Hi, was turned on to this forum through a couple members on 240sxone that own Z's. I recently picked up a basket case '71 240z in need of some loving for $500. It has brand new floors and a new frame so the hardest part is done. Now all it needs is quarters and rockers and I'll be good to go body-wise(hopefully).

Planning on being alittle sacrilegious and getting rid of the l24 in favor of a sbc. I figure I can make a lot more power and have a bullet-proof motor for the same price it would cost for me to get my l24 completeley rebuilt and running right. Hope to have a nice little hot rod by the end of this journey an I hope to be able to meet a couple of you guys at meets.

Here's a pic of the car, no motor in it currently and I kind of just hung the fenders on to see how they'd look.



I have a ton of extra parts that I will be putting up in the f/s section shortly so I can get some cash to get electricity in my garage and get some tools to finally start working on this beast.

Welcome..
Sacreligious or not Its been saved and will be enjoyed. Hope to see you at one of the get togethers
Mike

I usually rant and rave whenever somebody talks about putting a sbc into an early Z. In this case, I want to hold my wrath because the car is being saved. AND, as it gets saved, you might reconsider about the engine.

So I'll start by saying THANK YOU for determining to keep another one of these wonderful old carz on the road. Then I'll welcome you to the CTZCC website and promise you you'll meet some of the most helpful, friendly, and informative Z nuts in here that you'll ever meet in your life.

We just joined a new member from Mass this week, but from your location it doesn't sound like it was you. Please consider joining us. We're free, we're fun, and we're friendly. Just press the big red button on the website homepage, fill in 20 seconds of GUARANTEED CONFIDENTIAL information, and you're one of us.

Hope to zee this car sometime in the near future, and to hear frequent progress reports (and questions) as your project rolls along

Thanks for finding us!

Frank T

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1970 240Z

I disagree, Mike!!-- the Z Cars universally known nowadays as the
"CLASSIC" Z's have got to be saved, and beyond that, as original as
possible. As everybody in the Z community knows, I'm very much the
originalist, and the earlier the car, the more insistent (and LOUD) I get.

If somebody wants to make a "hot rod," I suggest that a 280Z or later
edition would make a better platform for the project. Sure it's a
couple-hundred pounds heavier, but it's also a lot stronger and better
reinforced to take the additional HP and torque than what the earlier
(and especially the EARLIEST) units were.

Even the earliest Z race cars, for example #00006 Sharp and #00492
Brock/Morton, only put out 200-odd HP and look at what they could do.
A lot more than any of us would ever use on the street, and probably
on the track as well. And trust me, it took a lot of bracing and trussing
to hold THAT in place.

No hard feelings; no malice nor harm intended. While I can't discern
whether a 1st or 2nd Series from the pic, the car is, after all, a 1971,
whether the VIN is #6000 or #48000. The point being, "THEY AIN'T
MAKIN' NONE OF THEM NO MORE."

All Z Best,.......................Kathy & Rick
P.S. I'm not the only one with this viewpoint, only the most vociferous.

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All Z Best,.......Kathy & Rick

1969 Z.CAR (#00013 10/69) 8/30/76
1969 ITSA.Z (#00171 11/69) 8/24/73
1970 OLD.Z (#06289 6/70) original owner
1971 510 2dr since 12/31/75
1969 1600 rdstr (our 160-Z)
1971 (#19851 1/71) sold
1975 75.Z (#01343 1/75)

welcome to this awesome club!! we are one big family! any help you need i'm sure somebody will drive out to MA to help. we love wrenching on these cars and helping others in need.

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Mike Tubiak
1978 Datsun 280Z - HLS30-438694

i agree with this statement. the 240 is being put back on the road. and how much do you really have to change to have that done that it couldn't be put back to stock? IMO some of us just don't have the money to invest to make these cars perfect or as they were back in the 70's. it is much cheaper to put a sbc in a 240z. i personally wouldn't do it but i am not against it. if i did swap it would be another jap motor going in. but i say at least one day that 240 will be driving down the road again. turning heads i am sure. and as i have read on this very site the 240z was originally designed so that a v8 could be put in. hence all the room provided. i will hunt down that link. it was discussed at Zcon last year.

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Mike Tubiak
1978 Datsun 280Z - HLS30-438694

here is a quote from Carl Beck from the post.

"
One evening Mr. Matsuo was telling us about discussions he had with the production engineers. They wanted more room in the inner-fenders for larger tires and tire chains - so their idea was to increase the depth of the inner-fender. However doing so would have moved the shock towers closer together. Mr. Matsuo resisted that - because he wanted to leave room for the installation of Nissan's V8 in later years. So at the car show - he found the many V8 powered 240Z's very interesting indeed. One of the guys has the Bar Napkins with the drawings he made that accompanies that story. "

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Mike Tubiak
1978 Datsun 280Z - HLS30-438694

I would love to keep the inline 6 believe me. It's just that I've grown up around v8's and I have access to alot more v8 stuff than datsun stuff. Just seeing the pricing on a triple carb kit made my mind up for me. The only qualm I have now is what motor to drop in. Like most of you said these early Z's don't really cope well with crazy torque without alot of bracing. Well hopefully this weekend I'll finally get some time to clear out a big area of the garage and start tearing her apart to prep for sand blasting.

1. STEP ONE: Photograph everything, twice.
2. STEP TWO: Buy a cartload of large ziplock plastic bags and a good felt tip marker.
3. STEP THREE: Make enough dry storage space to hold all yer partz for a looooonnng time, because no resto project ever takes the length of time you have available.
4. STEP FOUR: Write down everything you do, step by step.

Wish I was closer to you. I hate to zee people pull Zs apart because 90% of the time they don't finish their project (ran out of money, moved away, broke up with SuZie, couldn't handle their parents, lost their job, lost their garage, went to college, forgot where they were in the project, lost interest in the project, got another car, etc etc), then they end up scrapping their Z, or selling it to someone else who has no idea what you did and ends up scrapping it themselves.

Then there are those 10% who actually do know what they're doing and are determined to zee it thru. One of our most active members (Phrog) is a zeasoned mechanic with good tools and a clear picture of where he wants to go with his 280 Resto project. But he's also moved to your state, started college, is trying to work, go to school, maintain the new house and build the Z all at once. He used to be a pretty happy guy, but he hasn't driven his Z in more than a year now, and we haven't zeen his face in about that long. Life gets tough without a Z.

Wish there was some way to help you with it, but you'd get mighty tired of hearing me prompt you to keep and rebuild the L24.

Frank

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1970 240Z

Clive (EvilC) had a Corvette LS engine in his 240 for a long time. Actually, he's had that setup in two 240z's so far if I remember right. He can give you a lot of info on how his setup fared and what he did to stiffen it. I don't remember exactly what was done, but it was all done very well. That car is a beauty. One of the biggest things you could do to stiffen the car in preparation for an SBC or other high torque motor is to weld on full length aftermarket frame rails, like the ones that Bad Dog makes. I've also stitch welded a few of the seams in my engine bay as a compromise between the stock pinch welds and a full seam weld.

As far as modifying these cars goes, just about anything can be reversed if another owner wants to take the thing "back to stock". The effort and craftsmanship is what determines how well it's done. Technically, you could even blend in a new welded panel by grinding down the weld beads to make it look like it was originally part of the car. I personally wouldn't care to do that unless it was on the outside of the car.

Modify your car to your heart's content, make it yours and above all else stick with it when you start it. At least until it's "done". This was a high-volume production car, not a Ferrari 250 GTO. So even if they're not being made anymore, there are still plenty of good, original examples out there. Why would we want to save as many in original condition as possible? It certainly wouldn't increase their resale value, if that were the motive then we should be destroying as many as possible to drive the prices up. I still don't think you'd ever see a 240z sell for the same price range as a 250 GTO, even if there were only 30 of them left in the world. I will be rotting in my grave before that happens. Besides, the thing that made these cars great was that they were a dirt cheap performance car, and to another extent easy to modify.

With the way things are going, I'm also skeptical if future generations will even give two humps about the existence of these autos. Everything is moving quickly towards the battery-powered soulless Jetson mobiles of the future as the world moves away from fossil fuels. Enjoy conveniently filling your tank at the corner gas station for $60 while it lasts. I wouldn't be surprised at all if I reach the golden years of my life and gasoline/ICE powered cars are considered a novelty.

TL;DR: Keep the car, kill the rust, drop in SBC, modify to your heart's content. Simple progression of events. Above all else, enjoy the journey and the car.

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-Chris

Welcome from RI. At least your saving a Z. I'd rather see it original, but all to there own. If your looking for a SBC, my brother has a 327 with a 400 tranni. and it can pull tree stumps out or rev up past 6 g's smooth if you want. I can ask what he's selling it for if interested. It's in a truck that has rotted away, engine is not original. I also have a complete 302 engine as well. So good luck with it.

In my heart I know that Chris (Phrog) is right. The guy owns
the car, so he can darn well do whatever he wants to with it.

But when it comes to OLD Zs, and my thing about originality,
I just feel better about ranting even if I get nowhere.

I know I am rigid, intractable, obdurate, unyielding, biased, and
opinionated. And those are my GOOD qualities.
EDIT: I forgot hardheaded.
~Rick~

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All Z Best,.......Kathy & Rick

1969 Z.CAR (#00013 10/69) 8/30/76
1969 ITSA.Z (#00171 11/69) 8/24/73
1970 OLD.Z (#06289 6/70) original owner
1971 510 2dr since 12/31/75
1969 1600 rdstr (our 160-Z)
1971 (#19851 1/71) sold
1975 75.Z (#01343 1/75)

and we still love ya Rick!

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Mike Tubiak
1978 Datsun 280Z - HLS30-438694

Chris,
I totally agree.

I'd like to add that if you dropped in a V8 from a Pontiac G8 and slap on a roots blower (a la VXR8 Bathurst Edition) that would be totally killer.

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-Chris