stupid sour grapes motive. Often times those previous owners are citing sales figures from years ago, or sales during economic turmoil times as their "proof positive" that what they cite is the "gospel" truth. Anyone checked the "Classic" advertisements in the newspaper recently? With a good storage facility and some cash, there were some extremely beautiful and rare automobiles exchanging hands at fire sale prices recently that could be some very lucrative "investments". But as long as current owners insist that the cars offered for sale equal to their own are not worth much more than crap, then they'll continue to sell for crappy prices. Replacement part manufacturers see this and refuse to invest money reproducing parts for cars that would need a lien placed on the car since the replacement part would be worth as much or more than the car. As Pogo once said "We have met the enemy and he is us." E

I'm concerned about two things. First is that you can see the piece of metal the safety latch grips (below the upper plate) with an obvious gap between it and the edge of the hole of the upper plate. That gap is large enough that you can see the tip of the safety latch catch IN that gap. Second, Stephen mentions that the Hood Pin is inserting properly into the catch, yet in the pictures it appears (might be the angle) to have LESS of an angle towards the back of the car than an angle straight down and hence towards the FRONT of the car. That leads me to wonder if the metal on the hood itself, where the pin attaches, is bent towards the front of the car. I HAVE seen that bend, and it happens when the pin is mis-aligned and someone forces the hood down. It bends the pin forward and the base metal gets bent. I will look at my vehicles and see if I can't provide better answers than these questions. E

Going strictly off memory: The "catch" mechanism ON the body, has some adjustment forward/back and side to side and no vertical. The "pin" mechanism has limited adjustment in the X-Y axis but can be adjusted vertically (length of pin). Have you checked that the catch is not installed at an angle? By that I mean that the pin is apparently entering the opening in the catch properly, but if the rest of the catch body is at an angle then the safety latch (which has limited diagonal adjustment) might hit the body of the catch. In other words, adjust the Catch such that you do NOT move the location of the Catch Opening (for the pin) but you DO move the body of the catch such that you adjust the opening for the Safety Latch into position. Follow what I'm saying? In simple terms, move the opening in the Catch to where the Safety Latch will enter it without hitting. E

Before you go adjusting the alignment of the hood, especially if it's ONLY the latch that needs adjusting, explain what's happening better. Is it that the Safety Catch Latch is STOPPING the hood from closing all the way, or that the Latch doesn't catch the Hood Pin and it rebounds and it's the Safety Latch that catches it? If it's the Safety Catch that's stopping the Hood Pin from entering and being trapped by the Latch mechanism, does the hinge pin need lubrication? If the Hood Pin isn't entering far enough into the latch mechanism to be trapped, do you have to push the hood down harder to get it to latch? If so, does the pin need to be lengthened, or do the Hood Stop Bumper bolts need adjusting? FWIW E

Good point YORGO, I didn't list Religion, but it falls right into the same category as Politics. E

As one of those who need to keep an eye on things, and do "stomp" on things, let me reiterate the bulk of the comments/suggestions/rules expressed so far. While there aren't many specific rules to cite in written form, there are the general accepted morés of our slice of society. Paraphrasing the basic tenets: Don't bring politics into the discussion or forum. Whether you're an Aardvark or a Hyena is irrelevant here, don't post it and it won't be deleted. General comments regarding the world's situation in general are acceptable, blaming vague (or even specific) generalities on specific actions/individuals/political parties is considered politics. No name calling, directed insults, or flaming ... period. Depending on the severity you may be banned immediately... or just get a warning infraction. Get several infractions in a given time period, you'll get a time-out, then banned if you repeatedly must be warned or receive infractions. The infractions need not occur from the same incident, if you behave in such a manner that it's obvious you won't conform... you'll be banned. There have been only a handful of individuals in the years I've been here who have had to be banned. No linking to commercial sites without approval. This means your brother's business, the auto parts store near your house, the one you're schilling for, etc. Additionally, it MUST have some form of connection to the Z. No illegal business at all. Illegal isn't just "against the laws" it's also against the basic tenets of a good society. While there are definitive lines in the sand on some items, others get fuzzy and in others the line wavers. Don't advocate stealing as acceptable even if done in "tiny" amounts. That one is kind of absolute. Dishonesty in all forms is basically frowned upon, but getting a super good price on a hard to find part is not, in EITHER direction. Violence against specific individuals is also a "No", but wishing car thieves, in general, could be pummeled into the dust is acceptable. Which brings us to Sex. This one gets real fuzzy since this is an International Forum with members worldwide. What's acceptable in Holland isn't the norm in Spain, and generally in the alleys in parts of the US. The key here is to keep it in good taste. The "Boob's" thread is specifically for BREAST shots, and if it must be defined, Women's breasts. Detail below the waist is not allowed. If you can see pubic hair, or the area where it should be, the picture's going to get deleted. That means that a side shot where the model's leg hides the area is acceptable, but those painted ladies with paint all over their bodies, including the groin.... keep it above the waist. The "Camel Toe" thread is for CLOTHED shots of that area. Again, if you can see it directly without clothing... it's gone. Other flavors, persuasions, variations... generally not discussed and not alluded to. There are plenty of other sites out there to ease your tensions, it's not allowed here. Calling someone by a name relating to one of those other flavors is likely to get YOU banned. In essence everyone gets accepted at face value.... until you prove otherwise. We all get multiple "mulligans" if you stay within the general boundaries of the site, if you veer contrary to the general demeanor... warnings, then infractions and lastly, banned. Again, these aren't written down so much as generally accepted. If you find someone posting something that is offensive to you, PM Arne, Mike or myself and we'll see what needs to be done. Enrique Moderator

Look at these, this is one idea: http://www.classiczcars.com/photopost/showphoto.php?photo=9215&ppuser=1490 http://www.classiczcars.com/photopost/showphoto.php?photo=9216&ppuser=1490 http://www.classiczcars.com/photopost/showphoto.php?photo=9217&ppuser=1490 E

Metal Ready and most other Metal Prep solutions are just mild acid washes that will only affect the rust molecules they can come in contact with... i.e. surfaces and other porous areas. Stronger acids are available, but then it gets very touchy as to how, and where to use, and how to neutralize the acid. Leave the stronger acids to the experts. For welding to be done properly, you need as clean a metal as possible... free of coatings, paint, corrosion (rust) and other items. The use of Flux or Gas while welding is to help the weld stay in a given area and penetrate properly. Poor condition steel (rusted, painted, etc.) will not yield a strong weld if it even allows the electrode to spark. While a wire wheel will do a fairly good job or brushing it off, you want to grind, or sandblast off the bulk of the rust before you just rely on the wire brush. As John Coffey said, REMOVE the rust, then weld, then apply the solutions. FWIW E

That's a parts car. There is WAY too much rust damage in just the pictures you've posted for a "California" car and way more than you think just hiding behind the metal waiting for you to uncover it. $400 TOPS, and that's considering the Valve Cover, the Series I steering wheel and other items that might be salvageable. As far as the rest: Rust on the hatch ledge both sides. Battery area rust THROUGH Both bumpers bent and tweaked. One Headlight Scoop obviously broken Front Spoiler also possibly damaged Passenger door showing extensive rust out from inside Rocker panel dog leg showing rust blisters Passenger side front fender showing rust through and lastly, but by no means least... that rust above the windshield. That one is probably the most indicative of the poor care this car has received. I'd pass on it, except for parts.

Rubber is different from vinyl. It also does not have the plasticizers that vinyl has which are what the silicone oil in armor all binds to. Armor all works... if you re-apply regularly and methodically. Quit using it for a while and that's when the problems begin. This is on vinyl. What I know of on rubber, is that it will make it slick... too slick to grip if applied to the thread portion of a tire, a neighbor's son did it to his car and had to literally do a "burn out" in order to get them to grip. Not that the wheels would slip and slide, but they decidedly had lost a lot of the normal traction of good tires. I've used the Mother's as well as a Turtle Wax Black Chrome with good results. I prefer the 303 Protectant or POR 15's Boss Gloss. YMMV E

If memory serves, there are two points where it can be at. One is just inside the RR Tail Light housing behind the plastic cover, and the other is on the underside of the car on the frame rail. E

Sorry Dave, but it's probably a 100% chance of not reading the OP. OP: Which still yields Steve's answer as the most likely scenario: