Ian’s Datsun 280zx

This feature today won’t be your everyday car you see online and isn’t your garage queen that rarely gets driven on the weekends and so on. What you see here is not your average Z. This Datsun s130 280zx belongs to Ian Perri out of Las Vegas, NV. It’s his daily driver and it gets driven, hard. 

Photos & Words By: Paulo Jurisprudencia

The styling is based heavily from Japanese Shakotan cars as you can see and features quite a bit of custom work.  The shakotan style is low…real low.  Its aimed at older Japanese classics, much like Ian’s Z the cars typically are filled with character.  People tend to take a old classic, and beat it up and think its cool.  But there is a certain approach that makes it work well.  There is a lot of time that goes into older cars, most of the parts are either completely custom or from other vehicles and made to fit.  

The car is slammed on custom made coilovers that Ian had pieced together in his garage consisting of parts from a MKI VW and a mix of S13 suspension parts.  Along with his suspension he has some beautiful Advan A3A’s measuring 14×9 -35et and 14×9.5 -41 rears.

The advans just match perfectly with his car and are period correct. Not only is the car his daily driver it is also his drift car that he competes in on the weekends at Vegas ProAm.

As you can see the car has taken some damage, the rear quarter was damaged because someone had sideswiped it a few months after Ian had gotten the car and is planning to get the body straightened out in the near future. Before we wrap this segment up Ian would just like to thank slamburglers and the outsiders.

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Engine:
Original L28 with 6-2 header modded for ground clearance
240z 3 screw SU carburetor
MSD
6AL iginition
Cusco strut bar
Mildly tucked wiring
Custom 2.5” exhaust with dual glasspacks

Suspension front:
Sectioned strut tubes
Koni Red MKI VW Strut inserts
JIC Camber Plates modded for more camber
Daft Innovations negative camber roll center adjusters
Tein S13 tension rods adapted to stock LCAs
Ground control coilovers
6k stance springs
Shortened steering knuckles
Modified innter tie rods (approx 60* steering angle)

Suspension Rear:
Custom built stance s13 coilovers
(dampers 3” shorter than regular and valved for 14k spring rates)
Heim-jointed rear control arms
Welded s12 4.11:1 R180
Solid subframe and differential bushings

Wheels: Re-lipped Advan A3A’s by Wheelflip
14×9 -35et 195/60/14
Falken Azenis
14×9.5 -41et205/60/14
Falken 512
-6.5 camber all around

Body:
Kaminari aero front and sides
Wings west rear spoiler

Check out the full set here