looking to buy a 1979 280ZX - have a question

[hoovie26]

Hey guys, a friend of mine(who happens to own the 280ZX I'm looking to buy) recommended this forum as a good resource, so I thought I'd ask a couple of questions.

The ZX I'm looking to buy is in pretty good condition(if you know djbutton, he has posted pics of it here, so you can see some of the car) but from what I understand, it has some frame rail rot. To repair this, I plan to take it to a welding shop and have them do the fixes(assuming he doesn't sell it from under me before I get the money together). Would it be recommended to take it to a body shop instead, or would a welder be able to complete repairs without damaging the rest of the car, and why should I pick one type of shop over another?

Thanks

[Mr1der]

take it to a body shop.

they have welders there

they should have a frame alignment rack too.

[hoovie26]

sounds good....just need to buy the car now

[ShinHed]

Mr1der is right.

Here we even have shops that specifically do frame and rust repair.

PS

You sure you wanna spend money on that Z? It's known as one of the least popular so the aftermarket for it may stink.http://hybridz.org/

[Mr1der]

the ZX was the deemed the least popular for the excessive weight for the meak power a stock L28e/et puts out. On the track, it didn't do anything to discredit the Z's racing legend. Just ask Paul Newman

I'm definitely not gonna argue that it's the black sheep of the Z family, but they're still fun and good looking cars with enough aftermarket support to have fun with. The suspension on it would probably be the hardest/most expensive part to mod. honestly..this is something I need to look further into being my S12 200SX shares the majority of the front suspension with the 280ZX.

engine wise...there's plenty to do with the L28...the L28et found in the Turbo 280ZX seems to find it's way into older S30's quite a bit too.

but in this case, price would be the most important factor.

I'd love to have a 280ZX personally, and most likely will have that or an S30 within a few years.

[evildky]

if the rot is too bad it might be cheaper to pass and find a better car, trust me, it's better to spend more on a better chassis, unless you have the skills to do it yourself or have friends who do, zedd findings and big dog make replacement rails for the S130's if it's that bad off, if it's only minor rust then hopefully you won't need new rails

[hoovie26]

Mr1der >>> While the 280ZX may be the least popular of the Z line, simply put, I just like the car. I've done a little research into aftermarket parts, and there are alternative suspensions available(at least for the rear....I'm not sure about the front end).

evildky >>> While I haven't been under the car myself yet, my friend dan, whom I work with and owns the car, has told me that there are sections of the bottom of the frame rails towards the rear that have some holes and sections missing that are about 3-4" in length. I believe that this isn't enough to warrant whole new rails, but a good patch job should do the trick. As I understand it, the front rails on this car look to have been done already at some point in the past.

While I wouldn't necessarily call it 'minor' rust, it shouldn't need new rails, and while the car is a little rough, I think for the money this is the best car in general I will find for the money, power and economy wise(fuel that is).

Not to mention there is a guy in my area with parts from 3 79-81 ZX's so I can get stock parts, probably pretty cheaply...and I've seen some aftermarket stuff that isn't too poorly priced either

[Mr1der]

if the price seems worthwhile...jump on it.

I honestly love the way the 280ZX looks.

looks went downhill with the Z31

[DJButton]

You still should have bought the car man, she's so purdy! Ah well I might end up keeping it.

[cpt jack]

if the price seems worthwhile...jump on it.

I honestly love the way the 280ZX looks.

looks went downhill with the Z31

i like the way my zx looks.....

BTW my zx

http://sincityz.org/gallery/2006-05-28/IMG_016.jpg

http://sincityz.org/gallery/2006-05-28/IMG_028.jpg

http://sincityz.org/gallery/2006-05-28/IMG_049.jpg

what you guys think?

Mods, Tokicko Struts and springs, full S8t pipe, MAF tweek, exedy stage 2 clutch and yea.... thats it for right now....

[Mr1der]

how much of a drop is on it? 1.5?

looks like a solid start on the car though.

NA or turbo? oh...dig the ZX-R wannabe in there...I love those ugly bastards.

[evildky]

look to the left, it's a real ZXR, and it's been wacked pretty good in the rear quarter, the kid still daily drives it

[hoovie26]

button -> I tell you what...I'll trade you my truck for your RB powered 240(when it's done)

cpt jack -> your zx looks pretty clean... me likey!

[cpt jack]

button -> I tell you what...I'll trade you my truck for your RB powered 240(when it's done)

cpt jack -> your zx looks pretty clean... me likey!

hahahah thanks man its nice it shal soon be turboed or RB'ed.... i dun know what i will go with but i want more power i did alot of suspension and in the turns it keeps up with evo's and things like that but S8t away i get pwned... so i decided i need power.... alot more of it....

[Mr1der]

look to the left, it's a real ZXR, and it's been wacked pretty good in the rear quarter, the kid still daily drives it

ouch...I hope he fixes it sometime soon.

[nismo 03]

the 280xz is heavy *** hell i know i had to push mine for a block lol

suspension and body roll are a big downer yet they were the most popular cars that nissan put out when they came out and if it wasnt for the 280 and its sale's nissan might not be what it is today that made the car heavy because of luxury, and the l28 was slow with only 145hp because nissan was trying to improve mpg. Suspension was crap because they went with the same set up as the one on the 510 datsun (that was about 1000000x smaller the the fair lady lol)

yet the car did great

The 280ZX proved successful in various classes of racing, particularly in the US. Significant results include:

* 1979 SCCS C Production Category (Bob Sharp Racing 280ZX) * 1979 and 1980 IMSA GTU Championship (Electramotive Datsun 280ZX) * 1982 and 1983 IMSA GTO Championship (Electramotive Datsun 280ZX Turbo)

The 1983 Electramotive 280ZX Turbo produced 700 hp, and reached a terminal speed of 140 mph in the standing quarter mile.

my reason for having one was the battle between the mustang 5.0 and the 280zx (i love cars but mustangs are not cars!!!)

[evildky]

the weight gain in the S130 chassis I feel is over stated, it weighs about 100 lbs more then the last of the S30's and with the added weight you gain 4 wheel disk brakes! vented front rotors! power wondows and locks, nicer interior, stiffer chassis, might be a bit bigger but still a great chassis

[nismo 03]

the weight gain in the S130 chassis I feel is over stated, it weighs about 100 lbs more then the last of the S30's and with the added weight you gain 4 wheel disk brakes! vented front rotors! power wondows and locks, nicer interior, stiffer chassis, might be a bit bigger but still a great chassis

the 240,260,280z was 2355lbs and the 280zx was 2825lbs making it a difference of 470lbs

but i love my fat lady

[sharjt]

We've had this arguement before and according to my spec sheet which has been posted by several other people as well the 280zx is about 50lbs lighter than the 280z

240z - 2355260z - 2605280z - 2875280zx- 2825

here's another website with the same spece sheet.

http://www.geocities.com/~z-car/specs/

This one lists them all as a little heavier but the zx is still only around 200lbs heavier than the 280z.

http://www.conceptcarz.com/default.aspx

I could go on futher with more if anyone cares.

But at this age they're all just a little bulemic anyway (You know great for about a month then they puke all over themselves). Lets not make them have anymore of a complex about their weight.

[cpt jack]

the 280xz is heavy *** hell i know i had to push mine for a block lol

suspension and body roll are a big downer yet they were the most popular cars that nissan put out when they came out and if it wasnt for the 280 and its sale's nissan might not be what it is today that made the car heavy because of luxury, and the l28 was slow with only 145hp because nissan was trying to improve mpg. Suspension was crap because they went with the same set up as the one on the 510 datsun (that was about 1000000x smaller the the fair lady lol)

yet the car did great

The 280ZX proved successful in various classes of racing, particularly in the US. Significant results include:

* 1979 SCCS C Production Category (Bob Sharp Racing 280ZX) * 1979 and 1980 IMSA GTU Championship (Electramotive Datsun 280ZX) * 1982 and 1983 IMSA GTO Championship (Electramotive Datsun 280ZX Turbo)

The 1983 Electramotive 280ZX Turbo produced 700 hp, and reached a terminal speed of 140 mph in the standing quarter mile.

my reason for having one was the battle between the mustang 5.0 and the 280zx (i love cars but mustangs are not cars!!!)

I keep up with stock 5.0's but now im gettin this old school race header 6-1 heat coated and wraped professionally... a N42 intake doin the 240tb up grade, full exhaust and turbo maf gut swap.... ahhh should be a nice 30+ hp increase.....

[evildky]

We've had this arguement before and according to my spec sheet which has been posted by several other people as well the 280zx is about 50lbs lighter than the 280z

240z - 2355260z - 2605280z - 2875280zx- 2825

here's another website with the same spece sheet.

http://www.geocities.com/~z-car/specs/

This one lists them all as a little heavier but the zx is still only around 200lbs heavier than the 280z.

http://www.conceptcarz.com/default.aspx

I could go on futher with more if anyone cares.

But at this age they're all just a little bulemic anyway (You know great for about a month then they puke all over themselves). Lets not make them have anymore of a complex about their weight.

that pretty well sums it up, bottom line is how much your cars weighs and how much power your car makes, I'm working on a Z31 I hope to get under 2700 lbs with me in it! and those were about 3200 lbs! my 240Z weighs only 2280 with me in it, and not all 240Z's weighed the same, mine is a series one chassis, no bumper shocks, shorter driveshaft, lighter trans mount, less interior etc