Our recent story on the Datsun 240Z that sold for more than $200,000 in an auction on US classic car website Bring a Trailer (BaT) created quite a bit of interest, so on the latest episode of Zooming with DRIVEN, Dean, David and Sam discussed the details of what was the 100,000th auction on the BaT website.
You can watch that episode in its entirety here or read the original article about the Z here, but as a quick overview the striking 1973 Lime Yellow car was owned by BaT as a promotional vehicle and had become well-known among the enthusiast community that surrounded it.
The Z's straight-six has been bored and stroked from 2.4 to 2.7 litres and has triple Weber 40 DCOE side-draft carburettors with K&N filters mounted to its E88 cylinder head. It also has a five-speed manual transmission, a limited-slip differential, four-wheel disc brakes, lowered suspension and 16-inch Panasport wheels.
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Other engine bay modifications include a polished valve cover, an MSD ignition system, and an inline fuel pressure gauge. A ceramic-coated six-into-one header feeds a single-pipe exhaust system with two MagnaFlow mufflers and a recent dyno run showed 203 horsepower and 190 lb-ft of torque (203kW and 258Nm) at the rear wheels after tuning by Z Car Garage.
While the average sale prices for classic 240Zs is generally between US$30,000 and US$60,000, the BaT Z sold after a 10 day auction for a whopping US$124,240 (NZ$203,520), with all proceeds (including BaT's 5% buyer's fee) being donated to the Piston Foundation to fund skilled trade education for automotive students and to develop and establish vehicle restoration apprentices.