1978 Datsun 280Z

[luckyseven]

Epic update is epic Much to love in there, so much Datsun goodness

Apr 26, 2015 0:16:14 GMT camerashy said:

How about a ratty but happy RX7.... luckyseven ?

Nice original SA-chassis steel bumper model, too. Rarer than Oozelum birds over here now. Just to be contrary, I'd be very tempted by the Celica Supra or the Camaro though. What an Aladdin's cave that is inside, mind!

[sparkyt]

I have a rear fin if your interested. . Pm me

[camerashy]

atomman - They certainly weren't cheap, but the Aussie dollar vs the Loonie made them a little more palatable than some I've seen listed.

randywanger_ - I looked for a 510 for you, but unfortunately none were present, I did however sell some 510 parts on behalf of a friend figured you would like the white one with your plans for your 510!

infamous - Glad you've been liking the updates

bstardchild - Historic plates are a bit of a dark area. They're this weird rather peculiar thing in the license registration system here. To explain....when you get license plates...they are registered to YOU not the car. Makes ringing cars much harder (in theory) as you can't steal license plates and throw them on a stolen car.

Historic plates are an oddity as they are issued by the MTO (Ministry of Transportation for Ontario) specifically for a car. Any car over 30 years old can get them but with some caveats - largely unmodified ' substantially unchanged or unmodified from the original manufacturer product' so my Z for example...with chopped arches and carbon bits...shouldn't be eligible. It saves you a *tiny* bit of money relatively per year on our equivalent of road tax. Sounds great, but then you have to get historic car insurance...which specifies you can only drive it to parades, car shows etc. It's restrictive. Certain historic policies specify you can't even fix a transponder for the toll motorways like the 407 to the windscreen...or you invalidate your insurance. Scroll down to post 3 - www.ontariohighwaytrafficact.com/topic1613.html gives you an idea of the hassle involved. Other than for the elderly gentleman who literally *only* drives to car shows and is in bed by 9pm, I am yet to see the point.

[s20]

Apr 26, 2015 2:45:16 GMT camerashy said:

$100 (each). NOS. JDM ZG Fender mirrors.

I'll say again $100. If you can find a pair for anything shy of $500 USD, USED now you're a lucky man.

I got away with murder, or at least it feels that way. I have hungered after 'real' fender mirrors for years but could never justify their bonkers cost. Here they are, brand new, from Nissan, last pair that were hidden away by my ever resourceful Parts Manager, Rick at Brantford Nissan.

Sorry to (possibly) disappoint you, but they are nothing to do with the ZG, and in fact nothing to do with the S30-series Z. No S30-series Z left the factory with chrome 'bullet' fender mirrors.

They are in fact either P510 Bluebird mirrors, or PGC10 Skyline mirrors. They have a shorter stem than the correct S30-series Z fender mirrors, and the stem meets the base at a different angle too. Due to this they actually don't function as well as the correct (long stem) fender mirrors do. People bolt these onto their Zs and then complain that fender mirrors are "useless"...

The boxes should have the part numbers on them. If they are P510 then they will most likely have an 'A' prefix in the second part of their part numbers. These are still available from Nissan, and at roughly the price you paid.

For the record, the 'HS30-H' model Fairlady 240ZG had the same satin black painted long stem fender mirrors as the contemporary Z,Z-L,432, 432-R, Fairlady 240Z and Fairlady 240Z-L models.

[camerashy]

Alan, I was kind of hoping you'd notice and chime in I will check the part number now, either way, I can't complain too much for what I paid and I wasn't ever really thinking that fender mirrors were going to work very well whatever got mounted to them with all the vibration, a quick shoulder glance would be more useful. Not disappointed, just now better informed

Any pointers as to how to tell when the g nose covers/trim arrive to know if they're repro/genuine? I'm not too concerned (either way) so long as they fit half decently but it'd be great to know all the same.

Write that book already

[s20]

Apr 26, 2015 21:17:09 GMT camerashy said:

Any pointers as to how to tell when the g nose covers/trim arrive to know if they're repro/genuine? I'm not too concerned (either way) so long as they fit half decently but it'd be great to know all the same.

Well, unless they come in the original Nissan boxes (plain brown for the earliest, red white and blue second, blue and white after that and then finally grey and white) and have the fitting instructions, anchor nuts & countersunk self-tappers and the correct JIS-dotted chromed fine thread fixing screws, they are unlikely to be originals...

The ZG shape headlamp cover trims are far easier to produce than the short nose type, so there have always been more repros and re-pops for them. There are at least two or three current makers/suppliers in Japan. I should think your recent acquisitions are far more likely to be recent re-pops and they'll be just about as good (or just about as bad, depending on how you feel about this kind of thing..!) as the originals. It's usually the mounting hardware that's different.

[camerashy]

So s20 for your records, here is what I've got.









No A in the part number but you're absolutely right that they have a shorter stem from the others I've seen.

In other news, today has been about sanding. So. Much. Sanding. I hate fibreglass. Eurgh.

[camerashy]

Apr 26, 2015 21:40:09 GMT s20 said:

Apr 26, 2015 21:17:09 GMT camerashy said:

I should think your recent acquisitions are far more likely to be recent re-pops and they'll be just about as good (or just about as bad, depending on how you feel about this kind of thing..!) as the originals. It's usually the mounting hardware that's different.

If the poor quality steel on the new 'OE' from Nissan front fenders were anything to go on, I can believe it. Did Nissan just farm out a lot of reproduction of spares for the older models? Trying to weld those fenders was nothing short of a nightmare. Paper thin and poor steel but all came with original part numbers

[s20]

Apr 26, 2015 22:22:21 GMT camerashy said:

So s20 for your records, here is what I've got.

No A in the part number but you're absolutely right that they have a shorter stem from the others I've seen.

Yes, so they are indeed P510 Bluebird SSS mirrors. The original part numbers were 96301 and 96302-A0500 (A0800), and the final superseded numbers are 96301 and 96302-N0400. The supersessions probably indicate small updates in material or construction by the manufacturer (EverWing, in this case I think).

Don't tighten the nuts too tight against the springs in the base! (Don't ask me how I know...). Only just enough to make them sit firm. The spring is in there to allow the mirror to move if it gets hit by something (like a pedestrian's elbow, for example). Road safety measure.

[camerashy]

For everyone elses benefit...found a snap of the mirrors on what they're meant for, a 510 bluebird.

[camerashy]

G-nose now fits...as do the indicators.





The fibreglass on the driverside needs a tad tweaking for it to sit right but it's almost there.


Mirrors mounted as per some superb instructions by s20 over on HybridZ, picked myself up a nice step drillbit, made mounting them a breeze.



A final sand over everywhere else and its time for paint.

[camerashy]

Wow. Last updated this in April. Yikes. So to make up for it, before I depart for a much needed vacation, here are some updates.

Gearbox

I didn't fancy playing Mr. Stretch Armstrong when replacing the oil, so figured a new oil filler location wasn't exactly a dumb idea.



Take the B&M quick shifter

Yeah...as good a spot as any



Make holey



Tap a thread, add an allen plug and remember to put the spring back.



Make bolty




Handily, I didn't have to move the reverse switch as I have seen in some of the other 240sx box conversion threads. Not really sure why, but the bellhousing I had
didn't need it moving. Bizarre.



There was still the slight issue of getting the Datsun bellhousing to fit the Nissan box.



Some nice man called Gerry at a very handy machine shop I know in Kitchener did me a large mill and made it fit.



Like a glove





Some bigger bolts



Bam



The old clutch release sleeve collar was pooched...



After three false starts, wrong part numbers and a wild goose chase, we had lift off.



Now we bring the two together in holy matrimony





Boootiful

[varelse]

Loooong. Makes me feel sad, because my little 3K and box are so tiny, haha.
Hope you don't spill gearbox oil all over your interior when you next fill it!
Where you going on vacation? I'm about to go overseas, and feel like I should go do some work on my car before I head off, haha.

With that, motivation goooo!

[camerashy]

Time to get that in place.





I deleted the hood lock bracket.



So with some help from a friend and the crane. We bullied it home.












Checking that the manifold fits (it's meant for an L20 Skyline engine)...it even clears the steering rod. Boom.







Quite a productive day considering!

[camerashy]

Now going back a bit earlier in the month, after having a great weekend at the girlfriends cottage up on Lake Huron with the new canoe, I decided to get the back end of the car finished.



North of Kincardine, ON if anyone is interested, lovely spot, awesome place to spend the long weekend. I too was surprised my phone could take a photo that good!

So, the diff. Sealant, gasket, sealant.







Some blanking plugs until I decide it needs an oil cooler pump setup.





Makeshift Tim Hortons Ice Cap cup turned funnel.



Fill with oil that costs more than Dom Pérignon by the litre until it needs replacing in 200 km after running in the LSD. Eurgh.



Next I borrowed one of works old mills to shave some material off the diff hanger brace so it would fit properly. Technotoytuning and ArizonaZ car have differing designs...fit together they won't without some alterations.





What was next? Oh yeah, new driveshafts. This is the plug and play Wolf Creek Racing setup that uses Porsche CV's. I had put this off for far too long, got this done on Friday night, well worth it.

They come labelled, one is longer than the other, make sure it goes to the right site.





Cut the corner off the grease bags and then REALLY pack them well with grease from both sides.





Zip tie together



Install and torque. I still need to lockwire the bolts but they're in.





Not half shabby. Back end complete.





Lastly, my fancy smancy ZG headlight covers came from Japan. Made to order it turned out, a few minor defects in the lexan but they'll do.

I mocked them up with masking tape to get the fit right.





Delicately drilled holes for the nutserts







That's all for now folks, time to head back to the motherland with a little detour to Iceland en route for a while. Catch up soon.

[varelse]

Damn, but that undercarriage is sexy looking.

[atomman]

YES YES YES !!

[Speedle]

Awesome! this is coming together nicely! Spectacular update on all accounts!

[dougie1142]

WEll done! Looking excellent..

[infamous]

Amazing thread, looking forward to more updates!