Z - 35 Years of Nissan's Sports Car

[Zedrally]

An earlier posts & previous threads....

snip..

I agree that Goertz didn't design the Z. Who did? I've yet to see that pop up. Alan, Chris, Steven... I'm sure one or more of y'all knows, do tell.

snip

Nate

In the May 1999 issue of 'PRACTICAL CLASSICS' magazine, the journalist ( Martin Buckley, funnily enough ) brought up the subject of the dispute about who really designed the Z. Matsuo's name is given as "Chief designer of the 240Z", but Buckley chose to give Goertz space for a personal quote. Here's the quote:

"I may not be the best designer in the world, but I look back at my record and I'm satisfied. I did two classics, the 507 and the 240Z. Name me three other designers who can claim as much."

So you see, the MAIN problem here is Goertz himself. He's a fraud, a liar and a scoundrel. Matsuo and his team haven't had a look in for several reasons - but two of the main factors have been language barriers and the fact that Matsuo quit Nissan on bad terms in 1973.

[Zedrally]

I'd like a copy of this book too I'm interested in what they changed to make the car handle better.

Gav,

Pitstop Bookshop has them in stock.

www.pitstop.net.au

MOM

[HS30-H]

I agree that Goertz didn't design the Z. Who did? I've yet to see that pop up. Alan, Chris, Steven... I'm sure one or more of y'all knows, do tell.

Nate

Hi Nate,

Check out post #54 on this thread:

....Is there no *fresh* information about the design process and engineering of the early cars? Are there no interviews with the likes of Matsuo, Yoshida, Chiba, Benitani, Kamahara, Uemura and Miyate? Any discussion about 'design concession' and the differences between the 'Export' and 'Domestic' cars?.......

That's the core of the design team right there.

Mr Yoshihiko Matsuo - Chief Designer & team leader.

Mr Akio Yoshida - General Exterior & Interior Design.

Mr Itsuki Chiba - Interior Design.

Mr Hiroo Miyate - General Body Design.

Mr Hitoshi Uemura - Mechanical Design ( esp. suspension ).

Mr Tsuneo Benitani - Engineering.

Mr Kiichi Nishikawa - Draftsman.

Mr Hidemi Kamahara - Engineering.

Mr Eiichi Oiwa - Designer.

Plus a cast of hundreds........

Alan T.

[AChev]

I just picked up on this thread. I became intrigued and read through the entire 5 pages. I do not want to get into comments about Mortons forward as I know people do not want to read more of what has already been said.

If you can get past all the nagging and bitching, the factual information here is excellent and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Alan and 26th, you seem to be of a dying breed. I am afraid once I get older and I still have my 240Z that people like you guys that are so knowledgeable about the topics will almost be nonexistant. Keep up the good work, I love reading what you men have to say.

It was stated earlier of some people not having a good idea of who John Morton is, this gives you a little view of him. I felt this would fit in the thread well. For those of you who have not seen this video yet, here is a little food for thought (it is just a short clip) John Morton 240Z Commercial

[hls30.com]

I can only dream that one day Alan, Kats, Chris(26th type) and Carl Beck, could get a couple of the other highly knowledgeable Z fanatics they know and actually compile and ultimately publish a complete work on the S30. Leave out(or thoroughly discuss all points of view that can be properly backed up) what cannot be agreed on as fact, and record all that is agreed on as fact, and make a real Z book by the numbers 240Z.

The real history is getting clearer, but as Alan, Chris and others have pointed out, the correct sources are not consistantly used or quoted. I am sure the correct answers are hidden within our membership, look at the answers already on this thread.

Will

[Alfadog]

I agree Will - I'm sure a lot of us would pay top dollar for such a publication, but we must also remember that writing and publishing a book is a mammoth task, let alone getting some of those people in the same room (for one reason or another! ). For now, I'm just so thankful that such dedicated enthusiasts frequent this forum.

[1 Bravo 6]

Yair, me too,

What Lachlan said.

Rick.

:devious: :devious:

[HS30-H]

The publishers of the book ( MBI Publishing ) seem to encourage 'feedback' on their products.

Here's a web page from their site where feedback can be left.

MBI feedback page

I'll be sending a letter to them at this address too:

MBI Publishing HQ address

Alan T.

[daddz]

Bryan,

I think that maybe if the editor had not placed the comments of John Morton in the forward and maybe put them in an epilogue it might not have set the stage for the way that you went in to the book. I have also read other pieces of work where the initial comments did not set the right frame of mind for entering the work and through comments such as ours maybe a subsequent edition will provide the suggested results (doubtful). I think your comments have started yet another very handy thread that most of us can learn a thing or two about these cars.

Having said that I do like this book if for nothing else than the competition coverage beyond 1983 and the very good photographs that come along and help move the story.

On a slightly different note, I just recently came back from a weekend in Huntington Beach, Ca. and was able to visit Nissan North America HQ in Gardena, Ca. with a Nissan employee and my visit came just a day after the announcement of the move to Tennessee and it really is a shame to see Nissan time and again throwing their history away in the name of pure economics. As I thought about this trip on the plane ride home from Ca. it prompted me to begin reading a book that was published years ago by John B. Rae entitled "Nissan/Datsun: A History of Nissan Motor Corporation in the U.S.A. 1960-1980" and there is some very good information in that book that should not be missed by any Datsun enthusiast.

On a lighter note I did meet up with a fellow Z enthusiast who happened to purchase one of the ex-Z Store Program cars from Datsun Alley and beyond the Nissan documentation the car has been taken in a different direction with the addition of an RB25 engine blending Nissan's old and recent history together. It was in my opinion a fitting gesture and I was happy to have seen it. (pictures to follow) [26th Z if you like I can pass on the contact info. if you're interested]

[26th-Z]

Yes I am, Bob. Thanks. I am encouraged to start up the Vintage Z thread again. Probably THE ONE most important issue to me brought up in Evanow's chapter is the discussion about the rain in California during 1997 / 98. Ahhh!!! That explains it!

[daddz]

The gentleman who owns the 240Z also stated that his car (safari gold) or should I say 'shell' also sat outside partially stripped and exposed to the elements for better than six months. The remarkable thing is that his paint and bodywork only took two and a half weeks to finish and that is because the quarter panel had to be removed and repositioned 1/8in. before paint could begin. The extra attention to detail is shown in how good the shut lines appear from front to rear.

Another friend who is currently in Japan on vacation mentioned that a friend of his bought a Z store car and had it shipped to Japan whereupon the car was stripped and restored a second time!

[26th-Z]

Yes. I know about the car. I was hoping the lads would send me a postcard, but I think they are having too much fun.