Field Find: 1971 Datsun 240Z Project
Nissan Motors started expanding worldwide in the late 1950s and presented its first cars in the U.S. at the Los Angeles Auto Show in 1958. Two years later they opened a subsidiary in the States and their development in North America would move ahead slowly. It wasn’t until the 1970s that sales really took off under the Datsun brand. The car which performed that hat trick was the 240Z (later 260Z, then 280Z), a 2-seat roadster inspired by the British. This 1971 240Z has been sitting out in a field for an indeterminant period and some rust has begun to set in. Said field is near Culpeper, Virginia and the Nissan product is available here on eBay where the first bid of $1,000 is waiting to be taken.
Known as the Fairlady Z on its home turf, the Datsun 240Z would catch on quickly in the U.S. First-year purchases would top 27,000 units and quickly move to an annual showing of 50,000 sports cars. The name was derived from its 2.4-liter engine which would be used until 1973. It morphed into the 260Z (2.6-liter motor) and then the 280Z. Models sold in the States had adjustments from the Japanese models to accommodate tougher U.S. safety and emissions standards. Independent suspension was deployed on both the front and rear ends of the automobile.
The seller of this ’71 model is few on words. In fact, just two: “Datsun Other.” So, the photos must do the talking. The red paint is faded and there is some rust in the lower extremities, especially the rear quarter panels. Corrosion also surrounds the pop-up sunroof which is visible in the photos and may be an aftermarket installation. The odometer reading is under 28,000 miles, but the seller at least puts a “1” in front of the “2” in the listing.
We don’t see anything of the interior in the photos, so you must assume its condition mirrors that of the exterior. What we deduce is this car was left out there to defend itself and the seller has finally decided the space is needed for more productive purposes. Hagerty estimates one of these vehicles in pristine condition can top $90,000, but if you could even get this one up to “Fair,” it might be a $13,000 catch.
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Comments
It’s been sitting there long enough to sink in a bit, so there’s that. Plus, I can’t shake the feeling that this was some high-school kid’s low-budget project and a couple gallons of Bondo are hidden under that red paint.
In 1979 I bought an already bondo restored ’73.
It was actually a great car until the rust finally won, only a few years after I bought it.
Sunroof is definitely after market.
Demand for these cars from the dealer was so high that you bought whatever they had available and painted it the color you wanted.
$90g’s for a pristine model? Whoda thunk it…..other than the Toyota S-2000 people.
You see?( gloating from ear to ear), THE BOTTOM JUST FELL OUT( it died with an awful sound)( Deep Purple ref),,well, maybe. Wild visions of riches aside, here’s a car, $1,000, potential up the ying yang,,,and nothing,,bupkus. All this tells me is how phony this hobby has become. ’71, for me, was the most desirable Z car, just because it was so simple compared to where they went. Yeah it’s a mess, but far more in line with what the hobby USED to be. Didn’t have to be pretty, you and kid could tinker the heck out of it, and have a Z car, a ’71, no less, for a fraction of what these spoiled brats pay for a restored one, that goes behind the velvet rope. 0 bids at a grand? Just shows, people today don’t even see a bargain when it’s right in front of their shnozzolas. Best BF find yet,,I think.
I think it might be that people just don’t want to work that hard anymore.
It’s been more than a few years that a 240Z in almost any condition was worth some money but this guy has sat in a field going to dust for longer than that.
I wouldn’t have been any more trouble to list it 5 years ago when it was a lot less off-putting a proposition.
Bet it’s been sitting 20+ years.
Your point is valid. Why do people do this? I see it ALL the time when I inquire about a car. An 80 year old who doesn’t want to see cuz he ‘going to fix it up’. Mind you, I get it. In fact, my Dad is ‘that guy’.
But it’s really a shame, there are only so many cars left and to let the rot cuz you are unrealistic is not doing the hobby any favors.
Nobody gonna take my car
I’m gonna race it to the ground
Nobody gonna beat my car
It’s gonna break the speed of sound
Oooh it’s a killing machine
It’s got everything
(another Deep Purple reference)
100%, Howard!
Record price paid on BAT for a 240Z was $310K so there’s that. But that car was a 21K-mile original car. I’m not surprised that there’s no bids on this one, aside from rust in every panel (including the roof!), the mechanical condition is uncertain and probably poor. It needs everything. Howard’s correct in saying that it has “potential” but you can say that about any car… even totally restored it might be a $30K+ car, but it’ll take at least that much investment to get it there, and way more if you don’t do all the work yourself.
Even though I’m a sucker for a project car and I’d love one of these, I’d have to admit your gonna weld a whole new floor in this and most likely rockers inner and outer while bracing the body so the doors will still shut when your done. I know, My brother and I restored a 520 pickup for him found in a similar state and I restored a 620 from a much better state for HS and college. Total 6 years of owner ship welded the floor back in the cab twice. The second time I only had to bridge from the first patch to the “good” metal. It was like the original metal’s time had expired and it just turned to rust around the first patches. But Oh so love that body.
In H/S a friends mother had a 72 she bought used. Unbeknownst to her he would drive the crap out of that car & it would run 140mph flat out downhill. It was a blast! Ahhhh, the life of a 17 year old.
Out Standing in the field!
Having worked as a technician in a Datsun dealership in the late 70s, I have seen many of these ruined with the addition of an aftermarket sun roof. They never fit the curvature of the roofline and are a water leak waiting to happen. What’s really crazy is they’d have their car cut up to have a sun roof, then they’d add one of those louvered shades over the back glass(?). Plus, I question the intelligence of anyone putting a sunroof on their car out here in California in the first place.
Did a major rust restoration on a ’72 for a customer. There wasn’t a panel on it that didn’t get replaced or properly patched. It was not a cheap fix and I gave him a price break on the work. I’d bet on this car matching that one with only looking at the visual rust on it.
Bob, with a $200k price from BAT, couldn’t a car be fabricated with new parts for less money? Doesn’t someone make new parts for almost all of these cars?
Dave… yes, lots of parts available. The Zs being rust prone because of no inner panel paint or rust proofing leads to a big job of replacing or repairing almost everything, not just a few area repairs. On the job referenced I had to build a new hatch out of two rust free halves. Lot of labor involved.
Unless there’s 70k behind the seat, high #2 examples are available every day on eBay for mid-teens. And the highest (a 3500 original miles) is currently 39k. https://www.ebay.com/itm/185345075232
1st car was a 71… 4 speed, weber carbs.. offenhouser intake.. 14” mag wheel.. 205/75R14 BFG’s…. Was stupid fast and cornered better than anything at school had..