New Fiat 124 Spider Reimagined as a Datsun 240Z Coupe

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Posted by George Kennedy 

                               

                                      

The return of the Fiat 124 Spider has us thinking about the classic 124 that was built from 1966 to 1980. It also has us thinking about all the other fantastic cars that the 124 inspired. Many will look to the Mazda Miata, but the MX-5 is not alone.

 

The Datsun 240Z debuted for the 1969 model year, and you could call some of the styling cues, er, derivative of the spritely Fiat. Perhaps that is why one talented designer has envisioned the all-new Fiat 124 Spider as a Datsun 240, and the results are truly awesome.

Crafted by the impressive X-Tomi Design, the reimagined Datsun features cues from another X-Tomi creation, the Abarth version of the Fiat 124, albeit with its own unique lower front fascia. But the big changes involve crafting a hardtop coupe onto the Fiat body.

As you can see, the hardtop is far from an afterthought, and incorporates a large rear window and angular rear side windows. We particularly like the blacked-out rear decklid panel, diving it that vintage look.

Given that Nissan shuttered its own attempts to do anything fun with the Datsun name plate, this is the closest we’ll probably get to seeing a modern-retro 240Z. The original Z had a 2.4-liter inline-6 under the hood, though if we had our way, this concept would feature the MR16DDT engine from the 2014 Nissan Juke RS Nismo.

 The 1.6-liter turbocharged engine puts out 215 horsepower, though it is capable of as much as 300 horsepower in the DeltaWing racing application. Such a powerplant would be the perfect complement to make this reimagined Datsun the perfect corner-carver for all seasons.