• By Murilee Martin
    Jan 14, 2009 9:00 AM 3,767
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    read more: #downonthestreet, #datsun, #1960s, #spl311, #nissan, #sports, #fairlady, #1968, #1969, #1970, #1968datsunsports1600, #1969nissanfairlady, #alameda

    1968 Datsun Sports 1600 aka Fairlady aka SPL311

    Welcome to Down On The Street, where we admire old vehicles found parked on the streets of the Island That Rust Forgot: Alameda, California. Today we've got our second Datsun roadster of the series.



    When I first caught sight of this thing from a block or so away, I thought I'd found a Triumph. Hooray! I wasn't disappointed when I saw it came from an island nation other than the UK, because we've only seen one of these before in this series. I can't figure out the exact year on this machine, but the side marker lights make it a '68, '69, or '70. Note: It appears that the non-teardrop-shape side marker lights indicate that this is a 1970 model year car.


    There's always the name problem with these cars; Nissan marketed this car as the Datsun Sports 1600 in North America, but I've yet to hear anyone use that name. In Japan, it was sold as the Fairlady, the official company designation was SPL311, and most Americans call it the Datsun Roadster. When you see Keith Maney's GM V6-powered Datsun at LeMons South, you'll call it madness!


    Look, it's the DOTS 1975 Celica, with the Evil Primer Chevelle parked right in front of it! The '71 510 lives nearby as well. Great neighborhood for old iron.

    Datsun Sports Down On The Alameda Street




    First 400 DOTS Vehicles • DOTS FAQ


    Send an email to Murilee Martin, the author of this post, at murilee@jalopnik.com.