Minnesota Datsun 280Z / NA Miata / 1990 F-250

Everything you put next to that truck looks small, I can see why Dougal had so much trouble with the cows now.

Because of course it has two fuel tanks.

It's been bugging me what those wheels reminded me of and I finally worked it out on reading this latest update; Ford Granada.



Nice that you've gone with more road-y wheels on this one rather than knobblies.

Love everything about this thread. Some dream motors right there. I kinda like the beige. I had an old 406 with the interior in hearing aid beige, and it was the most comfortable place I've ever sat. I think beige just gives me positive vibes ever since.

NAILED IT.

I found the gremlins. Unplugged, blew the dust out, plugged back in and I seem to be able to switch between tanks again.

To be honest, I had a search on all the sites set up for 1970 - 1990, single or extended cab and 4x4. I didn't have a particular model in mind, but when this one came up, both me and my girlfriend loved it (she's as bad as me for browsing eBay and the like).

No idea what the plans are for it right now, although we're definitely already using it more than anything else. Catching up on some service items, getting an alignment and I'll probably take it to a shop to get all the fluids changed. There's definitely a PS leak, gearbox leak and a transfer case leak judging by the pools on my garage floor. I also ended up getting a refurbed ECM (box of gremlins in previous post) with a lifetime warranty for a bit of piece of mind, as some Googling reveals these are often a weak point. I'd also like to get the crumpled rear corner sorted, but I might just keep my eye out for a replacement bed locally that's in better nick.

Hopefully the underseal will be here soon, and we can get the chassis rails all cleaned up and protected.

It's actually a pleasure to drive, apart from the woeful alignment. It doesn't feel big on the roads here, you get great visibility and I've already had three people ask if its for sale whilst I was doing some work on it on the driveway. Seems like you're not the only one with a soft spot for these!

May as well throw in a picture - here we are devaluing my girlfriend's parents neighbourhood:



And I'm sure you're all on the edge of your seats wanting to know about Percy. He's going to his forever home on Saturday (hopefully). The long weekend we were looking after him for lasted over four weeks. Freya is very concerned:



I might even have some 280Z news coming up soon.

Oh man, that looks awesome. Hope it ends up in your hands one day.

The reversing camera is a AUTO-VOX V5PRO - there's a bunch of places to get it from online. I suspect you'll need to extend the cable a bit for your Cortez - but apparently you can get in touch with the manufacturer, and they'll send you an extended cable. I was worried about it for the F-250, but I probably had a couple of feet spare in the end, coiled up in the chassis rail near the rear lights.

Love the YouTube channel by the way!

Plugs and leads swapped out. As someone that is used to working on small Japanese cars, it's a different experience having to climb onto the truck to get access to various areas.

Whilst working on it, I noticed a large crack on the passenger side exhaust manifold. I could swap it out for a replacement... or upgrade to a set of headers. So obviously there's a set of headers on their way to me. I'd like to not do the whole exhaust as well, but if it means I have to ditch the cat and get a dual exit, it wouldn't be the end of the world.