When you see a certain car time and again, it’s easy to forget that it’s one of the few models that remains an accessible classic. The Z31 chassis Nissan Z-car has always been an instantly recognizable 1980s charmer, but we perhaps don’t pay it too much attention because it’s never too hard to find a beater on craigslist. But examples in nice, driver-grade condition with the turbocharged powerplant and preferred manual gearbox aren’t nearly as common to find, so this 1984 Nissan 300ZX Turbo listed here on craigslist with 84,000 original miles is worth a look if you’ve been hunting for an iconic sports car that won’t break the bank.

The Z31 was a cross between a raw performance vehicle and a comfortable grand tourer. I’m not even sure if Nissan knew where it wanted this model to go, but in many ways, it was a bit of a poor man’s Porsche 928. Many of them were equipped with automatic transmissions, furthering the notion that this was intended to be a gentle backroads cruiser rather than a hard-nosed corner carver. The Nissan was also the ultimate expression of 80s attitude, with pop-up headlights, rear-wheel-drive, louvers across the rear window, and a radio with more equalizer buttons than a professional DJ. This car surprisingly retains not only the back window louvers, but also the ones on the rear quarter glass.

The interior is in decent condition, but you can tell it has almost 90,000 miles on the clock. It’s far from spotless, but it’s also not torn up. I’ve actually seen many of these cars in the wrecking yards over the years, not due to quality control issues but rather the sheer numbers of examples that were built. The interiors are usually pretty robust, as I’ve seen many Z31s that have clearly been sitting for years but the seats and plastics still look presentable after a wipe with a wet cloth. The seller reports he bought this 300ZX Turbo off of the longtime original owner and that it comes with air conditioning, power windows, and power locks.

The engine bay is clean but no details are provided with regards to any recent servicing or maintenance. Like many other Japanese and domestic brands at the time, Nissan was eager to use turbocharging as a means to increase horsepower but like also to assist with the marketing of the car, as everything seemed sexier if you could write “Turbocharged” across the top of the windshield. The performance wasn’t earth-shattering but certainly respectable; still, the Nissan never rose to the top ranks of 1980s sports cars, and it didn’t win any battles from a handling perspective, either. But if you wanted a coupe that looked the part and had plenty of cosmetic curb appeal in terms of what was in style at the time, the Z31 300ZX was – and still is – hard to beat.