The description for this pair of 1973 Datsun 240Zs claims they are hiding out in underground storage, and while there is certainly plenty of daylight wafting in in these pictures, it’s hard to tell for sure what sort of storage arrangement we’re looking at. It could be that they’ve been fenced in below someone’s house, or perhaps they were recently moved from an underground parking garage. Whatever the case may be, they’ve been off the road for 23 years and are supposedly in rust-free condition. Find the Z car pair here on craigslist for $8,000 and thanks to Barn Finds reader T.J. for the find. 

While these are not the super desirable Series 1 cars, the general rule of thumb with Z cars is the earlier, the better. Throw in the fact that these have presumably been in California since new (the seller mentions he has the pink slips for both cars) and are declared to be rust-free, and you have the basis for the next-most desirable form of Z car. The seller indicates that they would be great swap candidates, mentioning the potential for either an LS or RB swap; however, if these are as rust-free as the seller promises, these rollers could also make sense as restoration projects built back to OEM specifications.

We’re not entirely clear on how complete or not complete the drivetrains are. The seller doesn’t talk about what the Z cars come with for motors and transmissions, but given he jumps right to their potential as engine swap candidates, perhaps he’s not counting on the next owner being interested in what remains under the hood. The inline-six engine block is pretty much stripped bare, so either this was a disassembly process that stopped in its tracks or the previous owner was chasing a problem that remains unsolved. Since it seems unlikely the original parts removed from the Datsuns are still included, you’ll want to start hunting for a good replacement engine if you want to keep these cars in stock condition.

The photo of this car indicates to me that some bodywork was attempted, as the fenders look to be wearing primer and the panel edges look pretty straight across the board. Both cars wear a mixture of primer and old paint, so it seems increasingly likely that both cars represent stalled restoration projects that either lost their storage or the motivation of a long-time owner. Perhaps both conditions collided, forcing these forgotten Z cars out into the light of day for the first time in close to 30 years. Would you take the seller’s advice and swap out the original engine or restore one back to OEM specifications while hot-rodding the other?