One of only three known survivors: Datsun 240Z OMS Pace Car Edition

Photography by Kristina Cilia

How do you make a splash with a car? You make it the pace car of an IndyCar race … and then have 50 pace car replicas on hand to spread that impact around the track. That was the plan hatched by Nissan president Yutaka Katayama, aka Mr. K., the man credited with bringing the Z to America. This is one of those pace car replicas that Mr. K brought to the 1972 California 500 at Ontario Motor Speedway.

Nissan delivered the OMS pace cars to the U.S. in all white, with the blue and additional graphics added upon arrival. After the cars displayed at Ontario Motor Speedway for the California 500, they were sent to various dealerships in the Los Angeles area.

The story of this particular one picks up in 2020. The family of the late second owner of this 240Z reached out to Linda Williams. Williams is the president of the Z Owners of Northern California. The family wanted to donate this Z and two other cars to the organization. However, since ZONC was a 501(c)(7) and not a 501(c)(3), it could not accept the donation of the vehicles. But that didn’t mean Linda wasn’t interested.

Z cars have always been a passion for Linda. Her first car was a Datsun 280Z. She drove that one to 312,000 miles. The opportunity to not only own a 240Z, but a special edition, was tempting. She asked Rob Fuller, of Z Car Garage, for his thoughts.

“As soon as he saw a picture of the car, he said, ‘Buy it.’” Linda recalls. “I said, ‘I’ll buy it on one condition, and that’s you bring her back to life because she had been in a garage for approximately 40 years.’”

Rob is enthusiastic by nature, but what made him overly excited about this Z in particular? It’s just one of three pace car replicas known to still be in existence. Of those, it’s the only one to still have its original paint and interior. Plus, this 240Z had just 45,000 miles on it.

The low mileage didn’t equate to a running car, though. As Linda mentioned, it sat for four decades. Rob went through the car, refurbishing the suspension, changing fluids and hoses, replacing the headers and adding some vinyl to replicate the look of the car as it appeared during the California 500.

Since its refurbishment, Linda’s added about 5000 more miles to the odometer. She displayed the vehicle at 2021 ZCon in Colorado Springs. It placed second in class at the Hillsborough Concours d’Elegance.

However, Linda, a lifelong Z fan, always wanted a 240Z. She had bought one before acquiring this pace car edition, but has since sold that one. This 240Z has met her expectations and then some.

“They’re fun,” says Linda of her 240Z. “It’s a pleasure to drive. The handling is awesome, especially on mountain roads.”