1971 240Z - Rare Blue Over Blue

1971 Datsun Z-Series Additional Info:

Very rare blue over blue 240Z. I've owned this car since 1998 when it was three shades of blue plus a couple shades of rust. It's got a 3.0 liter turbocharged engine with a programmable engine management system. Wilwood discs all around. 17 inch wheels. Upgraded shocks, springs and sway bars . Air conditioning. Bare metal body repair and paint in 2005. This car gets driven and it shows when you look close. I'd call it a very nice driver. It's not a show car. It's not a trailer queen.

Engine:

The engine was built before my ownership. It came from another Z that I bought specifically for the engine. It is not a stock ZX Turbo engine. It's an L28 over bored to 3.0. It was built with forged pistons and total seal rings specifically for turbocharging. The turbo system is a CarTech kit. Before I swapped this engine into this car I did compression and leak down tests and it was very strong. Compression was 145 to 150 and leak down was 7% on all six. It got a new fuel pump, new injectors from RC Engineering, new fuel pressure regulator, new water pump and new high capacity oil pump. Injectors went back to RC Engineering for cleaning and service in 2013. They all flow between 439 and 441 cc/min. I ran a larger fuel supply line and used the original for the return. I did the swap in 2003 with an Electromotive TEC3 engine management system. In 2014 I replaced the original T4 turbocharged with a new T3/T4 for faster spool up. The ECU was tuned with the new turbocharger on a chassis dyno. The turbo has an external Delta Gate waste gate. It's got two springs that allow it to open at about 14 psi. No other boost control. Last dyno chart shows 360 horsepower at the wheels at about 5700 RPM. However, this dyno is set up to add an altitude correction since we were testing at elevation of 5000 feet plus. Not sure if the correction is appropriate for a turbo engine though. I believe naturally aspirated engines loose more power to elevation than do turbo engines.

Transmission and Drive Line:

I replaced the original 3 speed automatic with a rebuilt 5 speed manual from a 280ZX. It operates smoothly both up shifting and down shifting. Odometer was showing 89642 at the time and below 8500 now. So the trans has less that 18000 miles on it. We installed a new Centerforce II clutch last year while doing the new turbocharger. The rest of the drive line is stock.

Suspension and Brakes:

Eibach springs from Motorsports Auto. KYB shocks. Upgraded front sway bar to a 26mm sway bar. Also added a 26mm rear sway bar. She's got strut tower braces from Motorsport Auto. Front and rear brakes are the Arizona Z Car big brake kit using Willwood rotors and calipers and stainless braided brake lines. There is no parking brake. Arizona Z Car now offers an updated rear brake bracket that mounts their hand brake caliper. The wheels are 17 X 7 with Khumo Exta tires.

Body Work:

In 2004/2005 the car was stripped and media blasted. Both front fenders and headlight buckets were replaced. All other rust was cut out and patch panels welded in. The body work was done right. All holes for badges were filled in except for the hood badge. The car was painted in it's original blue with clear coat. It was then taken to an airbrush artist where the pillar and tail gate emblems were airbrushed on. Back at the body shop it got clear coated again and polished to a “driver” finish. Nice but not show quality. 11 years later the car still looks really good. The one annoying flaw is a small crack in the paint on the hood under the clear bra. There are a few faint scratches around the car but you have to look close. I put a paint sealer on last year.

Interior:

The blue vinyl trim and door cards are original. The seats are from a 280Z with 240Z upholstery. 280 seats have greater range of recline. The dash is in great condition with no cracks. I believe it is original. Gauges have have white faces and I have a boost gauge where the clock used to live. Vintage Air AC system works well. It's got an older Pioneer CD stereo receiver with Pioneer 6X9 speakers in the back. I installed a non-SCCA legal roll bar. The SCCA legal version took up too much space.

I have a bunch of older photos at flickr.com./photos/elevation8700/sets/72157617113916263/ The latest photos are the ones on this eBay listing.

There are a few flaws worth mentioning.

The above mentioned crack in the paint on hood. I happened when I closed the hood on a hose clamp on the intercooler. The transmission pops out of reverse occasionally. All forward gears shift nicely If you over fill the fuel you'll spill some on hard cornering. The engine leaks some oil. Suspect the front main seal. Otherwise, everything is in good working order.

I love this car and hate to let it go. But I've fallen in love with another. Inspections welcome and encouraged. I'd love to take you for a ride and show you what this Z can do!

$1000 deposit if you buy the car. Full payment within 7 days. Buyer is responsible for shipping though I will gladly help from my end.