Which Car Company Made The Best Car Named ‘240’ — Volvo Or BMW Or Nissan Or Mercedes-Benz Or Datsun?

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You know how there’s some combinations of numbers that seem to just end up in too many places? Like, they have too many jobs to do? A good example of this is 911: It’s the phone number used to call in emergencies, the date the World Trade Center was destroyed, and the model number of a legendary Porsche sports car. That’s a lot of significant shit for one set of numbers to shoulder. Another set of numbers doing a lot of work, though this time more strictly automotive, is the number 240. There are at least five significant cars, all named some version of 240 with maybe a few appended letters, and I think it’s about time we figure out which one is the Autopian Favorite. Clear your calendars, because this is important, people!

The 240s we’ll be deciding between are what seems to be the most significant 240 players: the Volvo 240, the Mercedes-Benz 240D, the Datsun 240Z, the BMW M240i, and the Nissan 240SX. I also may throw in a couple other 240s, too. I don’t think I’m going to include the Chevrolet Bel Air, which did have sub-models with numerical parts of the name, like 150 or 210 or 240, but I think the model is really a Bel Air, so I’m not including it. TS.

So, before we vote, let’s meet our contestants!

Mercedes-Benz 240

Mb240Mercedes-Benz has had cars named 240 for quite a while; while there was a C-class C240 in the 2000s, I want to focus on a particular Benz 240 that feels like the iconic member of the club: the 1970s-era 240D. Yes, the slow one! In 1974, the Mercedes-Benz 240D became the first truly mass-produced car to have a five cylinder engine, the 3-liter diesel that made 80 horsepower and gradually dragged the 240D from a stop to 60 mph in an eventual 20 seconds or so, which was still enough to make it one of the fastest diesels around at the time.

Sure, they were slow, but they were dignified, comfortable machines that got great fuel economy and proved to be just about bulletproof. Plus, the early Euro-spec ones had that fabulous upright-oblong headlight/indicator light integrated unit design. Oh, and if you want to think of the later C240 instead(or even an E240), that’s fine, I guess, but I’m not making a separate category!

Volvo 240

Volvo240

I think the Volvo 240 is likely the first automotive 240 that people think of when someone grabs them and bellows “240! CAR!” in their face. There’s good reason for that; the brick-like 240 is a true icon, an absolutely stereotypical Jungian archetype of “car” made real, an unashamed and literal three-box design that’s somehow handsome and practical and even engaging to drive.

Roomy, reliable, easy to work on, at home in rallies or grocery store parking lots, safe, built like a bank vault, fresh air vent knobs that look like Oreos, the 240 has it all. I had a wagon version, but that was technically a 245, so we can’t count it. But we all know the Volvo 240.

Datsun 240Z

Datsun240

Known as the Fairlady Z in its native Japan, Datsun realized that American sports car buyers were not remotely secure enough to drive something called a Fairlady, so it became the 240Z instead. The 240Z offered a potent straight-six under that long hood and styling that evoked a Jaguar E-Type, but with Japanese reliability.

The start of a line of Z cars that continues to this day, the 240Z showed that Japanese cars were more than economy cars, that they could produce a world-class fast GT car, with great looks and real performance, at a reasonable price. It’s a 240Z! You know why you like them!

Nissan 240SX

 

Nissan240sx

This is sort of the second Datsun on the list, because as we know, Datsun became Nissan, and then Nissan gave us yet another 240, this time the 240SX. Introduced in 1990, the 240SX was like the old Datsun 240Z in that it was a front engine/rear drive sports car, but the 240SX was a bit more practical, with more interior room, a back seat, and a larger hatch. It only had inline-fours instead of the Z’s inline-six, but the 240SX was light and handled great and was a really appealing package.

They’re adored by drifters because of their great handling, and it’s tough to find one today that hasn’t had its doors hooned and/or drifted off.

 

BMW M240i

Bmw240

This fast member of the 2-series isn’t a car I know all that much about, though I believe I have driven the basic 2-Series and enjoyed it a lot. These are modern, fast sports coupés making 380+ horsepower and they handle extremely well. Plus, you can get them in purple.

Two Jaguar XK120s

Jaguar2x120

Okay just for funsicles, let’s open this up just a hair and try two Jaguar XK120s to make our 240. These Jags are, of course, absolute legends, with sensual, swoopy styling and swoopy performance to match. While these were made between 1948 and 1954, they were some of the fastest cars anyone could buy. Absolutely lovely.

Twenty Renault 12s

Renault12x20

Okay, maybe not the most thrilling car ever, but the longitudinal front engine/front drive Renault 12 is a respectable, kinda-attractive workhorse, moving people and stuff all over the world, throughout Europe as not just a Renault, but as a Dacia, and also in South America where it was also badged as a Ford Corcel. Even if you’re not excited by a single Renault 12, think what you could do with the 20 you need to get to 240! A spec racing series! A whole ride-sharing company! A fantastic night of demolition derbying! Shut down a city center! The possibilities are limitless!

Okay! There are our 240 contenders! Time to vote!

 

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87 thoughts on “Which Car Company Made The Best Car Named ‘240’ — Volvo Or BMW Or Nissan Or Mercedes-Benz Or Datsun?”

  1. Everybody hates a pedant.

    That’s why it’s so much fun when they – like you, now – are wrong!

    Volvo dropped the 242/244/245 nomenclature completely after the 1982 model year.

  3. I’m between the Volvo and the Mercedes. Both having styling that has aged well. Both are comfortable and have classy interiors. Both are absolutely bulletproof. The difference in performance is probably the best tiebreaker. The Volvo isn’t a sports car, but it is way faster than the Benz. The diesel Benz is so slow that it is almost a safety hazard in 2023. If you regularly drive modern vehicles, you will have a hard time mentally recalibrating how much space you need to pull out into traffic. While I think I prefer the styling and interior of the Benz, the best 240 has to be one that can be safely driven in 2023 traffic, so the Volvo is the winner.

    1. I am quite used to slow cars. I had diesel Mercedes for 20 years. But, even I couldn’t drive a 240D. Test drove one a couple years after I got my first 300SD, and I really wanted to like it because it was smaller, lighter, and had 3 pedals. I did like it, but just trying to pull out on a 35mph main drag here convinced me to pass on it.
      And, at the time I still had a couple VW Type 2s. That 240D was slower than my ‘72 Westfalia when I bought it with what turned out to be a 1300cc motor. Just couldn’t do it.

  4. I did not know that M-B ever put the 5-cyl, 3 liter diesel in the 240D. I vote the standard shift 240D with the off-road suspension (the version for export to countries where “rough and unimproved” roads were almost all the roads) to be the all-time, world champion “World Car”.

  5. Volvo all the way. You don’t even need to say CAR! after 240 for me to think Volvo. That car is a legend, and despite being out of production for 30 years, I still see 3-4 of them every week. That’s incredible.

    We had an ’83 240 in white when I was a kid (in the late 90s). It was our “beater” second car, and the only beater car that we owned for multiple years. Got it with 220k on it, left with 260k on it. It was more reliable and honestly nicer to be in than the Dodge Stratus that I’ve already managed to complain about in 5 different posts here.

    1. Abso-frackin’-lutely. A dog and a half around town but turns into something special on the highway. Ridiculous steering lock, you can drift all the way down the block on snowpack.
      The first time I worked on one, I marveled at the oil drain plug. Big 1 inch with seriously thick threads that will never strip or cross. I was sold.

  8. Speaking as the resident insane Jag owner I’m proud to be in the under 2 percent minority. Give me a pair of XK120s, one in fixed head coupe form (a normal hard top roof to Americans), and one in drophead form (convertible) and I’m a happy camper.

  9. Actually, every time someone screams “240! CAR!” at me– Thursdays, amiright?– my mind adds a “Z” just by reflex, so easy choice for me. Also the one I’d most like to drive.

    1. Oh, you should have seen the ones that didn’t make the cut: six Volvo V40s, 240 BMW M1s, 3 Audi 80s, 34.285 Mazda RX7s… it went on for a bit.

      2. I thought of the Audi 80 as well, don’t forget the Mazda 3 and 6 (and 5 works too) and lots more Renaults, and the 2CV

        You could have 120 “Two Horses” so 240 French Horses?

  14. This is incredibly stupid and fortunately that’s the EXACT sort of content I come here for! Name a better home for automotive shitposting on the internet. I’ll wait.

    Anyway for me this was a tossup between the Volvo and the Datsun. As a 90s kid the Volvo 240 and of course the wagon variants were absolutely ubiquitous if you had a middle or upper middle class upbringing. They were everywhere. My parents had a 200 series Volvo wagon they called Helga when I was a wee lad, and the 240 was a common sight in suburbia. It was one of the standard college degree having dad cars. They’re simply but elegant and ludicrously comfortable.

    A true icon…but alas, it’s just a lovely appliance. It may tug at my nostalgia chords, but it doesn’t really capture the imagination. The 240/Fairlady Z does and then some. It’s an absolutely timeless design and to be honest I think it’s one of the most beautiful cars ever made. It just looks fast, has that bedroom car poster appeal, and it did so much to put Japanese performance cars on the map.

    So for me it’s the Datsun.

    Also while we’re on the topic I actually think the M240i is a really appealing package. I’ve seen a few in person and I really don’t get why the design is considered so controversial. Maybe the other current BMWs are so over the top and bad that it makes it seem better by comparison, but to me it’s a good looking car that’s one of the last links to what BMW used to stand for left.

    It’s also got nearly 400 horsepower, gets mid 20s combined fuel economy from a six cylinder that’s as bulletproof as German engines can get, has one of the best automatics in the game, has back seats that aren’t just for decoration, and AWD versions have been consistently hitting 60 in under 4 seconds.

    …and yet I rarely hear about them. I’m not sure why. Allegedly it’s not as engaging as some folks want and you can’t get it in stick, but if you get a super base rear wheel drive one for around 50 grand it seems like a really good buy to me. Granted you’d likely have to order it since dealerships equip them to the moon and once you’re touching 60 you should just spring for the M2…but to me it’s an enticing package and that purple color absolutely rules. I’ve seen it IRL and it’s basically a brighter Hellraisin.

  22. I really wanted to vote for the Datsun 240Z. It’s a special car for its visual appeal, performance, and role in bringing affordable sports cars back into the mainstream and out of the 1950s.

    However, seven years ago I picked up a 1988 Volvo 240 for $200 as a daily beater. It’s still my daily car at 35 years old. The thing is a tank. It’s dependable, economical, rust free, and the trunk could swallow the galaxy. It won’t win any beauty contests (though I’ve come to like look), but it wins my vote as best 240 ever.

    3. I just felt like the incredible 240Z was drug down by the less-than-ideal Nissan SX version. No power, bad ride quality and interior, and not good looking. “Drifters love them” is because 240/260/280 Z’s got expensive and you could replace 90% of the parts on the SX and have a decent car for turning sideways. It’s like Glock or Jeep fanboys that swear by the brand and then replace every moving part.

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