240Z: Mr. K Book & Competition steering wheel arrived
After a long time i got some parts for my Z-project again.
The first item is a book about Yutaka “Mr. K Katayama”. Some people think that his role with the Z is a bit overrated by the average media. But since the book is written originally by Japanese Takashi Ashikawa in japanese and has been translated since. i guess there might be more truth behind it than the average glorifying of Mr. K.
I haven’t read a single word so i have to dive into it first befor i can say anything more..
It might sound repetitive but the coolest things i tend to find when i don’t look for them. I have seen the “competition” steering wheel for sale in the usual Z-specialist shops but i never planned to buy one. Unti recently one popped up new for a good price in a local secondhand website.
It even came with the Japanese “fairlady Z” Horn button. A bit of research before purchase revealed that this is most probably one of the pretty good JDM-car-parts replica items based on an original Mold (o a mold from an original competition steering wheel). Anyhow the quality is outstanding and it’s nice to have!
And here some siza comparison shots take next to the original “fake wood” steering wheel
of my 1972 Z’s:
Those “competition” steering wheels were introduced (to my knowledge) years after the original S30 was released (back then a different steering wheel was optionally available) but has sine been a popular mod on the 240Z and or Fairlady Z with prices for original ones skyrocketing. As far as i know t his has also been sold for the “Hakosuka” skyline but with different horn buttons. I’m not 100% sure but i believe to remember that there was even a second version of this steering wheel which was deeper. but i might be wrong.
Here’s a shot from the 1979 Nissan sports option catalogue:
After all it’s a really nice piece to have so i’m happy with my purchase 🙂