juxstapo

Snah! For those of you (okay, so you folks probably didn't give a crap, so I guess I mean "for my friends") who thought I wasn't going to do anything with my Z project! I did! (Something). ... I cleaned them out. ... Just be happy for me a'ight? Two new babies and working construction means its hard to find time to even go visit them, let alone do anything to them. Unearthed sixty pounds of rat crap, twenty pounds of rat nest, and at least ten pounds of dessicated rat corpse, almost leading me to christen the project a "rat rod". (Ow! Don't hit!) Ungodly remenants of various bits of trash and parts of other cars, as well as a heavily weathered collection of accessories for an L-series. Also discovered that my silver car is almost completely lacking a floorpan, the brown one is short about 40% of the floor, and they both need door sills. Back hatches are in great shape, even the struts, (pistons, thingies that hold the hatch open), work fine. At this point all you serious enthusiasts out there would undoubtedly tell me to stop and track down a project not inundated with cancer. Perfectly sound advice and I cannot refute the wisdom. Nor can I follow it, since these two were a gift, right now I can't drop any cash on a project car that doesn't directly benefit my wife and babies (And since I've never found an old car in Georgia that wasn't severely rusted, $#@! 80% humidity!!!), I'm going to tell everyone that this is my "Learn To Weld" project. Dad has sheetmetal and welders, now I've got something full of holes, formula for success. Yeah, Shameful, I know. Out of my sixty-some-odd cousins, I'm the only boy who can't weld... or drive a motorcycle. Black sheep of the family. My dad's shop is full of stuff he's working on so I'm out in the woods. Oh well, up on blocks, a tarp above and plastic underneath I suppose. And now I apologize for anyone who read this and feels I wasted their time and/or message board space. Just had to talk to some folks who are actually excited about these cars.

**jingles like a bell**

Oh lord why did I ever click on this thread? :oops: My shoulder devil and angel are locked in mortal combat now: :twisted: Mod Cars! Put kids through college! :twisted: Mod Cars! Put kids through college!

Too right about the carbs, however the intake and exhaust manifolds were the only things actually missing from my zombie Z's (undead right now :wink: ). So I'd probably try to rig the EFI to start with.. of course like all little boys with big dreams I fantasize bout triple Webers one day. Too late 240Z, I got excellent grades in philosophy. And sleep? With a 10 month old baby and a 7-month pregnant wife?? What is this thing you speak of?

thx much PZG. I've transplanted motors with my dad before so swapping an already running core would be much closer to my experience level instead of reviving a potentially frozen junker.

Found a wrecked '81 280zx that obstensibly runs fine. Hood, one fender and most of the front clip is missing. Cancer around the door sills and around the hatch latch.. (just wanted an excuse to type "hatch latch", saying it outloud made me laugh.... I've not had much sleep lately). Interior is seriously sun damaged but complete. Radiator is KIA as is the mount, (I'm assuming thats the correct term for the crosspiece the radiator sits on). Tires actually look like you could drive off on them. Its sitting under a tree behind a nice lil' brick retirement cage, er.. house, with five acres of positively immaculately groomed lawn and landscaping surrounding it. A rather spry and sprightly looking woman of indeterminate age (white hair and lots of wrinkles but she looked like she could kick my six foot, hundred seventy-five pound ass with little trouble), answered the door and informed me that for $300 I could get that thing out of her lawn. She also said it was her husband's baby and he would be home later if I'd like to stop back by. I did so, and her husband, (equally white haired, wrinkled, and healthy looking), reminisced about the good old pre-wreck days driving his midlife crisis toy around and said he'd prolly never get around to fixing it and I could have it for $500... of course I harbored the ignoble thought "I'll just come back when your not home and buy it from your wife." :twisted: Personally, despite the plethora of safety and performance improvements, I have to say I far the prefer the earlier bodies. So all this was leading up to the question; how difficult is an engine retrofit, an L28 in a '74 240z? I'm guessing the driveshaft behind the L28 might be too long for a 240? Did I hear something somewhere stating that the 280zx is a completely different car, underpinning wise?? So I might be harboring a pipe dream... All this is hypothetical until the new baby gets here and we get settled of course, but if its feasible enough my dad might front me a little cash.. (or I could sell the camaro I've got languishing with a bizarre wiring gremlin). annnnd, in retrospect, I might've posted this in the wrong forum, if so, I sincerely apologize, it won't happen again.

You people mean to infer these cars are supposed to be not rusted?! :shock: Well that ruins my world outlook.

Hi. Levi Banks, 22 yr. old caucasian male, hailing from middle Ga. Ceramic mason by trade.. for a decade as a matter of fact. (Family owned business, obviously). Alrighty, I'm tootling down the road in my '86 Chevy El Camino*, *(That I am unfortunately beating all to crap, my dad helped my buy the thing for a hotrod project, but the quick advent of a wife and then a kid, [with a second on the way] put my money elsewhere fast) where was I.. oh yes, tootling; and here I get a phone call from my longtime estranged uncle. I mean really, I haven't spoken with this cat for like three years, and here he calls me up and says "Boy, if your not busy come out here, I've got something for you." I was busy, but I was intrigued enough to make a twenty minute detour. To cut to the chase, he gave me two '74 260z's just to get them out of his yard. Here I should probably note his "yard" encompasses something like fifteen acres of scrubby woodland absolutely inundated in junk vehicals. Five of which are actual projects in various stages of completion, he and his posse frequent the dragstrip you see. He told me he had planned to put a big block in one, strip it completely, put the drivers seat behind the rear wheels, etc. With the eventual goal of "pointing the front wheels at the sky." So you could say my lack of anti-Japanese sentiment saved the z's.. depending on your point of view. So after abit of wrangling I got the things out to my fathers property. Wanted them in my yard, but we live in a quasi "nice" neighborhood, and my wife and landlord both vetoed the idea. So they are out on my dad's land with all his projects. He has fifty acres and only twelve "projects" so his ratio is a lil' better than his brother-in-law's. One has been wrecked and the other partially dissassembled. Between the two I've all the body panels I need except a passenger side fender. They've both been sitting for years so the weather damage is extensive. They both have motors but only one has a tranny. And as I said before, I've a nine month old son and my wife is seven months pregnant, so the budget for this project is going to trickle in. But it gives me a way to amuse myself, and I'm in no particular rush. In all honesty, I'm a white sheep in a black flock. Or rather, one of the few boys this family has produced with only mediocre mechanical ability. Enough to keep the Elc running, swapping starters and water pumps and bits and bob work like that. I do hope folks on here are tolerant of idiotic questions. Sorry about the absurdly long read.