EScanlon

Bondo always gets a bad rap. It's not bad if used properly. Read this post: http://www.classiczcars.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=1591&highlight=Bondo Enrique Scanlon

I've used all those methods. Which one is the easiest is my favorite. Which one depends on the car and the work to be done to it. Call it a dumb answer, but it is what you do in a body shop. Enrique

First off, are you sure that you have a current draw when the battery is connected or are you just hearing a CLICK when you connect it. To test, put a trouble light between one post of the battery and it's connector. If the lamp lights, you have a draw on the battery. Now start unplugging and replugging items until the light shuts off. That isolates the item causing the draw. The clock draws some, but usually that is so minor as to not light it up strongly. I had this problem with the Accessory Relay which is part of the ignition circuit on the 71. It basically disconnects several items that should NOT run when you're starting the engine and energizes those that DO need to be energized. In my case, the relay had frozen in such a manner as to continually drain the battery. It also clicked when I would reconnect the battery. Hope this helps Enrique Scanlon

Hey, I did the same thing! That's the main reason I posted. What at first seemed like a simple rubout with some polishing compound, turned into felt cones, wheels, different grades of rouge and liquids, more rags than you can shake a stick at and several sweatshirts stained beyond repair. If I ever need black zoot camouflage I have enough shirts for a baseball team. Do yourself a favor and find some metal protectant. This will help maintain the shine and make it easier to polish it out when they start to oxidize again, and trust me they will. About the only way to guarantee that it will take years is to have a clear coat either baked on or anodized on. I use a product by MAAS which is a metal protectant. There are some polishes out there that purport to do the same, but having tried half a dozen brands or more, MAAS Metal Protectant does the job better than anything else. Hope this helps. Enrique Scanlon

Hopefully you figured out that it's the cable's from the heater control that need to be removed at the items they control and not removing the heater control assembly from the heater control panel. Enrique Scanlon

Does the switch control the speed of the fan when you use it to turn it "on"? If so, then you either have a short in the wiring that's allowing it to receive juice when it shouldn't, or the motor has been wired incorrectly. There's another post on the heater motor. Read through that and see if that helps you get yours fixed. 2¢ Enrique Scanlon

V12 is exactly right. The 260 picture is the 2+2 which is somewhat of an "odd" critter. Funny that they chose to show that picture for the 260 instead of pointing out that both the 260 and the 280 were available in a 2+2 model. As far as finding a 240 in the "Rust Belt" be prepared to spend a LOT of money! And then, be prepared to find that there is hidden rust and possibly other problems. It isn't impossible to find them, but just be aware that you are literally looking for a pearl in your oysters at a fast food restaurant. You'd be better off looking for a car out of California, Arizona or New Mexico. You may still have some problems but you will spend less for the vehicle and probably have fewer MAJOR rust problems than from a vehicle on the East Coast. 2¢ Enrique Scanlon

As far as an organized club with dues and meetings...we're not there yet. At least as far as members of this site and an outside organization. For the most part, we've been trying to get together, and hopefully this spring will see some activities and runs being planned. If you are looking at an organized club with plenty of outings and the like, there is Northwest Z Club which meets in Salem (Kaiser if I recall properly). They meet the first Wednesday of the month, which is why many of us in the northern part of Portland and Vancouver find it hard to get down there. Here's a link to their website: http://www.northwestz.org/portal/handler.cfm Hope this helps. Enrique Scanlon

Get one! Just be aware that parts for them are even harder and more expensive than the Z's. About the only "gripe" I have is that they don't have the same legroom as the Z, but haven't yet gotten into the interior far enough to fix that. Mine is currently in the garage slowly getting restored. Enrique Scanlon

As advice for the next person to attempt this: First off, unless you have tons of time and energy, be aware that polishing metal is time consuming and it can take hours to get a reasonable result for your effort. It is very easy to get in to the project with only "a little polishing" in mind and find yourself with a full blown resurface, smooth and polish operation that takes a dozen or more hours each. Next, with that in mind, take it in small steps that you perform on all the pieces you'll be doing it to. In this manner you won't be stuck with the odd piece having had more / less work than the rest. Just my 2¢ Enrique

Here's a link to an eBay auction; http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=2467295441&category=33656 E

As far as the pivot arm rubber gasket, get a piece of a truck tire inner tube. These are typically a bit thicker than your standard auto tire inner tube. To find one, you can usually find shot inner tubes at truck repair facilities. Then, find one of the flat sides, trace the base of the pivot arm, cut to fit and punch the holes. It will do the same or better job. If you have an old gasket, it makes it easier and faster. As far as the rubber mounts for the w/w motor. Go check at your better hardware store. They typically have rubber grommets for use to pass wiring through sheet metal. Find one with the outside diameter INSIDE the rubber to fit the hole in the w/w motor mount. Don't forget that you also need a brass or steel tube inside the mount to prevent the rubber from being crushed. The purpose of these rubber gaskets is to isolate the motor vibration and rocking action from the car. Good Luck Enrique Scanlon

I've seen replacement panels come up on eBay once in a while. They typically start at $130 or so. Kind of spendy, but they do have the correct dimensions and the raised surfaces and the important cutout for the lock mechanism. Smokey is right, it probably started from below and worked it's way up. Very common problem. Depending on your metal working skill and your body repair abilities this may or may not be a big problem Good Luck Enrique

1GENZED: Since the car is now painted and ready for reassembly, all you can do is adjust the components for best fit. Any work to deepen the seating flange for the gas door should have been done at the time the panel was put in. Same for the door edge (presuming that it is that edge that is wrong and not that the door is misaligned.). Try seating the gas door hinge into the cup deeper. Don't go too far as the door may not close properly if set in too far. Play with this until you get the best fit. As far as the gap at the back of the door / front of the rear fender, this measurement will vary, from 3/16" to 3/8". The key isn't to find a measurement, but rather to mount the doors onto the car in such a way that the spacing ALL AROUND the door, front, back, bottom is even. Then you start playing with it to get it to function properly. MARK: The area that LOOKS like it has been repaired before is below the bumper. That's where you can see a "seam" on the paint. If that's just the edge of a protective coating for rock chips, then probably no prior repair. But, you CAN see other bubbles of rust about to pop through and what appears to be a patch of lifted Bondo. 2¢ Enrique

Hard to tell without pictures. But if it IS rusted, with holes going through the metal, that would be one way to get rid of the bumps and the rust. If on the other hand, you're considering replacement just because of the bumps, take it to a body shop. You'd be surprised at what a qualified metal man can do. If the Frame Rails are crushed, replacing them is the only option as far as I know. All this supposes that they didn't damage the rocker panels. If they did, you should check with a frame alignment shop. They'll check the car to make sure that it is straight before you invest a lot of time and money repairing the floor. Enrique Scanlon

You can replace both floors and both frame rails without having to remove the engine / tranny. This of course, is dependent on just how much damage you have. If the tranny tunnel is rusted more than an inch or so above the floor panel, then you may have to remove the tranny. If you pre-fit the panels and frame rails to the car after cutting out the bad metal, then all you are shopping for is a good welder. Find the welder first though and ask him what he wants done, and what he would do as part of the job. Sorry can't help you with prices. Enrique Scanlon

Your "gas spill" may be in fact a leaky or broken Filler Neck Tube. They're not hard to replace without removing the tank, but you will be undoing the inside of the hatch area to get to it. (The back plastic and the RH plastic.) Since you will be into it that deep, take a few minutes and check / replace the hoses going to the fuel vapor canister. Replacing those now will eliminate any fumes in the passenger cabin later on when the gas filler tube is no longer venting. They aren't cheap (about $90) and although you could probably find one at a boneyard, DON'T. For my money at least, buying one from a boneyard, where it may be 30 years old for 10 bucks and having to replace it again in a short while, and once again having to dismantle the whole thing just isn't worth the savings. Unfortunately, to replace the vent hoses, you will have to drop the gas tank. Doing so isn't hard and it will allow you to inspect and repair any other problems you might run into. While you are there, take a look at the condition of your tail-light rubber seals as well as the license plate light wire grommet. Those need to seal as well. Good Luck and keep us posted. If you have questions post them and, having done the same job myself, I'll answer as best as I can. By the way, you CAN spend some mighty bucks on getting OEM fuel vent hoses or you can go to your local NAPA and get the replacement FUEL type hose. Sport Z magazine had a perfect article on doing this in their first issue. Sadly, that issue is no longer available even from the editors. Maybe someone can ask them if we could post the article here. 2¢ Enrique P.S. Alfa wants to know what kind of pantyhose you took with you, and if you like the feel of them......

The B/Y wire referred to is part of the starter interlock system that prevents starting the car when in gear (Automatic Trans.). In a Manual transmission, it hooks directly to the ignition circuit to complete the circuit to the solenoid. The starter receives BOTH Positive and Negative terminals of the battery directly to it in order to allow for the massive cranking amps required. The other wire to the solenoid (, connects via a quick connect to the Fusible link. This Fusible link on the 70 and 71 Z's is the MAIN and ONLY connection for the rest of the car's circuitry. If this is broken or disconnected there simply is NO electricity anywhere else. When you had posted that you had a "click" I also assumed that you were actuating the solenoid and therefore had electricity flowing. Since you did not post that you did not have electricity flowing to anything else I didn't post about your fusible link. The battery gauge you refer to is an Ammeter and it registers whether you have a Positive Current (Charging) or Negative Current (Discharging). When NO power is flowing, it will rest at the "O" mark, or dead center. That's what fooled you into thinking you had a good charge and fooled the rest of us into thinking you did have the fusible link connected. Glad it's running. Keep us posted on your Car Show. Enrique Scanlon

Why do you think that ONLY a 2+2 Z roof will do? Think outside the box. What you are looking for is a piece of sheet metal with the same side to side and front to rear curvature that matches your car's. The reason most (if not all) body shops require the part to be from an identical model vehicle is to avoid problems in getting it to fit. In fact, if you check, these folks go so far as to measure where the hole would be in the donor roof and then cutting that piece of metal. The main reason behind this is that they don't have the time, nor the resources to go pick and choose amongst cars to find a match. And they are right, it is the easiest, cheapest and most logical way of getting a donor piece. However, your situation is different. You are searching for a RARE car AND an even RARER model. So now you have to get creative. That is, if you are willing to expend a bit of thought energy and physical work in order to achieve your goal (a hardtop look) and at the same time save yourself some money. Using some stiff construction paper, or some cardboard make some templates that match the side to side curve and the front to rear curve as well. If necessary, make a side to side template of the roof just in front of the opening. Then another one just behind. Matching these with a pair of each of the front to back templates on either side of the hole and you can now assemble a curve finder. If you take care you can cut corresponding slits in the pieces and slide them together just like the cardboard used to separate bottles in a box. Now, go to a local boneyard. and using your cardboard template, lay it on the roofs of potential donors. You're now looking for vehicles whose roofline MATCHES your template and NOT the same car / model. Although this may seem time consuming, you may be surprised to find that there are many cars out there whose curvature is actually the same as yours. Remember auto designers use curves that appeal to the human mind. Those curves are surprisingly similar. Doubt it? Take a look at the mind-numbing similarity of cars lately. Another alternative for that is to contact a CUSTOM body shop who can in fact FABRICATE curves out of flat sheet metal. These shops typically will have an English Wheel Press on the premises. They'll have the experience to measure and match the curve you need and fabricate it with relative ease. You might even ask them how much it would be for them to fix it. The key here is to not impose restrictions on your repairing the car. Hope this helps. Enrique Scanlon

You have the money for an electric sunroof with a metal panel to be installed but don't have the money to repair the roof to it's original status? Doesn't add up. The sunroof will still set you back possibly a hundred or two from a boneyard. Then you have to get someone to adapt it to a roof line that it wasn't made for. Lastly, you need to wire it into an electrical system that is sensitive to additional currents being applied to it. All of this calls for an experienced body man, which means several hundred dollars. Now you've allocated 500+ dollars to the job. Surely you can get someone to weld in a roof for less than that. OR Maybe you have the experience, but if you do, why not just weld a patch back into the sunroof hole. Enrique

What do you mean by the rear sight shield? Enrique