1972 Datsun 240Z Monte Carlo Rally Works Car

The works Datsun 240Z that finished third in the 1972 Monte Carlo Rally is a specific competition subject, not a rare trim package for the ordinary road-going Z. Nissan identifies the collection vehicle with Rauno Aaltonen and Jean Todt and that event. This corrects the inventory's 1971 Monte Carlo reference. The car belongs alongside Nissan's Safari machinery in rally history, while retaining its own result, preparation and physical identity.

Why the Monte Carlo result matters

Monte Carlo asked a different question from the Safari Rally. Nissan's account emphasises the snowy and icy roads and the apparent disadvantage of front-engine, rear-wheel-drive machinery in those conditions. The 240Z's third place showed the effectiveness of the complete rally package and crew. It was not an overall win, and the distinction matters: a strong result is historically valuable without being upgraded to a victory in a profile headline.

Nissan Heritage: 1972 Monte Carlo 240Z

The documented crew and event

The Heritage Collection explicitly associates this car with the forty-first Monte Carlo Rally in 1972 and the Aaltonen/Todt crew. Those details anchor the profile more securely than a general description such as works Z. They also distinguish it from the 1971 Safari winner, another preserved Nissan competition car. Sharing a model family and period does not mean that event histories can be transferred between the two museum vehicles.

Competition specification

The collection lists a 2,393 cc L24 straight-six with 220 PS at 7,200 rpm, a 1,050 kg curb-weight reference and independent strut suspension front and rear. Front ventilated discs and rear drums appear in its table. These are the archive car's competition specifications, not a promise that every export 240Z carried the same output or braking equipment. Road homologation and works preparation should remain separate layers of the record.

Nissan Heritage: 1972 Monte Carlo 240Z

Reading rally photographs

A period image can show lighting, tyre choice, registration marks and sponsor layout, but those details changed with conditions and event preparation. A restored display car may preserve one particular moment. Match photographs to their dates and event captions before treating a spotlight arrangement or wheel type as universal Monte Carlo specification. This is especially useful when comparing model-family images with a documented works vehicle: visual similarity alone cannot supply its event provenance.

Nissan Heritage: distinct 1971 Safari winner

Keeping the works car separate from road production

The profile represents the manufacturer-documented rally subject. It does not count every homologated road Z as a works car, infer a factory build total from the number of museum exhibits, or attach a chassis number absent from the evidence. A fuller provenance file would add entry lists, period registrations, preparation sheets and restoration records. Those documents would deepen the individual history without changing the verified core: third at Monte Carlo in 1972 with Aaltonen and Todt.

Specifications and identity reference

Rarity and production scope

Documented 1972 Monte Carlo works-rally subject. No chassis number or total of factory rally Zs is inferred. It is not a road-edition production count and is separate from the 1971 and 1973 Safari-winning cars.

This is an Archive record. Concepts, restored heritage vehicles, works cars and competition programmes are not added to customer road-production totals. A programme profile does not establish how many physical chassis were made, and repeated exhibition appearances do not create additional vehicles.

What the photograph represents

Manufacturer-preserved 1972 Monte Carlo Datsun 240Z photographed at a later display; the captioned event identity follows Nissan’s collection record.

Related Nissan heritage profiles

• 1978 Datsun 280Z Black Pearl Edition
• 1983 Nissan 240RS Group B Homologation Programme

Frequently asked questions

Why does the title say 1972 instead of 1971?

Nissan identifies the Monte Carlo third-place car with the 1972 event.

Is it the Safari-winning 240Z?

No. The museum documents the Safari winners separately, with different events and crews.

What is the production-count boundary for this profile?

Documented 1972 Monte Carlo works-rally subject. No chassis number or total of factory rally Zs is inferred. It is not a road-edition production count and is separate from the 1971 and 1973 Safari-winning cars.

Sources and further reading

1. Nissan Heritage: 1972 Monte Carlo 240Z
2. Nissan Heritage: distinct 1971 Safari winner

Research checked 16 October 2026. Manufacturer records support identity and the specifically attributed historical figures. Photographic descriptions identify the illustrated subject. Design analysis and suggested authentication steps are editorial interpretation.