Hey, Veeky Forums, I found this nice looking 280z some dude in my area is looking to sell for $1,500...

Hey, Veeky Forums, I found this nice looking 280z some dude in my area is looking to sell for $1,500. Says it has an exhaust leak, and just needs a couple fuses, but otherwise drives great. Body looks nice, but the interior is shit, which would likely be replaced assuming I bought it. Assuming I'm willing to spend a total of around $4,000 - $5,000 on a car right now, would you say this is worth buying and putting a few grand into? I'm not incredibly knowledgeable about cars, but I know the basics, and just wanted some opinions since I've always loved the look of the z series.

I would but it's also one of my favorite cars too. Offer 1k and no more though since it'll be a pricey project.

Reading online, I concluded it'd be less than $1,000 to fix the exhaust leak. What else do you think would be expensive, aside from new interior? Like I said, if it's less than $5,000 I may just go for it.

do what I can't and get it!

I wouldn't do it. Interior parts are the hardest to find and the most expensive. Mechanical stuff is cheaper and readily available. So get one with good paint and a good interior.

I am really strongly considering it, because it looks fucking nice. I'm just not that knowledgeable and need to know what I'm getting into first I guess with the seemingly minor issues I know about.

The others in my area have really dinged up bodies, and much worse paint, except ones that are over 10 grand. Would it not be worth it to get it and spend a bit on replacing the interior?

>just needs a couple fuses

Haha make no mistake, I'd be bringing someone a lot smarter than myself if I check the car out. Not about to spend tons of shekels on a trash heap.

Parts for these old Datsuns can be a bitch to find. Great looking cars but not worth the trouble.

Needing fuses means there's a short somewhere that keeps blowing them.

No. When it comes to old cars you want to buy the nicest example you can find. Save for a while and get a nicer one.

Out of curiosity, if you had to hazard a guess, how much would it run to fix the fuse issue and exhaust problem?

Exhaust is cheap. You could spend tons of time and money diagnosing the electrical problem. You have to assume that if it was cheap or easy the previous owner would've done it.

Mismatched old tires. There's another grand.

If it's rust free I would consider it. Non turbos, which this is, are pretty slow.

You could reupholster /3d print most of the interior parts, and it would be a lot cheaper than the original

But honestly if this Would be a daily driver and you don't know much about cars just buy a common Honda or Toyota and learn on that, start getting more cars when you're more knowledgeable

>just needs a couple fuses
You're not paying to replace fuses.
You'll be paying to repair whatever is causing the fuses to blow.
The blowing fuse problem is probably what is causing him to get rid of the car.

>280Z
>It's a 280ZX
Get a load of this guy. Anyway, don't buy it. You'll dump $5000 into it and it'll still be worth $1500 because it's a 280ZX.

lol i'd buy it just for that old kaminari wing.

This.

If he's trying to dupe you into thinking a ZX is a Z, alarm bells should be ringing. Save your money and get a true 280Z at least

>280ZX
Now THIS is a good candidate for an LS1 swap. Even a truck 5.3 would be a monster compared to the original engine.

If you do buy it, better just get some nice seat covers and a carpet job because the rest of your budget is going into whatever electrical gremlins and exhaust and everything else.

I don't get why people don't like the 280zx, they're like my dream car
>inline 6
>80's styling

same here.
Lower it, widen it, body kit it, rebuild engine it and it's a great tougay car

That's a zx, not a z.

Because the 280z is way prettier and the 300zx is way more 80s. The 280zx is an ugly bastard that sits in the middle.

Honestly want to buy a decent one with no rust and that is NA and eventually add a larger turbo to it, really want it as a DD

...

Dynamically it offered nothing extra over the Z. It had basically the same engine while being heavier and having a much less sporty setup (suspension became optimised for cruising), even more electronics got thrown in for a birds nest behind the dash, and the interior had absolutely nothing on the Zs (pic related)

God damn never really took into consideration the interior of the z, have you owned both?
I want the zx mostly for the comfy aspect since it'd be a DD, so I'm okay with the added weight and sluggish suspension

If memory serves me correct adding a turbo to an na is more trouble than swapping in a l28ET. The L28ET can make good power.

It would be cheaper to swap a 5.3 or ls1. If you live in the right area can just use carbs or megasquirt.

The s130 is a GT or cruiser while the s30 was a sports car. The s130 had a trailing arm rear suspension, recirculating ball steering. It is comfy and can be fast.

79 s130 was the same weight of even lighter than the 78 s30. The s30 got pretty fat towards the end. The interior electronics are not an issue over the 280 s30s. The mini record player may not work, but you probably do know when your door is ajar.

ETs are rarer, actually have weaker blocks (thinner cylinder walls for better cooling doesn't help if you blow them up trying to make anything more than stock power), have shitty little turbos that can't get the engine over mildly built NA power levels, etc.

Hmm as a DD, the ZX would be a better bet. The FI system became much improved in the ZX and the whole car became a lot more livable.

I've never actually driven a 280Z per se (international market kept going with the 260s), but if what I've read is right, you can retrofit the chrome bumpers which reduce the weight A LOT. It really depends on if you want more refinement and reliability over a bit more fun and 70s cool.

Do also bear in mind the original cars were built to a budget, the interior can get really fucked up if you don't care for it, while later ZXs and such were much better (albeit much less cool)

Hmm might be true, I'm not too sure since we never got them, but I think the Z can rock the earlier bumpers while looking reasonable. There was a guy running a ZX over here with no bumpers, he looked like such a tool

>thinner cylinder walls

Not true, you can overbore an f54 much larger than an n42 block.

>weaker block

Somewhat true, the 1975 n42 blocks have a really high nickel content making for a better ring seal.

Get it cheap, fix it up, start nasty legends about a killer Z that's gone through six owners and left their brains on the asphalt.