Many of you know the huge impact that Mr. K has had on our lives. For those who don’t, Mr. K is the person responsible for the both the original Datsun 240z and 510. Holding those credentials makes him a very important person in my book. So when I came across an article on Autoblog the other day I was astonished to read that he preferred driving his Nissan Versa over the 350z that he owns or even the new 370z!!
Most of his feelings seem to stem from the fact that modern day sports cars have gotten too heavy and are now overly controlled by computer systems. At one point he goes on to mention that the Mazda Miata is more of what a modern 240z should be like.
Another point that he makes against modern Z cars is that they have gotten too expensive. The high price point really drives away the customers that the Z was initially designed for. The original 240z had an MSRP just over $4,000 back in the early seventies before options, now the price can regularly top $40K!! I can see his point.
The article goes on to mention that he would like to see the “Datsun” moniker return to future sporty cars from Nissan. I haven’t really thought of Datsun ever coming back, but why shouldn’t it!? It would be a great way for Nissan to branch out and offer cars at a lower price point in the future, sort of like what Toyota did with Scion. Seemed to work pretty well for them. Maybe we will see a lightweight sedan come back to the market and channel some vintage 510 styling. I’d buy a couple of those, rear drive of course.
Thoughts?
Side note: Mr. K’s 100th birthday was on the 15th of this month, so happy belated B-day to him. He’s still a feisty old dog isn’t he!? Good for him.
Source: Autoblog.com by way of Autonews.com
Image source: Chicago Sun-Times
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