This 1973 Datsun 240Z has undergone a repaint at some point in its life, but otherwise, it does look like a very original vehicle in fairly good condition. The 240Z is a car that is continuing to climb in popularity, and as a consequence, values are following suit. There is no sign of this trend easing at any time soon, so if you want to get your hands on a 240Z, now might be the time to strike. This one is located in Monroe, Connecticut, and is listed for sale here on eBay.
The owner does not provide any indication of when the car underwent its repaint, but the Racing Green paint looks good. The panels are straight, and there’s no evidence of the common rust that tends to afflict these in the lower quarter panels, the hatch opening, or around the glass in the hatch itself. The car is sitting on its original wheels and hubcaps, and the chrome and external trim all look to be in good condition.
Under that long hood are the L24 six-cylinder engine, and a 4-speed manual transmission. The owner has treated the engine to replacement carburetors and has fitted earlier model carburetors to extract some additional performance from the car. He has also spent a considerable amount of money, around $5,000, on recent electrical and mechanical work on the car, but doesn’t elaborate on this. The stock wheels are fitted with new tires, and the 240Z is also fitted with air conditioning.
Anyone who has had any involvement with a 240Z will be able to testify to how fragile the interior trim can be. The dash is prone to cracking, door trims can start to disintegrate, and seats can wear badly. Thankfully, this particular car has avoided all of these issues, and the interior is in overall good condition. There is some very minor wear on the seats, the carpet is a bit odd under the pedals, and the quilted vinyl below the floor console looks like it is stained in a couple of places. None of these issues are major, and the fact that the interior has survived so well is probably a combined result of careful ownership and limited exposure to UV rays.
As a classic car, the Datsun 240Z is really coming into its own. In the last 6 months alone average values have increased by around 20%, and I won’t be surprised if this trend continues. You can find a reasonable example for around $20,000, although if you want a truly immaculate and original car, then you need to budget at least twice that amount, maybe more. At the time of writing, bidding for this car has reached $9,600, but it should be no surprise that the reserve has not been met. With the growth in popularity, how high do you think that this one will go?
Nice rig to be kicking around the mountains in Colorado, ahem!
We all know who you are referring to. And yes this would be great.
Nice one Gregg! LOL! Happy New Year!
I’m not spending $12g’s on one. Nice 280’s can be had for half this, and I just don’t see the attraction in a 240 for twice the price.
Nice! I had a ’73 and the stock carbs were known dogs (couldn’t synchronize and hard cornering exacerbated the issue of fuel flooding/starving) so I too replaced mine with older SU’s. Problem solved. Saw others who replaced with a Holley 4 barrel(!) Wish I still had it!–Tim
Looks like a nice ’73. These used to be sold at giveaway prices, but all early Z car prices have climbed significantly, even these ’73s.
There are signs of wear here and there (the firewall insulator panel in front of the pedals; the seats have some wear) but it does look like it might actually have 56K miles.
The earlier Hitachi carbs that are on this car now are usually seen as a plus by most buyers because the original flat top carbs didn’t allow the engine to run very well—they were there to reduce emissions. The Hitachi carbs were made in Japan under license from SU.
What might be best about this car is probably the body, which looks way better then most of these early bodies do now. But I would still want to look at the underside carefully, or at least have some photos of the underside taken with the car on a lift. From the look of the rest of the car I’m guessing the underside is probably OK, but these early Zs can rust something awful, and I would not want to take any chances with a car that’s close to $10K and the reserve not met.
Adam, sorry, those are wheel covers, not hub caps…
There is something very cool about these cars.
This would be fun to cruise through the Carolinas on my way to and from Florida.
What would be really rare would be to find a silver car still wearing its original paint.
I had a Summer gig selling these; $4306 including AM/FM radio. Delivery was late so we used a 150,000 mile trade-in as a demo. I later bought one and only parted with it as I needed more passenger room.
why do some of the ebay photo’s show slotted rims and some show hubcaps? a few of those those photos are of a different car
Beware, the TinWorm lurketh in ALL of these.
Apparently Nissan is doing no better today with interior trim on these cars. A friend of mine has a 2009 and the inside of it looks like a beater. It has less than 40K miles. But it is fun as Hell to drive.
I love the color combo of this 240Z and the factory wheels and hubcaps. So if i am going to mention I spent $5,000 on electricals and mechanicals I am going to elaborate on what was done. I presume the carb upgrade was part of that. Just furnishing a registration when the car sells, could be an issue titling the vehicle in some states.
I was liking this z car until I saw that interior! Not my cup of tea that’s for sure!
I would love to own this 240 i used to own a 1995 240sx and I loved it. What a great little car. So thats my story so i would love to own and older 240.