Full restoration of 1979 280ZX - California shops?
 

Hi everyone! I'm a new member to the forum and this is my first post. I have a 1979 280ZX that my parents bought new from the dealer and picked it up on the day that I was born (my mom went into labor right after they picked up the car). After sitting in barn from 1986 to 1997, I got it running in 1997 and drove it a bit. Then it went back into the barn and hasn't moved. It's been started every few years, so it runs somewhat. The car has low miles (35K) but the paint is shot. Dash is cracked and carpet needs to be replaced among other things. Some light rust, but not too bad.

I'm now at a point where I'd like to do a full and proper restoration. I don't have the skills to do the restoration myself. I can definitely do some of it, but I actually don't want to screw this one up, so I'd like to get a professionally done restoration. I'm in SoCal now, but the car is in my parent's barn in NJ. I'd like to have the restoration done out by me, so don't mnd shipping the car to CA, AZ, or somewhere nearby. Any recommendations on who to trust for a top-notch restoration? I really want the car to be put back to like-new condition, though i'm sure it'll be pricey.

Looking forward to hearing back from everyone. Thanks!

Welcome to ZDriver!!! :023:

I imagine there are a lot of resto shops in CA... we've got quite a few CA members (RodMoyes, Lifegrddude, LWW, & others) who will chime in.

Thanks NismoPick!
Yeah, I've seen a few resto shops in CA online, but just trying to weed out the good from the bad, so appreciate any input from you guys!

I'll ask the local Z car guru if he has anyone he'd recomend in Cali....

There is a lot of stuff you can do yourself if you have any interest. It's definately not rocket science. You should strip the interior out. Get some zip lock bags and tape the bag with the screws to the back of each interior panel and it's pretty easy to take apart and put back together. Rip the carpets out. I made my own replacements. It's pretty easy to do your own especially the back. You can get pre made ones as well - that's likely what a restoration place would do. Once you have the carpets out remove the black tar like sound proofing with some dry ice. It comes up pretty easy that way. Once you've got that done take a look at the seams. You can dig out the seam sealer and take a look and see what shape your car really is in. All will be revealed then. The tough stuff is the body work and you can have that done at a reputable body shop. You can have the engine rebuilt by any reputable mechanic or one of the specialty places. It really depends on how much you want to spend how much you want to save/do yourself. It's pretty rewarding doing some of the restoration yourself and it's not as tough as you might think. That's coming from a guy with no experience - just a lot of reading and fearful diving in but it's all turned out pretty good.

Classic Datsun in Vista, CA is a shop with good reviews. If I remember correctly, they did the restoration on Adam Carolla's Datsun 610. They normally do 510s and early Z cars, but I'm pretty sure they'd do a 280zx too.