Maxima Coupe? Essentially, yes!

Okay, so this wasn’t badged as a Maxima due to its age, but we all know the 810 was the predecessor to the Maxima, with some even badged “810 Maxima” as part of the transition. What does all this mean? In this case, it’s not only a two-door Maxima, but it includes rear-wheel drive, inline six from the Z and a five-speed manual! Add in the groovy 70s interior and vinyl top and you easily have one of the coolest Nissan oddballs available from the period.

In other good news, this car has had long-term, one-family ownership and claims about 116K original miles with minimal rust. That’s particularly surprising, considering this is a Pennsylvania car.

What’s the catch? The seller claims only 1,000 miles in the last fourteen years, so it hasn’t run much. Still, mechanical parts shouldn’t be an issue (think Z parts); so this just needs to be driven to find out what needs attention. What better oddity for your local Cars and Coffee event?

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Hartstown, PA
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Profile is pure 70s Datsun, but in more grand scale than most. This was positioned as an entry-luxury coupe at the time, but the mechanical bits say sport.

Front end looks like any other 810.

Worried about limited trunk space? Strap those bags on the luggage rack, just like families did in the good old days.

We here at Oddimotive fully support this interior! The instrument cluster layout is purposeful, but the plaid throws in just enough 70s flair to make it oddly enticing without being genuinely hideous. The faux wood touches are nice for the period and we couldn’t be happier to see the manual shifter and clutch pedal. Given the luxury intentions, many of these were built with automatics.

When we post entry Datsuns from the 70s, the tachometer is a rare treat. This high-level vehicle has it all, including Z-inspired auxiliary gauges. Also…do I see a CB radio and aftermarket graphic equalizer!?!?

Here’s that Z engine with the intake modified to fit a flatter nose. No, we don’t know why these had the 2.4L engine so far into the 280Z lifecycle. Given the Z mechanicals, one could do just about anything performance-wise, but this car seems too nice to modify until the engine actually needs something. Even then, we recommend hidden mods for a sleeper concept.

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This rare car with sleek body lines and style has people everywhere asking what kind of car it is and, often they don’t believe it’s a Datsun! Judging from info I’ve seen and not seen, this 810 is rare in North America, especially in the 2-door hard top version. This 1979 Datsun/Nissan has an actual 116,484 miles. Always garaged, it has only been driven 1,000 miles in 14 yrs.. I know the mileage is accurate since I’ve owned the car since 1990. My dad owned it throughout most of the 1980’s. Drive train is 2.4L inline fuel injected 6cylindar, trans is 5speed manual. Car has 4wheel independent suspension. It starts and runs reliably. Car was undercoated when new, and touch up undercoated periodically since, thus preventing rust. Undercarriage is solid and basically rust free. Outer body panels have some surface rust here and there, and right front fender has a dent. Interior is excellent and shows little wear, if any. New parts within the last 2 months include a gas tank interior professionally lined with baked liner, new battery, new fuel pump/fuel filter, sparkplugs, wires, distributor cap/rotor. It wouldn’t take a lot to make this car show quality.