Welcome to Japanese Nostalgic Car‘s home furniture-themed sub-section, Japanese Nostalgic Chair. Admittedly it’s not a frequently visited sub-section, as we’ve only once before had the occasion, when a small Japanese carpentry shop in Yaizu City, Shizuoka Prefecture made a living room chair out of a Hakosuka Skyline seat. Turns out they make a Fairlady Z chair as well.
Although the Fairlady Z chair looks exactly like the driver and passenger seat of an S30 Nissan Fairlady Z, it wasn’t just plucked out of a car and fastened to wooden legs. The chair was painstakingly recreated with its own wooden frame and wrapped in automotive-grade synthetic leather that recreates the wrinkled look of the original.
A side view reveals the absence of the angle adjustment, proving it’s not just a transplant of the Z’s seat. In fact, it’s not even the same size. The carpenter who built it, Katsuaki Jinno of Factory Den, says that if you simply took the chair out of the car it would be too large for most rooms and too heavy to carry or move around. So, he created a 4/5-scale replica with a wooden frame that reduces size and weight.
He also faithfully recreated the driver’s seat’s characteristic wraparound high-back shape with four ventilation buttons on the lower section. Inside, Jinno says, the spring structure uses a waving belt, just like in the real car.
All the wood used on the chair is solid oak, the same type that Jinno’s shop uses for other high end furniture — and also, he point’s out, the same that’s used in floorboards, ships, and whisky barrels. The frame has also passed a Japan Industrial Standard durability test, in case you had any doubts about its strength.
Its legs are an homage to the original Z emblem, in case you hadn’t noticed. And if that’s not enough to clue observers in on the chair’s inspiration, there’s a Z emblem affixed to the back showing that it’s officially licensed and endorsed by the Nissan Motor Corporation.
The Fairlady Z chair measures 46cm wide, 50cm deep, and 80cm tall (approximately 18 x 20 x 31 inches) and has a seat height of 42cm (approximately 16.5 inches). Total weight is about 9kg (20 pounds). The chair retails at ¥120,000 ($1,040 USD) before shipping, a reasonable price for a hand-made piece. Compared to the prices of actual Series 1 240Zs these days, it’s a bargain.
Images courtesy of Nissan.
“Honey, look at this chair. It’s an S30 seat on a wood base shaped like a “Z.”
“That’s nice dear.”
I love it, though!
No guesses as to what the next QOTW will be, then.
And if I’m on the right track, these answers should cover most variants of that theme:
* The Toyota Century lounge recliner (lace covered footrest optional);
* Skyline GTR Set of 3 Nest Tables (each one gets bigger and heavier, but they still fit together);
* Chrome Mitsuoka Viewt Grille to hang in the mancave/bar/garage/Livingroom (tell the wife “It’s off a Jag…”);
* RX-3 grille emblem (handy egg-ring?)
* Civic Type R Spoiler (picnic table);
* Early first gen CRX Si Alloy Wheel (room divider or coffee table base);
* Z31 Nissan 300ZX T-Top (adjustable roof skylights)
* Lexus LFA Rear Spoiler (Sit-Stand Desk).
* Honda S800 Chainsaw
* Datsun s2000 Digital Alarm clock (at 8pm in Japan, instead of displaying “20:00”, it starts flashing “Fairlady”)
* Mustang Plastic Patio Chairs (cheap, tacky, VERY easy to stack, makes you wish got a First gen Celica Liftback pine garden bench instead) and
* Mitsuoka Orochi Robotic Vacuum Pool Cleaner ( -=00=- ).
(I resisted including *ahem* ‘Tesla Robo-Vac’ in that list because, much like a Terrafugia, I just knew it wouldn’t fly)
Ha, these are great! Love the S800 chainsaw :D.
I’m sure the Mustang plastic chairs do exist somewhere, given how generous the Ford licensing department is!
Headrest looks a bit weird & seatback looks stitched as opposed to heat embossed. The original recline mechanism was great: Missing. Also lacks the credit card you were missing from 3 years ago under the seat.