A long time ago in a city close to the bay a guy named John loved this Z.
Back then John was a 16 year-old teenager and he had a dream of merging the sexiness of a Z body with the feeling of wind in his hair. After finishing high school and college the Z had become a constant in John’s life. Sometime in the late 80’s he met Darrell from Darrell’s Datsuns where the transformation from hardtop coupe to droptop convertible was made. Darrell Riley built Zs for a living until he was in his 70s! That’s die-hard Datsun.

When Darrell’s closed down in 2004 ZCG bought some of his equipment and with it lots of cool Datsun memories.
Meet John’s topless Z…After having the Z cherried out he put it away to preserve its condition. Now in his mid forties…It was time to relive memories and that feeling you get when you bring one of your favorite things back to life.

After some online searching…John was directed by Z Owners of Northern California (ZONC) to ZCG. We looked over the Z and made a plan of attack including a full Rebello engine build using the existing L24. It was very important to John that the original block be used and not look over the top. Besides triple carbs and a few more performance items under the hood it will look like the trusty L24…with 2.8L of Nissan L-series power!

It is interesting to see how the body is modified to achieve drop-top status…all of the trim pieces and interior bits are removed in preparation for paint:

Off to Williams for sand blasting and then paint!

You can see more photos of the take down in the gallery:
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The slick black paint on Gary R’s 280z makes me drool. Then my eyes widen when I see the gigantic ZCG BigBrakeKit AND new Panasport wheels.  This is just a mock-up, but I can’t help but feel excited! The restoration moves forward with all of the newly plated parts and suspension being installed by Josh C. Hydraulic/fuel lines were beautifully plated in gold(brake) and silver(fuel):

The engine bay is glossy and the firewall is gleaming!

In our last update the interior and entire underbody was stripped and treated with POR-15, seen HERE. After drying, the front and rear suspension is in place with struts/coil overs mocked up. Note additional plated hardware:

Here are some shots of the coilovers and ZCG Big Brake Kit in all its all glory. Wheels/tires are 17″ Panasport C8s with black spokes and 255/40/17 tires under stock flares:

Stay tuned for our next update as Gary’s 280z gets a drivetrain!

Gary R.’s 280z restoration continues. Our last report described the extensive metalwork rehab to the unibody, detailed HERE.

The brake/fuel lines along with itemized nuts/bolts are ready to be zinc’d in either gold or silver plating.

Having spent money on the paint and bodywork, protecting the underbody was a must for Gary’s restoration. To keep rust away the next step was sealing the underside and interior bare metal areas with POR-15. We have heard positive things about this product and its rust prevention in vintage restorations. Once the inside was coated we undercoated the entire bottom of the Z.

After a day of drying it was time to install coil overs and the amazing ZCG BigBrakeKit

The wheels will be 17″ Panasport C8s custom built to ZCG specs with a 255/40/17 tire on a stock-flare 280Z chassis! Awesome!!
Next chapters will be the wiring and the mock up of the driveline.  Look for more chassis/running gear photos later this week!
Stay tuned..

Long Live the Z!
Rob

Here is another example of just how special the Z is…people may buy a new car every 7 to 8 years. This 280Z isn’t just a car, it has been in the family since day one in 1978. ZCG met this Z family in the summer of 2008 when it was time to get it back on the road after a few years of sitting. We went down the wants and needs list and brought this Z back from a fixture in the garage to a sporty Z ready for a drive to the store or down the coast. Since their last visit, owners Larry and Ruth had a whole new list for us and this time it was to work on the interior.

We met at the shop and talked about different options for seats and interior items. The dash was removed and sent out for restoration and when it came back we replaced all the gauge lights with updated LEDs. We polished all of the plastic covers, resealed all the heater ducts, and lubed all the heater cables. We also serviced the heater core, replaced all the heater hoses and anything easily accessible while the dash was out.

Now for the good part, choosing seats. This is another ZCG first: a set of RECARO LXFs in leather!!! Yes, you read correctly! Leather. There was a tag on the box explaining that RECARO has their own cattle ranch with no barb wire fences and that all RECARO leather is perfect. These seats are not vegan friendly. Comfortable and very sexy, YES!

To complement the seat choice we picked a custom carpet kit and leather for the new door panels and headliner. Another nice touch was the new door panel trim matched the other door panel parts perfectly. More highlights include a new factory center console fitted with an updated HD headunit, MOMO steering wheel, and custom shift boot (Ruth’s choice).

Finally a set of powder-coated louvers and a full detail really make this 280z standout. The interior work was performed by Vargas Auto in Sunnyvale where owner Ron has been around classic cars and Datsuns for a long time. His father used to install all the dealer add-on vinyl tops on PL510s for Downtown Datsun back in the day.

With the interior beautifully finished and attention to little details Larry and Ruth’s special 280z is ready for the road!

Long Live The Z!
Rob

Check out the gallery for more interior detail shots
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Here is another update from Rob on Z8MYMONEY:

When we last heard from Mark and Michelle the Z continued to eat their money and this resulted in major suspension and driveline upgrades, which you can see HERE. During the last few months Mark has been pushing the limits of his latest additions and felt it was time to upgrade the instruments to keep him from hearing the music of sirens from his friends in the local police department.

 

We made a plan for some Autometer gauges. Mark picked the tach and speedo setup and ZCG’s very own Vlad (aka “Frisco Street”) did a great installation. He used set of custom made brackets from behind so the gauges sit flush in their original stock location. Final touches were made to the steering column cover for the LED turn signal indicators. Once the gauges were completed we calibrated the speedometer to make sure Mark can stay ticket free for now 🙂

 

2011 should be an exciting time for Z8MyMoney as we start on the exterior!!!