1972 Datsun 240Z

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1972 Datsun 240z
Road-Going SCCA Race Car
Many Rare & Desirable Vintage Racing Parts
E31 Head, 5spd Close-Ratio, Magnesium Wheels, Konis, Bundle of Snakes Headers, Race Buckets, Half Cage, and Much More
MODIFICATIONS LIST
Chassis
- Koni shocks
- BRE Mulholland springs
- BRE hard suspension bushings
- BRE roll bars
- Vented aluminum rear brakes
- Hard pads and linings
- Wheels: Magnesium American Racing Libres
Engine
- 2.4L L24 Block
- Flat top pistons
- E31 head with large valves, port & polished, built by Ron Neal at Prototype Engineering in Wheeling, IL in 1972
- Race valve springs, heavy street cam
- Fly cut cylinders to clear large valves
- 3 Mikuni PHH Carbs, 2BBL
- Velocity stacks
- Bundle of Snakes custom headers
- 2¾ inch exhaust
Transmission/Differential
- 5 speed close-ratio. Believed to be a Datsun Roadster competition gearbox
- 4:11 Differential
Interior
- Dino wheel
- Crown Enterprises harness
- Corbeau Seats
- Autopower Industries half cage
VIN: HLS3054335
H: L24 Motor
L: Left Hand Drive
S30: 240z
54335: Serial Number
Build Date 11/71
Evolve Motors and Chicago Car Club are pleased to present this 1971 Datsun 240z
We bought this savagely-quick 240z from a local gentleman who had owned it for a number of years before deciding to sell due to lack of use. He had another 240z as well; this one was his when-I-want-to-scare-myself car, while the other was an extremely clean and original example. He had grown out of the whole racecar-for-the-street approach and decided to shift his focus towards the latter. He contacted us asking if we would potentially be interested in taking the car off his hands; when we went to his house and took the car for a blast through the neighborhood we were instantly smitten. Since taking possession of the car a couple months ago, we've put about 200 miles on it, a combination of highway mileage and residential/city driving. The car is much more at home on open roads (or a track) that allow it to be wound out. Around the city the car is a bit tedious to drive, as you would expect from a vintage race car. Steering is heavy at low speeds, and the suspension is extremely stiff, making speedbumps a bit of an event. While the car is an absolute blast to drive in every respect, it could use some minor sorting to make it a truly excellent example. There is a bit of a stumble in the low end of the rev range; for example, if you're in third gear at 30mph and go to stomp on the gas pedal, the car will stutter a bit in pulling itself up into the powerband. It's nothing of major concern, and can easily be worked around by running with the choke half out, but it's worth noting. When the power really comes on, at right about 3500rpm, the car pulls extremely hard. The power output is very impressive, we'd estimate somewhere around 270-280hp. The engine itself has proven to be in healthy running order over these last couple months; in the 200 or so miles we've driven the car, it has never gotten hot or had any trouble whatsoever
The backstory of the car, as it has been described to us, is that the car was modified from new (in 1972) by Prototype Engineering in Wheeling, IL and built to SCCA spec. At the time, Prototype Engineering was run by Ron Neal, renown Alfa and Datsun guru turned NASCAR master tech. There the car received an extensive amount of mechanical modifications, including an early e31 head with large valves, ported and polished, with race valve springs and a heavy street cam. Cylinders were fly cut to clear the large valves, and Mikuni PHH carbs with custom linkage were fitted. The car also received velocity stacks, custom Bundle of Snakes exhaust headers, and an “ultra-close” 5-speed, which we have come to believe is a Datsun Roadster competition unit. For anyone in-the-know of the vintage Datsun racing community, the fact that this car was a subject of