Datsun 1600 Roadster

Datsun Sports 1600 - fairlady

Some roadsters are driven with the heart rather than the stopwatch, and the Datsun 1600 is one of them. Hood down, thin-rimmed wheel in hand, the road rushing past close by: a Japanese convertible with the spirit of the British and Italian sports cars it set out to challenge.

Its 1.6-litre R16 four-cylinder, breathing through twin SU carburettors, delivers 96 PS through a four-speed synchromesh manual gearbox to the rear wheels. This 1969 example shows 90,000 km.

First shown at the 1964 Tokyo Motor Show and built from March 1965, the Sports 1600 took on MG, Triumph, Fiat and Alfa Romeo. On American circuits, Bob Sharp drove one to Nissan's first ever SCCA national championship in 1967.