Project: track 240z

[Chris]

yes! keep rolling Dave. I was going to ask about those orange spots, looked like rust in the pictures but I'm glad to hear the body is in good shape underneath all the sound deadening.

[Dave]

hah, don't be mislead :-). The orangish stuff in the floor pan is rust; the bright orange along the firewall, trans tunnel, and lower inside edge of the door frame is paint.

[Chris]

oh well either way it doesn't look too bad. a little sanding should get all that up

[Andy]

Do you yourself a favor and order 30-40 lbs of dry ice. Throw it in the cabin while you enjoy a beer and come back with a nice plastic deadblow to smash the frozen tar to smithereens.

[Dave]

Actually, the car seems to be pretty free of factory sound deadening. I need to look a little more in-depth to determine between rust and factory stuff. The good thing is that with about an hour and a half, I was able to get virtually all of the crap the PO put down.

My next obstacle will be dropping the gas tank to install a fuel sump and replacing the factory fuel lines for some new, slightly larger lines. That *should* get the car running...

[Andy]

Actually, the car seems to be pretty free of factory sound deadening. I need to look a little more in-depth to determine between rust and factory stuff. The good thing is that with about an hour and a half, I was able to get virtually all of the crap the PO put down.

My next obstacle will be dropping the gas tank to install a fuel sump and replacing the factory fuel lines for some new, slightly larger lines.

What kind of sound deadening did the previous guy put in?

That *should* get the car running...

I've said this enough for it to send chills up my spine

[Dave]

I am continuing to make slow progress on the Z, which is always encouraging.
I have removed the stock gas tank with the intentions of cleaning the exterior, re-lining the inside, and potentially replacing the fuel level sender while I'm at it. I am also in the midst of planning out my fuel delivery options for the future, so I may be having the tank cut open to put in baffles and a sump. The stock tank is known for having fuel-starve problems on long LH turns at high speed, which would be a recipe for disaster once I get the turbo motor in. Since I have the tank out now, I might as well plan for the future. Accordingly, I am also researching fuel pump needs for both motors and devising a plan for both engines. I'll share more as this develops.
As stated in my previous post, I was going to replace the fuel lines as well. However I have discovered that they run along the very top of the trans tunnel, which would be extremely hard to get to without dropping the trans, driveshaft, and diff. For now I'm going to see if I can work around this until I *need* the 3/8" fuel lines. In the meantime, I'll be running some fuel cleaning agents to get any crap/buildup that may have accumulated in the past 35 years :-)

As part of the stock fuel system, there is a rather large steel tank located in the rear of the passenger side of the cabin that collects gas fumes and allows them to condense and flow back into the tank (I think). This will be eliminated in the process of my re-vamp/modernization so I share the before and after of this:




Finally, the last significant work is my first aero mod. I picked up a spare set of inspection covers (the flaps sitting next to the hood) for cheap with the intention of cutting out the center section to give an extra place for air to vent out of the engine bay. This should help to combat the front end lift that the car gets at higher speeds as a result of the firewall serving as a parachute b/c it can't evacuate air fast enough to get rid of the air that the giant frontal opening catches (yes, that's the root of the problem and it will be addressed in my future mods :-p). I have retained the stock mounting and functionality of these (except for keeping out the elements), while also cutting out a significant amount of weight from the stock peice.

A comparison of the before and after:


And how it will look on the car:


It's going to get a black mesh center section to give it a finished look and will get sprayed with the rest of the car when it gets a paint job. I may still cut out a little more meat on it, but I'm pretty pleased with it and feel I was able to match the outline pretty well (it couldn't be exact due to the mount and clasp at the front and rear.

[Dave]

So, despite what this thread would make you think, there is progress being made on the car. I've stripped the entire interior of everything except the steering column and pedals and I am now in the process of cleaning up/repairing small rust holes, prepping for interior paint, and making a new wiring harness for the interior/rear lights I'm also going to be replacing all of the guages and making a new wiring harness for the dash. I've installed the hood vents and should be making an appt in the next couple months to fab up a rollbar, replace the floor pans and frame rails, and do a few other small jobs.
From now on, I will be documenting all of the projects I do here for anybody interested in following along or seeing specifically what I've done. I will occasionally update this thread as major progress comes together or I take major steps on the car.

[Goodspeed]

Nice progress Dave. I can't wait to see this project finished. Nice work on the website, I've been thinking about doing the same lately via that service, I just might have to now. Keep it up!

[PDenbigh]

Looking good man!

[Dave]

treated entire enterior for rust and rust prevention, then painted Carbon Silver from a 350z:



Click here for more details It was a fun project and suprisingly budget friendly. Spray cans of auto paint rock my world!

Upcoming projects include:
-converting to electric fuel pump
-continuing re-wire process of interior and dash
-having a rollbar welded in
-cutting out floor pans, seat mounts, and frame rails & installing all new ones.

[Chris]

wow very impressive Dave

[Dave]

Long overdue for an update, but it's not like a lot got done over the winter... until now.

Picked up the car from Piper Motorsports on Monday, I'll let the pictures speak for themselves :twisted:

[CaptainHenreh]

Niiiiiiiiiiiice! I am still jealous of this car.

Any luck finding someone to do floorpans?

[PDenbigh]

W00t!

Bring it to the car show (Seriously.. in parts, it'd be awesome!)

[PDenbigh]

Niiiiiiiiiiiice! I am still jealous of this car.

Any luck finding someone to do floorpans?

Can you get new premade pans? If so, bring it over here and we'll weld and seamseal those things right up.

[.RJ]

bring it over here and we'll weld and seamseal those things right up.

I'm in! :lol:

[ScottyB]

looks great! something about seeing a big, nasty fuel cell peeking out from under a car makes it really mean.

[Mike]

verrr nice. i bet those little shock tower braces do a metric ton to stiffen a million year old japanese chassis... do they connect down to the frame?

[Dave]

Thanks guys. I highly doubt I'll bring it up to the car show, really not worth winching it onto the trailer for that :-). If I'm really motivated on Sat morning and have some free time, I just might tho...

Floor pans & rails are probably the next big cosmetic/structural project. You can get them pre-made, which really might convince me to take you up on your offer, Pete. Would be a hell of a lot better than paying a body shop to do it.

I'm not really sure how much stiffer the car got from the rollbar, but I'm sure it's noticable. I haven't really gotten a chance to inspect it all, so I am not quite sure yet how it all ties into the body. Impressively, those little braces on the shock towers actually came on the car from the factory; those azns had their shit together!