Monday, April 15, 2024

Datsun 240Z Walkaround

Back in 2015 I posted about the Datsun 240Z and stated:

"It was the sensation of late-1969. The Nissan S30 model, known as the Datsun 240Z in the the USA, triggered an intense "I gotta have one" reaction for those of us in a sports car frame of mind.  Sadly for me, 240Zs were priced a bit higher than I felt I could afford, so I settled on a Porsche 914 in 1971.  But I really, really wanted a Z."

Besides what I wrote in that post, here is more background on the car.

Now that there are more and more comprehensive photo sets about cars listed for sale on the Internet, it's a good time for a walkaround post dealing with the Z.  Photos below of a 1970 Datsun 240Z are from Bring a Trailer Auctions.

Gallery

The grille is a simple extension of the hood.

No flabby lines.

Nice, long hood.  The driver's seat is close to the rear axle line.  Flowing fenderline with a straight character line crease below it: interesting contrast that helps transition to the lower body edge.

The rear panel area is functional.  Its details are not related to the nearby design.  Given the strong shape/color contrast to the surroundings, that doesn't matter as much as it otherwise might.

A hatchback, not a trunk lid.

Again, note the character fold on the side.

No kiddie seat behind the driver, so that fastback curve begins right behind his head.  This adds to the crisp design appearance.

A good design with no memorable features.  It requires being taken as a whole.

Dashboard with sunken instruments.

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