Take a good look at the great-great-great-grandpappi of my car. The Fairlady, as it was known in Japan, was Datsun’s first sports car. This 2000 model was actually a member the last Fairlady generation before the introduction of the Z-cars with the 240′s debut in 1969. The first thing I noticed about this car is how “Datsun” it really looked – clearly the design language carried over. I immediately recognized the my favourite early Z-car feature on the 2000, the teardrop headlights.

The original Fairlady started with the 1959 “S211″, which boasted 36 hp from a 1.0L 4-banger, and culminated in the 2.0L 150 hp “SRL311″ with Competition package in 1970. This red example is a 2000, a.k.a. SRL311, but is most likely the 135 hp non-Competition package model. The Fairlady was originally designed to compete against the MGs and Triumphs of the day. Not only was Datsun successful in producing a viable competitor, but it did so at a lower price point than the Brits.

This 2000 that I found was, surprise surprise, at the golf club where I also found the ’68 Jag E-Type and the extra-ugly BMW X6. A gallery is below.