Long before Datsun got here to America, an automobile brand in Japan was called DAT, an abbreviation for the initials of the company partners. DAT cars were full-size, and when the corporate decided to construct a small automobile, they selected the name Datsun (son of DAT), but they didn't wish to call it “Datson”, because in Japanese “son” means “loss.” “
During World War II, Nissan was a very large manufacturer of Japanese military trucks, which may have led to some negative feelings toward the company and its products. Nissan also used the Datsun name for small cars, which were successfully advertised in Japan.
Marketing experts believed the successful name would be more acceptable than Nissan, which was associated with large, rugged trucks. They also feared damage to the Nissan brand if the US company failed.
Until October 1969, Datsun was not a very exciting franchise in the United States. Until then, they mainly offered small, economical cars and pickup trucks. That month, America was introduced to the Datsun 240Z, which was affordable and profitable and became the best-selling sports car in the world. It used the engine and suspension components of the Datsun Bluebird 510 sedans and won the East African Rally twice.
The 240Z's long hood, short deck design is a credit to Yoshihiko Matsuo and reminds me of the beautiful Jaguar XKE of that era with similar styling cues. The Datsun sold more than 520,000 units, a record for a single production run of a sports car. The brand developed from an inexpensive car and truck manufacturer to a manufacturer of sports and luxury cars.
The vehicle featured in this issue is a 1971 Datsun 240Z owned by Victor Talatala of Pleasant Hill, who says he purchased the car in March 2000 for $800.
“The car was in bad shape,” he said. “The engine needed to be overhauled and the underbody and sills were rusted. Because the insurance repair costs were higher than the value of the car itself, the car had a scrap title.”
After purchasing it, Talatala took the car to a body shop where, fortunately, the workers discovered that the car had no frame damage. It ran, but obviously would never pass a smog test. This was Talatala's recreational car that he only used when he wanted to play tennis or golf. His friends commented on the amount of smoke coming out of the exhaust pipes, indicating the need for an engine overhaul.
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He found a wonderful mechanic who had worked on quite a few racing engines. To keep costs down, he only worked on it when he was not busy in his workshop. It took him six months to finish the job, however it was definitely worth the wait. The 2.4 liter six-cylinder engine ran well and power was increased to around 200 horsepower.
However, it still needed a coat of paint and a brand new interior. Talatala had the automobile repainted 24 years ago and it still looks pretty good. The automobile is a two-seater, two recent seats were purchased and installed at the moment. Talatala says he estimates the market value of his automobile to be about $40,000 but has no plans to sell it. However, if someone comes along and needs it, I feel they might negotiate.
Originally published:
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