Datsun 240Z

Recently, the new Nissan 400Z made its debut in the USA as the latest member of the Z family. Unfortunately, this sports car will never make it to Europe, at least through official channels, as Nissan doesn’t homologate it for the EU market due to strict emissions regulations. Thus, the 370Z remains the final model of this long line that was in dealerships worldwide. It all began with the 240Z, which was presented in 1969 under the Datsun brand. This had been around since the 1930s. Shortly after, the Nissan Group bought it and used it mainly for export business in the 1960s and 1970s. The 240Z (in Japan Nissan Fairlady Z, in the USA Datsun Fairlady) was the successor model for the Datsun Sports. At the same time, it is the third famous design by a German designer who had moved from New York to Japan in 1962 on a sudden whim. Albrecht Graf von Goertz drew the 503 and 507 for BMW in the 1950s.

A550X became the 2000GT and 240Z

As a freelance designer, he collaborated on a few Nissan designs. However, only the Datsun 240Z really became known internationally afterwards. This was based on the A550X concept car, which Goertz had transformed from sketches into a prototype together with Yamaha. However, his original plan to use the cooperation between Nissan and Yamaha to build the first Japanese supercar came to nothing. Nissan backed out and took only a few of his design sketches. Yamaha looked for a new partner to realize the A550X and finally found one in Toyota. Thus the 2000GT was born, while at Nissan the head of the sports car design studio, Yoshihiko Matsuo, together with Kazuo Kimura, used some design details of the A550X to create the 240Z. Just in time for the sexual revolution and general free-spiritedness, the sports coupé was on its wheels and at the 1969 Tokyo Motor Show. Compared with the Toyota 2000GT, it was considerably roomier and larger.

Sales success in the USA

While the Toyota remained a rare car, Nissan made automotive history with the 240Z. For the first time, a Japanese manufacturer was able to achieve high sales figures in the USA. Yutaka Katayama played a major role in this. Due to his extroverted nature, Nissan had “outsourced” the manager from Japan to California, where he was to manage the U.S. business. As a fan of the Z, he was instrumental in promoting its sale. At the same time, he also managed to put 60,000 units of the Bluebird 510 mid-size sedan on the road each year. In 1968, Datsun thus sold more cars in the USA than Volkswagen. The reason for this was simple and also used for the 240Z: high driving pleasure combined with the best possible reliability thanks to mass production technology. The front axle, for example, came from the Bluebird 510, while a newly developed axle with independent suspension was used at the rear, putting the Z far ahead of its competitors with rigid axles. The engine and transmission also came off the shelf.

Robust enough for the Safari Rally

A 2.4-liter inline six with 110 kW/150 hp worked under the relatively long hood. In Japan and other countries, there was also a variant with two liters of displacement and 96 kW/130 hp. For power transmission to the rear wheels, manual gearboxes with four or five gears were available. The more powerful variant accelerated from standstill to 62 mph in 9.5 seconds and was thus faster than the Ford Capri 2300 GT, for example. To demonstrate the 240Z’s sporting potential as well as its robustness, Datsun competed in the Safari Rally in Kenya starting in 1971 and won there two years later. By 1973, a total of 156,703 units had been built, of which only 303 officially made it to Germany. This was due to the fact that Datsun only started sales here at the beginning of 1973. In the same year, the model changed to the 260Z with a 2.6-liter engine, which was also available as a longer 2+2.

240ZG and 240ZL were only available in Japan

Exclusively on the Japanese market, the special model 240ZG (G for “Grande”) was available from October 1971. Nissan used this to homologate the car for the international Group 4 category in racing. For this purpose, the ZG received a 19-centimeter-longer front end made of fiberglass-reinforced plastic with clear glass covers over the headlights. Riveted fender extensions in black plastic were fitted. Only three paint colors were available for the bodywork: “Grand Prix White”, “Grand Prix Red” or “Grand Prix Maroon”. Due to the improved aerodynamics, the 240ZG reached up to 130 mph topspeed. In order to be able to compete in SCCA races in the USA, the “G-Nose” was available there as a tuning kit from Datsun dealers. Similar headlights, but in combination with chrome bumpers and without fender flares also were fitted to the more luxurious 240ZL, which was also only available in Japan.

Images: Nissan