Arne

No, it's not the overall height of the tire that's the problem - it's a visual thing. Almost an optical illusion. The shorter the sidewall (lower profile), the bigger the fender gap looks, even if it is really unchanged and the tire diameter is the same.

Bear in mind that both Dave and Jeff's cars are lowered. The 16" tires don't look nearly as good (IMO) on a non-lowered car. That's part of the question as well.

Hmm. The image on the parts CD is pretty much what mine looks like. It lists the same downpipe through 8/71, and a different number for 9/71 - 6/72. I've seen other so-called 8/71 parts on my 7/71 car, so I wonder if my downpipe is actually a '72-style?

Thanks, Mike. Useful info, but opens a whole new question. I'm looking at the construction method of both the new one you put on #137 and to old one above, and they aren't the same as mine, which I would have thought was original. In both of the ones you pictured, it looks like the forward manifold outlet is one long pipe all the way back to the center muffler joint, and the other manifold outlet is cut and welded into the first to create the Y. Mine on the other hand, both manifold outlets feed into similar length tubes, which are both welded into a Y adapter, and the single tube to the center muffler is welded into that. Dang hard to get pictures with the car on the ground in the garage, but hopefully this shows what I'm talking about. Was the new downpipe you pictured only used on really early cars? I can't believe that mine has been replaced, but it's not similar in construction to the ones you have/had.

I don't disagree with much so far in this post, except to say that there's no need to rule out 14" and 15" if you're not looking for tires with state-of-the-art handling. Sure, if you want modern grippy tires, you'll want to go 16" or larger. But for a pleasant weekend drive, don't discount normal 14" or 15" rubber.The fact of the matter is that the very tame 195/70-14 all-season tires on my car right now probably have as much or more grip than the very best street-performance tires that you could buy back when these cars were new. No, they're nowhere nearly as good as the Hankooks that Jeff is running, but for my driving style, and -- as important -- the way I want my car to look, they are just fine. We need to bear a couple of things in mind regarding performance tires. One is that the rims that fit early Zs well aren't very wide by today's standards. It's very common for us Z owners to pinch 225 width tires on 7" wide wheels. That's not a problem, but those tires would work much better on 8" or even wider wheels. But we can't really do that, so we're not going to get the most out of these modern tires. Nor is the S30 suspension all that well suited for modern rubber. It does OK, but there is a lot more camber change on these cars than is best for todays tires. So here's my advice -- decide what is important to you in wheels and tires. Appearance? Ride? Handling/grip? Because the answer to this question will determine what type and (to certain extent) sizes you should be looking at. For my car, I wanted period-correct vintage looks and fit. I really like the tall sidewall look of the stock height 14" tires/wheels. That's not for everyone, might not even be for me forever, or if I get a second Z...

Mike, that's what the insides of all three of my cars' tanks looked like, and I left them all be as is. Sold both of the parts car tanks, and am using the red car's tank with no issue. As long as the feed tube in the tank is clear, I'd let it ride.

Realistically? No. If you weren't able to drive and test it while it was still in the donor car, there's not much that you can tell now. You're probably just going to have to install it and cross your fingers at this point. Not certain. You would not need to cut if your car was a 4 speed swapping to a 5 speed, but there may be a spot-welded plate covering part of the hole on your automatic car. If so, I should think you could get it out with hand tools though.

Neither. In today's terminology it would be a 175/80-14.

Gladly. Consider it done.

IIRC the Koni reds must be removed from the car for adjustment, or at least the springs compressed and pulled from the struts. The adjustment mechanism is to collapse the rod completely and then twist the rod to adjust. Unlike the Tokico Illuminas, the Koni red adjustment is not designed to allow adjustment for different road or driving conditions, but instead to compensate for wear. So they don't need to be super easy to adjust, you are only supposed to need to do it after many 10's of thousands of miles.

Brian, this is amazing. I can't wait to see it running. Maybe by Canby if you hurry??

That would be great, Mike. I'd like to know how long the pipe is after the Y, the OD at the end, and perhaps the approximate amount that the pipe offsets to the center of the car after the Y. Any of this you can provide will help.

I'm laying plans for a new exhaust later this summer. As I try to decide what to keep, what to buy and what to build, I'd really like to see pictures of a complete stock downpipe for a '70-72 240Z. Mine has been modified and I need to decide how (or if) that affects my plans. Does anyone have one off the car that they can take pictures of, and maybe a measurement or two?

I thought that you would think that way, Enigma...

While it should run on four cylinders, getting it started from cold on four cylinders using the choke might be tricky, especially if everything isn't adjusted just right yet.

I can't see how there could be much in the way of permanent or even semi-permanent damage from trying to start it with the plug wires off. Are you certain the two wires in question have been replaced on their proper plugs? Not reversed?

There were two threads on this, so I merged them into one single thread.

I miscounted above, and we've added our first pin from Austrailia. Count so far: USA - 75 pins Canada - 5 pins R.o.t.W. - 6 pins

Plus one on the spook. Other than that, I like them stock.

In your part of the country? Probably not. If you're willing to fly out West, that kind of money (and careful shopping) can buy a 240Z with little to no rust. It'd be a longer drive home, though...

The vent hoses go up to the vapor tank in the right pillar area. If you remove the interior plastic trim panels you can see all the hoses. They can be replaced, and if the tank has been dropped already it's not that hard to do. Or you can rework the system to eliminate the vapor tank, and a few of the hoses. But you can't simply cap them all off, as you need some of them for venting. Here's a link to a tech article I wrote a while back about the hoses themselves, might help you determine what you want to do with yours. Rating the factory 240Z fuel vent hoses

Here in Oregon, it's not unusual for me to see S30s several times per week, even in the winter. I had some wheels changed at a local tire shop a couple of weeks ago, they told me that mine was the second 240Z they'd had in that day. Not as common as Hondas around here, but not rare, either.

MSA had the gas door bumpers last year, #34-1193. they used to offer the door lock seal too, but you may be able to get those from a local locksmith.

Featured on Bring-a-Trailer today. Any members familiar with this car? http://bringatrailer.com/2009/04/03/race-ready-1971-datsun-240z-race-car/