Arne

Normal is what ever your car is when things are right. If that changes, that's the time to get worried.

Mine reads just to the right of halfway also. I wouldn't worry about it.

Since the car used to be an automatic, I think those are for the relay that the automatics had below the coil for the dual points switchover. I suspect you can safely ignore them. There are no wires at all to the early MC. I suspect those two black wires are for the washer pump. There should be two pairs of wires in the tunnel, one pair for the reverse lights and the other for the neutral safety switch (NSS). I can't say for certain, but in most automatic cars I've seen, the reverse wires both have male bullet connectors, while the NSS had blades. I think. The two NSS wires will need to be jumpered, I think they were black. The reverse light wires MAY be red and red/black.Hope this helps...

Yeah, I left that damned buzzer connected as long as the key could be removed in the non-LOCK positions. As soon as I repaired the lock and eliminated the possibility of leaving the ignition unlocked, I unplugged it. I hated those things back in the '70s, still hate 'em today...

Yeah, probably simpler to stick with the matching style. While a later car may be able to use an early long tail box in place of the original short tail box, it definitely won't work going the other way. I had a heck of a time finding a nice long tail box a few years back. This one looks great and would be a great addition to most any Series 1 with the typical fusebox damage. If I still had a car that used this style, I'd be tempted to buy it as a spare. Same with the lockset. Still tempted on that one, I may yet sneak in a late bid.

It's been a while since I had both styles side-by-side, but I seem to recall that there may have been a couple of minor differences in connector styles or something like that. I'm fairly certain that if you have some basic electrical skills you could make it work if necessary, though.

I could remove the key in mine when I bought it, but the owner's manual specified that the key should only be able to be removed when locked. I replaced the wafers (tumbler pins) in the ignition lock and that improved it a lot. Having a new key cut from key code (instead of from the worn originals) fixed it completely. But in short, per the owner's manual, if you can remove the key in any position other than LOCK, either the key or the ignition lock is worn, and more likely both.

Several different companies made that style back in the day, these days they are frequently referred to as Per-Specs after one of the common brand names they were sold under - Performance Specialties. Like virtually all other wheels from back then, in the Datsun bolt pattern they were only available in 14" diameter, but various widths depending on the actual manufacturer - I've seen 5.5", 6.0", 7.0" for sure, and possibly 6.5" too. Definitely not in production these days, so not available new. They can occasionally be found on eBay, craigslist, etc.

I don't know that they can't be made to work, but it won't be a simple bolt in like any '70-78 seats would be.

A couple of other things I missed. How soon will you need to use the car as a regular driver? Do you have a long-term work area or garage for it? If I need a car that I can drive regularly right away, can't afford to have it off the road for weeks, months or years at a time while major parts of the project are underway, that completely changes how I would look at a potential car. And this is one area I see a lot of problems with. Many of the younger generation of Z enthusiasts want to buy a Z and do a slow refresh on it while using it as a daily driver - indeed, it is often intended to be their only car. So they go out and get a Z that would be a perfectly viable restoration or refresh project if they had time and/or space to really work on it. But they need it on the road NOW! Time and workspace pressures could make me add other Small minuses, move some of the Small minuses into Big minuses, and some of the Big minuses into Show-stoppers.

T-tops - that was a ZX. I don't know if you can attach the 240Z tracks to 280ZX seats. Totally different critters...

April, I would have thought that the 280Z tracks would be the same as the 240Z tracks, have you tried bolting them in as is? These were from a 280Z, not a 280ZX? If they don't work, I think I still have a set of tracks from a '71 240Z, but I'll have to find time to sort through my stuff to be certain.

Best parts are the girl(s). Trashy as she looks, she is far less so than the car...

OK, if that's what you want. But I still feel that without context or background, a whole bunch of individual opinions means little. For example, in parts of the world where S30s are very rare, a well-heeled enthusiast may answer that ANY halfway intact S30 is restorable, regardless of rust, originality or damage.But to a person who knows nothing of the background of that answer, and who lives in So. Cal where solid Zs are relatively plentiful, that answer without context looks like insanity, and nothing is learned. So if we are going to share our own specifics, I think some basic info is also needed. Things like location, how common are S30s where you live, typical condition of same, restoration skill set, and very vague financial situation. Without that background, the answers are meaningless. <hr> That said, I'll go first. I'm 53 years old, and live in Western Oregon, USA. As with much of the West coast, Zs are relatively plentiful here, and since Oregon has never used road salt, rust is much less a problem here than in many places, despite the rather damp Winters and Springs. I have above average mechanical and electrical abilities, and can do interior work, but have to farm out my welding, body and paint. I'm not wealthy, but not strapped, either. I can afford significant outlays with a bit of advance planning. So if I were to start over right now and start looking for an S30... Show-stoppers (any one of these items will make me pass on one) Rust in TC rod mounts Visible signs of severe accident damage Incomplete color change (doesn't have to be a stock color, but the interior and engine compartments better be the same color as the outside) Non-L-series engine swaps Fender flares or other mods that required cutting the original body shell Plusses (things that add to the desireableness, but aren't absolutely required) Original engine Mostly original condition Virtually no rust Big minuses (no single one of these would cause me to pass, but any two probably would, and three or more is a definite pass) Severe battery box rust Severe hatch tray rust Rust in quarter panels (fender lips and/or around fuel filler) Butchered wiring Sunroof (in a car that doesn't need paint otherwise) Lots of missing or bad interior parts Small minuses (would take several of these combined to pass on one, but fewer if combined with a Big minus above) Automatic transmission Sunroof (in a car that will need paint anyway) Dogleg rust Floorpan rust Rocker panel rust Minor rust in battery box Minor hatch tray rust General lack of straight body panels (especially roof) Missing or bent bumpers That's pretty much it, I think. If you look at the three 240Zs I've had and compare to these rules: Yellow car - I worked on the yellow car while I thought it had several small minuses and one plus. But I reversed course and parted it out as soon as I found the TC rod mount rust (a show-stopper). Blue car - Bought as a parts car only due to major accident damage (show-stopper) Current red car - All three plusses, no show-stoppers, no big minuses, and only one small minus (the sunroof which was handled when I had it painted).

I keep stalling, hoping that maybe something will come of the talks with Stebro for a pre-fab stainless system. But I fear that project may have died. So once I give up on the Stebro (probably later this Summer), I plan to have something very similar to this built locally. Mine will likely have a couple of flange joints for easy serviceability, and the rear muffler will probably be a twin outlet Magnaflow, but otherwise pretty much the same. I wish some of the local muffler shops around here worked that cheap!

Sorry Will, but I don't think we can pin it down any tighter than what John noted. The thresholds will be different for each person, depending on their location and situation. For example, a7dz (another Coffey, BTW) spent years single-handedly rebuilding his 240Z. I would never have considered his car as more than a parts car - indeed, he admits that he wouldn't have considered that car as a restoration candidate himself, except for one big point. The car was bought new by his mother and he personally got it from her over 30 years ago. So it has been in his family it's entire life. That makes it special to him, and I agree with that. For virtually anyone else in the world, that car would not have been worth the effort and expense. Which proves that there are virtually no hard and fast rules, only situations.

I can't get past either one, the wing or the price. Both are big thumbs down.

Yes, I could tell it was a 240Z from the VIN. The engine number is only shown on the data plate from '70-77 cars. If you have the VIN entered correctly here, that is a '70, not a '71.

Maybe. You need to check the engine number as stamped on the data plate on the right inner fender. No other way to know for certain.

Yes, the picture is crap. But if you look at the cylinder and hose, neither are set up as flare fittings to seal on their own. The washer is required, as I found out the hard way on my first 240Z during the transmission conversion from automatic to 4 speed. If your old setup did not have the washer, it was not stock, or even OE-style.

The original hose and slave on my car REQUIRED a copper washer, the part number from Nissan is 46237-18000 as shown in the attachment. (If you look at the picture on the parts fiche or CD, the washer is shown in the wrong spot, which confuses many people.)In my experience, neither replacement cylinders nor replacement hoses come with the washer, but it is still needed.

In this context, certainly lower than 1000, and more probably sub-500.

Here in the USA, for a driver that doesn't have to stay stock, I'd say the best 240Z is a '73 with a '70-72 carb retrofit. Nissan added good stuff every year. The '73s have all the improvements of the '71s and '72s (improved diff location, etc.), plus more good things like intermittent wipers and modern retractible seat belts. An early (small bumper) 260Z with the same carb retrofit might be even better. Later cars are a different kettle of fish. More comfort and power, and the drivability and (once properly restored) reliability of the fuel injection are balanced against the taller suspension and heavier weight. But set up properly, they can be just as much fun to drive.

Here's another picture of the euro-lip:

You don't have any mobile glass people down there? My glass guy brought his van to the car and did it on the spot.