Datsun / Nissan Z - Model history

Datsun / Nissan Z

Datsun / Nissan Z

When Nissan President Carlos Ghosn introduced the new 350Z at the Tokyo Motor Show in 2001, he recalled how the history of this famous Japanese sports car began.

Ghosn then stated, “In the fall of 1969, Nissan introduced a sporty two-seater that changed the standards. He had European style, American strength and Japanese quality and was preferred throughout the world. "It was, of course, a car known as the Datsun 240Z in Europe and North America and as the Fairlady Z in Japan and Asian markets, but its history goes back much earlier than that in 1969. Datsun was founded in 1933 as a cheaper Nissan division for the Asian market, but all company models were sold in North America as Datsuni until the early 1980s. The pre-war period is not very interesting for historians, but after the war, Datsun was one of the companies with the largest sales growth in the US market, then the largest in the world. By the mid-1960s, Datsun had surpassed Volkswagen and became the best-selling import in the US market thanks to the small pickup line and the popular 510 model, which was sold as a sedan and station wagon.

Datsun / Nissan Z

Datsun / Nissan Z

Despite the high sales, the Japanese vehicle manufacturer was unhappy that it did not have any cars in its line that would raise the company's image. His cars were generally simple, quality and cheap, but American audiences wanted style, image and equipment. The first Datsun to come up with the idea was the 1959 Fairlady roadster, but with only 37 hp under the hood, only 300 units were sold over the next three years. Next in line was the 1962 1500 Sports Roadster and a copy of the British Roadsters, but despite its attractive design and low price of $ 2465, it still failed to leave a significant mark. It could be said that in 1968, 2000 Sports was a turnaround since it had 135 hp and then an exotic five-speed manual transmission. At this time, Nissan President Yutaka Katayama, better known as Mr. K, was considering options for how to win spoiled Americans the Japanese way.

Datsun / Nissan Z

Datsun / Nissan Z

Mr. K lived and worked in the US state of California and knew a great deal about the taste of Americans. In collaboration with designer Fumio Yashida, Mr. K ordered the drawings for the next generation of roadsters back in the mid-1960s, but they also had to be available as coupes. The choice ended up being just a two-seater coupe because Mr. K considered the chances of success to be greatest, and the Tokyo Motor Show in 1969 was taken as an official presentation. There is little to say that the audience was surprised by what she saw. The new 240Z offered all that and performance models of the Porsche and Jaguar, but for a small fraction of its $ 3526 price tag. The Volvo 1800E cost $ 4500, the Chevrolet Corvette $ 5000, and Jaguar The E-Type $ 5800, so the Datsun's price seemed pretty low, though the showrooms demanded even higher premiums to anyone who wanted this coupe. Some claimed the 240Z was a copy of the E-Type, others saw the lines and Ferrari GTO, but there is no doubt that the car was special in its own way.

Datsun / Nissan Z

Under the long hood was a 2.4 I6 510 sedan engine that was developing 150hp while power was transmitted to the rear wheels via a four-speed manual transmission. That was enough to pull this 1068 kg heavy coupe up to 100 km / h in just eight seconds and reach a top speed of 201 km / h. Sales started slowly and Datsun delivered 10000 copies in the first year, but by mid-1971, Datsun had failed to produce enough copies. In addition to the powerful engine, customers also liked sports suspensions and brakes, so in 1971, the first full 240Z year on the market, 26733 copies were shipped to American customers. That same year, Datsun also added a three-speed automatic transmission to the line, though as many as 90% of customers opted for manual. By 1973, the price had risen to $ 4400, but even so, as many as 52556 240Z had found owners. In the mid-1970s, Datsun introduced the new 260Z after the older 2.4 engine no longer required to comply with stringent exhaust laws.

Datsun / Nissan 300Z

The new 2.6 engine was developing 139 hp, but due to its slightly heavier weight, it failed to record better acceleration numbers. The weight has been increased to a large extent thanks to also the new safety standards, and this has been reflected in the design of the vehicle after Datsun had to insert new bumpers. That same year, it also offered an extended 2 + 2 version with rear seats, but it was never overly popular with customers. The 260Z remained unchanged for the next two years when it was re-engineered, this time to 2.8, while power was increased to 149 hp, and shortly thereafter to 170 hp. By then, the weight of the car was just 1294 kg, and the price was $ 6284. By the late 1970s, the popularity of the Z car had declined the most because the competition presented more modern and efficient cars at similar prices, and Datsun realized that he had to go the same putevim.

Datsun / Nissan Z

Engineers of the Japanese giant are facing a big dilemma on how to modernize the legendary car, and it all started with a brand new platform that was borrowed from 810 sedans. In 1979, the 280ZX was larger than its predecessor in every respect, but retained most of the design lines as well as the choice of five-speed manual and three-speed automatic transmissions. As a criticism of the space, the interior was significantly more comfortable and luxurious, and for the first time, the climate became standard. By then, the price had jumped to as much as $ 9899, ​​but buyers didn't have too much to worry about. Namely, as many as 1979 copies were sold in 86000, and the popular Motor Trend magazine declared 280ZX for import of the year. In the following 1980, Z celebrated its 13850th anniversary and in that honor was presented a special Anniversary Edition model in black and gold with a price tag of $ XNUMX.

Datsun / Nissan Z

In early 1981, Datsun introduced a new technology to the audience at the time, popularized by Saab and Buick - the turbo engine. Engine power was increased to 180 hp, as was the price of $ 18000, while acceleration to 100 km / h was 7.4 seconds. In the following years, sales began to decline at a rapid pace, which Datsun was trying to solve by adding luxury options, but it became clear that this car had passed and that changes were necessary. By the mid-1980s, much had changed in Nissan. The Datsun name was officially extinguished after 1982, so the new model, which went on sale in 1984, was known as the Nissan 300ZX. This car was new in every way compared to its predecessor and made as a competitor to vehicles such as the Mitsubishi Starion, Mazda RX-7 i Toyota Supra.

Datsun / Nissan Z

Nissan was expecting, as in the past, the new model to bring more sales, so the design was more modern and the interior more luxurious, making the 300ZX a GT car instead of a sports car. The customer was still given the choice of a two-seater and 2 + 2, and under the hood was a brand new 3.0 V6 engine that developed 160 hp in the basic version and 200 hp in the turbo version. Reporters generally had words of praise for the new model and praised the speed and stability, but heavily criticized for making the Z a big and heavy GT car instead of a small and light sports car. However, the buyers obviously didn't mind, since the 300ZX was the best-selling sports car in America for years, and with a top speed of 250 km / h, it is one of the fastest. In 1989, Nissan introduced the even more powerful Z32 version, which raised its power to 300 hp and accelerated to 100 km / h in just five seconds.

Datsun / Nissan Z

It was one of the fastest cars in America to win many awards, but due to its high price tag (which also reached $ 30,000), it was not an overly popular option for buyers. The 300ZX has also had a lot of success in auto sports with class wins at 24 Hours of Dayton and Le Mans and 12 Hours of Sebring. 1990 Nissan introduces to the audience a revamped 300ZX with a more modern design but no technical changes. Three years later, the first Z Convertible, made by US-based ASC, comes in for $ 37,000. Unfortunately, due to the high price, sales were always minimal and this car left no significant mark. By the mid-1990s, a strong Japanese yen compared to the US dollar had brought the base model to as much as $ 50,000, and Nissan decided that 1996 would be the last for this legendary car.

Datsun / Nissan Z

During the same period, the Japanese giant was going through a difficult financial situation, and although the new Z car was planned, as evidenced by the 1999 concept, it did not have the finances for a car on which it was losing money, concentrating on a line of larger SUVs and pickups. When, in 1999, French Renault bought 44.4% of Nissan, the idea for a modern Z car became popular again in the media. However, there was no official information until 2001 when the company's new president, Carlos Ghosn, announced the batch production. The first prototype was introduced in the same year and the serial model a year later. The new 350Z did not share the design lines with its predecessors, and under the hood was a new 3.5 V6 engine that developed 287 hp. The buyer was able to choose between a two-seater as a coupe and a roadster. Although it had a significantly higher price than its predecessors, the 350Z proved to be very popular with buyers and tuners, among which the most famous is NISMO (Nissan Motorsport).

Datsun / Nissan Z

The 350Z also played a big role in motorsport with victories in classes such as the American Trans Am Series and the Japanese Super GT Series. The current generation 370Z was presented to the public three years ago with a more modern design, a new seven-speed automatic transmission and a more powerful 3.7 V6 engine that develops 333 hp. These are some of the fastest Z cars ever produced, with acceleration to 100 km / h in just 4.5 seconds and a top speed of 250 km / h. Today, Z cars are some of the most valuable Japanese classic cars, and vehicles with the Datsun designation have an advantage. Early models were also very popular in the world of restromods, and Nissan itself joined the action when, in 1998, it restored a large number of original 1970-1973 models and offered them for sale at a starting price of $ 30,000. The fact that all models were sold out in record time tells us how much this car is appreciated today and that it is considered one of the best sports cars of the 1970s.

Author: Talladega
Images: Datsun / Nissan
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