Barn-find Datsun 260Z gets new lease of life after 22 years

The Datsun 260Z is an incredibly rare little thing.

Slotting in between the 240Z and the 260Z, the model was only made for about a year and a half.

That’s why it was so surprising to see a video of one being brought back to life on YouTube.

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The backstory is that the 1974 Datsun 260Z in the video was owned by an import shop and kept along with many other Datsuns in a barn.

Unfortunately, the import shop closed down and the owner had just two days to clear the barn out.

So the 260Z was placed on Facebook Marketplace for sale, and that’s how the guys at WD Detailing came by it.

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Admittingly, the Datsun 260Z was in rough shape, covered in 22 years’ worth of dirt and grime.

But beneath those layers of dirt and grime was a beautiful blue color paint job that drew in the guys to want to take on the challenge.

So, they got to work cleaning the car’s exterior.

Exterior clean

First, they tackled the wheels, before pressure washing the thick dirt from the car’s paintwork.

Next, their attention turned to the engine bay of the Datsun 260Z, which they cleaned up ready to try and get the car to fire up.

The guys then covered the exterior of the car in a layer of snow foam before two of them attended to the paintwork washing it.

Perhaps the most satisfying part of the detailing video came next, when the guys applied iron remover to the paintwork.

Interior clean

Next up was the interior of the Datsun 260Z, which needed a lot of vacuuming, before the guys steam cleaned the dash.

The carpeting had to be thrown away, as it was far too gone, but the leather seats came up nicely when they were steam cleaned and scrubbed.

The guys then returned to the exterior of the Datsun 260Z to revive the faded pieces of trim, and to machine polish the paintwork to make that beautiful blue color pop again.

The guys at WD Detailing did a phenomenal job on the Datsun 260Z and bringing it back to life.

But if you’re wondering whether they managed to get the car going again, the answer is unfortunately no.

Despite their best efforts, they couldn’t manage to fire her up, but hope someone more technically minded will reach out to give them a hand.

In the meantime, maybe they should try putting it in rice?

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