Datsuns at Birdwood and other Datsun stuff.

This year there were the usual "Z"s on the run, all pretty smartly presented like this one.But in addition to that, I noticed at least three 120Ys and only one of them was the hatchback coupe version. Datsuns are cult cars, there's no escaping it, right down to the 120Y. The other day there was a 180B SSS on ebay in Adelaide and the Historic Rally fans were all falling over themselves to get a bid in. Same thing with Datsun 1000 and 1200 utes, everybody wants one.

This phenomenon is not just limited to Australia. Japanese Datsun enthusiasts are coming to Australia to buy nice old Datsuns because they've crushed all theirs. And have a look at this "ordinary" old RHD 1968 Datsun Bluebird. It's unrestored but in good nick and a dealer on the East Coast of America has taken the trouble to import it from New Zealand and put it on the market for about $10,000. I haven't noticed how easy it was to sell. Might be a bad time. There's no money left in the US these days is there?

It was, however, a very low-mileage unit, see speedo.

It's nothing to do with the rarity of the car either - it's a Datsun! This Skoda, below, which is much more well known in Australia than in USA, couldn't get a bid and has apparently been for sale for a year.