1970 Datsun 1600 "Fairlady" Roadster

1970 DATSUN 1600 ”FAIRLADY” ROADSTER #SPL311-28443. (Stock #4274.) In 1959, the first true sports car built by Datsun was offered to an excited public as a competitor to England’s MG and Triumph and Italy’s Alfa Romeo and Fiat. The 2-seater roadster (SPL212) was built in very limited numbers until the Series II cars were offered with substantially more power from the 1600cc, 4-cylinder, twin-carburetor engine. Fitted with a 4-speed manual transmission, the Datsun 1600 “Fairlady” (SPL311) roadster, built from 1965 until 1970, was capable of reaching 105 miles per hour. The cars became very successful on the SCCA racing circuit and quite famous with Paul Newman adopting them for his racing team and competing with them with substantial success. Our car came from a local estate of a fellow who scoured the countryside for years to find the nicest unaltered car which he could. He found a qualifying car in California and brought it East. Finished in its original color of White, it had been repainted once years ago and the seats had to have been done since they were way too nice to be more than 50 years old. The odometer reads 24,985 miles and is thought to be original. The undercarriage is as nice as can possibly be desired and the car runs beautifully. A truly rare find! $22,500.