Arne

From the looks of it, I think you have the rear springs on the front and vice-versa.

I've tried that. My notes tell me that it was much the same with the OE coil and ballast, better (i.e. higher RPM before it stops revving) with the stock coil and the resistor bypassed.

Not temperature related, same thing hot or cold. I still tend to think it has to do with voltage. If I make a change that reduces the resistance to spark (i.e. new plugs), or to decrease the resistance/voltage drop to the coil it gets better. I'm currently highly suspect of the wire to goes to (and then returns from) the early four-wire tach.

So today, not quite five months after I put it all back in, I took it back out again. To recap - back in April (at 70,500 miles) I re-installed the Pertronix Ignitor and 3Ω coil, along with a good old-fashioned tune up. New plugs, wires, valve adjustment, cleaned and lubed the advance mechanism, and new wiring to the Pertronix. This seemed to work. For a while. But as the Summer has gone by, I've noticed an increasing tendency for the ignition to washout. At first it was just a bit if I ran it up over 6000. So slight, and I run it that high so seldom, that I wasn't sure it was happening. Then I started noticing it over 5500. Recently, it became noticeable just over 5000 RPM. So I went back to the used points and original 39 year-old coil. No other changes at all. Runs perfectly all the way to redline again. So during the driving I have done this Summer, something has changed/worn just enough to cause a return of the problem. It's worth noting that I have driven it a total of 1000 miles since putting the Pertronix back in. That's not much wear. Perhaps I could fix it with another fresh set of plugs. But plugs every 1000 miles? I'd rather change points once every year or two. I had hopes that doing it all correctly back in April would have been enough, and the initial results were encouraging. But in the end, it certainly appears that for whatever reason, my car is simply not a viable candidate for electronic ignition.

I can't think of much else different, Hugh. The pilot bushings are all the same. As I'm sure you are aware, the release bearing collar has to match the pressure plate, and the clutch fork and slave cylinder will also need to match. But the rest should be all the same.

Year and model? Any mods? From the fuel pressure you note, I'm guessing a 280Z, but no idea about anything else.

Maybe. But it looks to me as if you could teach me a thing or two about polishing wheels!

Trevor, if you ever drive up into Oregon we should try to get together for a photo shoot...

No, mine is messed up too.

The mesh wheels are Appliance brand, not Westerns. The Appliances are the only ones with the smooth (not stepped) lip.

The numbers seem low, but they are very even across the board, which is good. The lowness could be as simple as a low-reading gauge.

Been there, done that, didn't even get the t-shirt. http://www.classiczcars.com/forums/showthread.php?t=30409

May I recommend pulling the number tag also? The engine compartment tag on my '71 is attached with small Phillips head screws, not rivits. You should be able to remove and replace it tracelessly, and that will give a much nicer job.

Several of us. I'm about 100 miles of fun back roads away - what do you need? Others who are closer include the Ztherapy crew and beandip, among many others.

That is a very common bumper replacement - but will not pass impact testing. It is available at the catalog link I posted above.

It is an over-simplification to say that the body-shell was unchanged from '70-78, but the the basic shell design is all the same. Lots of detail changes like bumper mounts, etc. A good site to begin your research is at http://zhome.com/ as a single point with many easily located FAQs and such. Much easier to get the basics from than using the Search here. As an introduction to what is available, try looking through the online catalog at http://www.thezstore.com/page/TZS/CTGY/70-96 (a site sponsor). While these people don't have everything, nor are they always the best place to get parts, the catalog will give you an idea of what you can expect to buy off-the-shelf. There are several bolt-in (more or less) V8 kits for Z cars. You may wish to read through this site as well, as a start: http://www.jagsthatrun.com/Pages/Datsun_Z_V-8.html

If a V8-powered Z in the style of the picture is your goal, I'd recommend using one of the later 280Zs as a platform. There were many improvements over the lifespan of the original Z body that make a later car (say, '77 or 78) a better starting point. The 280Zs will all have rather large bumpers, but those can easily be replaced by the aftermarket parts used on the picture car, or something else similar. But the later cars are (slightly) less rust-prone, have better wiring, many will have stronger diffs, etc.

Merged the pair of identical threads.

Those may be the best looking skunk stripes I've EVER seen on an S30! I love how they start at the hood bulge and don't extend down the rear valance. Well done!

I was also disappointed in the Mitty coverage. While Ron's car was pictured, I don't recall any ink on it.

There should have been a pair of shipping tie-downs (note - tie-downs, not tow hooks) when the car was new, one per side. They were supposed to have been removed by the selling dealer prior to delivery to the buyer (during PDI). So the strictly correct answer for a correctly prepped and delivered 240Z is that they should not be on the car at all. But in the real world, many cars were delivered to owners with one or both of the rear tie-downs in place, as the PDI guys got lazy and did not take the time to remove them. My car still had both rears and the left front tie-down still in place when I got it in 2006, for example. (Note - there was no right front tie-down, they used the real frame-mounted tow hook instead.) If you only had one rear tie-down on yours, that means the PDI guy removed one of the rears, but not the other. If so, I'd guess that your single one was on the left side, as that one is much more time-consuming to remove with the exhaust in place. If a lazy PDI guy is going to remove one and skip the other, the left one would have been the one to skip.

Flights?!? It wouldn't count if I didn't drive my car...

Damn! I'd have to leave right away if I was going to be there by 10:00 tomorrow and still get any sleep tonight. And since I'm at work today...

I don't think the Zombi has either. But it wouldn't take to much development to install some sort of small electric-powered heat pump, I suspect. But I agree with the above thought - the sound of my Z with the windows down is one of the great things about it.

Here's a PBS video segment on the car in question. May help some. UAYrsEOxqYc