Classicman

So, now got all of the paint off and the car is now on rotisserie getting prepped for paint.

I thought I'd update everyone on this car and its progress. We have stripped it down completely and the car is very solid with no rust to speak of. During the course of this week, we will chemically strip all of the paint off until we get to bare metal all over. My colour choice has been narrowed down to Safari Gold or Lime, going to have to decide this week. Here are a few photos so far: [/url

Andrew in Sydney was kind enough to try the cover on his car. The fit is pretty good for a non-specific cover, and the zip door does line up allowing you access to info the car without taking the cover off. Comments? Questions?

They are a general size, but made in smaller increments than most other car covers, so the general fit on most cars is really good. I don't have a 240Z to fit and photo for you, so if there are any Canberra owners who would like to model a cover on their car, please drop me a line. Actually, I'm coming to Sydney tomorrow to pick up a car. PM me your number and we can meet up and try if you are available during the day?

Hi I have started importing these products from Germany. They are really good quality, fleece-lined indoor car covers. They are soft on your paint work, but dust proof and breathable, so they won't trap any moisture underneath or allow the car to sweat. These covers have a zip door on the left side so you can get in and out without taking the cover off. I only have limited numbers of Blue covers in stock now with Red and Anthracite-Grey on order. I am prepared to do a group buy for all Z owners and offer a 10% discount for any order over 10 covers and 15% for an order over 20 units. Pricing is as follows: 240Z/260Z - $315.00 Including GST and before discount. 260Z 2+2 / 280ZX - $335.00 including GST and before discount. I will only be carrying the above three colours in stock, but for a bulk order, there is a choice of eight colours: Ferrari Red Ferrari Yellow Moss Green British Racing Green Bugatti Blue (Light Blue) Royal Blue (Darker Blue as per photos) Anthracite-Grey Panther-Black I can supply for any car from a Mini to a SUV, so the bulk order doesn't have to be only for Z's. Let me know if there is any interest. Products will be posted from Canberra, and postal costs are excluded.

Yes, that is the car that I bought earlier this year from Bruce and Andrew bought it from me. Andrew, if you look through all the papers I gave you, you will find the Club magazine that GongZ has just posted.

Hi PeterAllen Fyshwick is not far from the CBD at all. Not sure about taxi fare, I suppose it would depend on where in the CBD you would want to go. If there is space available when you are looking to come, I suppose I can work out a daily rate for you. Let me know closer to the time.

Will do, thanks for the support guys.

Thanks Gav240Z. I had Shannons come and do an inspection of my premises and I have their approval. Basically all car owners must have their own insurance and let the insurer know where the car is being stored. The car is then covered in that facility. I have to have basic liability insurance for the building etc, but that is the extent of my liability. Access to the vehicle is strictly controlled, and we pull the vehicle for the owner before he gets here. We have a condition report which is signed off after an inspection by both parties for now. This will get quite tedious going forward, so we are installing a camera system with biometric access control for the owners to collect their own cars. Everything will be on camera and recorded, so if there are claims that a car has been damaged, we can access the video footage.

I am finally up and running, albeit only with my own cars for now :-) Any fellow Canberran members are welcome to pop down for a visit, just PM me for the details.

Thanks Gav240Z. I see all these cars had door mounted mirrors. It'l be interesting to see if there are holes in my doors that have been closed up, or if it cam with the wing mirrors. I'd like to try and keep it as original as possible, down to the steel wheels and hubcaps if I can find them.

Harare isn't humid at all. You can see where the paint has peeled off that the bare metal doesn't even have surface rust. I've got an original set of mirrors off the '71 that I'll clean up. What mirrors did the UK cars come with?

History has told me to do it right the first time to maximise your return the day you decide to sell. This motto has never let me down before. I suppose you enjoy the car for what it is, regardless of colour.

Gilltech, the problem is that the blue paint job was done in 1974 and although acceptable at the time, hasn't aged well. It is peeling in some places, so will need to be redone anyway. I must admit, I like the blue, and if I am to do a total repaint, would love the Gold, but I'm a purist, and if it came out of the factory white, then will probably err on that side. Having said that, and looking at recent posts of white cars, they don't look half bad :-) I think I will revaluate when the car is at the panel shop. If I can get away with stripping, painting and a good clean and polish of all the original parts, I may go this route.

No, they're amber. I-phone photography :-)

I took these photos in May went I went to Zimbabwe to purchase the car. It has been standing in the warehouse for many years, and the elderly gent in the photo is the second owner. The story goes like this. The car was first sold in the UK in 1974 and was white. The new owner obviously didn't like the colour and painted it blue, but left the engine compartment white . After about a year, Andrew bought the car and shipped it to Harare, Zimbabwe. From 1975 till now he has covered a genuine 43,000km in the car. He went so far as to strap foam on the pedals, so the pedal rubbers would't wear out! The car is very original and even the rubbers are still soft. It will obviously need a repaint, and herein lies the dilemma...... Do I repaint in original colour and clean the car up as an original car with patina, or do I do a nut and bolt on the car? Comments?

Is the S30 louvre still available? Do you have the mounting clips for it as well? I may be interested in it for my '73. Let me know.

The car is provisionally sold to another Z car owner in Sydney. Deposit taken until car collected on weekend. 30 Min on Carsales.com.au and two buyers at full price. Thanks

I just think the '73 is an even cleaner car, and buying it in Zimbabwe will mean that I land it here at a much better cost. The 73 is also listed on its papers as a 74 and my BMW and Lotus are also 74s, so I thought it would be nice to have all the cars from the same years. Last, but not least, I am setting up a Classic Car business in Canberra (Storage, Accessories and Sales), so I need to get some liquidity, and unfortunately can't keep all of the cars..

Thanks WA240Z. It really is a nice specimen. My '73 is also a two owner car with a genuine 43,000km on the clock. It unfortunately had a colour change in its life, so I'm going to take it back to original paint and leave the rest as patina rather than do a nut and bolt.

Thanks Gordo.

So the time has come for me to part with one of my two 240Z's. This is an Australian delivered car with 131,000 miles on the clock and two previous owners. The original log book shows that the car was delivered by D&G Motors, Sunnyholt Rd, Blacktown 2148, to a Dr Chong on 12/11/1971. The second owner took transfer of the car on 28/11/1975, and I am now the third owner. She comes with history and a concourse trophy from the Sydney Z club back in 1992 for the most original car on show. She is straight and solid that has had a repaint in the original colour many years ago. The car is very presentable but not concourse. There are some paint blemishes in the roof and rear of the car, but after a good polish, has come out pretty decent. I would not hesitate or be embarrassed to put her on a show, and I have built some concourse cars before. I have just fitted 4 new Koni's and 4 new universal joints on the half shafts. I fitted a new carpet set (All Car Carpets), and new OEM intern dome light, new OEM wing mirrors, a new gearshift and handbrake boot. I have a complete new set of rubbers and grommets that go with the car as well as a complete new set of polyurethane bushes for the suspension. The interior is mint and original save for one crack in the dash. All dials and gauges including the clock work. Mechanically she is 100% and had a 280zx 5-speed gearbox fitted many years ago after the original box crashed. I just put her through the ACT roadworthy inspection and she is on full ACT license with 3 months Rego. All glass is good and she has an original rear louvre. The wheels are straight and true with minor kerb-rash and the tyres are good. She has a big bore Stainless exhaust system and sounds brilliant. She is a good every day driver and/or weekend show car. I would not have any hesitation in climbing into her and driving across state at any stage. she starts easily first time and never misses a beat. I initially bought her to keep, so have not spared any expense in what I have done so far. She is an honest car without a hint of rust. I'm asking $35,000 and offering it here before I go public. Believe me, I'm not making a fat profit on this car. You will look long and hard to find another one on the market as honest as this one. I'm happy to entertain any questions, but please spare the negative comments. If its not for you, then fine, please move on. Hope that doesn't sound to harsh, but I've been on the receiving end of formumites before who have no intention of buying, but love to criticise. Thank you.

Thanks for the advice. I'm not going to buy hoists until the floor space is full. I'm looking at charging $250 per car per month all inclusive (GST too). Single garages at the major self-storage units in the area range from $280 to $490 per month, so I believe this will be a competitive solution. Most of the self storage units in Fyshwick are full!

I didn't know that, just went on what they told me when I asked the question Anyway, I've committed now so can't back out as the trimmer has bought the material. I'll keep you posted.....

Hi all fellow Canberrans. I have already hired two storage garages in Hume, and my Tii and Lotus arrive from South Africa next week. I'm pretty bummed by the cost of storage garages here, and am amazed that no one has set up a storage facility dedicated to classic cars here? SO, I have decided to bite the bullet and set one up. I have hired a 450sqm warehouse in Fyshwick and will take occupation 1 August 2015. The plan is to offer executive storage with all cars covered in high quality fleece lined covers and connected to C-Tek battery chargers. I will install hoists when required, but there will be one communal hoist for all to use to service / repair their cars. If there is any interest from fellow forumites, please pm me for more details.