Well its update time again and the car after an extended period of 6 weeks in the garage is back on the road! After some useful advise on here and doing some research, reading online and in a few manuals/guides I got for Christmas we tried to reverse flush the system the system having decided that our problem was likely a blockage in the heater core. Having stripped the pipework off the matrix and hooked up the garden hose there was barely a dribble of coolant flowing out despite the pressure. With it confirmed the matrix was in need of re-coring.
Having met Russ on here at Goodwood in December and got a recommendation to give it to Guildford radiators they agreed to take a look at it, about 3.5 hours work to get the whole unit out of the car with the dashboard in place and I dropped it in before Christmas. As promised it got looked at straight away in the new year..Once the unit finally got cracked open it was apparent that the whole core was corroded in place and to extract the core they had to attach some hoops to it so that it could be hammered out of the box. With that out it was clear the unit hadn't been touched since it left the factory 46 years ago and was well overdue some attention. The original was measured up to make sure a new unit would drop straight in and the box shot blasted to be repainted due to the surface corrosion.
Having had the unit picked up for me a few weeks ago the exterior all looked great with fresh paint however having cracked it open to satisfy my curiosity I soon found that the inside had not been touched other than the new core. As is all too common these days it seems that there are plenty of people who remain satisfied with only doing half a job. Not satisfied between me and my dad we treated the surface rust and painted the inside with hammerite rust killing paint for good measure tiding it up before sealing the unit up for installation. Having previously looked at the state of the original control valve it was clear that it was well overdue retirement so a nos one had been sourced and sent from the states. All back together we were ready to tackle the job come this weekend just gone.
As always the time required was underestimated with it taking more hours than I care to mention squeezing the unit back in and remembering the order that everything went back in. First job was hoovering out as much dirt and **** possible, it was was scary how much had accumulated hidden behind the dash. Next the passenger seat came out owing to a small coolant leak which gave a good opportunity to inspect the full extent of the floor. Via some minor surface rust that was all treated the original floor looked really solid I'm pleased to say with only the newly welded in chassis/floor rail being obvious. So several hours of lying upside down in the foot well bolt and re-connecting everything up and we were good to go, fortunately having labeled up all the wiring that job was relatively straight forward with a few connectors needing to be cleaned along the way. Its fair to say it wasn't the easiest job with lots of cursing and swearing along the way. Per some advise we did consider removing the dashboard however we were concerned as to what may be disturbed in the process and decided to let any potential future gremlins lie in peace just in case.
Firing her up for the first time in six weeks was a great relief, even more so when several minutes later heat started flooding out into the car! Mission a success and having grabbed dinner an hour or so late and it was time for a quick burn out to admire our handy work. Safe to say the car is certainly toasty and it won't be cold anymore in winter, really impressed with how effective a relatively primitive system really is. Certainly some smart cookies at Nissan there. For those that are curious to re-core the matrix was £180 inc VAT (The joys of living in Surrey hey)
That all done and another journey under its belt and it was time for a quick blast down to Basingstoke to see Russ again as he's dropping out his L26 and 5 speed gearbox from his UK 260Z +2. Given long term we want to drop in a 5 speed it made sense to pick one up nice and early while the opportunity was there so it seemed a no brainer being fairly local. I was kindly offered the opportunity to drive the car to see what the box was like as syncro on 2nd is pretty much gone however we weren't too fussed as we want to fully rebuild it before it gets dropped into the 240 as we don't want to have to touch it again if we can help it. All being well it will be out in the next week or so and we'll collect it so that it can be parked in the garage until it works its way up the jobs list.
Despite the poor conditions it was entertaining to get behind the wheel of a RHD car for a change and make a mess of remembering that all of the controls are in reverse. The stand out difference though was how much more composed the car was even on its aged stock suspension. I was aware there was meant to be a difference between US and UK spec however I was amazed how much more refined it was to drive. It has certainly reinforced my view that our boat like suspension needs to be swapped asap so that I can get some refinement and control to start doing some spirited driving. It does make me wonder why they had such stark differences between the markets others then I can only guess cost (I also don't know whether the setup changed further from 240z's to 260z's either).
Despite the greasy conditions it was great fund being back in the Z and blasting down some country back roads enjoying some slippy roundabouts as well on the way home
So next job to tackle, the windscreen definitely needs resealing with water making its way through the drivers corner on a wet day. Does anyone have any recommendations in the Surrey/SE region who could take on this job on our behalf? and do I need to source a new seal from the US?
The Hella 4004 GT mirrors arrived the other day and look great however it looks like there will only be visibility on the drivers side so back to the drawing board again. I imagine they will be back on ebay again shortly, which is a shame as they are really nice nos items. Its looking like ironically we're going to end up with some Vitaloni Californian Mirrors as I've seen various cars fitted with these and I like the look and I believe are actually functional which is the end goal here.
I'm also considering removing the bumper overrides to go for a cleaner JDM look, does anyone know where I can acquire the blanking bolts to this end?
Finally the other near future jobs remain getting the car wax-oiled to protect it, and get the car fully serviced before getting it tuned up as it seems in need of some attention. As usual I've left a mammoth list of updates to add at once so I'll shut up for now and let you look at some pics.
Presents from Christmas
As it was following removal
The mess inside
Inside treated and painted
Shiny new control valve vs old
Outside - ready for installation
We're also missing a floor grommet, does anyone know where I can find replacements?
I've read there's little point in changing out the rear drums due to the majority of the braking being done up front.
I'll look to oil them when i next get the car out and have a look online for this Honda motor conversion. Long term I'd like a reliable and functional replacement for what currently there....
