1969 Datsun, 240Z

DATSUN’S GAME-CHANGING 240Z

If you watch certain movies and TV shows from the Swinging ‘60s, you might be forgiven for thinking European roads were overrun by smart and sleek two-door sports cars.

Thanks to the Bond movies and TV shows such as The Avengers, handsome young men and women seemed to charge endlessly around the south of France and England’s country roads in glorious steeds from Ferrari, MG, Lotus, Alfa Romeo, Jaguar and, of course, 007’s vehicle of the choice, the Aston Martin DB5.

While the European manufacturers seemed to have the elegant sports car market all sewn up, there were challengers to their dominance and, in the second half of the ’60s, the Japanese turned up with some absolute humdingers to contest the crown.

While Japanese manufacturers had been dabbling with such cars for a while – Honda introduced the S500 in 1963 – it was at the end of the decade that they really hit their stride and the small sports cars they began produce were of such quality that even James Bond would get his hands on one when, in the film You Only Live Twice, he drove a special soft-top version of the magnificent Toyota 2000GT.

However, it was in 1969, with the introduction of the Datsun 240Z, that a Japanese manufacturer really hit the mass-market bullseye.

A beautifully-designed two-door coupe, the 240Z looked every bit as good as the European models it was designed to challenge, and with a 150hp, 2.4-litre straight-six engine able to push it to a notch over 200km/h and a 0-100km/h time of 8 seconds, the 240Z had plenty of performance too.

In the U.S., the 240Z was priced at $3526 and so popular did it become, that just a year later, used examples were selling for more than $4000.

Produced between 1969 and 1973, the 240Z was a big seller – about 165,000 were sold with around 2500 reaching Australia – and the model impressed not just on the road but on the track and in rallying too. Popular with the racing fraternity, the 240Z won races across the world including the 1971 East African Safari Rally, and its popularity as a track runner has continued to this day.

This model, for example, has been a track vehicle for nearly two decades and according to its owner John McKeon, has scared many a more fancied race car, seeing action across Queensland in the Category 2B Production Sports class.

“I’ve had a number of race cars over the years, but this has been the best bang-for-buck car I’ve ever had,” he says. “Last year, I was invited to take part in a race for the Sports Sedans category in which a lot of Mustangs and Camaros compete. I beat them all and they were scratching their heads afterwards wondering just how a six-cylinder Datsun could beat a V8 Mustang!

“The answer, of course, is that it is light at just 900kgs and makes 330hp. It handles well, has big brakes from a GTR32 and just does everything well . . . much to a lot of people’s surprise.”

John, a life member of MTA Queensland and the former Chairman of the Association’s Service Station Division, bought the 240Z in 1999. It had already been converted to a racing machine after nearly 30 years as a road car and had seen service on the track at the Eastern Creek and Oran Park circuits in NSW before coming into John’s possession.

Spotting the car as up for sale, John recognised that $25,000 was a great deal for the speedy Nissan – a decision that has been proven right, with very little work required to turn it into a winner.

“The car is pretty much as I bought it,” says John. “What we have changed is the diff – we have put a proper NISMO diff in it – but the motor, gearbox and so on is pretty much the same. I started racing it that first year and have been racing it regularly ever since.”

John has been racing for many years, but he began his career in banking before switching to the auto industry in the mid-70s. He built a business in Canberra that included two service stations, workshops and a car dealership before moving to Queensland and replicating that success with service stations and the largest auto-electrical business on the Gold Coast.

Through much of this time John was involved with motorsport, and he has owned and raced some pretty incredible vehicles over the years including an FE Holden, a Mustang, a Torana, an Alfa Romeo, a Lola T590, an open-wheel Formula Ford and a JPS BMW formerly raced by F1 world champ Denny Hulme.

These days, having sold his businesses some years ago, he still keeps his hand in on the track via occasional outings with the Datsun and his current job as an instructor with the Supercars Official Driving Experience based at Norwell Motorplex near Brisbane where he also lectures on defensive driving techniques.

But after four decades of racing, and with a job that keeps him involved in the sport, he says his competitive racing days with the 240Z may be coming to an end and if the right offer were to come along for the car, he would give it some serious thought.

“I’ve been racing a long time,” he says. “I’m 72, and I am getting as much enjoyment out of riding motorbikes now as I am racing! So, to be honest, I’ll probably look to sell it now. It is a great car though, and it has been a lot of fun.”