A 1980 Datsun 280ZX is generating steady interest at an online auction in the United Kingdom, where 13 bids have lifted the price to £5,250 with six days remaining before the sale closes at 1:15 p.m. on June 10, 2026. The car carries an estimated value of £6,000 to £10,000, and the auction is being run with no buyer's fees from The Market HQ.
The red coupe, fitted with a 2,753cc straight-six petrol engine and a manual gearbox described as rare for the model, shows 6,516 indicated miles. The right-hand-drive car was restored in the past and is characterized as quite usable today, with a cloth interior noted as lovely and original. An estimated 50 roadworthy examples are thought to remain in the United Kingdom.
The 280ZX arrived in British showrooms at a turning point for Nissan, which had owned Datsun since 1930 but had been reluctant to retire the familiar badge in some overseas markets. The model became the first car sold in Britain wearing both Nissan and Datsun branding, carrying a substantial £9,999 list price — roughly double the cost of a contemporary Ford Capri 3.0S.
The car also marked a deliberate departure from the formula established by the 240Z of 1969 and continued by the 260Z, sports cars credited with convincing European buyers that a Japanese machine could rival a BMW or a sporting Jaguar. The 280ZX kept the smooth, torquey L-series six-cylinder engine but little else, trading outright sportiness for refinement aimed at older grand-touring customers. Most UK examples were 2+2 models with a three-speed automatic, and only a few hundred cars are believed to have been officially imported.
Time has worked in the model's favor. With a good 260Z now likely to cost more than £30,000, the listing suggests the once-overlooked 280ZX has finally come of age.
Source: The Market