Sometimes we will look at cars that were released only in the Japanese Domestic Market, and lament the fact that they were never released outside of their home country. The Datsun 280ZX Turbo is a case where the reverse is true. Released in 1981, the Japan Ministry of Transport deemed the Turbo engine to be too powerful for their own market, so it was never released there. Barn Finder Simon P spotted this 280ZX Turbo for us to look at, so thank you for that Simon. The Turbo is located in Yaak, Montana, and listed for sale here on Craigslist.

The Datsun has spent the last 15 years stored away, and while it is basically straight and complete, there will be some items that will need to be attended to at some stage. There is rust visible below the windshield on the driver’s side, and also some visible below the garnish panel and tail-lights. A lot of the black plastic trim is also exhibiting that dreaded matte look which seems to be a trait of plastic trim from that era. Overall though, the Datsun doesn’t look too bad.

When 1981 rolled around, what was under the hood was the big news for the 280ZX. A Turbo version was introduced, and with the Turbo came some other useful changes. It signaled the introduction of power-assisted rack and pinion steering to replace the often-criticized recirculating ball system, giving better and more precise steering feel. One downside of the 1981 Turbo was the fact that it was only available with a 3-speed automatic transmission, as the standard 5-speed was deemed to be too fragile to handle the torque increase that the turbocharger imparted. The owner says that this car will need a tune up, which indicates that it starts and runs. Unfortunately, we are provided with no further information on the mechanical state of the car.

While the interior appears to be completely original, it is showing some wear-and-tear. The seats are discolored, and there is noticeable wear, especially along the section where the piping is on the outer edges. There are also some other plastic pieces that are discolored, especially the wheel. There is a crack in the center of the dash pad, and the headliner is pretty saggy and stretched, and will probably need to be replaced. One of the big plus points of the 280ZX is the comfort of the standard seats. Unless you are fairly solidly built or very tall, the seats provide a remarkable degree of support and comfort, especially if you feel inclined to undertake some spirited cornering.

There has always been this misconception that the 280ZX was not a popular car, and the numbers simply don’t bear this claim out. If you look at the average annual sales of all of its predecessors, the average for the 280ZX was always higher. What changed compared to its predecessors was the fact that it became less of a sports car, and more of a Grand Touring car and this meant that it tended to appeal to a different market segment. Regardless of what we may personally think of the 280ZX, it is still a fairly popular car, and nice examples sell well. The real challenge today is finding a good Turbo that hasn’t been thrashed within an inch of its life. If you can find one under $12,000, then you are doing well, while a concourse one will set you back three times that much. The owner of this one has set the price at $5,000. If the engine is okay and the rust is limited to what is visible in the photos, then this could be quite a good project car.