There are engine swaps and then there are engine swaps. Michael Tung has been documenting an example of the latter on his YouTube channel TungTied: a Datsun 280Z with a Mercedes-Benz M120 V12. It just reached an important milestone that you’ll want to hear.
The swap was initially done about six years ago for a hill climb, but the car just recently got equal-length headers that make it sound like a supercar. That’s a fulfillment of this engine’s potential, as the 6.0-liter M120 served as the basis for the AMG-tuned engines used in the Pagani Zonda. An M120 also powered the one-off Isdera Commendatore 112i. Introduced in the 1990s, the M120 originally powered big W140-series sedans and coupes as well as the R129 SL600, seeding the ground with potential donor cars that are uneconomical to fix.
As explained in a longer video posted a couple of years ago, this is actually the second M120 to go into this car. The original swap was done for a hill climb, during which the engine was terminally overheated. After a second engine was installed, the goal was to simply get the car running and driving, with other work beint gradually completed over time. The new exhaust system might not have been vital to making the Z drivable, but it’s safe to say that it levels up this build.
We did it! V12 m120 swapped Datsun finally sounds like an F1 car/Ferrari/SVJ/Zonda
The V12 is a tight fit in the 280Z’s engine bay, but this aluminum-block engine doesn’t weigh much more than the stock iron-block L-Series inline-six, helping to maintain good weight distribution while producing a healthy amount of power (it was rated at about 400 horsepower in the W140 S-Class) before modifications. It’s connected to a Tremec T56 Magnum six-speed manual transmission.
It’s great to see something more creative than an LS swap. And while there’s nothing like the sound of a small block V8, an uncorked M120 is something else entirely. Any car enthusiast within earshot of this Z will certainly appreciate the choice.
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