Despite selling more than 500,000 examples of its S30 Z-car starting in 1969 through the end of production in 1978, the earliest of these – still numbering in the tens of thousands – have seen spectacular price increases in the collector market. While rarity is often a precursor to value, sometimes a model’s popularity at launch overcomes large numbers. And in the case of the Datsun Z, popularity was rampant. Datsun was already making a name for itself with its small sedans and 1600/2000 roadsters sent stateside. But the company’s two US representatives – Yutaka Katayama on the west coast and Soichi Kawazoe on the east coast – heard disparate gripes about the roadsters. Everyone loved the cars’ performance, but West coasters complained that the top bleached out in the sun while east coasters complained that the top leaked like a sieve. Datsun was famous for listening to its customers – that’s one reason it housed executives on the ground in the locales where it sold cars – so a coupe became an imperative. The 240Z starting brewing in 1965, and rotated through several iterations before it arrived on US soil as a long-nosed, six-cylinder’d, two-seater. If you have a reasonably-priced 240Z on your shopping list, today’s challenge is finding a decent example that hasn’t been completely mistreated. We’ll investigate this 1972 listed here on eBay, where bidding has reached $6656, reserve not met. It’s got issues, but it might be salvageable.

The seller states that rather than the 2.4 liter six, this car has been “upgraded” with an L28 engine and a turbo head, along with a five-speed manual. We’re not told which L28 it wears, nor which vintage five-speed. The car is still breathing through twin carburetors and the stock air cleaner assembly. Purists will freak out at this swap, but it may have merit – any Z-car enthusiasts know the benefits of this motor/head combination? I’m presuming someone was after more horsepower. The car does idle, but is said to require tuning. If these parts don’t like to play together, tuning may turn into a nightmare….  In the “assets” column, this Z has a new distributor cap, electronic ignition, and new plugs and wires. The cutch slave and master cylinders are new, and the brake system has been rebuilt from top-to-bottom.

The seat upholstery and door cards are new, and represent a change from the original tan color. The quality of the installation leaves a bit to be desired. The dash is cracked in at least two places; no word on the working condition of gauges or lights. Rust is said to be minimal, but the underside looks like the shoals off the Columbia River bar (sorry, I am reading Graveyard of the Pacific). Sure enough, the seller notes that patch panels are evident, though new pans come with the car.

The body is in fair shape. The paint is mottled beyond recovery; the front bumper is bent; this photo shows a dent in the sail panel above the air vent. Those wheels are original, though, and all the glass looks fine. Bidding has been frisky albeit without achieving the reserve. Today’s market pays a lot for factory original cars, and a lot for restored cars, and a lot for the right mechanical swaps. It may take five figures for the seller to let this one go, given today’s prices. What do you think?