Project: Factory Fresh

C.A.R. · August 19, 2020

9 hours ago, gav240z said:

The rear garnish that covers the tail lamps still had the original plastic pins holding it in, I don't think Lachlan had ever seen them! When I showed him how to remove them by pushing the pin in the middle down (and letting it fall to nowhere land) it became obvious why hardly any S30Z's still have those clips.. easy enough to lose or break them!

I had actually seen them before, however the ones I'd encountered were always missing the centre pin and were generally held in place with some form of adhesive, hopes and dreams.
Ya never stop learning in this job...

gilltech · August 19, 2020

Impressive work and attention to detail.

C.A.R. · August 20, 2020

LH side competed, I new the RH was going to be similar... And it was.
So rinse and repeat - cut out the skirt, media blast, paint on the KBS, fabricate new skirt panel, weld in place, then linish and panel beat smoooooth :

Edited December 30, 2020 by C.A.F.

C.A.R. · August 20, 2020

So I was hoping I was done, but no...
When the Z arrived I noticed the RH rear 1/4 below had some serious paint issues going on:

So I started digging into it and found a very poor previous accident repair.
At LEAST 10mm or filler had been applied to the dent, with NO Epoxy under the paint to seal it - twas no wonder the filler had let go and was blistering...

Out with the dent puller to pull the panel back into shape:

Edited December 30, 2020 by C.A.F.

C.A.R. · August 20, 2020

With the body finally(!) done, I installed it onto the dolly (that I borrowed off Gav):

Then I decided I better take a look at the guards, doors and hatch...
Hatch was perfect.
The doors were sound, but had some unsightly surface rust on the inside, so I sanded, rust converted, then KBS'd the inside of them.

Guards... Well they weren't happy.
The top mounting tab that is hidden under the scuttle panel was - rather oddly - rusted though on both, so I refabricated those sections, cut the old ones off and rewelded the new one into position.

(For some reason I didn't get a photo of the repairs).

Then I had a look at the lower guard sections - yep there was bog:

Nothing else to do but cut it out, fabricate a new section and weld it in:

Rinse and repeat on the LH Side:

(Finished photo missing :\ )

Edited December 30, 2020 by C.A.F.

Andrew_L26 · August 20, 2020

Ah man, haven't checked the forum in ages. Reading this remindes me of how much of a heartbreaker these cars are. What do you reckon 5% of all the s30s are rust free? Gotta love it, repairs are looking great guys!

C.A.R. · August 21, 2020

Finally... Into the paint shop!
The body was rubbed back and was given a coat of Epoxy, then Primer.

And then the colour went on in the engine bay, door jambs and the underbody was blown in, in 901 Silver:

Then the scuttle gray and radiator black was applied:

Edited December 30, 2020 by C.A.F.

C.A.R. · August 24, 2020

Painted suspension went back in, along with some spare wheels to make it mobile.
Primed doors were fitted and the guards went back on to tap out the parking dents and get the gaps just that bit nicer...

...and that's where are up to for the moment.
Until the COVID lockdown is lifted on the 15th of September here in Melbourne, we can't get it into the booth $:-\$

Edited December 30, 2020 by C.A.F.

240ZBUILTBYME · August 25, 2020

Great work Guys! Very satisfying watching rust repairs done well

my car is so much rustier than this....

Few questions:

-How do you go painting in the open like that? do you get much dust/contaminants landing on your work? Exterior is obviously waiting for a booth

- Was there prep work (sanding,prepsol etc) done to the underbody prior to paint going on? Or just straight over the top?

C.A.R. · October 5, 2020

On 8/25/2020 at 9:33 PM, 240ZBUILTBYME said:

Great work Guys! Very satisfying watching rust repairs done well

my car is so much rustier than this....

Few questions:

-How do you go painting in the open like that? do you get much dust/contaminants landing on your work? Exterior is obviously waiting for a booth

- Was there prep work (sanding,prepsol etc) done to the underbody prior to paint going on? Or just straight over the top?

1: The doors are closed and the floor is wet down. It's not an issue.
Obviously not good enough for the topcoat though...
2: Yes, it was prepped before paint went on.

C.A.R. · October 5, 2020

We are still waiting for restrictions to lift so we can get this into paint - hopefully in the next fortnight.

However we've been doing what we can - mostly getting everything ready for when the body is painted.
The engine got the once over; a coat of jam and some replated components.
Tappet cover is going off for HydraJet blasting along with a few other Alum. items.

C.A.R. · October 17, 2020

We have it painted!
It was a late night for my painter, but we have the whole car in colour now. It looks amazing and we can't wait to get stuck into reassembling it!!!

Wags · October 19, 2020

Wow that silver looks amazing. Silver was a major consideration for me. It looks brilliant!

Wags · October 19, 2020

Just had a look at that on my computer...A1 bodywork on that one CAF. That finish looks like glass! Bodywork must have been gunbarrel straight to get a finish like that.