After we had finished building our house we were in a position where I could buy a Z car. I started looking around for a 350Z - something new and realiable. Finding a solid Z car even up to the Z32 is a challenge in the Pacific Northwest. I took a Z32 before I bought it to my mechanic to check out and an hour later he called me and said "how bad do you want this thing - it's rotten". As timing would have it rumours of the new 370Z started poping up. I took a new 2008 350Z for a test drive but at $52,000 before taxes it seemed money not well spent. I talked to the sales guy and he told me the 370Z was just an updated 350Z with a bigger motor. I started looking into it and found out it was a completely different beast. I spent countless hours drooling over the 370Z but saying I couldn't afford it but maybe I'd hold out for a couple of years and get a used one. My wife grew weary of my obsessing and drooling and said just go and buy the car - we can afford it and you've given up having a sport car for the last eight years so stop worrying about it. I spent another month resisting but I sucumbed when I called the dealership on the mainland and the had the EXACT car configuration I was looking for and it was the ONLY sports package available at the time in all of western Canada - must be a sign.
Here are a couple of pictures of my 2009 370Z Sports 6MT with Stillen CBE, HFC, CAI, sway bars, clear bra, and tint.
I was a grinning fool (still am). When I wasn't driving or washing and waxing the car I would periodicaly wander into the garage still in disbelife that I actually had a new Nissan Z car.
When I had my first 280ZX I made my own carpet kit, built fiberglass speaker pods, installed a killer stereo system (part time job at the time - handy that), redid the interior, new vinyl, etc. I really wanted to do mechanical work on the car but I didn't have any previous experience and I was worried I'd break my daily driver and be stuck. Now that I had my 370Z I thought it would be cool to get an old Z car of some sort that I could learn on with my kids. I kept watching the local ads but it was all rotten junk. Then one day I came across an ad for a 240Z which it claimed wasn't rusty. Well it turned out the car was not only not rusty but it was actually completely restored from the ground up with a very interesting history. The deal was way too good to pass up and the rest as they say is history.
Year: 1972
Make: Datsun
Model: 240Z
Colour: Subaru Newport Blue
General Info
This was one of six cars that were to be built as weekend track cars in 1972. Two were started one of which was this car. This car was originally owned by Douglas Mouat of Seattle, WA. Two of the other racers - Phil Boersig and Terry Sweet were speed demons of every kind and before completing the other four Z's the two men decided to fly a single prop airplane underneat the Tacoma Narrows Bridge. One of the wings of the plane hit the water and unfortunately they both perished in the accident. The two completed Z's were used as pace ars for a memorial race in 1973 in their honour. The dash plaque from that race remains in the vehicle after the restoration.
The car was sold shortly there after and was garaged for eleven years. Car was then put in storage for about 18 years before it was purchased and fully restored after two and a half years of restoration.
Performance Mods
1972 Performance mods include the following:
-Triple Mikuni Carbs
-Ported/Polished Head
-Performance Cam
-Full header/exhaust
-Nissan Comp 5 speed
-Competition drive shaft
-LSD Diff
Resto Mods:
-Cusco front strut bar
-Konig Rewind 16x7 Wheels
-Front spoiler (rear not installed yet)
-All emblems shaved except Datsun logo on hood
-MSD 6AL ignition and SS Blaster coil
Here you can see some of the lines borrowed from the 240Z and used on the 370Z including the upswooped rear window, etc.
Some pictures of the engine bay
After the HID headlights and lens covers
So that was a complete failure - well the finding an old Z car to fix up part. I've had a weak spot for the 280ZX since it was my first car and it was one of the least loved of the Z cars. I have always wanted two Z cars. First a 280ZX turbo five speed with the digital dash and the other was a 300ZX twin turbo five speed. I've looked at a lot of cars in the last 17 years and most of them around here are rotten. I managed to find one that was apparently not very rusty but was across the boarder. I figured out how to import it and went down hoping for the best but having experienced the worst. Turned out to be in amazing condition and every time I dig deeper I'm more pleasantly surprised. A solid S130 is rare indeed around here....
My 1983 280ZX 5MT. This is my project car. Excellent condition and virtually rust free.
When I first got her
Starting to mod. Rota RB-R 17 x 9.5 with Yokohama S-Drive 235 front and 255 rear. Ceramic coated header, 2.5 mandrel exhaust, Walker Ultraflow muffler, CAI, urethane bushings, Tokico springs and struts, Grant wheel, Navigation, custom RFID alarm, HID conversion, new carpets. Currently building a turbo motor for a turbo swap.
With the 30th Aniversary air dam:
Soooo.... that should have been it. I kept looking at cars pleased that I found a nice S130 and that the world hadn't changed - they were still (sadly) all rotten. I kept looking at 300ZXTT's - there were some pretty amazing deals and I know that the Z32 is probably at the bottom of it's price cycling and in the next 5 to 10 years a nice unmodified Z32 is going to be tough to find. A car isn't typically a good investment but with the Z32 being at the bottom of it's cycle and the economy in the crapper at the same time this is the time to buy one. The good deals were still more than I was willing to spend though. I was looking at some 300ZXTT when my wife walked by and noticed a red 300ZX vert. "Hey what's that?". "Bleh it's a 300ZX convertible" I said. "Oohhhh I never knew they made a convertible 300ZX....." and the rest as they say is history.
My 1993 300ZX vert. Low mileage and mint condition!
...and now I realized that there are typically 200 once-in-a-lifetime-deals per year.... so I picked up a solid 280ZX turbo with the five speed and digital dash - my dream car. Did I mention when I picked up my NA 280ZX after I drove it for five minutes I wondered why I ever wanted a digital dash.... anyhow dream come true I suppose ;P I'm rebuilding my first engine - a turbo L28ET to swap into the NA. The 280ZXT will be the test mule for the Mega Squirt III ECU and other mods I'm planing for the NA.
My 280ZXT right after I picked her up. She's going to be the test mule for my turbo swap on the NA. Nice solid car too but rusting out in the strangest place by the rear tail lights yet the spare tire well and even the inner fender are solid.... strange.
