At first glance, this seems like any other Nissan 350Z you may encounter on the road: it’s silver-gray, it has a manual, and it has a fairly sparse interior. It’s nothing unusual. What is unusual is when it was made. If the VIN is to be believed, this is the very first production 350Z to roll off the assembly line. And it can be yours.


For sale at Don Davis Nissan in Arlington, Texas—a city in the Dallas-Fort Worth area that is not currently underwater like other parts of Texas, if that concerns you here—is this 2003 350Z with VIN JN1AZ34E13T000001. That makes it, according to this seller, the first of its kind in production form.


Here’s what the dealer has to say, in part:

This is the very first production car to roll off the assembly line for the new launch of the Nissan 350Z series in 2002! It is VIN #0001 with a well documented history. It has just under 200 original miles and has been very well taken care of. This car is truly still brand new. It is a Track Package car and is equipped with Brembo Brakes, Dual Climate Control, leather, Navigation, lightweight performance Rays wheels and Bose premium audio.This car has been garage kept and is in meticulous condition. This is truly a rare and special car!

Well, the 350Z isn’t rare, but this one is, and it is indeed special.


This particular car seems to have changed hands at least once or twice. It looks like it sold at a Barrett-Jackson auction back in 2012 for $47,300. There, it was described as originally having been purchased new in Everett, WA and put into a private collection for some time. Whoever has owned it over the years was mindful not to drive it much, as it only has 173 miles on the odometer and looks showroom-new.

This time, the Texas dealer wants $48,500, which hilariously is less than a 370Z Roadster we tested a couple years back.


Looking at these photos makes me remember what a big deal the Z33 was when it arrived in 2003. Besides the fact that it marked the return of the legendary Nissan Z after almost a decade, it was a clean, attractive design that packed a lot of power for its time—287 horsepower from a 3.5-liter naturally aspirated V6—at an extremely reasonable price. I wanted one for the longest time after it came out.


Anyway, the current 370Z is old enough to buy its own cigarettes, probably because Nissan doesn’t really give a shit about anything but CVTs and selling as many Rogues as possible these days. You’re almost better off buying this one instead.

Any takers?


I bet that has aged really well


Hat tip to Jake!