Did the Datsun 280zx receive unfair criticism?

[positivetennis]

After reading many books, newspaper articles, web forums etc the 280zx received a lot of criticism for being overweight and losing its sports car feel and instead of becoming a luxury personal coupe. This criticism continued with the z31 300zx. However these cars sold very well and today represent good value. Positive features that the 280zx has include:

1. The benefits of fuel injection over carbs

2. Standard air conditioning and electric windows, mirrors, power steering

3. Very comfortable seats, and quieter cabins, with no fumes entering the cabin

4. 4 wheel disk brakes

 

While the 280zx at under 1300kgs was considered heavy in the early 80's they are quite light compared to a z32 or even a z33.

Do these cars miss out on the fun feel of driving an s30? In standard form do they feel slower to drive including a 260z 2+2. Dear reader your thoughts are much appreciated.

[d3c0y]

Have you bought a zed yet? 

[dat2kman]

Why do you keep asking all these types of questions?

[luvemfast]

As the comments above. We are a Z owner/Drivers community. We say AND do.

We generally don't go into in depth discussions about statistics from books and magazines, because they have no correlation to our cars.

 

But to humour you. 

My fatass 280ZX 2 seater was top 5, road car class D, at this years Nissan Datsun nationals.

I also just picked up my winners trophies today, for MSCA DC class and Supersprint series class 4C.

That is all!

[d3c0y]

So you are blaming the fat ZX for the 20 seconds off Gordo? Surely it cant be worse than taking a passenger in an S30?  :P :P

 

 

Trades man tools etc haha! 

[positivetennis]

Hi guys, thanks for your replies. Yes I have owned the following:

 

1980 280zx

1983 280zx, was national conourse champion in 1999

1985 z31 300zx

1986 z31 300zx turbo

1987 z31 300zx turbo

1990 z32 300zx au spec

1992 z32 300zx au spec

The 1990 was owned most recently with the others quite a long time ago. This car felt quite heavy yet steered well.

 

Always wanted to own a s30, probably should have bought one in the 80's-90's but couldn't afford to own 2 cars at the time and it is getting harder to get one now. I like cars in their original, standard form, however I understand that many owners here have other goals and completely different setups and there is nothing wrong with that. My questions are attempt to gather peoples thoughts and gain a consensus view of how people relate to zed cars today. As you can appreciate it is very hard to go and test drive each model now and therefore I feel the need to ask these questions to get some perspectives.

[luvemfast]

So you are blaming the fat ZX for the 20 seconds off Gordo? Surely it cant be worse than taking a passenger in an S30?  :P :P

Trades man tools etc haha! 

It was 10 seconds, thank you very much! 

 

Gordo's car is very well set up. And is a much better driver than I.

[imackz]

After reading many books, newspaper articles, web forums etc the 280zx received a lot of criticism for being overweight and losing its sports car feel and instead of becoming a luxury personal coupe. This criticism continued with the z31 300zx. However these cars sold very well and today represent good value. Positive features that the 280zx has include:

1. The benefits of fuel injection over carbs

2. Standard air conditioning and electric windows, mirrors, power steering

3. Very comfortable seats, and quieter cabins, with no fumes entering the cabin

4. 4 wheel disk brakes

 

While the 280zx at under 1300kgs was considered heavy in the early 80's they are quite light compared to a z32 or even a z33.

Do these cars miss out on the fun feel of driving an s30? In standard form do they feel slower to drive including a 260z 2+2. Dear reader your thoughts are much appreciated.

 

yes the 280zx is heavier but is also more rigid allowing for modifications , like mine

they are comfortable and when fixed up can keep up with any car 

[d3c0y]

The advice i can give is don't put 50mm webers on it, otherwise you will always smell like you fuel/fumes.

[dat2kman]

You need to bear in mind the world market, ie the good ole YooEssAy!

They all got fatter, heavier, plusher, restricted and over complicated for the stoopid Mericans.

Not just Zx's but all other makes.

 

Strip any car, almost, back to the badics, they are transformed, but as a manufacturer, no such thing as basics.

 

 

[positivetennis]

Thanks once again for the replies and different perspectives. Seems quite a few people here race and modify their cars.

[chris240]

Dude, youve been on here since January 2012, will you hurry up and buy a 70s zed...just do it.  Please.  :'(

[NZeder]

A 79 280zx 2 seater has much better aero CD vs the earlier cars, as pointed out are stiffer and once all the mod cons removed and sound proofing they can get down in weight ie 1100kg or lower aka 260z 2 seater range.

[Quandary]

Do these cars miss out on the fun feel of driving an s30? In standard form do they feel slower to drive including a 260z 2+2. Dear reader your thoughts are much appreciated.

 

For spirited road use the ZX 2+2 feels slower than the 260Z 2+2. You can forget pretty easily it's a 260Z 2+2 and not a 2 seater. You can't forget you're driving a ZX when you look at the interior.

 

Also the Z wasn't supposed to be a sports car but a GT. As GT cars go, the ZX was better. Uglier but better. I'm not unfamiliar with long distance driving but I drove my 260Z's from Bris to Rocky and it was extremely tiring. I did the same in a ZX and it was great. But if I wanted all those things you listed I'd go for a 350Z, not a 280ZX. If you can pick up a low KM 350Z at $20,000 why bother with a ZX 2+2?

 

[positivetennis]

Some interesting responses here. Yes since I joined the forum I bought and sold a z32 while waiting for a good s30 or s130 to come up for sale in the Sydney region. The pluses of the z32 (na, aus spec) was definately the price/value equation along with the excellent steering and comfortable interior apart from the pods which bump my knees. On the negative side the car is quite wide and heavy. I prefer the earlier body styles to these.

Finding a a good s30 that is priced well in Sydney takes time and you have to be quick when a good one comes up, particularly 260z 2 seaters which do get snapped up quickly if priced reasonably. 2 + 2 260z's are more affordable. I'm looking to own one for weekend use mainly for country outings.

Some posters have noted that I asked too many questions. I do apologise to those people but I feel that it is my only way to bounce thoughts with others who know about these cars and get some insights from people who have owned multiple cars in original form.

One question that is commonly raised in many forums around the world is about s30 fumes. Many people have talked about solutions to the problems, what I have always wanted to know is, is this a problem that occurred since these cars were brand new due to the aerodynamics of the car? Some of you who have owned these cars when they were new can answer this. Please I would just like a direct answer if possible.

[Lynton]

All my zeds from new never had fumes problems unless you drove with the hatch up and open then it would suck fumes back into the cabin, my suspicion regards this fume talk is twofold either they have been rear ended and hatch and rubbers not aligned properly when repaired or just plain 35+ year old cars left outside in their life and rubbers perished? My car does not fit into either of these situations and still has no fumes problems being sucked back into cabin. The 280zx is superior to the s30 in drive ability, elbow room & power steering handles as well with discs all round and bigger wheels worst thing with the 280zx is a large fuel tank to refill?.

I also believe this forum is for all to ask questions of any type all part of being in a forum community if your not interested don't respond, my opinion is leave the gate open you can always learn something new from intriguing questions lynton 

[D.O.G]

One question that is commonly raised in many forums around the world is about s30 fumes. Many people have talked about solutions to the problems, what I have always wanted to know is, is this a problem that occurred since these cars were brand new due to the aerodynamics of the car? Some of you who have owned these cars when they were new can answer this. Please I would just like a direct answer if possible.

I drove a '72 model 240z between '78 and '88 as my daily transport.

I never noticed fumes in the car.

 

[d3c0y]

Awesome another interesting fumes thread... 

[positivetennis]

Thanks Lynton and D.O.G., great posts, its very heartening to know that you can get an s30 without fumes and that as new cars people had fume free motoring. I just couldn't believe that Nissan/Datsun would build a car that would have a problem and not do something or be subject to a recall. An NRMA tech guy suggested the same thing as you in terms of cars perhaps being damaged or suffering metal fatigue and excess body flex.

[d3c0y]

Or something as crazy as missing / warn out seals...

[crazyyy2305]

he original Datsun Z-car sold so well that a successor was never in doubt. Christened Datsun 280ZX, it didn’t last as long -- five years instead of seven -- but sold relatively better. In 1979-80, Nissan moved over 140,000 in the U.S. alone. The ZX was also much more popular in Europe than the 260Z it replaced there and in Japan. It only goes to show that the public recognizes an attractive package more than the motoring press, which wasn’t nearly so enthusiastic about the second-generation design.

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2013 MERCEDES BENZ SL-CLASS

[positivetennis]

Thanks guys, some interesting posts. Its great that people can express their thoughts and present various perspectives about cars. Time and culture are important influences in how we see things like cars in society and things do change. I found it quite interesting that Wheels magazine recently published a list of all their "Car of the Year Awards", highlighting how they were viewed then and how they are viewed now. For example the VN Commodore, JB Camira and TM Magna all won C.O.T.Y. While at the time these cars may have represented improvement based on set croteria, we all know now that these cars became a liability for many people who bought them. The "Dog and lemon Guide" certainly presents a different perspective as to what represents good buying, and Cliff Chambers ,"Making money from collectable cars", was a great view into the future of which cars he thought were the ones to go for. I  think it is informative that knowledge of zed cars be updated to fit both nostalgic and current persprctives so that people can make informed choices when they outlay large sums of hard earned cash. This is something that I may try to do when I get some time to collate information and write a book or something.