Howdy, Ok here goes, Ive just bought a 280ZX, UK spec, 79, 2 seater, 5 speed, Last owner had it 28 yrs! The last 8 spent in Spain, He recently passed away and his widow sold it on. It was originally Bronze and is now flame red which i'm not keen on, It sits on nice dished 15" Minilite replicas, Has a JP exhaust custom stainless system and a 6 branch Exh manifold. Ive got wads of service history with it and looking through the bills briefly its had a full engine rebuild and Alden Automotive ported and polished the cyl head and skimmed it 20 thou to get the comp ratio up to 9.2:1 and then rolling road tuned it, Also got a new dizzy, Rad, Starter and alternator. Ive had a quick look around as i bought it unseen off fleabay and its had welding repairs to front inner wings and chassis rails etc, Didnt get a look underneath as it was raining but i expect its had floors etc repaired. It runs great with cracking oil pressure and no rattles or knocks, Just an Exh blow. I bought this as i have finished improving my R33 Skyline over the last 2 years so that is moving on (Lovely car BTW) and i need a new project, Z's are far to much money so i figured this must be the next best thing especially as its a SWB 2 seater. Plans are as soon as weather drys up to get it up on stands and have a good prod around and see what needs sorting, Got some nice buddy p1 alloys off my old S13 to try on it so the minilites could go, Also wondering what it would look like with oven hob rear lights? A bit GTO i reackon! Whatever it will be getting stripped and painted in my brothers shop, Thinking of original bronze but pearled with a smidge of red? Early days though, Heres a few pics of it parked up. Hope you like, Cheers.
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New owner and member in Barnstaple.
- Thread starter blot
- Start date
Tax it, drive it, love it. 
That's what I'd do, but you are right in having a good poke around as you never know what you might find.
Doesn't look too bad on the outside tho
Not sure about the Oven Hob light idea on the back tho, just doesn't look right on some cars to me, but that's just my opinion, each to their own.
Keep us updated.
That's what I'd do, but you are right in having a good poke around as you never know what you might find.
Doesn't look too bad on the outside tho
Not sure about the Oven Hob light idea on the back tho, just doesn't look right on some cars to me, but that's just my opinion, each to their own.
Keep us updated.
Rear lights just a thought? Always like other peoples input. Still on Spanish plates so the reason for having a good prod round is to see what it needs for an MOT so i can get its original reg on, Its still on the DVLA records though, Ive insured it today aswell but its only a matter of time before i start pulling it apart! Cheers.
Tim Jewitt
Well-Known Forum User
Looks bloody great! I too would get driving it personally. I can't bear the idea of stripping mine to pieces and not driving it for 6-months. Wait'll you see the state of what I have bought in comparison to that and I think you will be glad you put your money into a far tidier ZX, haha.
SeanDezart
Well-Known Forum User
How much then as there' one on ebay and another one sold recently (brown) in auction.
The pics do it a bit of justice! I think theres a few horrors lurking under the shiny paint though the rear arches etc look OK, Are ZX's deemed inferior to the Z's in this club? Reason for asking is i have a nice 64, 3.8 MK2 Jag and ive just sold a 66 S-Type, In Jag circles the S-Types and 420's are deemed inferior to the MK2 because of its racing pedigree etc, Whereas in reality they are actually better cars to drive!
£1495.
M
madmarco
We love all the Z's in this club!
Lovely 280, cant await to see how it develops over time.
Lovely 280, cant await to see how it develops over time.
Yep, looks great on pics and best to drive and enjoy and establish the next move.
Red suits it!
Red suits it!
Thanks for the warm welcome, I am dead chuffed with it for the money, It's in dodgy territory price wise, You can always spend more on one you think is better and it can still end up needing the same amount of work once you break the paint! I feel if i take my time and do a good job it will be a great car to smoke around in as its got a fair bit of character and i dont really think prices are going to drop any lower, Ive got £££ of bills with the car, Also the previous guy bought it when it was 5 yrs old and kept it untill he passed away spending all his hard earned on it so it will be nice to give it a new lease of life!
SeanDezart
Well-Known Forum User
Can't lose !
Enjoy. I get bored of blue and blue/silver 280ZXs - variety is the spice......
candy red
Club Member
Can't lose !
Enjoy. I get bored of blue and blue/silver 280ZXs - variety is the spice......
sure is
You should know mate! Ive read your thread, Your choice of colour is awesome and standard of work and attention to detail A+++
Well a break in the weather allowed me to get the ZX up in the air and it's had a fair bit of welding in the past! Front inner wings, Chassis rails and floors, The rear end is pretty good with only a small plate on the O/S inner arch but the front end is another story! I was a bit hard on it TBH and went round the whole underside with a spike! The O/S/R Chassis leg is rotten, Loads of rusty water poured out when i penetrated it so it must be a lack of drain holes but it needs doing, As does a tiny bit on the O/S/F inner wing and the back of the N/S/R sill, The front wings have filler in them and the doors, Tailgate and bonnet need work. I know people have said to just MOT it and use it but i bought it as a project and TBH i really dont like looking underneath and seeing loads of plates, That said the welding is all continous and strong but it looks ****! Rectification is beyond my capabilities as although i can weld i have no experience of metal fabrication. I'm selling my Skyline as i'm done with that now so i am now really going to have to think about what i am going to do with the ZX. In a perfect world just give it to an Ace welder/Fabricator but that is going to cost loads, I suppose the perfect scenario is to find someone thats a dab hand and leave it with them for as long as it takes inbetween them doing other jobs? I'll have to give it some thought. If anyone on here knows a good welder preferably with z experience please let me know, I'll even get it to Poland if thats the case! Enclosed are a few pictures. Edit: Cant get the pics to load, Will try later, Cheers.
Tim Jewitt
Well-Known Forum User
Mine's much the same. Patches everywhere, not bothered to even grind the welds down.
At the end of the day it's a 30-odd-year-old Datsun. Hell, my old man's was scrapped in the early 90s due to needing more £££s worth of MOT welding than the car was worth. Of the few that survive I doubt there are many that don't have good few patches.
In a perfect world I'd love to cut it all out and do it properly. Rip the patched floorpans and chassis rails right out and put complete replacement panels in. Way I'm looking at it though is unfortunately it isn't a perfect world, I don't have endless money or time and if it's solid what's the point? I know it looks **** but it's underneath. You could spend a couple hundred hours doing it all perfectly and from anywhere other than underneath the car you wouldn't be able to tell it had even been done.
Having said that I can totally understand wanting it done right, and I think you need to do whatever you need to do to get the car the way YOU want it and will be happy with it. I bet you could teach yourself fabrication if you want to get it done properly though. There's a good thread on Retro Rides about panel fabrication. The guy gets awesome results, but none of it looks impossible to do yourself, just time consuming and would require some practice:
Retro Rides - Making panels.......
At the end of the day it's a 30-odd-year-old Datsun. Hell, my old man's was scrapped in the early 90s due to needing more £££s worth of MOT welding than the car was worth. Of the few that survive I doubt there are many that don't have good few patches.
In a perfect world I'd love to cut it all out and do it properly. Rip the patched floorpans and chassis rails right out and put complete replacement panels in. Way I'm looking at it though is unfortunately it isn't a perfect world, I don't have endless money or time and if it's solid what's the point? I know it looks **** but it's underneath. You could spend a couple hundred hours doing it all perfectly and from anywhere other than underneath the car you wouldn't be able to tell it had even been done.
Having said that I can totally understand wanting it done right, and I think you need to do whatever you need to do to get the car the way YOU want it and will be happy with it. I bet you could teach yourself fabrication if you want to get it done properly though. There's a good thread on Retro Rides about panel fabrication. The guy gets awesome results, but none of it looks impossible to do yourself, just time consuming and would require some practice:
Retro Rides - Making panels.......
