SRL311-00139 photo from May 1997
Meet SRL311-00139. Yes, 1967-1/2 Datsun 2000 number 139 – for those that aren’t familiar – the holy grail of Datsun roadsters. For half a year and about 700 cars, Nissan made a mash-up of the early and late roadsters. The low windshield of the early cars. The dual-circuit brake master, U20 engine and 5-speed from the later cars. And a few bits here and there that are specific to the half-year cars. Rare and highly desirable.
This particular car popped up for the sale on the team.net Datsun roadsters mailing list in early 1997 in Calgary, Alberta. These were the photos that a fellow list member sent to me after he went to check it out.
On first glance, not so bad.
Er, maybe a bit of rust. Can’t be that bad in Canada, eh?
Hmmm. über-rare ‘67.5 headrests, 5-speed, 160 mph speedo, 8000 rpm tach…
…and an extra grille.
Long story short, I bought it, based on some pictures. I conned my friend Jeff into flying with me to Calgary and dragging the car back to LA.
Why albatross? More to come…
