Anyone see this article in Classic & Sports Car magazine titled "Joy of Six"? It pits a Datsun 240Z against a Porsche 911 against a Dino 246. Interesting in that while all 3 have 2.4L 6 cylinder motors, all 3 have different layouts and position. I won't tip the ending, other than to say it may not be what you think. Article isn't the most detailed, but nice nonetheless. I have the article, but haven't posted it - not sure of etiquette on that - any ideas?
I skimmed the article, but was mainly interested in the pictures and comments that related to the Dino! Fred
Fred, Interestingly, as a 240Z owner, I did the same somewhat. As I am also a Ferrari fan (not owner), I was curious how my car would fare against 2 legendary marques. Not bad from the author's perspective! Rich
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Rich, I have an interesting perspective as well. As the owner of two Dinos, a Porsche Cayman and an SLK, and a former owner of a Boxster, as well as a Mustang six (back in the sixties!) and two E 320s (with inline and vee six-cylinder engines), I have owned all three configurations of six-cylinder engine, with my cars having front and mid, but not rear, engine mounting. A lot of different paths to multiple motoring destinations! Fred p.s. The rear quarter windows on my Cayman remind me of those on both the 240 Z and the Toyota 2000 GT. Note how the new 370 Z has gone back to that upswept style. History always finds a way to repeat itself. To paraphrase the late comedian Fred Allen: "Imitation is the sincerest form of car design!" f
Great article. I'd sure pick up a Dino if I had the scratch. Curious why they chose a 911 E instead of an S model? The '72 S is especially desireable. As to the Datsun? For whatever reason, I've always had something against that car.
Seems a few on this board share that sentiment. From what I can ascertain, a few made allusions to it being "copied" from Ferrari - design-wise. I argue that's part of the charm of the car, although it's quite different from any Ferrari I've driven or sat in (not an owner). Not to turn this to a 240Z thread in a Dino forum, but it was (and remains) one of the best values out there. It's Japanese quality, excellent performance, and not too common these days. I took my '72 240Z to a car show where there was an Iso, 512BB, a few Stanley Steamers, multiple MG-TCs, Muscle cars, etc. I had the only Z in the show, and the people around me were amazed at the crowd around my car. My car is FAR from show quality - it's a driver and in rough shape, but nearly everyone said something like "I had one when I was a kid"... Fred - good eye on the upswept window - on the 370Z it is a nod to the 240Z design (at least according to the Nissan PR)!
This article is about 7 years old, although I fairly sure Dinos were going for more than $70K (USD) even back then.
