DerekMelb

I need to cast doubt on some of what I posted earlier. I just had another conversation with Ross about this and although he's very vague about this episode, with some prompting regarding the car being run on carnet plates and us looking at some photos, he sort of remembered doing the component swapping himself, probably in Melbourne, and then he said "and I think it may have been dumped at sea." (there's that story again). Maybe I was away on holiday at the time, I have no memory of any of this. Strange thing memory. Note to self - always defer to the man with the documents.

For the 1972 Southern Cross Rally, Nissan entered a red, RHD, Safari spec, 240Z carrying rego TKS33 SA 8075 for Rauno Aaltonen. He placed 2nd. Following the Cross I have photos of this car running in the 1972 Dulux Rally (Hermann/Bonhomme car 3) then the 1973 Experts Trial (Kilfoyle/Osbourne) and the 1973 Alpine Rally (Evans/Mitchell car 9). I’m pretty sure Bill crashed it in the Alpine and it was not seen in an event after that. It was either crushed or left the country. For the 1973 Southern Cross Nissan entered 3 new, red, Safari spec 240Zs, a LHD for Fall/Halloran, car #1, rego TKS33 SU 4080 (rolled and DNF’d), a RHD car #2 for Mehta/Bonghomme rego TKS33 SU 3444 (rolled in the first division shortly after Fall and DNF’d), and a LHD car #17 for Watson/Beaumont (placed 8th). I was not yet employed by Nissan but was there spectating and stalking the Datsun service crews. I happened to witness Shekha and Tony Fall chuckling together, at the service point after Shekha retired, over their personal tallies of rolled Zs that year. Those 3 cars were not seen in Australia again after the Cross that year and were either returned to Japan or crushed (I have no direct knowledge of cars being pushed off ships at sea so cannot rule it out. Contrary to some comments here the Carnet requirement was that the vehicle left Australian shores or Nissan Australia was required to pay it’s import duty. I saw several of the carnet documents for our Datsun Rally Team cars and I can tell you there was no listing of specific parts/components included. In the 1974 Southern Cross Nissan entered 2 710s, Kallstrom/Bonhomme #2, Kilfoyle/Richards #3 and a 610SSS for Fury/Suffern #18. I have no record or photo of a works Z in an event in 1974 (other than Stewart McLeod’s Datsun Distribution S.A. supported 260Z) For the 1975 Southern Cross, Nissan entered 3 710s, car#2 was Aaltinen/Souminen, car #3 was Kallstrom/Bonhomme and car #7 was Fury/Suffern. The team was run out of Bruce Wilkinson Motors for the last time and I was an unpaid, expenses covered volunteer preparing and servicing. Vice President of Nissan Motor Co. Australia, Mr Sasamoto, was a big rally fan (it was he who gave me the job as first team mechanic in the official team at the beginning of 1976 because he’d seen me on events with the team and knew I was already on the company payroll). He was also a big fan of 240Zs and of Ross Dunkerton who had been having terrific success in his privately run 260Z. Mr Sasamoto was disappointed that Ross didn’t have company support for the ’75 Cross. He made enquiries in Japan to see if there was a car available and discovered there was one remaining unused 240Z, in Safari spec, on the shelf – a LHD car. Zs had been superceded as the works rally car by the 710SSS at this time. Mr Sasamoto offered to bring this 240Z to Australia for Dunks - and how could anyone refuse? I believe it was imported normally and the duty paid by Nissan Australia. It arrived in pristine condition with the rego plates TKS33 SU 4080 (N.B. same as Fall's '73 Cross car. See also Jeff Cameron's recent post regarding the reuse of rego plates by the works.) The car was prepared for the Cross at Ross’ expense but sadly he had a crash with a spectator’s car on the first night and withdrew for lack of a replacement for the damaged rear suspension arm. During 1976 Bill Evans (and later, Barry Nelson) and myself prepared and serviced this car (as well as a 710SSS for Fury), for the Australian Rally Championship. As stated in a previous post, Dunks comprehensively won the ARC in that car in ’76, although it must be said that there were a few well performing vehicles running, including our 710SSS, which were ineligible under the rules of the time. Despite his success, Ross was controversially dismissed from the team after the last ARC round and was not included in the line up for the Cross in 1976. He entered his own 260Z but DNF’d, coincidentally with another rear suspension failure. The last event for this car was the 1976 Alpine Rally (late November) where Ross managed to badly damage it in a roll-over. It was given to him as a parting gift, shipped to Perth, and cannibalised to upgrade his 260Z which went on to place equal first with Fury and the 710SSS in the 1977 ARC. I’m unaware of the exact final fate of the works body shell but, according to Ross, it was too far gone to repair at the time and was scrapped. There was no attempt to send it out of the country to recover import duty which supports my contention that it was not on a carnet. I have many documents and photos to support most of the above.

I hadn't remembered the name Kobe Seiko for these wheels, so thanks for that factoid. They were a 14" x 6(I think)" dark grey, magnesium wheel that were used by the works at that time as their 14" wheel of choice (before the 14" Gold painted Enkei came on the scene later in 1976) on the 610SSS, HS30 and 710SSS. We broke one on the Z at one stage so decided to see if we could set it alight. It burned very well and oh-so bright! AutoPics have ID'd this as a 260Z but it was actually a 240Z. HKSZ (above) has also reversed his naming of the Zs Ross drove in that era. His own car he drove in 1975 and 1977 (with works 240Z engine and running gear) was a 260Z and the works car was a 240Z. None have survived to my knowledge.

Interesting info, Gav. Thanks for filling in some gaps for me. Tony Fall rolled this car (or one looking like it) in the 1973 Southern Cross and it was returned to Japan afterward. The car that returned in 1975, with this rego plate, had no signs of being repaired (that I can remember) so my thought is that the works switched the plates onto another car. I believe it was a Safari spec'd Z and the last unused one on the shelf (the team had switched to 710s by then). Ross Dunkerton and John Large ran as a Nissan Australia semi-sponsored entry in the 1975 Southern Cross but had a coming together with a spectator vehicle and retired on night one with a damaged rear arm for which we had no spare at that time. I suspect the crash probably had something to do with it being Ross' first event in a LHD car but his version of events is slightly different. Ross then ran this car with navigator Jeff Beaumont for most of the Australian Championship in 1976, which they won comprehensively – 4 consecutive wins, one 2nd, and one DNF (1st round due to unspecified and not remembered suspension failure, again). Ross also ran it in the Castrol International Rally early that year, coming 3rd to Greg Carr and George Fury. The car was not entered in the Southern Cross in 1976 and its next event was the Alpine Rally later that year in which Dunkerton had a rollover. It was not considered worth repairing and the wreck was given to Ross to use the running gear in his own RHD 260Z. Dunkerton/Beaumont and the works powered 260Z had good success again in 1977 until he lost oll pressure in the penultimate round and the engine was destroyed. They still managed to come equal 1st in the ARC with George Fury in the works 710. I began full-time work with the Datsun Rally Team at the beginning of 1976. We prepared and maintained this LHD 240Z for Ross and an early 710 for George Fury that year.