Nissan’s heritage of motoring greatness

THAT SON The Datsun Model 12 Phaeton, built in 1933, is basically the son of DAT, the father and predecessor of all Nissan cars, seen here on display in Nissan Global Headquarters in Yokohama, Japan.

AFTER a deep breath and a moment of pause, Ryuji Nakayama of Nissan Zama Heritage Collection narrates in broken English the prominence that is Nissan R390 GT1.

With only two roadworthy production cars ever built, the Nissan R390 GT1 competed in 1997 24 Hours of Le Mans and finished third, fifth, sixth and 10th overall, being beaten only by Porsche 911 GT1. Further Googling reveals it’s not only the fastest Japanese production car ever manufactured with a top speed of 354 kilometers per hour, and it was for a time the third-fastest production car.

With a price tag of $1 million, one was sold at an auction, while the other was kept in the Nissan Zama warehouse together with over 400 Nissan production cars built since 1933. Its sibling Nissan R391, the last Nissan car to compete in Le Mans and that was able to beat Mercedes-Benz, Audi and BMW, was parked nearby.

What started as just a garage for the iconic Datsun Model 12 Phaeton (1933) has become a rich repository of Nissan’s history, technology, prestige and heritage in the world’s pop and motoring culture.

Recognizing this, Nissan transferred the management of this facility from its local office to the global arm.

The Datsun Model 12 Phaeton is basically the son of DAT, Datsun’s master block of two cylinders and 10 horsepower, made by Kwaishinsha Motor Car Works in 1911. It shares the same design as its father DAT, but smaller with its 500-cc, 10-HP engine.

THE NISSAN R391 was the last Nissan car to compete in Le Mans and was able to beat Mercedes-Benz, Audi and BMW.

Then there are other sterling cars as well such as the C10 Skyline 2000 GT-R launched in 1969 and debuted in Tokyo Motor Show. Its legendary S20 engine with high-performance DOHC, 24-valve guzzler with top speed of 200 kph and acceleration of zero to 400 meters in 16.1 seconds created quite a stir during that time, especially when it bagged the 1969 JAF Grand Prix.

There’s also Japan’s first full-scale racecar, the Prince R380, which debuted in the third Japan Grand Prix in 1966, with two of this model beating Porsche’s to emerge as champion and second place.

THE DATSUN Bluebird 1600 SSS is the super sports sedan version of Datsun 510, which was named as one of the hundred most important cars of the 20th century. The SSS version won the touch East African Safari Rally in 1970.

There are hundreds of cars on display, mostly donated by members of the Nissan Car Club, and including the current toast, the world’s best-selling EV (electric vehicle) Nissan Leaf (Leading Environmentally Friendly Affordable Family car), a five-door hatchback electric car with distance range of 220 kilometers on full battery charge.

BUILT in 1957, the Datsun 210 helped the company gain worldwide following. It allowed Nissan Motor to penetrate the American market.

Through the years, Nissan Leaf won the 2010 Green Car Vision Award, the 2011 European Car of the Year, the 2011 World Car of the Year, and the 2011-2012 Car of the Year Japan.

RACE LEGEND The Nissan R390 GT1 on the foreground emerged second overall during the 1997 24 Hours of Le Mans behind champion Porsche 911 GT1.

The good news is that a good 70 percent of the collection are in good running condition and can be in fact, driven or ridden.

NISSAN rally cars such as Datsun 210, Datsun 510 and Fairlady and the Violet participated in the Safari Rally, Monte Carlo Rally and Australian Rally to test and improve further these high-performance cars.

While the facility is open to the public, visits should be prearranged. However, if you don’t have the time to take the physical trip, you might as well content yourself with a virtual one. Visit to www.nissan-global.com/EN/HERITAGE/ to view the online car museum and also read about Nissan Legends—cars or carmakers alike.