Hello everybody,

I have a question: some of the hubcaps of early Z have a "D" on it some have a "Z". Z - yes, clear, but what means that "D"?
And an additional question - What size have the steelrims which are properly?

Thorsten the Z-novice

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T. Link
Germany
1971 240z (HLS30-16506)

Thor, you are wise to ask all these questions BEFORE your Z arrives! In less than one year you will become very familiar with all parts of your 240Z.

The "D" was for Datsun.

The name DATSUN was a composite word, originally meant to mean "Son of DOT" in Japanese. "DOT" were the first letters of the three family names who came together to form an old car (Carl, do you have a picture of the DC-3?). But the English pronunciation of the word "DOT" sounded like the term "LOSE MONEY" in Japanese, so they changed the name to DATSUN.

The parent company, of course, is actually NISSAN.

The original wheels on the 240Z were 14". It is popular to put 15" rims on the car for better performance, speed, and handling.

Frank

Good job again, Frank!

The original wheels on the Series 1 were 14" X 4 1/2" (inch) rims with
175HR14 tires. I don't have the transition date, but I think with the 1972
production they were enlarged to 14" X 5" rims. Carl, did I get it right?

However, I would say that most of the early Z's eventually received alloy
wheels which were somewhat wider in nearly every case. This was done
not only for the sake of appearance, but also to accommodate wider tires
since most owners, including me, felt that the original tires were too
small (narrow) for the car.

FWIW,.............Rick

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All Z Best,.......Kathy & Rick

1969 Z.CAR (#00013 10/69) 8/30/76
1969 ITSA.Z (#00171 11/69) 8/24/73
1970 OLD.Z (#06289 6/70) original owner
1971 510 2dr since 12/31/75
1969 1600 rdstr (our 160-Z)
1971 (#19851 1/71) sold
1975 75.Z (#01343 1/75)

Hi Guys:
Frank - I think you meant - DAT not DOT {Department of Transportation?}.... So that would be son of DAT - ie Datson.

So what happened to all the "D" hubcaps? The demand for the Datsun 240Z was so great that the Datsun Dealers here in America, saw the opportunity to greatly increase their "profit per unit" by adding extra cost and highly profitable accessories, to every Z, which meant extra profit - on every Datsun 240Z they sold.

So before putting the 240Z out for sale - the Dealers commonly added Aluminum Alloy wheels, body side moldings, front and rear bumper bars, custom pin striping and any other thing they could think of. In 1970 it was not uncommon to see $2,000.00 dollars of Dealer Accessories added to the car before sale - The Datsun 240Z that had a Manufacturers Suggest Retail price of $$3,526.00 could easily be sold for $5500.00 to $6500.00 to an eager buying public.

After the OEM wheels and hubcaps that had been removed from the cars - sat around the Dealerships for a year or two - most of them were thrown in the Dumpsters. It cost more to store them than they were worth. That is mostly why they are so rare and expensive today. Very few customer even ask to have them included with the car.. the mag wheels looked so much better.

Yes Rick - you are right. The OEM steel wheels were 4.5x14 inch until the 72 Model year when they changed to 5x14 inch. The "D" hubcaps came on the 70/71 Model Year cars and the "Z" hubcaps came on the 72/73 Model Year 240Z's. {actually the Z hub caps were carried over though the 260Z's in 74 and on into the 280Z's in 75 here in the States} so there are a lot more of the Z hubcaps out there.

FWIW,
Carl B.