The Car That Inspired The 240Z: The Datsun 2000 Is Back With A Sharp New Design

With lines from classic Nissan roadsters shaken up with modern features, the render brings back a little class to the drop-top coupe game.

It’s possible that the car you imagine upon seeing the word DATSUN is a Z-car, an iconic Japanese machine from the 70s which went through various iterations and generations over the years.

A car that perhaps wouldn’t come to mind is the Datsun Sports 2000 (SR311) – a sports car made for the 1967–1970 years, called the Datsun Fairlady in Japan, and was forerunner to the Nissan Fairlady Z or Datsun 240Z.

This render from HotCars artist Timothy Adry Emmanuel pictures a modern-day revival of the lightweight roadster that takes inspiration from the former’s design and modifies it with modern proportions and features.

A Modern Datsun Fairlady 2000 For The Discerning Sports Car Fan

With so many names to keep track of, it can be difficult to know what to call it – the Datsun Fairlady or Datsun Sports 2000 was precursor to the ‘Z’ cars and was a quick car in its day; capable of 125 mph thanks to its 2-liter, OHC engine.

Up to 150 hp was good in a car weighing less than a metric ton, and a five-speed manual gearbox was welcome. As for the styling, the Datsun 2000 looks pretty tame nowadays though it was pretty on point for the era as it was going up against the Triumphs and MGs of the time.

When it comes to the render, the roadster format returns once more, along with a choice of icy-blue and cherry-red paintwork, and blue brake calipers.

Looking at the car’s front, you can see most of the Datsun’s features such as the grille shape, the circular headlamps and the hood scoop, plus the fender-mounted mirrors.

This time around the lights get housed within scoops cut into the front bodywork, which look much more aggressive and the front end has a point rather than a flat fascia like the 2000.

Buying A Fairlady In 2023: How Much Is A Datsun 2000?

The car is low and wide, with large wheels, endowing the car with modern proportions and looking more like the BMW Z4 than the dainty roadster from the end of the 60s.

Like the original car, this one has the similar kink in the rear quarter panel – up back, the flat deck returns along with vertical LED tail lights which are a nod to the classic car’s vertically-stacked circular tail lights.

The sky is the limit for powertrain options, but given the visible quad exhaust set up a turbocharged 2-liter engine with 300 hp doesn’t seem unrealistic, doubling the Datsun’s power output over more than 5 decades.

It’s possible that around 15,000 Datsun 2000s got made over the 4-year period, though today many will likely be gone. Classic.com suggests an average value of the Datsun 2000 to be about $24,000 and Hagerty suggests around $22,000 for a ‘good’ 1969 model specifically.