240z – Page 4 – the DAILY DATSUN

March 13, 2013March 13, 2013

Zpotted: Z car, rracked

woohoo! we made it to 100 posts!

My wife txt’d me a photo this morning: “spotted” she said. “Young girl driving it. Loud engine”. haha – thanks babe!

Check out this rracked* mixed S30 Z from behind. On top of the newer paint and 13″/14″ minilites, they’ve gone and body matched the tail light bezel, and mixed early / late model Z tail lights. I’m not sure if the roof rack is that JDM fad going around, but given the recent weather, biking season IS upon us. Regardless – cheers to the Z, you’ve been Zpotted!

*DailyDatsun word for ‘with roof rack’ and the USDM/JDM roof rack scene. I’m neither for nor against it, to each his/her own. I’m just coining the term. rrracked! 😛

March 10, 2013

Sunday Zpotted: Coast-to-Coast edition

If you look hard enough, there are still a good number of Datsun Z’s on the road. Now I’m not talking about seeing Z’s at a show, say, like the upcoming Motorsport Auto’s Z Car West Coast Nationals. I’m talking about Daily Datsun’s Zpotted!

This post is a coast-to-coast edition because in the same day as my sister zpotted a Z in Mass, my cousin txt’d me a pic of one he saw in California! How fun is that!?

First is a well seasoned Datsun 240z from my sister – spotting it in the Whole Food parking lot in Boston. There are several surprises here: 1) obviously it’s being driven and not stored for the winter time (typical winter grime on the car) and 2) it’s all the way from Arizona. Uh.. 70’s Japanese car, I’d like you to meet something called Salt and Snow, and by the way, there are not your friends. Moving on, it’s looks like it’s in great shape and kept original. It’s even sporting those nice American Spirit (or some classic) 5 spoke dealer installed wheels. Oy, i hope it makes it through the season!

Daily-Datsun-zpotted-wholeFoodsBoston

Next is nicely done modified Z spotted by my cousin up in Daly City! This is a great example of a beloved owner massaging the great aspects of the Z: blacked out the chrome trim, badges and bumpers, flaring out the wheel wells, and adding that spoiler. Also sporting some nice two-piece mesh wheels. If I had to guess, this is a 240z with something beastly under the hood. Flares are typical for Datsun owners, but for such a large flare in the rear (and check out that deep dish on the wheel), it’s planning on slaying the road with torque. Additionally, they’ve opted to go with the 280z vented hood for additional cooling in the engine bay. Black out all the shiny bits for that menacing touch. Yep, there’s something serious lurking under there!

There you have it! Zpotted on the East coast, zpotted on the West. One original, one modified. One in snow, one in sun. Double the Zpotted on Daily Datsun – enjoy!

Thanks Kathryn and Mike for submitting!

March 6, 2013

Craigslist – 1972 Datsun 240z – cheap

I’m a Craigslist troll. Any chance I get, i’ll be on there searching ‘Datsun’.

This one pulled up this morning, and it looks like a steal. A stored 1972 orange 240z with tons of recent goodies. Really, there should be a 1 in front of that price.

Just in case the link is gone, here’s the post / pics.

Up for sale is a 1972 Datsun 240Z.

This car was pulled out of a carport several months ago after sitting for several years.
I’ve gone over most of the mechanicals, and the Z is now back in great driving condition.
This is a clean title California blue plate Z, however it does have rust in the floorpans, lower rear corners and hatch.
The chassis and body are solid, and you can either drive it around as is and do the body work over time, or just do the body work right away and have a great 240Z to drive around in.
It is a complete Z that hasn’t been butchered, with full original interior in great condition.
I have too many project cars, and as this is the most sorted of the bunch, I’m letting this one go.

All new parts installed within the last few months:
– Tokico HP Front Shocks
– Tokico HP Rear Shocks
– Eibach Spring Kit
– Door Weather Strips
– Front Lower OEM Ball Joints
– Steering Rack Boots
– Moog Tie Rods
– Front OEM Bearing Caps
– Front Wheel Bearing Seals
– Front Wheel Bearings
– Front Brake Pads
– Drum Brake Hardware
– Drum Brake Shoes
– Stainless Steel Brake Lines Front and Rear
– OEM Engine Air Filter
– Shifter Bushing Kit
– OEM Fan Belt
– OEM Fan Blade
– OEM Oil Filter
– Valve Cover Gasket
– Fuel Hoses
– Mechanical Fuel Pump
– Clutch Master Cylinder
– Clutch Slave Cylinder
– Brake Master Cylinder
– Prothane Sway Bar Bushings
– Prothane Sway Bar Endlinks
– Prothane Front Strut Rod Bushings
– Prothane Front Control Arm Bushings
– Prothane Rear Inner Control Arm Bushings
– Prothane Steering Column Bushing
– Battery
– Tires
– OEM Fuel Filter
– Fuel System Flushed
– Silvanna Premium Headlights x2
– Upgraded Headlight Harness
– 280ZX Alternator
– 280ZX Alternator Conversion Plug
– NGK Plug Wires
– Spark Plugs
– Distributor Cap
– Distributor Points
– Redline Oils Used in Transmission and Differential
– Redline Water Wetter Used in Cooling System
– OEM Left Front Bumper Trim (not installed)
Original post: http://sfbay.craigslist.org/pen/cto/3662776091.html

March 4, 2013

Front bumper!

I had some time this weekend to finally put on that front bumper.

I bought a bumper on CL a while back, and while it isn’t in perfect condition (dent in front), it’ll do for now. On with the install! (and lots of pics)
You’ll need:
– bolts that held in the 280z bumper shocks
– nuts that held on the 280z bumper to the shocks
– 14mm socket wrench
– drill w/ a bit between 1/2″ and 3/8″ bit (if you’re going to drill the 2nd hole into the frame)

A few posts ago, I was ~~cleaning up~~ whipping into shape those stainless steel Z bumper brackets in order to put a 240z bumper on a 280z. Now that they’re ready to go, it’s time to fit the bumper.

After some finagling, I figured out how the brackets should go and attached to the car frame. Here’s a diagram:
240zBumperBrackets
Note: the brackets point outward and positioned so that the slots are on the lower half. You can see where the existing hole lines up.

However, the bumper guards didn’t exactly line up! Ugh – off by an 1/4″ on both sides. So for now, off they go, until I can figure something out (because I do like them!).

A quick dry fit – not too bad. From the bird’s eye view, you can really see that dent. Eh, we’ll roll with it for now!

Okay, so the bumper isn’t show room, but I at least want to clean out some rust and polish that chrome up. But first, and little straightening.

The inside was fairly rusted so i took to it with a drill wire brush attachment, primed with rust enamel and finished it with good ol truck bed lining black. At least it’ll look super clean should anyone take a peek.

Daily-Datsun-240z-bumper (19)

0000 (quadruple zero) steel wool is the way to go for cleaning up chrome. Anything more coarse will just leave scratches. Here’s what looks to be some oxidation and left over gray paint over-spray from the previous owner. Cleaned up nicely with the 0000 steel wool and polished with Mother’s chrome / mag polish. And now i can see the reflection of the car.

Another example of cleaning on the license plate tabs.

Daily-Datsun-240z-bumper (9) Daily-Datsun-240z-bumper (8)

Mount and screw with the existing bolts / nuts from the 280z bumper… viola!

Overall, not too bad of a fitment. The brackets (if i may say once again) are a little less than desirable, so be prepared to modify them to get the right fit. At stock, the brackets are pretty much maxed out, pushing right up against the frame of the car, so I won’t be able to move the bumper back any further. There are additional bolts that help keep the bumper in plain with the ground, and they barely meet up. If you notice from the passenger side picture, the bumper tip and hole into the body don’t quite match up (which could also be in part to the dented bumper). I’ll figure something out, but for now, I’m happy.

Next up will be drilling some holes in the frame for the 2nd slot in the bumper bracket; give it some some extra stability.

But for now, another 240z bumper has been installed on another 280z, and all is looking good in the Z world.

February 24, 2013

240z bumper brackets on a 280z

I love the look of the simple, streamlined bumpers of the 240z (and used on 1/2 of the series of 260z’s) over the heavy and thick bumpers of the 280z. Just check those out!

As the mid-70’s emission standards crushed down on the carburetor’d engines of the day and gave way to fuel efficiency (see, not all change is bad), safety standards tightened it’s seat belt and created a war on unsafe aesthetics. Thus, Datsun had to change it’s more or less cosmetically thin bumper for a safe, unwieldy hunk of steel that people today still loathe. Nearly 20lbs of loathing.

If you remember back in March, my brother and I removed the bumpers and increased gas mileage.

Well they’ve been off ever since because the brackets I got from ebay..were less than satisfactory. I’ve already mentioned that correspondence with their maker, v8-240z, was non-existent. But even worse, when I finally got around to test mounting the brackets… the bolts didn’t fit in the holes.

Wait, what? Yep, the original bolts do not fit in ANY of the mangled, burred, half-ass hand-drilled holes. Awesome.

Time to break out that Dremel. The grinding stone attachment worked wonders and allowed me to clean up those unsightly edges to something relatively straight.

You can see the top slot is the one currently being widened / cleaned up. The bottom slot is actually 1/2 cleaned up by me and doesn’t really show the maker’s work in all its wavy glory, but you get the idea.

Had them done in 10 mins. Now to mount…

February 22, 2013

Zpotted: I zpy with my little z eye…

I love it. Nothing like driving around and the shape just catches your eye. I can’t explain it. Sometimes it’s just a view of the back side 100+ yards away that makes you look.

This time I Zpotted a brown Z in parking lot behind a sign. Since I was making a left away from it’s parking lot, I couldn’t circle around to check it out. Even with brief encounters, I love zpotting.

February 22, 2013

Zpotted: White 240z

Daily-Datsun-Zpotted-white-240z-1

I was on Santana Row picking up a few things for Valentine’s Day when I spotted a 240z in the parking lot.

A little worse for wear, but looked like it was being driven! Missing some emblems, wood-composite steering wheel, wood shift knob, and sported a 280z vented hood and 280z/zx wheels.

What is really great about this one despite it’s condition, is the low VIN! Check it: 23,270! Which would make it a 1971 Datsun 240z “Series II”. Zpotted.

January 24, 2013January 23, 2013

MotorTrend: the Idea of a Sports Car

One clings to a bygone era in defining the sports car as a small, lightweight open two-seater with minimum creature comfort balancing a maximum of driver engagement and agile handling…

Ah yes, the sports car. Exhilarating, fun, and for the everyday person, cheap. I just happened to pop on MotorTrend, and they had an article detailing the Volvo 1800, the AMC AMX and yes, the Datsun 240z.

For some gorgeous pics and more on these cars, read on.

January 17, 2013

Datsun Dealership Parts Bin

Whoa, not every day you hear of a Datsun dealership being bought…who would’ve thought they still even existed?!

Supposedly they do, and luckily for us, there’s a guy on the ClassicZCar forums that just bought one out. Dave or ‘Nismo Silvia’, who is also a 240z owner, just bought a Datsun Dealership that closed in the 80’s and left behind a 25′ trailer FULL of parts. YES! Can anyone say, “NOS”? :] Yep, that probably means a treasure chest of ‘new old stock’ parts just waiting to mate with Z’s, 510’s and all other Datsuns for a refresh party. A pure NOS-fest, for sure!

Wow. exciting. it’s not even my trailer and i’m getting excited. It’s like watching Storage Wars…but this time, you KNOW it has Datsun parts in it. haha!

January 7, 2013

Time to get a little Dats-loco!

Datsloco comes back in 2013 for it’s 8th Annual Datsun & Nissan Carshow and Swap Meet!

We got a brief chance to check out the end of the Datsloco fest last year and it was a hoot meeting all the great people and their cars there. This year the 8th Annual Datsloco event will be held on May 4th, 2013 in Manteca, CA. Here’s a map, and additional info. Get that car prep’d and ready!

From the Craigslist post:

Its that time again to mark your calendars and get all the datsun families together for our 8th annual swapmeet/show n shine. We have had such a great turn out every year,so lets make this one even bigger

We will be selling datsun cars as well as parts. Admission is free and only $10 for a selling spot. May 4th from 8am to 3pm at 934 perimeter dr manteca ca 95337. Come one or come all, bring your rides and lets see if we can fill this place up like we did last year. Come out and have fun and meet car enthusiasts like yourself. This will be mainly datsuns and nissans but other makes are welcomed to join us. See u all there. For more info u can call or text me at 209-298-513zero. Sorry no burnouts and no alcohol allowed. I WILL NOT BE COOKING THIS TIME DUE TO LOCATION. SORRY

FREE Admission, $10 fee if you are selling parts.

What: datsun nissan event When: may 4th from 8am to 3pm Where: 934 perimeter dr manteca ca 95337 Why: cuz we enjoy “doing it in a datsun” For more info call or text me at 2o9298513o datsloco

And that’s Datsloco.