For international markets such as Australia and Europe the Z was fitted with the 2. Initial efforts involved using a Datsun SPL roadster fitted with a tuned cc engine. K had used for the Australia Mobilgas Rally in Roberts philosophy, fully supported by Mr. K, was to make it as easy and affordable as possible for privateers to get into racing their Datsuns. This was all timely as the Datsun entered production in providing the newly formed competition department with a real competitive weapon, and a reason for Datsun to put money into racing it, they wanted the new car to sell, and it was the driving experience above all that would sell it in the United States.
To get the race cars up to competition standards SSS parts were imported and fitted to help turn these tame looking sedans into little race track bullets. In the new Z car hit the showrooms and also the race track. The Z cars had arrived and made their mark in no uncertain way. The Z cars were campaigned in rallying, also with marked success. Of the rallys the Z competed in perhaps the most arduous, and thus the most prestigious, was the East African Safari Rally.
Eric and Neil wanted to go racing but the sheer idea of going around and around the same race track seemed to them to be only slightly more interesting than watching grass grow. What they decided would be real fun would be a rally in which they would race half way across Africa and back again.
Such an event did not exist back in , so they created it. The rally began in the city of Nairobi in Kenya, and wound its way around Lake Victoria, then passing through Uganda and Tanganyika Tanzania before the return to Kenya. The journey was 3, miles long, and went over some of the roughest tracks one could ask a car to go.
Not only that but the course took in altitude from sea level up to 10, ft, and temperatures from over 40 degrees C to below freezing. Just completing the course would prove to be an achievement and in the event of the cars that started just 32 finished.
Datsun but they came back in in a Datsun Z and repeated their victory. The Datsun Z would go on to rack up a remarkably impressive array of victories in both racing and rallying. That made it possible for many to go racing or rallying who might otherwise not have been able. The Datsun Z cars would sell well and continue to make their mark in motorsport for many years to come. Not only did the Z enable people to get into racing affordably, it also made the way for people to own a practical sports car and get all the enjoyment that can bring.
The Datsun Z was a car that would start and run reliably, was relatively easy to fix or tweak, and made you feel like James Bond behind the wheel. No wonder they sold like hotcakes. Jon has done radio, television, magazine, and newspaper interviews on various issues, and has traveled extensively, having lived in Britain, Australia, China, and Hong Kong.
Read More. Lower compression, different carburetors, and a lazier camshaft were put in order for the car to comply with US regulations. The Fairlady Z was always known as a two-seater sports car.
Not to be confused with the ZX that came after it. The Z was offered only for North America and was still based on the first-generation S30 model. However, it now featured a bigger 2. Because of this power was now horsepower kilowatts at 5, RPM. Peak torque was pound-feet Nm at 4, RPM. The car also grew in size and featured the obligatory for the U.
Cars from and later, had the option of a new five-speed manual, space-saver spare tire, and a larger fuel tank, which robbed some cargo space.
The car continued to have a short and long-wheelbase version. Between and , over , examples were sold globally. The second generation of the Fairlady Z was introduced in Internally, it was known either as the S or the Z It also had a Targa version.
The goal of the ZX was to be more of a comfortable cruiser than a sports car. It was a softer and heavier car. In , a turbocharged version came out. The same 2. In , the ZX got a facelift. NACA ducts were added on the front hood and new alloy wheels were introduced — inch six-spoke wheels for the normally-aspirated and inch four-spoke wheels for the turbo variant. JDM cars came with an updated L20E engine, while export models got a revised L28 unit, now with instead of horsepower.
The U. After , Nissan phased out the use of non-Japanese automotive components, which meant that, for a time, the ZX Turbo was offered as an automatic-only.
By , the ZX Turbo developed horsepower kilowatts. It could be had in normally aspirated or turbocharged form, with for some markets and horsepower respectively.
Turbocharged versions outside of the US were less restricted and produced horsepower. The modes are technically the last Datsun ZX cars, since, at that time, the company was officially renamed from Datsun to Nissan.
During the same year, Nissan released a 50th Anniversary Edition. It was based on the Turbo, but featured every available option. In , all cars came with T-tops as standard. The Z31 ZX underwent numerous improvements over its production run and in , Turbo models got a limited-slip differential.
In revisions to the engine were made. Compression was raised from 7. Even today The Z32 generation is a very sought-after Japanese sports car. It was described as low, wide, and modern, and even today most of it holds true. The 3. Non-turbo variants made horsepower and pound-feet Nm , and could reach 60 mph in 6.
The turbo variant featured twin Garett turbochargers, good for horsepower and pound-feet Nm. The Z32 also had a short two-seater variant and a 4. In the U. The Z32 was also among the first cars to be designed with CAD software. It also featured high-tech solutions like adjustable suspension and the super HICAS rear-wheel steering. In , a soft-top convertible version was introduced. Between and , the ZX underwent significant improvements.
Some of the main ones included upgraded injectors, electronic instead of hydraulic actuation for the HICAS rear-wheel-steering system, removal of the variable valve timing system due to emissions, upgrading from 8-bit to bit ECU, and many others.
In its seven-year production cycle, the Z32 was produced in , copies, of which 99, were exported. At the North American International Auto Show, they unveiled the Z Concept — an orange, retro-futuristic two-seater coupe that showed us what a potential Fairlady Z successor might look like.
It was a fully-functioning concept, equipped with a 2. Due to the lack of a six-cylinder engine, the concept was deemed an unworthy successor and was never produced. That concept we mentioned eventually paved the way for a proper successor — enter the Z.
Then it sold 33, during and a massive 45, for By the time the Z entered its last year in , the Z-car was firmly established as a sports-car icon. And another 46, Z-cars hit the American roads during In second was another Z.
The original Z-car suspension was simple but exceptionally effective. Just a pair of MacPherson struts up front and the similarly structured Chapman struts in the back.
But emission controls sucked output of the engine down to horsepower. The addition of mandatory 5-mph bumpers also increased weight, to pounds.
But the bigger literally news was the new two-plus-two model that stretched the wheelbase The Z-car was becoming more GT than sports car. With the six now at 2. But even icons age, and the first-generation Z-car left production after The late s were all about the personal luxury car. It was flabbier than the Z and embellished with the complete lack of restraint typical of the era. Think velour upholstery, digital dashboards, and marshmallow suspension.
And, oh yeah, T-tops on either the two-seat or two-plus-two versions. While the ZX superficially resembled the Z, it was 2. About the only components that carried over intact from the Z were the 2. Of course, since the new car was heavier and the engine was strangled down to horses, the ZX was a slug.
Think more than After an almost carryover year in there was a 10th Anniversary Edition painted black and gold and wearing Goodyear Wingfoot tires , some semblance of performance returned with the new ZX Turbo for Thanks to a Garrett turbo heaving about 7. The Turbo was initially available only as a two-seater with a five-speed manual transmission.
But with acceleration from zero to 60 mph now taking only a few tenths more than 7. By , the ZX Turbo was also available as a two-plus-two and with a stupidly mismatched three-speed automatic transmission.
After the model year, the ZX died a deserved death. And so did the Datsun name after After all, during the model year, Nissan sold 57, of them in the United States. With Newman driving, the team took its first victory in a ZX at Brainerd in The styling was so square as to be virtually featureless, the sometimes engaging straight-six was swapped out in favor of a more powerful SOHC, hp 3.
Throw a turbo on that same engine, and output bounded up to horses. Once again, it was offered in two-seat and two-plus-two versions, and practically nothing carried over from the old ZX to the new ZX. If anything, the chassis was simultaneously better-handling and better-riding than before. But this first ZX was boring.
Stripped of its heavy civilian duds, the third-gen ZX made a decent competition machine. After all, in stock form it would roar from zero to 60 mph in 7. Nissan made T-tops standard issue on all ZXs, but the car itself was already aging in the market as new competitors emerged. This third generation of Z-cars would linger on through with a few superficial tweaks, but the market was leaving soft cruisers like this behind. In Nissan sold only of its refreshed third-generation Z in an eye-catching white metallic.
The Super Shiro had the best parts of the — ZX Turbo, and added cloth Recaro bucket seats, thicker anti-roll bars, special coil springs, and white inch wheels. The new ZX was awesome. And the ZX Twin Turbo was flat-out astonishing. Low, wide, and modern, the Z32 was mesmerizing: the first Z-car to set a new sports-car style standard.
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