Nissan 240Z Kitcard

1:50 scale kitcard of Nissan 240z with functional suspension, opening hood and a separate widebody kitcard.

Intro

This is one of my personal favorite cars, the Nissan 240z. Aka Datsun 240Z, 260Z, 280Z, Fairlady Z along with a couple other variations, all with the same S30 chassis. 240Z is the most well known model so its the one I went with. The 240Z was produced from 1969 to 1973 though the s30 chassis was still used up until 1978 when the last model it was the 280Z. 

At the time Nissan sold cars abroad under the name of Datsun until it was phased out in 1986. The base price for a Datsun 240z in 1970 was as low as $3,562. Adjusted for inflation, thats $29,818. The design is undeniably timeless as the 240z still has a thriving tuning and replacement parts market. which brings me to the widebody kit. I modeled it loosely based on the Rocket Bunny/Pandem bodykit, though mine admittedly doesn't actually widen the wheelbase or lower the car. Still, looks cool imo.

Model features

As usual the card is split into three segments so it can be printed without a multi-material system. the model is snapfit so glue isn't necessary, but at base 1:50 scale some parts like the mirrors are really small and might be a bit hard to fit into place. I printed one early on at 200% scale which worked well and looks nice, so feel free to try that as well. The model has a simple suspension system and I decided to make the hood separate and openable as it looked a bit rough printed horizontally. I also took some time to model the interior somewhat accurately. The widebody kit is separate and looks good in the color of the body. Included are files for a a4 sheet that can be cut into 4 instruction cards. I recommend watching the assembly video.

Print settings

-supports not necessary, tested up to 200% scale. depends on machine and settings.

-0.4mm nozzle and layer heights at 0.2mm or less looks good.

Patreon

If you'd like to sell prints of my models or just show support, check out my patreon. I have one all inclusive tier which includes commercial rights to all my models, exclusive project files, project updates and I actually released this 240z base model a couple days early there as I was still working on things like the widebody kit, photos and documentation. 

Design process

Modeled entirely from scratch in blender. I used blueprints and a subdivision and guide process for most of the modelling. I tried to make the instruction card a bit more stylized, maybe even a bit to the detriment of clarity, but I'm happy with how it turned out. no AI used.