Remembering Japanese cars from the past
Last week I posted a picture of the showroom of a Dutch Datsun dealership and I remembered I also got a genuine Datsun pricelist with the Dutch Datsun catalogue I bought some time ago:
The Datsun pricelist is from February 1973 (pre 1973 oil crisis) and the prices are at least a bit surprising: Continue reading
I found this scanned newspaper photo of a showroom of the Dutch Datsun car dealer Rhenoy (in 1977) posted in japanseklassieker.nl Facebook group and immediately thought to share it here:
What I quickly spotted in this photo was (from top left clockwise):
Now the big question is where is the Datsun 120Y (aka Nissan Sunny B210) in this photo? Or did I guess the first car wrongly here?
In my opinion the most interesting cars at this Datsun car dealer are the first four cars. Styling wise the late 70s was when Nissan shifted from coke-bottle styling to ruler styling and that’s quite visible in this showroom. The all new 160B/180B/200B (Bluebird 810) just arrived and also shows the arrival of the ruler styling with its sharp lines. There is just one tiny coke-bottle hip left over at the rear quarter of the car. Even sharper lines and more angular design would arrive with the all new 1977 Datsun 200L (aka Nissan Laurel C230), 1977 Datsun 160J (aka Nissan Violet A10) and the 1978 Datsun Cherry (aka Nissan Pulsar N10).
If I had to pick one car from this Datsun car dealer showroom back in 1977 I probably would have taken the four door Datsun 180B sedan. Simply because of it practicality and fuel economy for as far as you could call it economical at all. However if I had to pick one today I would choose either the Datsun 200L coupe (I just love the word butaketsu!) or the Datsun 200B coupe.
How often do you encounter a rally car parked down on the street? I guess almost next to none. So how about encountering a Datsun 240Z rally car then?
On my way home from doing groceries I spotted this 240Z immediately. It was parked next to the local Japanese teppanyaki restaurant, so I stopped by to take a couple of pictures. Unfortunately I only had my phone with me and to make things worse: it was the elcheapo one too. So these 640×480 pictures are the best I can offer… :(
Anyway, I got closer and noticed the 240Z was actually a rally car. Just look at the interior:
Equipment for timing and navigation and also the necessary stickers of the sponsors. The second sticker on the front fender actually was sponsored by the teppanyaki restaurant it was parked next to, so being there was no coincidence.
The 240Z was first registered in June 1971, but only imported into the Netherlands in 2003. No idea where from but it must have been a good country since I couldn’t find a spec of rust on its original paint.
Too bad the picture quality of my phone is so bad I can’t even make out the names of the drivers, so I’ll drop by the restaurant later this week to see if I can track them down. ;)
It has taken about a month for me to finally post up some of the celluloid photographs I took with my Zenit-E and a “new” Industar 61 lens at the Japans Autosport Festival 2011 at Zandvoort. As we Dutch say: “It takes a while but then you have something!” but that probably hits like a plier to a pig! :P
First reason it took so long was that the pictures got lost between the processing company and the photostore. Second reason was that I was too lazy to scan them. Third reason was that I was too lazy to upload them. So here they finally are!
I’ll start with my Carina parked next to this Datsun 240Z:
Datsun S30 240Z @ JAF2011
I made the decision that the Carina would be a better off parked next to a classic 70s JDM sportscar than one of those “modern” cars in the background. ;)
When chatting with the owner of the Corolla AE86 with 3S-GE swap this yellow 240Z stopped by. The owner turned out to be an AE86 owner as well. What is the chance that I parked my Carina next to his 240Z? One out of 10000?
Next up is this first generation green Mazda 626 hardtop coupe:
Mazda 616 coupe @ JAF2011
When I was waiting for someone in my Carina near the exit the owner (plus three his friends cramped) into this coupe made a small detour to yell at me that I had a cool car. :D
Gave them a big thumbs up and yelled back the same!
BTW: There are only 3 of these 626 coupes known to exist in the Netherlands. By chance I also met the owner of another one…
Then I spotted one of the most extraordinary AE86s in the Netherlands:
Corolla AE86 with BEAMS 3S-GE @ JAF2011
A Toyota Corolla AE86 with a 3S-GE BEAMS blacktop swap (SE86) with a W58 and a Carina SA60 bellhousing.
I met the owner a few times before (I bought the Celica Supra rims from him three years ago) and had a long chat about this swap. Amazing it actually fits!
Tight fitted BEAMS 3S-GE @ JAF2011
As you can see the BEAMS is a very tight fit. One of the support beams of the hood had to be cut out and a few things had to be moved in order to make it fit.
Corolla AE86 on Work Meisters @ JAF2011
The Work Meister rims were bought from The Doctor who previously had them under his JDM Toyota Chaser GX71. Some people like them and some people don’t. Personally I think they are an excellent fit!
Then I also spotted this bosozoku styled Suzuki Alto SS40:
Bosozoku style Suzuki Alto SS40 @ JAF2011
I did spot it at the Japan Classic Sunday 2010. Since then a few modifications have been done.
In case you are wondering: the writing on the hood says “STUK” which is Dutch for “broken”
Bosozoku style Suzuki Alto SS40 @ JAF2011
So apparently it broke down during the trip to Zandvoort and was towed to its place.
That’s it for the first part. More pictures will be posted in the next coverage!
I came across this little gem half a year ago but last week it popped up on Marktplaats for the second time: a 240Z with Turbo Diesel conversion by Mosselman!
Datsun 240Z Turbo Diesel
The 240Z has been given a nice set of Mag Style alloys and a set of ELC mirrors:
Datsun 240Z Turbo Diesel
Let’s hop over to the real big modification to this 240Z: the diesel engine!
Nissan LD28T tuned by Mosselman
The L24 has been replaced by a huge LD28T unit with engine tuning by Mosselman and also features an intercooler. There are no output figures given on this car but I reckon the LD28T must have enormous amounts of torque!
Datsun 240Z Turbo Diesel
The name Mosselman tuning may have a weird feeling for people familiar with the similar named artist but the company is actually a bit older than him (over 30 years old) and a very serious company.
The asking price of 8750 euros may sound a bit steep, but if you drive a lot this “fuel efficient” 240Z may actually be worth its price after all.
Found here: [Datsun 240Z Turbo Diesel]
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