You can’t have weight distribution without weight, and weight can be the slipperiest key performance factor for sports cars. At around 2700 pounds, the 240SX is moderately light, as we can see when comparing it to other performance cars of its era and others. Weight can be hard to wrap your brain around because of the wild variability in numbers you’ll encounter. JD Power says the average car in 2022 was 4,094 pounds, for example, but that includes SUVs and the like. The 240SX weighed in at the lower end of the modern compact car weight class, which starts around 2600 pounds.
Of course, this data point exists in the context of many others, so it’s not particularly helpful to compare the 240SX to a 2,073-lb. Mirage or a 5,600-lb. Rolls-Royce Phantom. And especially not at a 190 hp, 1,477 lb. Lotus Elise. Whatever Nissan’s secret hopes were, the 240SX was a production car built for consumer comfort and convenience, equipped with goodies you wouldn’t find in a stripped-down drift car.
Look around for some similar vintage performance cars. The Supra weighed 3,181 pounds. at its lightest, while a 1991 Carrera RS weighed 2,844 lbs. A 2010 Viper might seem challenged at 3,441 lbs. with a naturally aspirated engine, but it certainly didn’t feel challenged. Even a 1995 BMW M3 Lightweight weighed 2,995 pounds. The Series 7 (RZ Type) RX-7 was closer to a 240SX at 2,800 lbs. The 240SX was quite light.
