This little Datsun has been sitting in a barn for what appears to have been a long time, though no estimate is given by the seller. It has been owned by the same person since 1984, though from the way the ad is written I suspect that the seller is not that person. The wear on the paint is a bit odd, it makes me think perhaps the car was kept in a damp place with perhaps a tarp over it. Regardless of present condition, it is clear that this Datsun was in pretty good shape when it was parked, which makes sense as the seller claims it has only 62,399 original miles. Find it here on craigslist located in Tennessee, with an asking price of $4,500 or best reasonable offer.
Looking through the provided photographs, it looks like the driver’s seat has the worst wear of the whole interior, save for a few cracks on the dash. The ad states that this is a “top car with original hold downs and curtains,” and is an excellent restoration candidate. I agree, and it looked like it would clean up really well. I think it would wear fresh paint quite well, save for some slightly concerning surface rust issues. The cracked dash makes me think this car saw frequent sun, though having no experience with these cars myself, it is possible it has been broken since the car was only a few years old. The interior pictures also reveal what appear to be cracks in the windshield, so this car may warrant a few extra photos before a drive to Tennessee!
Under the hood is a turbocharged 2.8 liter Nissan engine. This is the type of engine bay that always scares me. As a person who typically prefers cars of the ’60s and ’70s, imports with bountiful vacuum lines have always concerned me! That being said, there is someone reading this right now who knows precisely what they are looking at, and is questioning the plausibility of whether or not they can afford to get this car. The car does not run, though it looks to me as if it may with some work. It looks like most things are present and intact, though further information is certainly warranted.
As you can see, the car is wearing its original gold ‘Z’ wheels, and they look like they’d clean up nice! This picture shows the roughest side of the car, and while structural rust appears minimal, surface rust is plentiful. This would be super cool to drive as is, but would also be a great restoration candidate. What would you do?
What would I do? First thing would be to look into a manual transmission swap. Beyond that, probably a mostly-stock appearance with a few modernized tweaks (suspension, tires, and so on.)
HOWEVER…
I have some experience with the 280zx, as my family owned a ’79 in this same color combination and a friend had a very similar ’81. The paint wear isn’t surprising since the clear coats on these were paper thin and wore away quickly. That would be expensive enough to fix, but the potential rust is the real wild card here. I can guarantee what you see in the photos is just the start, and there’s no discussion of the underneath of the car, which is also very susceptible to rust. Remember my friend’s ’81 that I mentioned? He had to sell it for scrap because the rear suspension was about to fall out of the car…and this was nearly 25 years ago.
Yes, these are a rare find these days, but $4,500 seems like a lot to ask. The cost of fixing this one and getting it back on the road isn’t going to be cheap.
Probably be best to just park it back in the barn.
I am a Datsun 280ZX Turbo fan as much as I like those Oldsmobiles. The underbody on these cars rusted out within the first 5 years and going by the looks of this car, there must be alot of rust that we can not see. The Z cars are climbing in value more and more everyday, however, I can not see paying 4500 for this car. You can buy a nice looking driver condition 280ZX for around 10k while top flight Turbos climbing well over 25k today. The first year Datsun 280ZX Turbo is really a milestone car today. This car began the start of the horsepower wars all over again. In 1981, this was by far the fastest production automatic transmission car money could buy including Corvettes, Ferrari, Jaguars, ect and it held that title for several years. Within the next few years, almost everyone else got back into the game. Here is a photo of my all original unrestored 81 Turbo. Everything is original including the tires. It has never been out in rain let alone snow and you can cook your dinner on the underbody it’s so perfect. It only has a few thousand miles since new and I will never sell it. The new car window sticker is still on the passenger window. It can not be replaced in this condition.
Nessy, your car makes my heart skip a beat (yeah, it’s that gorgeous). My dream car since the body style came out, but especially when the turbo model came out in 1981. I have an ’81 turbo (black and gold) with under 40K and love it. Wish I had several in different color combinations. Thank you for pointing out how quick these were (even with auto) in 1981! I find that very few people know about that. I tip my hat off to you on your perfect example of a ZX I’ve seen in ages.
Thank you for the kind words sjy66. I am so very proud of my Z. I keep her in a carpeted garage with soft blankets over the entire car. Problem is that the car is still so new, I rarely drive it. This is another car that I have for family sentimental reasons as I remember my first ride as a kid, pinned to that seat. What a rush. I still have the original Fuzzbuster unit on the dash from 1981. I just sit in the car and that new Datsun smell overloads me back to the summer of 81 and my first Datsun Turbo ride as a little boy. My little boys know this one is off limits to play in, at least until they are older. My wife says it’s my third child. Not quite true but as I have said many times here in the past, some things you just can’t put a price on.
Gorgeous, Nessy!
Well, the words were sincere. I do not know of a nicer 81 ZX anywhere. From what you shared with me, I can say you certainly deserve one that nice. I know exactly the experience of sliding into one the first time, the smell of the interior, the sound of the chime, and so on…. it formed my passion for them, too. I only take mine out on the very best days and let it stretch its legs. It’s a greater experience than driving a brand new car, by far!
I had one in College in 1987 and even at that time part of the rear hatch gutter had rusted away and you could push your finger through the roof. I mended with mesh wire and bondo. Fun car, big torque from the straight 6 engine, shifts like a truck. My friends Dad had the turbo version, man did that thing fly!! They do have that rust issue though!
I love my 280ZX Turbo. The 2 tone paint just makes the car.
A lot of spaghetti under that hood.
Wait that’s not spaghetti those are Chinese noodles
thank god its not the hideious 2+2
Last fall, I drove by an old barn in NH and a z very similar to this had just been pulled out. It had a thick layer of duct, but even through that, you could see it was a car that was many times nicer than this one. You would think it would be the opposite considering the climate here and in Tenn.
Great cars. We have a couple non turbos. Fun fun fun!