Today’s Family Album Treasure Datsun 240K GT C110 isn’t part of someone’s family album. That’s because it’s an official press photo by Nissan/Datsun Germany! And the amazement over this photo doesn’t stop there either as I have so many questions about it! Let’s start to unravel this mystery photo!
Datsun 240K GT HGLC110
Let’s begin with the Datsun 240K GT, this car is actually a left-hand-drive export model of the Nissan Skyline C110. The trim level is mostly similar to the Japanese GT, but thanks to not being obstructed by engine capacity taxation, it features the larger 2.4 litre L24 engine. HGLC110 is the official code for this particular C110. Another major difference is the location of the steering wheel and the driver seat. These are now on the left side of the car. This makes this car super rare as there were only a few thousand in left-hand-drive produced.
Rheinkniebrücke
Now we’ll have a look at what’s in the background. We see a very distinct cable-stayed bridge with double pylons. I recognized it as the Rheinkniebrücke in Düsseldorf, Germany. It connects Oberkassel with the city centre of Düsseldorf. The bridge itself is quite familiar to me as I’ve driven over this bridge several times before.
The bridge itself was built in 1969 which means it was relatively new when this photo was made. I would date it 1972 or 1973 as that’s when the new C110 replaced the older aging C10. The scenery has changed drastically since the Rhenus building on the right was demolished and replaced by the Rheintower. This tower was erected between 1979 and 1981. Next to the tower, the North Rhine-Westphalia state parliament building was built in 1988.
Düsseldorf-Oberkassel Fairgrounds
The spot where the Datsun 240K stands is also known as the Düsseldorf-Oberkassel fairgrounds. The yearly fair was moved to this location in 1901 and it has grown ever since. I was lucky to have attended the fair once and I was mighty impressed! Our car broke down on the highway just outside Düsseldorf and we managed to limp to Oberkassel and book a hotel. It just happened to be the week of the fair. Anyway, I digress…
Horrible paint finish
Now there are some particularities with this photo. The first strange thing is the paint finish. If you look closely at the photo, you will notice the roof and the rear quarter panel are in a slightly different shade of red than the doors and the front fender. Why would Nissan have chosen this car for its press photo? Were the other cars delivered in an even worse condition than this one? Or did they only get one single car? Couldn’t they have it resprayed before taking these incredibly important press photos?
Liberated
The second thing that is odd is the woman. Normally, 1970s photos of women next to cars are either young women scarcely clothed, young women wearing respectable work attire or young housewives. This woman doesn’t fall into any of these categories. She’s wearing bell-bottomed trousers with a huge buckle and a sweater with sleeves and a collar. In other words: fashionable for early 1970s. She also tends to be 30-ish/40-ish in age. Also, her hand slightly touches the bonnet of the car, stating clearly it’s supposed to be her car. This means she wasn’t used as an ornament to sell this car to men. Was this supposed to focus on the newly liberated women as the target audience for the Datsun 240k?
Conclusion
I hope you understand why I have more questions after seeing this photo. I would still consider it a Family Album Treasure as the whole setting and depiction is like one. It just happened to be that Nissan Germany decided to make a very unusual press photo.
Photo credits: press photo by Nissan Gmbh, Old Rheinkniebrücke photo and Dusseldorf-Oberkassel Fair.
Leave a Reply