Datsun 240Z

Datsun 240Z in brief

The Datsun 240Z is the 2.4-litre version of Nissan's first-generation S30 Z-car that became a landmark export sports car. It was a Japanese Nissan sports car developed with North America at the centre of its launch strategy: the FIA Historic Database records the homologated Datsun Sports 240 Z H(L)S30 under Japan, while Nissan says the 240Z was designed for North America. An FIA/Japan Automobile Federation homologation record for the DATSUN SPORTS 240 Z H(L)S30 states that manufacture began in October 1969 and that the 500-car homologation threshold was reached in November. That production milestone is different from the dates on which customers could actually buy the car in each market.

Nissan traces the wider S30 Fairlady Z family to 1969. It says the Datsun 240Z was designed for North America and debuted there in 1970, while the 2.4-litre version joined the Japanese range in November 1971. Contemporary-market chronology differs again in Britain, where specialist records place 240Z sales from August 1971.

For the wider marque story, see Datsun history.

For an individual car, original market and later configuration need to be separated. A date, badge, steering position or gearbox that is correct for one market should not automatically be treated as universal 240Z specification.

Why Nissan built the 240Z

The Z-car was shaped around a much bigger ambition than replacing an existing Japanese sports model. Nissan's own history credits Yutaka Katayama, the head of its US operation and the figure enthusiasts know as “Mr. K”, with putting together key concepts for the Z-car after helping establish Datsun in America.

Nissan later described the original 240Z as a car designed for the North American market. That helps explain the formula: sporting proportions and performance, but with the usability and price needed to reach buyers beyond the traditional European sports-car audience.

Specialist histories credit Yoshihiko Matsuo, assisted by Akio Yoshida, with the production design and caution against the old habit of attributing the finished 240Z primarily to Albrecht Goertz. For a collector, the car's origin story is better understood through Nissan's product team and US-market strategy than through a single-designer myth.

Fairlady Z, Datsun 240Z and market differences

“240Z” does not map perfectly onto every first-generation Z sold around the world. Nissan's Japanese range began with 2.0-litre Fairlady Z models, while the 2.4-litre Datsun 240Z initially served export demand. When the 2.4-litre version reached Japan in November 1971, Nissan offered Fairlady 240Z, 240Z-L and the distinctive 240ZG.

That is why chassis suffixes, trim, emissions equipment and even familiar visual details can depend on market and build period. Assess an individual car by identifying its original market first, then compare it with documentation and specifications for that market rather than a generic internet table.

The gearbox is a simple example. Nissan's 1972 factory service manual lists four-speed manual and three-speed automatic 240Z configurations for the U.S./Canada alongside five-speed models in other markets. For Europe it lists HLS30Q and HS30Q with the five-speed FS5C71B, while Classics World says all official UK 240Zs were five-speed manuals. Imported cars can therefore be perfectly legitimate while differing from a UK-supplied example.

Did the Datsun 240Z come with an automatic?

Yes — but not as an official UK-market specification. Nissan's 1972 S30 service-manual model table includes 3N71B three-speed automatic versions alongside manual 240Zs. In the same table, the Europe-specific HLS30Q (left-hand drive) and HS30Q (right-hand drive) rows use the five-speed FS5C71B. Classics World reaches the same UK conclusion: official UK 240Zs were five-speed manuals, so a four-speed or automatic car found here should be treated as an import or a car whose transmission history needs explaining.

The model code is useful evidence, but it should be read in the context of the correct year and market. In this 1972 manual, automatic rows carry an A in the model designation, but one period table should not be treated as a universal decoder for every S30 built. A current gearbox can also have been changed during restoration or modification.

TMJC's 1970 240Z shows the difference. It began as a U.S. import and was later converted to right-hand drive; its original L24 was also paired with a later Nissan Silvia five-speed as part of the documented restomod. Its current five-speed/RHD configuration therefore describes the build as it exists now, not the factory market specification it had when new.

What is the Datsun 240Z wheelbase?

The two-seat Datsun 240Z uses a 2,305 mm wheelbase, shown as 90.7 in in Nissan's 1972 factory service manual. The manual applies that general dimension across its listed left- and right-hand-drive, manual and automatic HS30/HLS30 configurations. The FIA/Japan Automobile Federation recognition form for the Datsun Sports 240 Z H(L)S30 independently gives 2,305 mm.

Wheelbase is the safest headline dimension here. Period sources do not give one equally universal overall-length or height set: the FIA homologation and Nissan Heritage competition cars are commonly listed at 4,115 mm long, while Nissan's 1972 service manual gives 4,136 mm, and the Japanese 240ZG's extended nose changes overall length without changing the wheelbase. Those differences should stay attached to market, body equipment and competition or road specification rather than being averaged into one number.

This figure applies to the two-seat 240Z, not every later S30 body. In particular, a later 2+2 uses a longer platform. Use the 240Z vs 260Z vs 280Z identification guide before comparing a car or a dimension table. On a modified example such as TMJC's 240Z restomod, factory wheelbase is useful reference context, but the individual car's current ride height, wheels, tyres and body hardware should be inspected and measured rather than inferred from a factory table.

HLS30 vs HS30: what the 240Z chassis code tells you

A 240Z's current steering position does not, by itself, prove the market specification in which the shell left Nissan. This matters because left- and right-hand-drive cars were identified differently in period factory documentation, and many surviving Z-cars have since been imported, converted or restored.

Nissan's period Datsun 240Z Sports Service Manual lists HLS30-U as a left-hand-drive U.S.A./Canada model, HLS30 as left-hand drive and HS30-U as right-hand drive. Those rows are useful identity evidence for the manual's period and scope; they are not a licence to assume that every gearbox or equipment detail stayed identical across every later model year and market.

The 1972 manual says the identification number is generally stamped on the cowl-top panel in the engine compartment; for U.S. and Canadian cars it is also stamped on the instrument panel where it can be seen from outside. It gives the engine number on the right side of the cylinder block and identifies a body-colour number plate on the right-front strut housing. On a restored car, those separate identity and specification points should be reconciled with registration, import and historical paperwork rather than treated as interchangeable proof.

TMJC's 1970 240Z shows why original shell identity and current configuration must be separated. TMJC describes it as a U.S.-imported car that later received a full right-hand-drive conversion. The public listing does not show its chassis number, so no exact HLS30 or HS30 designation should be inferred from the listing alone. Moving the controls can change how the car is used without rewriting the original stamped identity of the shell.

For a converted or heavily modified example, the 240Z restomod due-diligence guide goes further into chassis-number checks, restoration evidence and modification chronology.

What does “Series I” mean on a Datsun 240Z?

Series I and Series II are widely used collector labels for early 240Z configurations. The Nissan parts catalogue checked here identifies changes by chassis number and application date rather than using those labels as the model name, while the archived transcription of Datsun's February 1971 bulletin calls the revised car the “New 1971 Late Model Datsun 240Z Sports”. The series language is useful shorthand, but it is not a safe substitute for chassis and build evidence.

Nissan's own S30 parts catalogue gives a better way to anchor the chronology. In the HLS30 application table, Nissan divides 240Z production into several chassis/date groups:

That makes HLS30-21001 significant for a reason stronger than later enthusiast convention: it is a genuine Nissan parts-catalogue production breakpoint. It also shows why Series II should not be treated as one frozen factory specification. Nissan continued to record later application groups as the car evolved.

An archival transcription of Datsun Service Bulletin Vol. 137, dated February 1971, gives more context for the first large change group. It reports Datsun referring to the revised car as the “New 1971 Late Model Datsun 240Z Sports” and places the changes at HLS30 21001 and HS30 0501. The listed revisions include moving cabin ventilation away from the rear hatch/deck area to the rear-quarter body, along with changes to door checks, seat belts, the key, steering wheel, centre ventilation, tool storage and several instruments/electrical details.

The evidence types are not equivalent. The bulletin survives here through an enthusiast archive/transcription rather than a factory-hosted scan, whereas the Nissan parts catalogue itself is the primary document. The catalogue labels HLS30-21001 from JAN-71; the bulletin is dated February. The chassis breakpoint is therefore more useful than trying to turn the bulletin's publication month into an exact build-month rule.

For originality checks, start with chassis identity and production date, then use the familiar early details as corroboration. Rear-hatch vents, vertical rear-window defroster elements, early badges and trim can all help, but panels and parts are replaceable. Sports Car Market makes the same practical point: an early-looking hatch or badge set does not, by itself, authenticate an early-production shell.

TMJC's 1970 240Z restomod is a good example of why this order matters. It is documented as a U.S.-imported car later converted to right-hand drive and extensively rebuilt, but the public listing does not expose its chassis number. It would therefore be wrong to label that individual car Series I purely from its stated year or its present configuration.

For collectors: Series I/II can describe the car; the chassis and build evidence should identify it.

The 240Z's engineering character

Road-going Nissan heritage material for the 2.4-litre 240Z family identifies the L24 inline-six as the central engine. It is the smooth, rev-friendly character most enthusiasts associate with the 240Z, but output and equipment should still be checked against market and year rather than treated as one universal number.

The first-generation Z also paired its front-mounted engine with rear-wheel drive and independent suspension, giving Nissan a sporting platform that could work on the road and in competition. Those fundamentals matter more to the model story than quoting one acceleration or top-speed figure that may have been measured on a different market specification.

Was the Datsun 240Z 150 or 151 bhp?

Both numbers appear in period evidence, but neither is a universal 240Z figure without its market and rating context. The source, market and rating label matter.

The Henry Ford preserves a 1971 Datsun sales brochure created by Nissan Motor Corporation in U.S.A.; the museum catalogue describes its six-cylinder engine as 150 horsepower. The catalogue does not identify the test standard behind that number, so it should stay exactly what the surviving record says rather than being silently relabelled as a particular SAE rating.

A British period source is more explicit. Motor Sport tested Datsun UK's 240Z demonstrator for its March 1972 issue and described the 2,393 cc, twin-carburettor engine as producing 151 b.h.p. (gross) at 5,600 rpm. Nissan's own Japanese Heritage Collection gives another apparently similar figure for the 1972 Fairlady 240ZG: 110 kW (150 PS) at 5,600 rpm. That is a Japanese-market 240ZG specification and Nissan labels the figure in PS, not bhp.

These are not interchangeable measurements of one universal 240Z output. They come from different market and derivative contexts and use different labels, so a bare number is incomplete. When checking a specification, keep the market, build period or derivative, unit and stated rating basis attached to it.

TMJC's 1970 240Z shows the same evidence problem in a modified car. Its original L24 was substantially rebuilt and modified with a rebore, head work, standalone engine management and individual throttle bodies; TMJC says the finished car was remapped to a dyno'd 176 BHP. That is evidence about this individual restomod, not factory 240Z output. The public listing does not publish the dyno sheet or enough test-method detail to compare 176 directly with a period 151 bhp gross figure and claim a precise gain.

For a standard or modified car, the sensible order is to identify its original market and build specification first, record exactly how the period source states power, then treat any later dyno result as a separate measurement unless its test basis is documented well enough for a like-for-like comparison.

Motorsport made the reputation tangible

The 240Z was not only marketed as a sports car; Nissan proved it in major international rallies. Nissan's heritage archive records overall East African Safari Rally victories in 1971 and again in 1973.

Those results are historically useful, but a rally car is not a road-car specification sheet. Competition 240Zs used different engines, fuelling, tanks, transmissions, weights and other hardware, so their technical numbers should never be copied onto a standard road-car page simply because the badge is the same.

What changed during 240Z production

The 240Z evolved through many small changes rather than remaining frozen from launch to replacement. Specialist chronology records ventilation, console, seat, bumper and market-emissions changes during the early 1970s.

Replacement timing also varied by market. Classic & Sports Car places the 260Z's takeover in the US and Japan in October 1973, with Europe following in 1974. That is another reason a universal “production end” can be misleading without stating the market convention behind it.

For a side-by-side identification workflow, see the Datsun 240Z vs 260Z vs 280Z identification guide. It compares chassis codes, serial context, original market and two-seat/2+2 identity before relying on badges or other easily changed visual details.

For a prospective buyer, these changes make build date and original market more useful than relying on registration year alone.

What to inspect before buying a 240Z

Corrosion is the first priority. Specialist buyer guides repeatedly warn that early Z-cars can rust extensively, and a glossy exterior does not prove the structure beneath it is sound.

Inspect the front panel and radiator cross-member, battery area, inner and outer wing structure, sills, floors and footwells, chassis legs, rear wheelarches, tailgate and suspension mounting areas. Previous repairs deserve the same scrutiny as visible corrosion: poor fabrication or accident repair around structural points can be more expensive to correct than obvious cosmetic rust.

Mechanical inspection should include cooling-system health, oil pressure and engine condition, gearbox bearings and synchromesh, differential or universal-joint noises, steering play and suspension bushes or dampers. On an imported car, confirm that the gearbox and other equipment make sense for its original market before labelling a difference as an incorrect modification.

Originality, imports and restomods

The 240Z's long period of comparatively accessible values means many surviving cars have been modified, restored or converted. That does not make them bad cars, but it makes documentation especially important.

Start with chassis and registration identity, original market and engine number where relevant. Then separate original specification from restoration work and later upgrades. A sympathetic modification with invoices, installation detail and a clear engineering rationale is a different proposition from an undocumented collection of swapped parts.

TMJC's current 240Z is a useful case study rather than a template for the model. It is represented as a 1970 car imported from the US, later converted to right-hand drive and comprehensively rebuilt. Its original L24 was rebuilt and modified, while a later Nissan five-speed transmission and numerous usability upgrades formed part of the restomod programme. The lesson is not that other 240Zs should share those parts; it is that the build is accompanied by an unusually detailed invoice and provenance trail.

For a deeper framework, see the Datsun 240Z restomod due-diligence guide and the collector-car provenance checklist.

Sources and further reading

• The Matt Johnston Collection: Datsun 240Z Restomod
• Nissan: Z — 50 years of excitement
• Nissan: Life and Times of Mr. K — Yutaka Katayama
• Nissan Heritage Collection: Fairlady 240ZG
• The Henry Ford: 1971 Datsun Sales Brochure, “The Datsun 240-Z”
• Motor Sport: Road test — Datsun 240Z, March 1972
• Nissan Heritage Collection: Datsun 240Z Safari winner
• Classic & Sports Car: Datsun 240Z / 260Z buyer's guide
• Classics World: Datsun 240Z & 260Z buyer's guide

• FIA Historic Database: Nissan Datsun Sports 240 Z H(L)S30
• FIA/Japan Automobile Federation: DATSUN SPORTS 240 Z H(L)S30 homologation form 3023

• Nissan: Datsun 240Z Sports Service Manual — Model S30 Series, chassis and body
• Nissan: Datsun 240Z Sports Service Manual — 1972 S30 chassis/body edition (Manualzz mirror)
• Nissan Motor Co., Ltd. — Datsun 260Z · 240Z L-Drive Parts Catalog, Model S30, Pub. C-0010L
• ZHome — The New 1971 Late Model Datsun 240Z (archival factory-bulletin transcription)
• Sports Car Market — Buyer's Guide: Datsun 240Z