Thanks for the fantastic service on my Z Wizard!!! I will never forget the first time I saw one. I remember it like it was yesterday. What was your impression when you saw your first Z of this generation? My detailed TH-cam video overview will be live soon. I will post link here when live.
Impressive this is how our cars are supposed to be, driven not locked away in a garage collecting dust, mine an 1989 na 2+2 has just hit 290k kms so I'm not far off you but I have a dream to one day have the highest mileage 300zx in the world so I got some catching up to do but I first need to get it back on the road.
ive done everything imaginable to these cars. I'm a retired, now,42 year Nissan,(Datsun) Master technician. Started in 1976. Worked at a Nissan Dealer my whole life. I was the z car guy. Everyone from miles around brought their Z's to me because they didnt trust anyone else. . They still call asking me to work on them, lol. Retired in 2020. Unfortunately in New york, They rust out badly. Most werent driven in the winter , but some did. I know of several now that are very low mileage and never driven, even in the rain! Mostly twin Turbo models. Great cars.
I saw a convertable 300Z a few weeks ago and immediately realized I have never seen one. After looking it up, only about 1500 were imported to the US. I saw a freakin unicorn!!
We picked up family from the airport in 1989. There was a Gold Pearl 1990 Z in the lobby. It was the most modern car I'd seen at the time. Everything else on the road was 80s boring boxes, slim white walls. This car ushered in the greatest decade for Japanese cars, hands down
I always loved the 300ZX, even as an 8 year old. It was beautiful in the front and back. Nissan's whole lineup back then was great, the little early 90's sentra was awesome (my mom's car, a 93) and my dad had a base model 2wd hardbody pickup. The Maxima's from the 90's to the 00's were awesome too.
Very well stated, I agree with you wholeheartedly. The 90's was the pinnacle of Japanese automotive greatness - the best looking and over engineered cars from all their manufacturers.
I had a '91 TT 5 speed, and did a bunch of Stillen mods to it. After a few years, that engine became scary to work on so I moved on. Nice looking design though that has aged better than Nissan itself.
The Z32 aka 300ZX is the GREATEST JDM sports car of the 1990s. It won ALL of the awards, BEST CARS from every magazine, sexiest car of the century from GQ magazine and Forbes and other publications. It beat out every JDM car yes EVERY car, even the Supra that NOBODY bought nor wanted(the Supra gain popularity in the 2000s after fast and furious). Most of the guys talking about these cars or most JDM cars NEVER have driven a real example or any JDM cars I’ve owned 2(1990 and 1995) in the 1990s and now I have one today a mint 1995! I’ve owned all car from SC400, Vette, Audi turbos, Infiniti, BMW, to XJR etc and my ZX is my favorite.
We purchased a new used 1993 300ZX just like this but with a t-top, leather interior, and dark blue in color. 32K miles and change. We drove it over 20 years and finally decided to sell it at 274K miles. Absolutely loved this car! It was fun to drive, it handled great, got okay mileage, and was very reliable through the years. We either did three or four timing belt jobs on it, and I remember it would really eat tires would perhaps the best mileage I ever got on a set was 40K or so.... Hey what can I say it was fun to drive. I would never own a European exotic, because I just couldn't handle the unreliability, but this being a Japanese car was just so reliable that I never ever got tired of it. Finally in the end it just got to where we were going to have to do too much work to it and decided it would be better to move into something else. Both I and my wife miss our z everyday!
Nice story. I refer to the styling as very Italianesque when people comment on mine. Surely part of the "exotic" lure and mystique of a sports car IS the style. With this one gets the look of an timeless exotic without the insurance and repair costs. If you miss it enough you can find nice low mileage examples. They come up regularly for $10k and under at a variety of sites. Look often they're their. Most seem to be auto trans though.
I had a 91 NA in my early twenties. Black 5 speed with peanut butter guts and t tops. Hit her with KYB front and rear shocks, twin turbo sway bars, lightweight driveshaft, underdrive pullies, ECU. Got her to make 202 rwhp and run 13’s at 102. Best handling car I ever had.
I had a '91 for about 19 yrs. It was a 2+2 , naturally aspirated, 5 speed. Yellow pearlescent. I sold it when it started having engine issues and my local Nissan dealer didn't have the connector to read the codes. Other than that, the AC was an issue (leak), and some electronic issue that depleated the battery when it was parked. The young lady I sold it to ended up selling it to a young man who revived it for about $3500. Best car I ever owned!
Not everyone is born rich and some people actually work their way up and build themselves up and brand themselves and know their worth. No point in being jealous, or insulting others as they became successful. Actually trailer park to a nice yacht is impressive in a few short years to be honest. When you advertise and do good business and have other friends advertise for you as well, then eventually it pays off.
I remember the first time I saw one on the road in 1990 while riding the school bus. Didn’t look like anything on the road at the time. In 2007 I bought a 1990 pearl white 2+2 non-turbo with tan leather and t-tops for $3.5k. Spent many weekends cruising down PCH with the t-tops off and friends squeezed in the back seat. Great memories.
I had a 1994 for many years and it is the only thing I have owned that people gave me compliments on. I've had strangers rush up and touch it out of sheer amazement. People would shout out their windows to me in traffic and many thumbs up as well. Unfortunately the car was having problems I could no longer fix, and you have to let them go to someone who has the time and money to chase down the gremlins. It is very rare to see them now around here in Michigan.
I used to love the Z32. One like you have there especially. That one is the elusive Slick Top, that means no TTops. Everybody loved TTops back then, not me!
Seeing the 300zx has never been a common sight, but I always imagined whoever owned them must've been someone who was as elusive as Batman. Respect to you for having one on the channel, and the thoughtfulness of old Nissan engineering and design.
My dad bought the first year of it in1990. 2+2 pearl white non turbo manual with the tan cloth interior and took as good of care as a driver car could. He lowered it an inch or so and put higher end "racing" brakes on it and would run it at Road America for fun when he was in the Alfa Romeo club. I remember the day he came home with it. Mom told him that if he raised his income by 10K he got to pick the car, but she got to pick the plates. He raised it by a lot more than that, but she said no to the NSX. So "Midlyf 1" it was. To think that car he got for about $22K back in 90. Chicagoland streets and salt got the best of it over the years and he sold it probably 10 years ago. The plates remain in the garage as a memory of that portion of his life.
When I was in high school in the early 2000's, one of the teachers owned a white one of these. He also had a Blue Pontiac Firebird Trans Am WS6. Two super cool cars for sure.
I remember seeing one at the 1990 Auto Show in Montreal. They gave out these beautiful 11”x17” full color brochures, with velum overlapping the pictures of the car showing what the inside of the car looked like( suspension system, engine, drivetrain and exhaust, and braking system “ I believe they are a collectors item now.
Same. I currently only own a 72 240. But, I've had 3 240's, a 280zx, a 300zxt, a 350z, and a 370z. Always wanted a 300zxTT, right up until the day I became a mechanic. After over 20 years of wrenching I still don't want to work on one of those.
Remember seeing a LOT of these in the early 90s in NYC. Loved em! This car looks like it came straight off the Nissan lot in 1991! This car is PRISTINE!
Well Wizzard, those are very complexed cars once they age. The defroster button Mrs. Wizzard pointed out next to the mirror control, is actually for the heated mirrors. That is a very base model Z. They offered really cool options, more so found on the turbo Z, like digital gage cluster, sonar adjustable suspension, and the turbo model came with Nissan's 4 Wheel Steering (Super Hicas). These cars were a joy to drive.
I'll never forget the first time I saw this car. I was selling Fords in late 1989, and I saw one of them on the highway on the way home. It changed my life. I still think it's one of the most beautiful cars ever made.
I have a 1993 ZX that I bought New in 93 at Carr Nissan in Portland Oregon it has 39,000 miles and perfect condition it has a manual , T-Tops , Gun metal grey and always been garaged . Its totally stock . Im retiring and will be selling it soon .
I have the same car -- '91 NA slicktop, manual transmission, charcoal gray (KH2). Bought it new in Aug 1991 from Universal City Nissan in LA. Still drive it regularly. Lots of fun to drive. I installed Stillen cat-back exhausts when the originals rusted out, along with subframe spacers, and it's dyno tuned for modern gas.
Had a 1995 Nissan 300ZX 2+2 (non turbo) and it was ahead of its time and prob the best vehicle I’ll ever own. I got offers everywhere I went for that car and tons of head turns. The only thing that it needed was it had a major oil leak issue with the valve seals in the engine that needed to be replaced. Other than that just basic maintenance. This was back when Nissan was a great brand before Renault bought it. Sadly, it got totaled in a car accident when it was parked and even after it was declared totaled by the insurance company, I was still able to sell it for around $1600 because there’s enough hype out there for them to fix and rebuild them. Incredible cars!
I came of age in the 90’s. And this z car turbo along with the F-40 and countach were my dream cars. Timeless A+++ Design!! The chief designer was a genius
I was at a coworker's parking lot. I notice a black, dust vehicle. Both fenders damage. It was a1994 300zx!!!my dream car w/ manual tra.. abandoned for 2 years. I drove it felt the power (adrenaline)..long story short. bought the car for $400. The guy said it also had a 3k car lean on it. I was like ill take it. Got lucky. California DMV $850 registration fees penalties. Required smog. Now the z is at the body shop for a 350k (dents,body work, also replacing doors) full paint job. My coworker now "if i would off known about cars" haha.. Have a good one nice video.
There was a short time period where these were selling cheap, but it’s a cool car and prices rose quick when all the people who couldn’t afford them while younger, now can afford them. I had a boss that bought one in a pearl white brand new off the lot, I jokingly asked her to borrow it, she laughed and told me to get out of her office lol
No that's just inflation. When every slightly desirable used car starts going up in value and brand new cars are starting $10,000 then what they were previous; you're in a massive inflation era.
@@timsmith2952 This is more 90's kids hitting their peak earnings years and being able to finally afford their dream cars. And most Z32's have been trashed at this point.
@@Gr8thxAlot I disagree. A lot of Z32s have been trashed but remember they brought a lot more here over many years than they did other JDM cars of that era like the 3rd gen RX7 for example. A lot of people can't afford new cars or dislike newer cars even so the used car market is in more demand. When clean examples of 300ZXs start hitting crazy 1980s blazer mint prices THEN you might be on to something.
Glad to see the car wizard appreciates these cars. I own a 1990 twin turbo making 700hp. 1990-1991 the Z32 actually came with tweed interior. 1992-1996 they came with velour, and the higher trim models came with suede.
I have had seven Zs (three Z31s, three Z32s like this and currently have a Z34...a 2014 370Z Roadster) over the years and absolutely love them. I'm a big Nissan guy in general (also have a Juke Nismo, a Sentra Nismo, a GT-R, etc) and these things will always be at the very very top of my list.
Awesome to see the Wizard loving on the Z32. I love my 1994 TT. I learned to work on cars with the Z32 so most other stuff is easier for me. The 1994 TT is my third Z32. I had a 1994 NA and briefly a 1990 TT before my current one. It isn't really that hard to work on them though, if you have a good collection of tools and extended/angled pliers. I used to have an NA but the TT is another beast altogether.
When I was young I had a 91 twin turbo. I loved it so much. The day I got it a very small hose in the turbo system started leaking coolant. I remember looking at the service manual before trying to fix it and it said "Step1: Remove Engine". There is barely any room in this car to wedge your hand in to work on anything plenty of little sensors and hoses and things hiding in there in the TT version. It is a shame they even built any without twin turbos though. Thanks it really brings back some memories.
I loved that car when it came out in my first year of college. My roommate had one and he destroyed a Corvette of that year.. It was the smoothest sports car I ridden in til that day! You can still find good ones and it still holds its design.. looks really good.. Stillen versions was the best in those days!
I had a 91' Black Maxima SE, in my senior year of high school. My oldest cousin on my mom's side, was ....and I guess still is a tech wiz. And that car was like his starter car, I was in love with that car. My cousin started getting promoted quickly at a young age. He traded up, he sold me that car for 4,475.00, in 95. That was every dollar I had, could scrape together, and borrow. I loved that car, it was beautiful. It even had a cooler Speedo and tach. Good times, I had a close buddy, with a 90' 300zx 5 speed naturally aspirated. First time I drove that car, .....well, despite what I had built up in my head about my Maxima, the 300 was awesome. The rear wheel was night and day, and second gear in that car, yeah...that Maxima ended up back with my cousin's younger brother, and his daughter used that car for school. Damn thing ran for over 20 years.
Great job! Thanks for sharing. I have 1992 NA hard top manual 267548 miles. I took a road trip East coast PA to GA to South Florida and to West Coast Cali with no problem. Was soooo fun to drive. Still have it.
My old man was doing quite well for himself in the 90s, so got one of these brand new... I was about 16-17 and was soo excited! The thing was stunning, UK spec in a deep metallic blue, with T-top, leather, CD, climate control, twin turbo etc. My old man was a great driver, king of overtaking, so it was fun going out with him. It was my land speed record for years at 147mph. Eventually our house got burgled, and they took the car with all our electronics (VCRs and Hifis in those days) loaded up in it. It was found in a lock up garage in Luton waiting to be stripped. The old man didn't want it after that and moved on to other cars but he always missed it and lusted after fast Nissans 'til his dying day.
I just did a water pump on a one owner 94 Z - 59,000 miles. It’s garage kept and it was a pleasure to work on, with me being the first to do any repairs on this vehicle besides maintenance, brakes and tires. Everything came apart and the adjusters for the belts worked as they were designed to. Even the hide clamps were still lined up with the paint marks on the coolant hoses.Oddly he declined replacing the timing belt. It still had the thick heavy master key and a Nextel car phone that still beeps. It was like opening up a time capsule- it brought me back to my twenties- a rare fun job at work. 👍🏻
My garage boss in Ireland was Japanese mad drove 240z.. 280 and then bought the 300 ZX TT and gave me a drive in it at 19 years old. Serious power. Done a new clutch replacement was fairly easy.. I left the cambelt change to the foreman he was like wizard.. Said it was pretty easy task
I've been daily driving one for about a year. Did the 120k service immediately, then a new fuel rail and painted it Nissan Midnight Purple 3. I love driving it so much.
I loves these cars in my late teens, had a 91 n/a, 90 n/a 2+2 and the best one was a 91 TT, kept going back to these cara despite everyone telling me they were a nightmare to work on(which they are), some mechanics didn’t even want to touch them, super fun cars. Would love to own one in this condition.
I had a 1990 2+2 all black with the same rims but in chrome. Very clean car and a lot of fun to drive. Bought it for one thousand. Just have to look around they are not selling for what they list them for they are dreaming at 20k. They are listed WAY over what they actually sell for. For 20k I can get a much much nicer corvette. I collected these Z cars for over 40 years. I had a 300 zx for 29 years. I started with a 1971 1/2 hand made 240z. I stopped with my 350z touring model. I have had every model between them and when there were changes of the same model I bought them like the 89 and 90 300zx. The 2+2 model of the 90-96 body style 300zx handles much better and looks even better than the standard being just a little longer. Congrats on your success Wizard! I am sure you owe a lot of credit for that to Tyler at Hoovies!
on a gold plaque on the center console of my '96 300zx it says the car is number 33 of the very last 300 made for NA. still daily driving it since the day it rolled off the lot.
I was a Nissan technician when these were new and I had a customer with a modified twin turbo that had a framed ticket from Florida Highway Patrol for 174mph in the Everglades racing a sport bike. At that time, it was one of the fastest cars I had ever driven and the twin turbos felt like you had been kicked in the chest by a mule! The non-turbo 5-speed, non-t-top and cloth interior would be the perfect spec for a simple to maintain example without the Super-HICAS and other do-dads that the twin turbo had that made them more difficult to service as they get older. Very nice car!
I bought a 1993 NA/auto last summer for my son, that's going to be restored. And at the end of the summer, he found an 87' NA/ 5 spd for me to restore for myself... as if I don't have enough to do. ( I'm retired, so I have time to restore both, and they both run, so not much to do to them..) But we got both for under $10k, so they were a steal!! 🦝
As a little kid. I had a hot wheels car of a Z32 300 ZX. That was the first time I realized the connection between real car that somebody could drive and one of my hot wheels. Decades later I was working in the tire shop and my boss and I went to pick up some cars from a dealership to put tires on. It was a twin turbo manual, My boss knew how much I love those cars. he tossed me the keys and said keep it under 100 and don’t wreck it on the way back to the shop.
This is one of the reasons back in the day i bought a Toyota Supra Turbo 5spd also with cloth seats. Being a straight 6, it looked a whole lot easier to work on. And boy was I correct! Also while other Supra's were having seat leather that was falling apart after many years. My cloth seats were nearly perfect... Loved my '88 Supra Turbo... Sold it with 156k miles and was still on the original clutch!
I was living near Hood River, Oregon (and boy do they shoot a lot of car ads on the old Gorge Highway there) in 1990, hiking near Bridal Vail Falls/the old highway when I heard this nice exhaust sound and saw this bright red, new 300ZX comin' round the bend, GORGEOUS!
Where does Euroasian Bob GET these gems? Do they follow him home? Just an FYI, that is NOT corrosion on the intakes. It's a corrosion inhibitor called Cosmoline that was applied on the intakes from the factory. BMW used a similar product on their cars. It yellows as it ages, which is normal.
I owned several late 70's 280z's. They had straight 6 engines with electronics F.I. I did all the work on them as not many mechanics, even Datsun dealers (in the mid 80's) were not very knowledgeable. They had Bosch fuel injection with finicky (as they got old) mechanical air flow metes. The 280's were a blast to drive and handled nicely. The 300's are nice car, much more refined then the old 280's, but still a cool car. Keep up these great videos!
I searched for a Twin Turbo Z in the late 90s for years. When I finally found one, a lady friend of mine was divorcing her wealthy husband and offered me her one owner 1987 Porsche 911 turbo slant nose for $15k. Being the same price roughly as the Z, I bought the 911 as I couldn't swing both. Looking back, I could have figured out the finances. Anyway, I kept the 911 for 5 years and sold it. Today, I regret passing on the Z more than selling the 911.
Love to see the 300zx content. Have one tucked away in the garage. It never fails to turn heads. But mine is about the same. NA manual. Electronic hvac. But ttops and leather seats. Absolute blast to drive
A good friend of mine has one of these, in red. It needed a timing belt and a usually very good mechanic had a bad day, something went wrong and the pistons smashed the valves. These must be touchy to time right. Damage wasn't bad, some new valves and all was good. Lovely car. I have the next gen version.
You don't do valve cover gaskets on a 300zx. You do a special procedure called (topping up the oil) until you have some better reason to pull the intake plenum.
Hey Euroasian Bob if you are reading this, I have a SLAM DUNK way to improve the driving experience of this car. Put a magnaflow X-pipe in place of the center Muffler. Keep the axle mufflers stock. But do that x pipe. This exhaust was designed to make you want the twin turbo if you rev past 4k in the test drive. After 4k the car just tuckers out. But all you gotta do is install and x pipe and it cures the problem. You get exhaust scavenging that makes it zip all the way to redline. Do it!
That's 1 improvement of many that can be made. I did headers,Stillen exhaust, f/r sway bars,shock tower braces,short throw and direct mount shifter, a couple others steering upgrades. One great improvement was FatMat extensive use of sound deadening. 20 yr owner of a 94'
That would probably lower the value on this car. For Euroasian Bob's market clientele? That would be a negative. You would be surprised how much value there is for OEM correct exhaust in the collectors world, especially on tuner cars. Is something for the new owner to decide.
@@russelljacob7955 Sure, for this resale don't touch the all OEM car. When I performed the mods on my 94' I kept ALL the original parts,many with just 25k miles on them just in case any buyer from me wants and as added incentive to buy. After installing it becomes apparent that the car really does improve greatly with upgrades. A good car to begin with but begs to be better. Personally, I would never buy a sports car that did not have some open air experience,targa,T-tops,convertible if available AND a manual trans. Take this coupe and shove it.
@@johnmichaelkarma never thought the shifter needed any tightening up, was always a joy as is. And shock tower braces were on my short list at first... But then I realized that these cars don't have struts and so there is no horizontal loading on the shock tower seat. So there is little value as all the lateral force goes into the subframe. It's mostly just a pretty weight addition. Sway bars = yes. I opted for just the TT sway bar setup on mine, but they're almost always a good investment on any car
I had one of these in blue, which was gorgeous. It also had the same cloth interior. I MISS that car so much. Wish I never got rid of it. Paid $7k for it with 49k miles, one owner, back in 2007. Never should have sold it!
Nice car i had the 1990 model same cloth interior mine had the rear spoiler it was black best thing was no airbag that first year nice 3 spoke wheel . Awesome car i never had an issue with it. Also did 155 in it handled excellent. You can get pretty good ones currently being brought over from japan but steering is on the right.
I bought a 1979 280zx a year old years ago for cash….$10,000. A gorgeous car without any problems. A true classic and only red one in my area. Stunning is an understatement….still miss it today. A straight six with tons of room , not a problem to work on.
I had one, 1990 black, beige leather interior and manual, non turbo and 2 seater. It had 90k miles. I bought it from the original owner and I loved it. Unfortunately it had some rust and at the time (9 years ago) I had no experience working on cars. I sold it and I miss it. They are very very cool cars, awesome to drive and own. I will definitely buy another one at some point in my life. That’s the era when Nissan made quality cars, as good or better than Toyotas. Those days are long long gone
I became a Nissan fan in the 80's because of the Nissan cars my parents owned. Always loved the 280Z and the z31 300Z. But, when this one came out it blew me away. It was/is awesome looking. I always called it the widebody Z. I heard a lot of people referring to it as such when it was new. But, now I never hear anyone call it that. I've driven every Z car there is. Including this one. But, truth be known... I'd rather have the 1987 NA 5 speed z31 300ZX with T-Tops. It exuded quality and classy styling. By far and away the best Z car that I've ever driven. Make no mistake though... This 300 is no slouch either! Still holds a very special place in my heart.
Those VG30 engines are one of if not Nissans best work. I had one in a Maxima that ran for 400k miles and was still running until i just to let it go with too many cars in garage. Great daily driver and engine. Hope to get a 96 TT 300z one day
Back in 1978, I began selling at a Mazda dealership just when the new RX-7 was released. The then Datsun 280Z was our main nemesis. I remember in driving both that the RX-7 felt lighter and more nimble and the Z heavier and more ponderous. But that may have just been my salesman's confirmation bias. Both were great driving and great looking cars. It seems to me that there was much more distictiveness and variety in styling back then as well which added to the appeal of both.
My first GF’s step dad had one of these when I was in HS in the early 2000’s, and it was just like this…5 speed N/A, tweed interior, and eggplant purple. Was also a garage queen and despite being 10 years old at the time only had 20k miles on it. Pretty sure his had T-tops, though. I sometimes wonder if he still has it. The fastest I’ve ever driven in my life (top speed wise) was in a modified ‘91 300ZX TT auto with about 400whp around the same time, owned by a close friend. Fantastic cars and I wish one was still around in my life.
I had a good friend that had one. It was white and so much fun to drive. It was a manual twin turbo. He bought it right outta high school. Lots of good memories with that car.
I was about 20 when these came out. It’s impossible to overstate how sleek and futuristic this looked to early 90s eyes. It was fantastic looking for about a year, and then it kind of started to blend in and be just another car. Meanwhile, just a couple of years later the Porsche 993 dropped, and it STILL looks like it was beamed down from a spaceship.
I bought this exact model new in 1990. I got a decent discount because most people interested in this vehicle wanted the T-tops, leather seats, and turbos. I loved how the car looked and drove, but after 3 years I traded it in on a Nissan Pathfinder.
I've always loved those. A couple months ago I was about to buy one. I was worried about it not being reliable. I bought a 2010 370z. I love it and will always be a fan of the z line
My uncle had a 91 charcoal, manual, fabric interior, non-turbo back in 91 when I was 14. He'd pick me up from school in it and I loved that car. Sadly, it got repo'd within about a year. I thought this may have been his car. But his was even more rare....it was a 2+2 with t-tops. Now there's a unicorn for Bob to find.
They're easy to work on once you delete all the emissons and vac hoses crap. Grind out the intake runner and injector replacement is easy. I did all that, plus full timing kit. It wasn't hard, just time consuming. Nothing actually broke. They just need standard maintenance. I converted to electric fans. You can also put TT clutch/flywheel in N/A if you grind the bellhousing (did that too). Test pipes, plus cheap exhaust sounded amazing (had decent size resonators).
My father had one. 300zx turbo. Bright red with the T top. And yeah he started having loads of issues and sold it. He's a mechanic but didn't really have the time for it and didn't like seeing it just sitting there.
That car is in very nice shape. I had a '96 300ZX, 5 speed and cloth interior. I bought in 2001 with 27K miles. I never cared for that tweed fabric in the earlier year models, thought it looked cheap. The later years cloth interior was much nicer looking.
This was my dream car growing up. Always loved the looks of it, and when the target tops are off...OOOF beautiful. Also, gotta be twin turbo. Sucks that it will be super hard to find a stock one, unabused, for a good price nowadays.
Nissan should have made a slightly larger chassis so you could actually access the engine when the hood was raised. The number of fantastic in shape "classic" vehicles from the 1990's is incredible. Be interesting to know if they are local Kansas City finds, or shopping throughout the U.S. If it isn't local even if low miles needing to drive a 30 year old car 500 miles back home is risky proposition. I bet the Car Wizard does it right and brings his own flatbed tow truck. It is a really handy piece of equipment, like a car lift. It's better to buy those two first before getting a building if you want to start a repair shop. Car Wizard repair shop and setup' has to be one of the best in the entire country. Well done! And able the ability to repair vehicles of any kind. The man is very smart and understands not just cars but the entire auto business. It's nice to know there are examples of good American Business happening in the country and it's not all "Doom and Gloom".
That would be such a fun car to drive, even without the turbo! Nissan just made cars that felt great from behind the wheel back in the early '90s. A friend of mine had a '92 240sx manual and that thing was so much fun. A nice 3.0L V6 like this with a manual would be even more fun!
I had a supervisor who had one when I was in highschool and worked at a pizza place at the mall back in the 90's. He had a black/gray one and I drooled over that car every time I saw it.
One of my work colleagues had one like this in the Nissan gunmetal colour back in 2003. Non turbo, manual, cloth two seat interior. Super rare even then.
I love that it's a two seater. My brother had an '86 Z31 300ZX 2+2 (VG30E) SOHC naturally aspirated 5spd with T-tops, leather interior and factory stereo controls on the steering wheel (but he had an aftermarket deck so the steering wheel controls didn't work). I loved that car. He kept it mint... then he sold it to my cousin who trashed it. 😢
My dad has still got one of these a 1995 version,one of the last, pristine condition and still drives it. He had two. His is the turbo version as it was a UK model. The US version was called the Fairlady Z, losing the rear seats the UK version had , me and my brother had to fit in, just...
I had a 1990 NA 300ZX which was my daily driver for 15 years. I finally sold it because of the Chicago winter salt damage and bought an Infiniti G35 Coupe. I had a nasty surprise when I found out my insurance company classified my 300ZX as a compact car and my G35 as a high performance car. My insurance doubled.
I passed this model up for the 91 Maxima. I think mine had a similar engine, ran excellent till reaching 130,000 miles. Injector and head gasket repairs cost half of what I paid for the car new.
Thanks for the fantastic service on my Z Wizard!!! I will never forget the first time I saw one. I remember it like it was yesterday. What was your impression when you saw your first Z of this generation?
My detailed TH-cam video overview will be live soon. I will post link here when live.
Did you sell out to a devil worshiping cult? HOW do you find these amazing rides?
My dad had his 91 TT for 25+ years, just sold it about 2 yrs ago and i think he regrets it
A car from my youth. Loved the Z!
Too bad nobody wants the non turbo version. Slow as molasses.
On Different trips, different years I was in Nashville and Chicago. I saw a pristine 300ZX and a not so nice 300ZX lol
I have a 1991 Nissan 300zx slick top roof. I daily drive it. 318,000 miles and still running strong.
Impressive this is how our cars are supposed to be, driven not locked away in a garage collecting dust, mine an 1989 na 2+2 has just hit 290k kms so I'm not far off you but I have a dream to one day have the highest mileage 300zx in the world so I got some catching up to do but I first need to get it back on the road.
@@adamzx 290ks, so in km's, mine is 511,771kms lol I just replaced all the coil packs and injectors. Still cheaper then a car payment!
@@SoCalSlaughter 👍legend status mate, I'll get there one day I will never sell my 300zx ever so give me time I'll get there
I forgot to add I'm still on my original na engine still hopefully I can keep it running up to 600k+
I've got a 1990 slicktop early 89 build date. One of the first off the line :)
ive done everything imaginable to these cars. I'm a retired, now,42 year Nissan,(Datsun) Master technician. Started in 1976. Worked at a Nissan Dealer my whole life. I was the z car guy. Everyone from miles around brought their Z's to me because they didnt trust anyone else. . They still call asking me to work on them, lol. Retired in 2020. Unfortunately in New york, They rust out badly. Most werent driven in the winter , but some did. I know of several now that are very low mileage and never driven, even in the rain! Mostly twin Turbo models. Great cars.
Hey pops im in ny also .. lets cruise around !!
I saw a convertable 300Z a few weeks ago and immediately realized I have never seen one. After looking it up, only about 1500 were imported to the US. I saw a freakin unicorn!!
I have one in the salvage for parts.
Weren't they modified to convertibles by ASC in America
I saw one Russell Floyd at Z1 Motorsport had done a TT swap into.
I have a 1993 5spd vert; those are even more rare.
@@JoshJones-37334 hmmm I'd imagine he had to add some chassis bracing and a roll bar , don't think those are too sturdy in convertible form.
We picked up family from the airport in 1989. There was a Gold Pearl 1990 Z in the lobby. It was the most modern car I'd seen at the time. Everything else on the road was 80s boring boxes, slim white walls. This car ushered in the greatest decade for Japanese cars, hands down
I always loved the 300ZX, even as an 8 year old. It was beautiful in the front and back.
Nissan's whole lineup back then was great, the little early 90's sentra was awesome (my mom's car, a 93) and my dad had a base model 2wd hardbody pickup.
The Maxima's from the 90's to the 00's were awesome too.
@@volvo09 my wife's first car was a '91 Maxima. She was still driving it until about 2015 and it still had no real issues at all when we sold it!
@@volvo09I feel like 90s was the pinnacle for Nissan and maybe even Honda with all the VTEC engines.
Very well stated, I agree with you wholeheartedly. The 90's was the pinnacle of Japanese automotive greatness - the best looking and over engineered cars from all their manufacturers.
I owned a 90 300zx in gold pearl, loved that car. Passenger foot space was laughable =)
This was my dream car back in the 90s.
I had two, 1990 and 1992, both twin turbo 5 speeds. Awesome cars and that design still looks modern today...
I had a '91 TT 5 speed, and did a bunch of Stillen mods to it. After a few years, that engine became scary to work on so I moved on. Nice looking design though that has aged better than Nissan itself.
@@aussie2uGA "aged better than Nissan" hahaha. I'm 20yr owner of a 94' great car. Some mods to enhance overall performance. luv it.
Did y'all crash or sell??
@@1MADZ haha, I sold it. That engine bay was a bit intimidating to keep working on as the years and mileage added up.
The Z32 aka 300ZX is the GREATEST JDM sports car of the 1990s. It won ALL of the awards, BEST CARS from every magazine, sexiest car of the century from GQ magazine and Forbes and other publications. It beat out every JDM car yes EVERY car, even the Supra that NOBODY bought nor wanted(the Supra gain popularity in the 2000s after fast and furious). Most of the guys talking about these cars or most JDM cars NEVER have driven a real example or any JDM cars
I’ve owned 2(1990 and 1995) in the 1990s and now I have one today a mint 1995!
I’ve owned all car from SC400, Vette, Audi turbos, Infiniti, BMW, to XJR etc and my ZX is my favorite.
Best jdm of the '90s? Nope...I prefer doritos...(FD)
3000gt was pretty badazz2
Gotta go with the Supra or the skyline, but these are pretty awesome
One of my dream cars. As a young teenager, the 300ZX was the first car that set my heart on fire for cars. I still want one.
They're unfortunately not getting any cheaper at this point.
I have a twin turbo for sale.
We purchased a new used 1993 300ZX just like this but with a t-top, leather interior, and dark blue in color. 32K miles and change. We drove it over 20 years and finally decided to sell it at 274K miles. Absolutely loved this car! It was fun to drive, it handled great, got okay mileage, and was very reliable through the years.
We either did three or four timing belt jobs on it, and I remember it would really eat tires would perhaps the best mileage I ever got on a set was 40K or so.... Hey what can I say it was fun to drive.
I would never own a European exotic, because I just couldn't handle the unreliability, but this being a Japanese car was just so reliable that I never ever got tired of it.
Finally in the end it just got to where we were going to have to do too much work to it and decided it would be better to move into something else. Both I and my wife miss our z everyday!
Nice story. I refer to the styling as very Italianesque when people comment on mine. Surely part of the "exotic" lure and mystique of a sports car IS the style. With this one gets the look of an timeless exotic without the insurance and repair costs. If you miss it enough you can find nice low mileage examples. They come up regularly for $10k and under at a variety of sites. Look often they're their. Most seem to be auto trans though.
I had a 91 NA in my early twenties. Black 5 speed with peanut butter guts and t tops. Hit her with KYB front and rear shocks, twin turbo sway bars, lightweight driveshaft, underdrive pullies, ECU. Got her to make 202 rwhp and run 13’s at 102. Best handling car I ever had.
@OfficialCarWizard. lol. Try harder
Get a Miata or MR2.
@@anthonye3680 if I was a tiny little guy like your dad’s progeny I’d probably consider it.
I had a '91 for about 19 yrs. It was a 2+2 , naturally aspirated, 5 speed. Yellow pearlescent. I sold it when it started having engine issues and my local Nissan dealer didn't have the connector to read the codes. Other than that, the AC was an issue (leak), and some electronic issue that depleated the battery when it was parked. The young lady I sold it to ended up selling it to a young man who revived it for about $3500. Best car I ever owned!
From trailer park to yacht. Amazing!
Thank a Democrat for supporting the people who lived in a trailer park.
@@Michael-yi4mcthank a republican for creating jobs that allow them to make it out of the park.
Not everyone is born rich and some people actually work their way up and build themselves up and brand themselves and know their worth. No point in being jealous, or insulting others as they became successful.
Actually trailer park to a nice yacht is impressive in a few short years to be honest. When you advertise and do good business and have other friends advertise for you as well, then eventually it pays off.
Great response @@thetechgenie7374
@@Commentleaver-c6x 👍If you say so.
Fun fact. The headlights are also used on the Nissan R390
Also on Lamborghini Diablo
I am convinced Euroasianbob travels through time and brings these vehicles back
I remember the first time I saw one on the road in 1990 while riding the school bus. Didn’t look like anything on the road at the time. In 2007 I bought a 1990 pearl white 2+2 non-turbo with tan leather and t-tops for $3.5k. Spent many weekends cruising down PCH with the t-tops off and friends squeezed in the back seat. Great memories.
Pearl white is my favorite color for that car. Even was as an 8 year old kid.
I had a 1994 for many years and it is the only thing I have owned that people gave me compliments on. I've had strangers rush up and touch it out of sheer amazement. People would shout out their windows to me in traffic and many thumbs up as well. Unfortunately the car was having problems I could no longer fix, and you have to let them go to someone who has the time and money to chase down the gremlins. It is very rare to see them now around here in Michigan.
I used to love the Z32. One like you have there especially. That one is the elusive Slick Top, that means no TTops.
Everybody loved TTops back then, not me!
He barely mentions it's the slicktop. That's pretty rare - also lighter than the T-top version
Seeing the 300zx has never been a common sight, but I always imagined whoever owned them must've been someone who was as elusive as Batman. Respect to you for having one on the channel, and the thoughtfulness of old Nissan engineering and design.
My dad bought the first year of it in1990. 2+2 pearl white non turbo manual with the tan cloth interior and took as good of care as a driver car could. He lowered it an inch or so and put higher end "racing" brakes on it and would run it at Road America for fun when he was in the Alfa Romeo club. I remember the day he came home with it. Mom told him that if he raised his income by 10K he got to pick the car, but she got to pick the plates. He raised it by a lot more than that, but she said no to the NSX. So "Midlyf 1" it was. To think that car he got for about $22K back in 90. Chicagoland streets and salt got the best of it over the years and he sold it probably 10 years ago. The plates remain in the garage as a memory of that portion of his life.
T tops are required
@itzjdub282 it had those also, but they never came off. In all the years he had it, they may have come off one time.
@@itzjdub282 T-tops off in the winter with the heat blasting and a mug of hot coffee is amazing!
first year was 89
When I was in high school in the early 2000's, one of the teachers owned a white one of these. He also had a Blue Pontiac Firebird Trans Am WS6. Two super cool cars for sure.
Old nissans are beautiful 😍 the 300zx turbo tho... so underrated so cool
I remember seeing one at the 1990 Auto Show in Montreal. They gave out these beautiful 11”x17” full color brochures, with velum overlapping the pictures of the car showing what the inside of the car looked like( suspension system, engine, drivetrain and exhaust, and braking system “ I believe they are a collectors item now.
Had all the Z's 240 260 280 & early 300 ZX's.....Now @65yrs old In hindsight, wish kept em' all...... the BEST and AMAZINGLY magic looking cars.
Same. I currently only own a 72 240. But, I've had 3 240's, a 280zx, a 300zxt, a 350z, and a 370z. Always wanted a 300zxTT, right up until the day I became a mechanic. After over 20 years of wrenching I still don't want to work on one of those.
i bought 34 old jap cars 10 15 years ago still have them glad i did like the 2009 4.2l xj jaguar ill be buying one soon
Remember seeing a LOT of these in the early 90s in NYC. Loved em! This car looks like it came straight off the Nissan lot in 1991! This car is PRISTINE!
Well Wizzard, those are very complexed cars once they age. The defroster button Mrs. Wizzard pointed out next to the mirror control, is actually for the heated mirrors. That is a very base model Z. They offered really cool options, more so found on the turbo Z, like digital gage cluster, sonar adjustable suspension, and the turbo model came with Nissan's 4 Wheel Steering (Super Hicas). These cars were a joy to drive.
I'll never forget the first time I saw this car. I was selling Fords in late 1989, and I saw one of them on the highway on the way home. It changed my life. I still think it's one of the most beautiful cars ever made.
I am an 80’s baby (83) and I love the euro Asian bob find videos bc he somehow finds the most mint condition iconic cars of our era.
I have a 1993 ZX that I bought New in 93 at Carr Nissan in Portland Oregon it has 39,000 miles and perfect condition it has a manual , T-Tops , Gun metal grey and always been garaged . Its totally stock . Im retiring and will be selling it soon .
I have the same car -- '91 NA slicktop, manual transmission, charcoal gray (KH2). Bought it new in Aug 1991 from Universal City Nissan in LA. Still drive it regularly. Lots of fun to drive. I installed Stillen cat-back exhausts when the originals rusted out, along with subframe spacers, and it's dyno tuned for modern gas.
Had a 1995 Nissan 300ZX 2+2 (non turbo) and it was ahead of its time and prob the best vehicle I’ll ever own. I got offers everywhere I went for that car and tons of head turns. The only thing that it needed was it had a major oil leak issue with the valve seals in the engine that needed to be replaced. Other than that just basic maintenance. This was back when Nissan was a great brand before Renault bought it. Sadly, it got totaled in a car accident when it was parked and even after it was declared totaled by the insurance company, I was still able to sell it for around $1600 because there’s enough hype out there for them to fix and rebuild them. Incredible cars!
I actually saw a 300Z yesterday on the road... forget how beautiful of a car they are.
I came of age in the 90’s. And this z car turbo along with the F-40 and countach were my dream cars. Timeless A+++ Design!! The chief designer was a genius
An absolute work of art .
I was at a coworker's parking lot. I notice a black, dust vehicle. Both fenders damage. It was a1994 300zx!!!my dream car w/ manual tra.. abandoned for 2 years. I drove it felt the power (adrenaline)..long story short. bought the car for $400. The guy said it also had a 3k car lean on it. I was like ill take it.
Got lucky. California DMV $850 registration fees penalties. Required smog. Now the z is at the body shop for a 350k (dents,body work, also replacing doors) full paint job. My coworker now "if i would off known about cars" haha.. Have a good one nice video.
Urination Bob strikes again
😂😂😅
😭🤣😂😭🤣😂😭🤣🤣🤣😭
Don't piss him off!!😂
There was a short time period where these were selling cheap, but it’s a cool car and prices rose quick when all the people who couldn’t afford them while younger, now can afford them. I had a boss that bought one in a pearl white brand new off the lot, I jokingly asked her to borrow it, she laughed and told me to get out of her office lol
I remember when good, low mile TT's were $11k. That number is over $20k now.
No that's just inflation. When every slightly desirable used car starts going up in value and brand new cars are starting $10,000 then what they were previous; you're in a massive inflation era.
@@timsmith2952 This is more 90's kids hitting their peak earnings years and being able to finally afford their dream cars. And most Z32's have been trashed at this point.
@@Gr8thxAlot I disagree. A lot of Z32s have been trashed but remember they brought a lot more here over many years than they did other JDM cars of that era like the 3rd gen RX7 for example. A lot of people can't afford new cars or dislike newer cars even so the used car market is in more demand. When clean examples of 300ZXs start hitting crazy 1980s blazer mint prices THEN you might be on to something.
Glad to see the car wizard appreciates these cars. I own a 1990 twin turbo making 700hp.
1990-1991 the Z32 actually came with tweed interior. 1992-1996 they came with velour, and the higher trim models came with suede.
Keep pumping out the videos Wizard! They are very relaxing and entertaining especially after a hard day's work!
I have had seven Zs (three Z31s, three Z32s like this and currently have a Z34...a 2014 370Z Roadster) over the years and absolutely love them. I'm a big Nissan guy in general (also have a Juke Nismo, a Sentra Nismo, a GT-R, etc) and these things will always be at the very very top of my list.
Awesome to see the Wizard loving on the Z32. I love my 1994 TT. I learned to work on cars with the Z32 so most other stuff is easier for me. The 1994 TT is my third Z32. I had a 1994 NA and briefly a 1990 TT before my current one. It isn't really that hard to work on them though, if you have a good collection of tools and extended/angled pliers. I used to have an NA but the TT is another beast altogether.
I own a 96 Twin Turbo. Also in black. Love it, still drives like a modern car. Only 50,000 miles. Standard apart from a full SS exhaust.
When I was young I had a 91 twin turbo. I loved it so much. The day I got it a very small hose in the turbo system started leaking coolant. I remember looking at the service manual before trying to fix it and it said "Step1: Remove Engine". There is barely any room in this car to wedge your hand in to work on anything plenty of little sensors and hoses and things hiding in there in the TT version. It is a shame they even built any without twin turbos though. Thanks it really brings back some memories.
I loved that car when it came out in my first year of college. My roommate had one and he destroyed a Corvette of that year.. It was the smoothest sports car I ridden in til that day! You can still find good ones and it still holds its design.. looks really good.. Stillen versions was the best in those days!
I had a 91' Black Maxima SE, in my senior year of high school. My oldest cousin on my mom's side, was ....and I guess still is a tech wiz. And that car was like his starter car, I was in love with that car. My cousin started getting promoted quickly at a young age. He traded up, he sold me that car for 4,475.00, in 95. That was every dollar I had, could scrape together, and borrow. I loved that car, it was beautiful. It even had a cooler Speedo and tach. Good times, I had a close buddy, with a 90' 300zx 5 speed naturally aspirated. First time I drove that car, .....well, despite what I had built up in my head about my Maxima, the 300 was awesome. The rear wheel was night and day, and second gear in that car, yeah...that Maxima ended up back with my cousin's younger brother, and his daughter used that car for school. Damn thing ran for over 20 years.
That na vg is the same as the na 2JZ , it makes a better boat anchor than performance engine.
It was already pretty tweaked. There wasn’t another na 3.0L that made 222 hp from the factory until BMW in 2000 with 230hp.
@@JoshJones-37334woah woah. The honda C30A in the NSX would like a word. That had 270 hp out of 3L in 1990.
@@Hanojsemaj point taken. 250-270 depending on the application and if you wanted to drop $60k in 1990 on a Honda.
You are mixing up v6 and inline 6 now. I think you meant inline 6. They are much heavier than most v6s
Great job! Thanks for sharing. I have 1992 NA hard top manual 267548 miles. I took a road trip East coast PA to GA to South Florida and to West Coast Cali with no problem. Was soooo fun to drive. Still have it.
My old man was doing quite well for himself in the 90s, so got one of these brand new... I was about 16-17 and was soo excited! The thing was stunning, UK spec in a deep metallic blue, with T-top, leather, CD, climate control, twin turbo etc. My old man was a great driver, king of overtaking, so it was fun going out with him. It was my land speed record for years at 147mph. Eventually our house got burgled, and they took the car with all our electronics (VCRs and Hifis in those days) loaded up in it. It was found in a lock up garage in Luton waiting to be stripped. The old man didn't want it after that and moved on to other cars but he always missed it and lusted after fast Nissans 'til his dying day.
I just did a water pump on a one owner 94 Z - 59,000 miles. It’s garage kept and it was a pleasure to work on, with me being the first to do any repairs on this vehicle besides maintenance, brakes and tires. Everything came apart and the adjusters for the belts worked as they were designed to. Even the hide clamps were still lined up with the paint marks on the coolant hoses.Oddly he declined replacing the timing belt. It still had the thick heavy master key and a Nextel car phone that still beeps. It was like opening up a time capsule- it brought me back to my twenties- a rare fun job at work. 👍🏻
My garage boss in Ireland was Japanese mad drove 240z.. 280 and then bought the 300 ZX TT and gave me a drive in it at 19 years old. Serious power.
Done a new clutch replacement was fairly easy.. I left the cambelt change to the foreman he was like wizard.. Said it was pretty easy task
I've been daily driving one for about a year. Did the 120k service immediately, then a new fuel rail and painted it Nissan Midnight Purple 3. I love driving it so much.
how much you pay for the paint job. does it look good?
When I was young in the '90s and saw an Asian dude driving a new one, and I was in awe even though I didn't know much about cars.
What a great Z32 300-ZX. I wouldn't change it either!
I loves these cars in my late teens, had a 91 n/a, 90 n/a 2+2 and the best one was a 91 TT, kept going back to these cara despite everyone telling me they were a nightmare to work on(which they are), some mechanics didn’t even want to touch them, super fun cars. Would love to own one in this condition.
I had a 1990 2+2 all black with the same rims but in chrome. Very clean car and a lot of fun to drive. Bought it for one thousand. Just have to look around they are not selling for what they list them for they are dreaming at 20k. They are listed WAY over what they actually sell for. For 20k I can get a much much nicer corvette. I collected these Z cars for over 40 years. I had a 300 zx for 29 years. I started with a 1971 1/2 hand made 240z. I stopped with my 350z touring model. I have had every model between them and when there were changes of the same model I bought them like the 89 and 90 300zx. The 2+2 model of the 90-96 body style 300zx handles much better and looks even better than the standard being just a little longer. Congrats on your success Wizard! I am sure you owe a lot of credit for that to Tyler at Hoovies!
on a gold plaque on the center console of my '96 300zx it says the car is number 33 of the very last 300 made for NA. still daily driving it since the day it rolled off the lot.
I was a Nissan technician when these were new and I had a customer with a modified twin turbo that had a framed ticket from Florida Highway Patrol for 174mph in the Everglades racing a sport bike. At that time, it was one of the fastest cars I had ever driven and the twin turbos felt like you had been kicked in the chest by a mule! The non-turbo 5-speed, non-t-top and cloth interior would be the perfect spec for a simple to maintain example without the Super-HICAS and other do-dads that the twin turbo had that made them more difficult to service as they get older. Very nice car!
I owned an 87 300zx for awhile back in the early 2000’s. Love these cars ❤
I had an 88 turbo. Still lots of fun, with none of the Z32 maintenance headaches.
I bought a 1993 NA/auto last summer for my son, that's going to be restored. And at the end of the summer, he found an 87' NA/ 5 spd for me to restore for myself... as if I don't have enough to do. ( I'm retired, so I have time to restore both, and they both run, so not much to do to them..) But we got both for under $10k, so they were a steal!! 🦝
As a little kid. I had a hot wheels car of a Z32 300 ZX. That was the first time I realized the connection between real car that somebody could drive and one of my hot wheels. Decades later I was working in the tire shop and my boss and I went to pick up some cars from a dealership to put tires on. It was a twin turbo manual, My boss knew how much I love those cars. he tossed me the keys and said keep it under 100 and don’t wreck it on the way back to the shop.
This is one of the reasons back in the day i bought a Toyota Supra Turbo 5spd also with cloth seats. Being a straight 6, it looked a whole lot easier to work on. And boy was I correct! Also while other Supra's were having seat leather that was falling apart after many years. My cloth seats were nearly perfect... Loved my '88 Supra Turbo... Sold it with 156k miles and was still on the original clutch!
I was living near Hood River, Oregon (and boy do they shoot a lot of car ads on the old Gorge Highway there) in 1990, hiking near Bridal Vail Falls/the old highway when I heard this nice exhaust sound and saw this bright red, new 300ZX comin' round the bend, GORGEOUS!
Where does Euroasian Bob GET these gems? Do they follow him home? Just an FYI, that is NOT corrosion on the intakes. It's a corrosion inhibitor called Cosmoline that was applied on the intakes from the factory. BMW used a similar product on their cars. It yellows as it ages, which is normal.
I owned several late 70's 280z's. They had straight 6 engines with electronics F.I. I did all the work on them as not many mechanics, even Datsun dealers (in the mid 80's) were not very knowledgeable. They had Bosch fuel injection with finicky (as they got old) mechanical air flow metes. The 280's were a blast to drive and handled nicely. The 300's are nice car, much more refined then the old 280's, but still a cool car. Keep up these great videos!
I searched for a Twin Turbo Z in the late 90s for years. When I finally found one, a lady friend of mine was divorcing her wealthy husband and offered me her one owner 1987 Porsche 911 turbo slant nose for $15k. Being the same price roughly as the Z, I bought the 911 as I couldn't swing both. Looking back, I could have figured out the finances. Anyway, I kept the 911 for 5 years and sold it. Today, I regret passing on the Z more than selling the 911.
Love to see the 300zx content. Have one tucked away in the garage. It never fails to turn heads. But mine is about the same. NA manual. Electronic hvac. But ttops and leather seats. Absolute blast to drive
A good friend of mine has one of these, in red. It needed a timing belt and a usually very good mechanic had a bad day, something went wrong and the pistons smashed the valves. These must be touchy to time right. Damage wasn't bad, some new valves and all was good. Lovely car. I have the next gen version.
I with you Wizard. I remember being a kid and loving seeing the 300zx. The twin turbo v6 was nuts.
You don't do valve cover gaskets on a 300zx. You do a special procedure called (topping up the oil) until you have some better reason to pull the intake plenum.
Hey Euroasian Bob if you are reading this, I have a SLAM DUNK way to improve the driving experience of this car. Put a magnaflow X-pipe in place of the center Muffler. Keep the axle mufflers stock. But do that x pipe. This exhaust was designed to make you want the twin turbo if you rev past 4k in the test drive. After 4k the car just tuckers out. But all you gotta do is install and x pipe and it cures the problem. You get exhaust scavenging that makes it zip all the way to redline. Do it!
That's 1 improvement of many that can be made. I did headers,Stillen exhaust, f/r sway bars,shock tower braces,short throw and direct mount shifter, a couple others steering upgrades. One great improvement was FatMat extensive use of sound deadening. 20 yr owner of a 94'
That would probably lower the value on this car. For Euroasian Bob's market clientele? That would be a negative. You would be surprised how much value there is for OEM correct exhaust in the collectors world, especially on tuner cars.
Is something for the new owner to decide.
@@russelljacob7955 Sure, for this resale don't touch the all OEM car. When I performed the mods on my 94' I kept ALL the original parts,many with just 25k miles on them just in case any buyer from me wants and as added incentive to buy. After installing it becomes apparent that the car really does improve greatly with upgrades. A good car to begin with but begs to be better. Personally, I would never buy a sports car that did not have some open air experience,targa,T-tops,convertible if available AND a manual trans. Take this coupe and shove it.
@@johnmichaelkarma never thought the shifter needed any tightening up, was always a joy as is. And shock tower braces were on my short list at first... But then I realized that these cars don't have struts and so there is no horizontal loading on the shock tower seat. So there is little value as all the lateral force goes into the subframe. It's mostly just a pretty weight addition. Sway bars = yes. I opted for just the TT sway bar setup on mine, but they're almost always a good investment on any car
@@russelljacob7955 true. This is why I'm not a dealer just an enthusiast 😂
I had one of these in blue, which was gorgeous. It also had the same cloth interior. I MISS that car so much. Wish I never got rid of it. Paid $7k for it with 49k miles, one owner, back in 2007. Never should have sold it!
Nice car i had the 1990 model same cloth interior mine had the rear spoiler it was black best thing was no airbag that first year nice 3 spoke wheel . Awesome car i never had an issue with it. Also did 155 in it handled excellent. You can get pretty good ones currently being brought over from japan but steering is on the right.
I bought a 1979 280zx a year old years ago for cash….$10,000. A gorgeous car without any problems. A true classic and only red one in my area. Stunning is an understatement….still miss it today.
A straight six with tons of room , not a problem to work on.
I had one, 1990 black, beige leather interior and manual, non turbo and 2 seater. It had 90k miles. I bought it from the original owner and I loved it. Unfortunately it had some rust and at the time (9 years ago) I had no experience working on cars. I sold it and I miss it. They are very very cool cars, awesome to drive and own. I will definitely buy another one at some point in my life. That’s the era when Nissan made quality cars, as good or better than Toyotas. Those days are long long gone
I became a Nissan fan in the 80's because of the Nissan cars my parents owned. Always loved the 280Z and the z31 300Z. But, when this one came out it blew me away. It was/is awesome looking. I always called it the widebody Z. I heard a lot of people referring to it as such when it was new. But, now I never hear anyone call it that. I've driven every Z car there is. Including this one. But, truth be known... I'd rather have the 1987 NA 5 speed z31 300ZX with T-Tops. It exuded quality and classy styling. By far and away the best Z car that I've ever driven. Make no mistake though... This 300 is no slouch either! Still holds a very special place in my heart.
Those VG30 engines are one of if not Nissans best work. I had one in a Maxima that ran for 400k miles and was still running until i just to let it go with too many cars in garage. Great daily driver and engine. Hope to get a 96 TT 300z one day
Open the strut covers behind the seats. You’ll find headlight aiming tools.
I owned 1983 280zx with the T top back in the mid 80’s, I loved that car! Straight six non turbo such a smooth responsive engine.
Back in 1978, I began selling at a Mazda dealership just when the new RX-7 was released. The then Datsun 280Z was our main nemesis. I remember in driving both that the RX-7 felt lighter and more nimble and the Z heavier and more ponderous. But that may have just been my salesman's confirmation bias. Both were great driving and great looking cars. It seems to me that there was much more distictiveness and variety in styling back then as well which added to the appeal of both.
My first GF’s step dad had one of these when I was in HS in the early 2000’s, and it was just like this…5 speed N/A, tweed interior, and eggplant purple.
Was also a garage queen and despite being 10 years old at the time only had 20k miles on it. Pretty sure his had T-tops, though. I sometimes wonder if he still has it.
The fastest I’ve ever driven in my life (top speed wise) was in a modified ‘91 300ZX TT auto with about 400whp around the same time, owned by a close friend.
Fantastic cars and I wish one was still around in my life.
I had a good friend that had one. It was white and so much fun to drive. It was a manual twin turbo. He bought it right outta high school. Lots of good memories with that car.
Have one just like this in my garage. You have motivated me to keep it. Have printed workshop manual which is very useful.
Mrs wizard sounds like a tour guide for an airline pilot giving instructions .Love the channel
A kids dream car back in the 90s. I remember seeing a ZX car club years ago in SoCal, maybe like 20 of them rolling to Dennys.
I was about 20 when these came out. It’s impossible to overstate how sleek and futuristic this looked to early 90s eyes. It was fantastic looking for about a year, and then it kind of started to blend in and be just another car. Meanwhile, just a couple of years later the Porsche 993 dropped, and it STILL looks like it was beamed down from a spaceship.
I bought this exact model new in 1990. I got a decent discount because most people interested in this vehicle wanted the T-tops, leather seats, and turbos.
I loved how the car looked and drove, but after 3 years I traded it in on a Nissan Pathfinder.
I've always loved those. A couple months ago I was about to buy one. I was worried about it not being reliable. I bought a 2010 370z. I love it and will always be a fan of the z line
My uncle had a 91 charcoal, manual, fabric interior, non-turbo back in 91 when I was 14. He'd pick me up from school in it and I loved that car. Sadly, it got repo'd within about a year. I thought this may have been his car. But his was even more rare....it was a 2+2 with t-tops. Now there's a unicorn for Bob to find.
They're easy to work on once you delete all the emissons and vac hoses crap. Grind out the intake runner and injector replacement is easy. I did all that, plus full timing kit. It wasn't hard, just time consuming. Nothing actually broke. They just need standard maintenance. I converted to electric fans. You can also put TT clutch/flywheel in N/A if you grind the bellhousing (did that too).
Test pipes, plus cheap exhaust sounded amazing (had decent size resonators).
My father had one. 300zx turbo. Bright red with the T top. And yeah he started having loads of issues and sold it. He's a mechanic but didn't really have the time for it and didn't like seeing it just sitting there.
That car is in very nice shape. I had a '96 300ZX, 5 speed and cloth interior. I bought in 2001 with 27K miles. I never cared for that tweed fabric in the earlier year models, thought it looked cheap. The later years cloth interior was much nicer looking.
This was my dream car growing up. Always loved the looks of it, and when the target tops are off...OOOF beautiful. Also, gotta be twin turbo. Sucks that it will be super hard to find a stock one, unabused, for a good price nowadays.
Nissan should have made a slightly larger chassis so you could actually access the engine when the hood was raised. The number of fantastic in shape "classic" vehicles from the 1990's is incredible. Be interesting to know if they are local Kansas City finds, or shopping throughout the U.S. If it isn't local even if low miles needing to drive a 30 year old car 500 miles back home is risky proposition. I bet the Car Wizard does it right and brings his own flatbed tow truck. It is a really handy piece of equipment, like a car lift. It's better to buy those two first before getting a building if you want to start a repair shop. Car Wizard repair shop and setup' has to be one of the best in the entire country. Well done! And able the ability to repair vehicles of any kind. The man is very smart and understands not just cars but the entire auto business. It's nice to know there are examples of good American Business happening in the country and it's not all "Doom and Gloom".
That would be such a fun car to drive, even without the turbo! Nissan just made cars that felt great from behind the wheel back in the early '90s. A friend of mine had a '92 240sx manual and that thing was so much fun. A nice 3.0L V6 like this with a manual would be even more fun!
I had a supervisor who had one when I was in highschool and worked at a pizza place at the mall back in the 90's.
He had a black/gray one and I drooled over that car every time I saw it.
One of my work colleagues had one like this in the Nissan gunmetal colour back in 2003. Non turbo, manual, cloth two seat interior. Super rare even then.
I had a 96 Z32 slick top(non T-Top) & loved that car, then I became an adult, I traded it in for a corvette & never looked back.😊
I love that it's a two seater. My brother had an '86 Z31 300ZX 2+2 (VG30E) SOHC naturally aspirated 5spd with T-tops, leather interior and factory stereo controls on the steering wheel (but he had an aftermarket deck so the steering wheel controls didn't work). I loved that car. He kept it mint... then he sold it to my cousin who trashed it. 😢
My dad has still got one of these a 1995 version,one of the last, pristine condition and still drives it. He had two.
His is the turbo version as it was a UK model. The US version was called the Fairlady Z, losing the rear seats the UK version had , me and my brother had to fit in, just...
I had a 1990 NA 300ZX which was my daily driver for 15 years. I finally sold it because of the Chicago winter salt damage and bought an Infiniti G35 Coupe. I had a nasty surprise when I found out my insurance company classified my 300ZX as a compact car and my G35 as a high performance car. My insurance doubled.
I passed this model up for the 91 Maxima. I think mine had a similar engine, ran excellent till reaching 130,000 miles. Injector and head gasket repairs cost half of what I paid for the car new.