Tag: datsun 260Z

Down on the Street: Datsun 260Z midget

May 13, 2012 / banpei / 1 Comment

The Datsun 260Z a midget? There must be some mistake, right?
Nope, totally wrong!

I shot this photo inside a parking garage in Santa Clara because it looked odd. Compared to the Jeep Cherokee XJ and Toyota Corolla E150 parked next to it the Datsun 260Z certainly looks like a midget!

Wait a minute? Is that seriously a Corolla?
Yes it is the USDM Corolla E150 and it surely grew almost as large as the kujira Toyota Crown S60 in the past 38 years. Both the 260Z and S60 came from the same era and a the world has changed since. If the Corolla could speak it would certainly say to the 260Z who is the underdog now? ;)

Video: Datsun Equinoxe

October 4, 2010 / banpei / 0 Comments

I remember this song by Jean Michel Jarre quite well from my childhood. What I didn’t remember was that it actually is full with several Datsuns, like a Datsun 510 and 260Z. So if you can stand the cheesy looks by Jean Michel into the camera you can actually enjoy a representation of the cars in the USA in 1978:
<a href="http://www.banpei.net/blog/video-datsun-equinoxe" target="_blank"><img decoding="async" src="http://b.vimeocdn.com/ts/797/933/79793315_640.jpg" /></a>

Simca Matra Ranchero versus Datsun 260Z car chase at Zandvoort

Car chases: Datsun 260Z chases Clown on Zandvoort

October 2, 2010 / banpei / 5 Comments

Datsun 260Z chases Clown on Zandvoort

Following up yesterdays post: here is a car chase from one of the older Bassie en Adriaan episodes when they still loved the Simca based Matra Rancho. Basically when the clown and acrobat find out they are being followed by a Datsun 260Z with some thugs inside.

In this scene the bad guys chase down a Simca Ranchero with their Datsun 260Z on Zandvoort circuit. The 260Z is going sideways many times but fails to overtake the Ranchero. Why they were doing 360s every now and then is a mystery but they finally spin out at the exit to the paddock.

Be prepared for some real 70s drift action (with long a haired acrobats wearing sunglasses with a funky 70s tune in the background) between a Matra Rancho and a Datsun 260Z on the Zandvoort circuit:

Music

The music during the chase is Musical 2000 by Los Pekinekes and is really fitting the scene and atmosphere very well. The band Los Pekinekes is a Spanish band from the late 1960s and was very fitting as the story of the TV series was the two travelling to Spain to recover a lost treasure.

Datsun sponsoring?

Also a noteworthy to mention: this isn’t the only Datsun used by the thugs. In the other episodes a Nissan Cherry and Violet are being used as chase cars and in another one they (casually) drive a Laurel. After these series Bassie en Adriaan started to drive the Prelude and the thugs started to drive Ladas. I suspect that was no coincidence. :P

Skid school

The two protagonists are two brothers, Bassie and Adriaan, and they made the TV series on a shoestring budget. The Ranchero was their stage car (they used it IRL to travel to the circus) and the Datsun 260Z was Adriaan’s (the acrobat) personal car. The stunts were performed by the instructors of the sliding/skid school (Rob Slotemaker) located next to the track.

Update:

Unfortunately the original video got removed from Youtube due to copyright claims, but recently it has been uploaded on their official channel:

Direct link to video: Bassie & Adriaan – De achtervolging op het circuit van Zandvoort