Yutaka Katayama "Mr K." is sent to US to introduce a sports car. Afraid of looking bad, Nissan built the cars under the name Datsun. Seeing the movie My Fair Lady, Japan executives decided to call the car the "fairlady Z". Mr K. fought this but lost and ended up meeting the cars at the shipping terminal, pulling off the Fairlady Z emblems and replacing them with 240z emblems. The Nissan execs purchased the blueprints of the L6 motor from Mercedes and improved on it. This car was very inexpensive and had the performance to match jaguars, porscha's and ran circles around the US muscle cars as it only weighed approximately 2400 lbs.

1970 Yutaka Katayama introduced the 240Z in October 1969 to the US. Powered by a 2.393 cc, 2.4 liter in-line OHC 6 cylinder with two sidedraft SU carburetors, the engine produces 150 horsepower. The only transmission offered was a 4 speed manual. 4 wheel independent suspension used front mounted MacPherson struts and rear Chapman struts. Brakes featured solid front discs and aluminum rear drums.

1971 Prompted by vibration problem on the race cars, the crankshaft was redesigned. The transmission and differentail were improved. A Jatco 3 speed automatic transmission became available. Rear quarter panel and hatch received new styling.

1972 Combustion chamber shape altered, lowering compression ratio from 9.0 to 8.8:1, effectively lowering emissions and power. Rear crossmember and differential mounting were moved back 35 mm to reduce driveshaft angularity. Driveshaft became one piece with single universal joint to reduce drivetrain roughness. Auto seat belt retractors installed, rear window defroster lines ran horizontal. US models used 5" wide rims, replacing 4-1/2".

1973 Carburators, manifolds and cylinder heads changed for the emissions requirements. Distributor changed to a transistorized breakerless ignition system. Intermittent windshield wipers added as standard equipment. Tinted glass, 3 point adjustable seat belts, collapsible steering column and fire retardant interior introduced. Reclining seats added.

1974 260Z introduced. By lengthening the stroke to 79 mm, engine displacement increased to 2,565 cc, 2.6 liters, increasing horsepower from 129 to 139. 2+2 body styling introduced by lengthening the car by 12.2", which added 200 lbs. Only available with 4 speed manual transmission. Seat belt interlock was added to some models before being quickly dropped. Rear sway bar added to all models. Simulated wood grain steering wheel replaced with padded vinyl version. Bumpers received minor updates. Quarter windowson 2+2 models opened.

1975 260Z: Front and rear bumpers were enlarged to meet Federal 5 mph regulations, adding about 130 pounds. Turn signals mounted above front bumper. By midyear, the 260 was replaced by 280Z. 280Z: To meet tougher emissions standards, a 3 mm bore increase raised engine displacement to 2,753 cc, 2.8 liters, producing 149 horsepower. Bosch's L-jetronics fuel injection replaced SU carburetors on all models. TRansmission and differential gear ratios were changed. California models required catalytic converter exhaust system. 280Z model was sold only is US.

1976 A voltmeter replaced the ammeter in the center console.

1977 Engine modifications raised horsepower to 170. 5 speed manual overdrive was available. Bumpers were enlarged again.

1978 Black Pearl edition introduced on the coupe models featured a black pearl metallic finish with red and silver striping. 5 speed manual transmission and air condition were option. Approximately 1500 black pearl models produced.

1979 Second generation introduced. 280ZX Only the engine and transmission and differentail were carried over to the new model. Horsepower was down to 135. 4 wheel disc brake, air conditioning and power steering were standard. A lot of plastic and 80s styling began to be added.