DATSUN

280Z

The Datsun 280Z was the last evolution of the legendary S30, the affordable Japanese sports car that had stunned the world when the 240Z arrived in 1969 with its long-bonnet, fastback styling and a price that undercut every European rival. By the mid-1970s tightening United States emissions and safety regulations were sapping power from the earlier 240Z and 260Z, so for the 1975 model year Nissan introduced the Datsun 280Z, sold under the Datsun badge in America. Its answer to the regulations was a bigger 2.8-litre L28 straight-six fitted with a licence-built Bosch L-Jetronic electronic fuel-injection system, which restored healthy performance with around 170 horsepower and crisp, reliable running where carburettors had struggled. The Datsun 280Z also gained chunkier impact-absorbing bumpers to meet US rules, along with a better-equipped, more comfortable cabin, and a longer-wheelbase 2+2 body joined the classic two-seat coupe. Smooth, fast, handsome and dependable, the Datsun 280Z cemented the Z-car as the best-selling sports car in the world and a genuine icon of 1970s motoring. Production of the S30 ended in 1978, when the model was replaced by the larger, more luxurious 280ZX. Once cheap and plentiful, clean, rust-free and original examples of the Datsun 280Z have become genuinely collectible, with values climbing steadily as enthusiasts rediscover this usable, characterful classic.