Have you ever dreamed of owning a car that was made famous for a brief moment on YouTube? Me either. But, should you be so inspired, this 1978 Nissan 200SX was once featured as a legitimate barn find on the popular YouTube channel Junkyard Digs. The 200SX is a fascinating car from a design standpoint, but even with its daring looks, it’s never been all that sought after. Should this one be saved? Check it out here on Facebook Marketplace with a heady asking price of $5,000.
Now, I’ve always thought the early 200SX deserved more respect from vintage Japanese car enthusiasts, if for no other reason than the taillights are a thing of massive curiosity – have you ever seen a car with more elaborate lenses from the factory? Still, the 200SX wasn’t the same as a rotary-powered Mazda or an early Toyota Celica, despite trying to compete with those models, so it never became as cherished as its more sporting competition.
Truthfully, the lack of appreciation for these cars has to come down entirely to the driving dynamics, because everything else looks like it’s on point for it to be a collectible. The interior is definitely a sporting cockpit with nicely bolstered bucket seats (especially for a Japanese car in the late 70s), funky upholstery patterns, a three-spoke steering wheel, all the gauges you could ask for, and a proper manual gearbox. What kept the 200SX from becoming a sport compact favorite in an era when Japanese cars were finding favor among all sorts of consumers?
The seller claims to have begun building the car but lost interest in it; given when the episode aired on YouTube, it didn’t take long for him to decide to pass it on. In the time he’s owned it, he added a sweet set of Weber DCOE 40s, as well as a header from California Datsun. The body is said to be rust free but does have some gnarly accident damage in the rear to clean up. The seller is interested in trading for a late model track car, but I suspect he’s going to have to adjust his expectations in order for that to happen.
As long as the late model in question is a early 10s scrapper from your local saturday night demo derby, they might be in luck.
Did someone order Countach level blind spots?
That is one funky lookin’ car. The Japanese car manufacturers were each trying to outdo each other in the Star Wars themed vehicles, in the late ’70’s, early 80’s.
Yup, the styling didn’t help its sales. The mid 70s were Datsun’s years of funky styling.
I don’t ever recall seeing one of these…if that rear stripe is from the factory that is real cool…I like the design a lot I wonder about getting parts..looks like a lot of fun to play around with GLWTA
I had one of these in High School. Interesting car actually. Mine was also a ’78, a rusty brown color with dark brown interior. They only offered this body style for 3 years, so finding parts was and is a challenge. Even though it was rear wheel drive, when I put some weight in the trunk it was almost unstoppable to drive in the snow. I wrecked mine in ’85, and even though the damage was to body panels only my insurance company ended up writing me a check for it because they could not find usable body parts when they were trying to determine the value of it vs. me having it repaired.
Loved the design of these and the F-10. Nissan made some interesting looking cars in the 70s. I’d be reluctant to buy one that needs this much work. Parts have to be pretty scarce.
You just listed two of the ugliest cars ever made. You may need to visit an optometrist.
RULES: No personal attacks.
Such a post is uncalled for.
It wasn’t an attack; I simply stated my view on two cars. Levity dude, levity. Lighten up.😁
I think I crushed a good many of these. By the late 80s these were orphans. I think there is one too many zeros in the price. Lots of luck finding anything for this unit or any Japanese car from this era. I had quite a time with an 84 Carolla I am currently playing with.
They were once everywhere, then one day they were literally all gone.
YouTube star = someone that’s a legend in his own mind.
its reminds me of my old Datsun B210.. which was indestructible. it lasted me for 300k miles. when it was given to me it already had 150k miles on it. Nothing but a water pump needed. i’d get this bugger running and drive it every day. Houston traffic.. look out
Nice looking Datto. Although I was too young at the time to drive a car, I remember when this car was offered. I had a neighbour when I was a boy who had a Datsun 200SX like this.
You always know an adventure awaits when you see a quart of oil sitting in the center console!
Another trip down memory lane. Such interesting looking cars we had back then.
The price seems as gnarly as the damage, but the right person will snag this car. The “newer” S13 and S14’s get a pretty good dollar these days, even in this shape due in large part to the popularity of these cars in the drifting community. It’s very common to see one with an LS swap and GM stick tranny sliding around the track. Don’t put down a seller’s ambition, because they may know what they have, and there are many out there that do as well. I guarantee he will get close to his asking price.
By 1978, Japan had wowed the American public with their reliability, it was time to take it up a notch. It only shows, car companies can feature the most unusual designs, and SOMEBODY is going to buy it. Of the Big 3 Asians, Datsun/Nissan seemed to push the limits of design, not unlike a certain Rambler/AMC, that also pushed the limits, AND people bought them. These were actually very popular, saw quite a few. Remember, the Dodge Omni also came out in ’78, and offered a viable alternative, but by then, people were already hooked on the Asian cars, and we never recovered. These were great cars, AS IS, and any attempt to make a racer out of it, isn’t what these were for. Simple, stylish(?), dependable, gas mileage champs.
Now I’ve been here long enough, someone is going to say”I had a buddy that raced one”,,perhaps, but it was for a college student that came home on the weekends or simple commute, that’s it.
These literally rusted away in less that the 5 year loan.
I am the seller and for the record, I’ll take $3500 for it, I need a Haltech for my Skyline.