R&T: What you need to know before buying a Z

[NVZEE]

Road & Track's latest version of a familiar topic: 

http://www.roadandtrack.com/car-culture/a10348895/what-you-need-to-know-before-buying-a-1970-1973-datsun-240z/

[psdenno]

Nice, relatively accurate, article.  I would have preferred pictures of a Z with stock wheels and hubcaps instead of aftermarket alloys.  But, that's just me.

Dennis

 

 

[siteunseen]

I bet the author has been on this forum for researching that article. 8^)

[siteunseen]

6 minutes ago, psdenno said:

Nice, relatively accurate, article.  I would have preferred pictures of a Z with stock wheels and hubcaps instead of aftermarket alloys.  But, that's just me.

Dennis

 

 

I saw a blue one scallop hubcaps in that. My bad, it's an early 280.

 

[esmit208]

Pretty slick article. Not sure if it is a good thing or a bad that the value of our cars is rising. I personally think the economy dictates price more than collector value or other factors. I hope the price of parts doesn't all of a sudden go through the roof. I still have several years of work left.

[JSM]

I thought this was priceless, "It’s like a British car, but with a much higher probability of everything working."

[26th-Z]

The writer got the date of introduction wrong.  October 21, 1969.  Of course, the New York unveiling was the next day as the writer stated.  He doesn't explain why, but his assessment of relative value between model years holds true in the collector world.

Certainly, it can be argued that the economy dictates price and the economy for collector cars seems to be roaring even though we are six months into a new administration.  What the author wants to say is that the Datsun 240Z has made it to legitimate collector car status and as such, the prices will continue to go up.

[Zed Head]

30 minutes ago, 26th-Z said:

What the author wants to say is that the Datsun 240Z has made it to legitimate collector car status and as such, the prices will continue to go up.

Seems like he would have just written that if he wanted to.

The article has an odd tone to it, like the author just decided on a theme and tried to fit the reality to it..  The 280Z is often bashed because it's the "GT" version of the 240Z.  The 240Z purists usually talk about the raw sports car nature of the 240Z and how it was lost when the GT-like 280Z was introduced.  But this guy starts by describing the 240Z as a GT car and comparing it to GT cars of the day.  GT, GT, GT....  Seems way off base from the first few sentences.

Apparently he owned one though.  And like many early 240Z owners, thinks it's worth huge money now.  Seems like could tell us more about his $75,000 car.  It's not even "low VIN", it's over 500.  Is anyone aware of a plus 500 VIN 240Z that sold for close to $75,000?  Lots to suspect in this article.  But it is an interesting read.  Doesn't really seem worth much though, in the big scheme of things.   "CC" is the author.  I couldn't find any more about him because that is one screwed up web site.  Keeps reloading more junk before you can click on the bottom links.

"I bought the finest original Series 1 car I had ever seen—low miles, flawless original paint, and an interior and chassis you could eat off. It wasn’t one of the first 500, but it was a very early production car. I paid $15,000, probably a record price at the time. I enjoyed the car for a few years and sold it for $25,000. That buyer later sold it for $40,000. Today, the same car is likely worth closer to $75,000. "

[Zed Head]

Here we go.  The author is a car salesman.  Not that there's anything wrong with that.  Keep pumping.

http://www.roadandtrack.com/author/2767/colin-comer/

http://colinsclassicauto.com/

[dmorales-bello]

8 hours ago, Zed Head said:

The author is a car salesman.  Not that there's anything wrong with that.

I beg to differ, Sir !

[Hardway]

I liked the article and while I would love to see this $75K 240z he speaks of, his other articles are informative and a little entertaining.  He is a car salesman and does provide some insight but none of it is earth shattering.  Seems like he writes an article every few months so he is not a regular contributor but its probably not a bad gig.

[Zed Head]

He should have disclosed it or they should have one of those "about the author" things.  

Hagerty says Concours quality 70 cars are only up to the high 50's.  And they, apparently, by their own words,  base their estimates on actual sales.  I can't imagine that any decent author doing the most basic research did not see this data.  But he wrote $75,000 anyway.

https://www.hagerty.com/apps/valuationtools/1970-datsun-240z

https://www.hagerty.com/valuationtools/About-our-prices