It Was the Rarest Body Style in Japan and Highly Sought
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This Datsun 510 wagon of Koji and Terry Yama- guchi, founders of the Japanese Classic Car Show, is equipped with Longchamp XR-4s, which are popular vintage Japanese racing wheels. (Photo Courtesy Dan Hsu) absolute bargain. Datsun sold nearly 40,000 cars in the United States that first year, comprising almost two-thirds of its total sales, and the numbers Vowing to reclaim the top sales spot from only increased from there. Toyota, Nissan designer Teruo Uchino sculpted By 1970, Katayama was living his dream a minimalist Japanese straight-edged form overseeing an all-out motorsports program. with just a hint of malevolence lurking under- With the 510 and newly arrived 240Z, Nissan neath. Uchino straightened out the character finally had competitive cars for racing. Nissan’s line that ran down the 410’s flanks and dubbed continued involvement with the Safari Rally saw it the “supersonic line.” a 510 Bluebird take the overall victory, a point Americans were offered three of the four of immense honor for both Nissan and Japan. available body styles: four-door sedan, wagon The event was mostly unheard of in the United (which used a rear solid axle), and two-door States, however, and most Americans took sedan sharing the same roofline as the four- the dominance of British Triumphs, German door sedan. The latter should not be confused with the Japanese market’s two-door coupe, IT WAS THE RAREST BODY STYLE IN which has a more swept-back roofline and wears a sportier grille and taillight treatment. JAPAN AND HIGHLY SOUGHT BY Because the coupe was never exported to the JAPANESE COLLECTORS. United States, it’s quite desirable for collectors today, and several have been imported from Japan. Ironically, what we consider the “com- mon” two-door sedan was only produced for the Bluebird’s inaugural model year in Japan, making it the rarest body style in Japan and highly sought by Japanese collectors. 510 Bluebirds in Japan and those exported to less-developed markets received 1.3- and 1.4-liter L-series engines as standard equip- ment, but Katayama insisted that the US mar- ket receive, at minimum, the 96-horsepower L16. Coupled with a curb weight of about 2,100 pounds, the 510 achieved a 100-mph top speed on par with any contemporary rival. Its advanced semi-trailing arm and indepen- dent rear suspension were unheard of in its price range and gave it nimble handling that out-performed most American compact sixes. The Datsun 510’s humble L16 inline-four was a mill that changed the On top of it all, its $1,996 sticker price was an world. (Photo Courtesy John Roper) CHAPTER 1: NISSAN 17 This is the Nissan Bluebird PL510 1600 SSS that won the 18th Safari Rally in 1970 overall. (©, 2010 Nissan) BMWs, and espe- cially Italian Alfa ever-stricter emissions Romeos in road racing as standards hobbled engine a given. That all changed when two Nissan- performance while safety concerns visually sponsored teams on opposite sides of the coun- saddled cars with 5-mph bumpers. Bob Sharp try simultaneously won their respective Sports Racing campaigned a 610 briefly, but the glory Car Club of America (SCCA) championships still resided with the 510. Most customers felt behind the wheels of the Datsun 510. that the driving dynamics that made the 510 On the East Coast, Bob Sharp Racing took so magical were diminished on the 610. As the national SCCA B/Sedan title for two consec- interest in classic Japanese cars grows, how- utive seasons. On the West Coast, in the more ever, the 610 is getting a second lease on life closely watched Trans-Am 2.5 Challenge series, from the enthusiast community. The BRE Datsun John Morton drove the Brock Racing Enterprises With the 610 all grown up, Nissan intro- 510 was a legend (BRE) 510 to victory, defeating the previously duced some confusion into its model lineup in its own time, dominant Alfa Romeo GTVs in a controversial with the 1974 710. Though it seemed to follow spawning dozens and stirring rivalry that lasted throughout the Bluebird naming conventions, the 710 was of replicas such 1971 season. The clash continued into 1972; actually called the Violet in Japan and sold as as this one from BRE trounced the competition so badly that the a separate model. It was a smaller car meant to Washington State. series was canceled the next year. take over the niche left by the now-upmarket The original racer 510 production came to a close in 1973. As Bluebird. Though it didn’t have the success in still survives in is the case with many cars, the next-generation the United States that Nissan hoped it would, Nissan USA’s 610 had more power, more room, and more in other parts of the world the 710 was actu- collection. amenities, but also more bulk. Soon the world ally a successful rally car, returning Nissan to fell deep into the throes of the oil crisis, and Australia to win the Southern Cross Rally. The second BRE car was driven by many racers, most notably Bobby Allison. It has been restored by Classic Datsun Motorsports of Vista, California. 18 CLASSIC JAPANESE PERFORMANCE CARS Though the Datsun 610 is not as beloved as the Bob Sharp and 510, it does have a loyal following in the vintage his Datsuns won Japanese car scene. This one wears the Libre six SCCA cham- wheels popularized by Peter Brock. (Photo Cour- pionships, later tesy Dan Hsu) moving to IMSA, where actor Paul Newman became Trying desperately to recapture the 510’s one of the most “lightning in a bottle,” Nissan USA tried famous Nissan badging the Violet’s successor, the A10 Stanza, drivers of all time. as the 510 in the US market. Sadly it was (Photo Courtesy unsuccessful in its attempt to rekindle a fire Dan Hsu) in the hearts of Datsun enthusiasts. However, Enthusiasts often covet JDM versions with RHD the A10 Stanza was hugely successful as a rally (right-hand drive) interiors, which often have dif- racer, wresting dominance of the Southern ferent trim and colors than their US counterparts. Cross Rally from Mitsubishi and winning the (Photo Courtesy John Roper) race three times from 1978 to the event’s final run in 1980. Meanwhile, the 810 Bluebird grew into Corona. None of this hurt Nissan’s growing a full-bodied luxury cruiser. With the bigger sales, though, and by 1982 the home office body came a need for more power, and Nissan decided to brand itself as Nissan in all export gave it a standard inline six-cylinder shared markets, including the United States. In 1982, with the sporty Z-car. Further confusion came the 810’s numeric designation was dropped for when Nissan USA sold the following 910 gen- a name that anyone will recognize: Maxima. eration Bluebird as the 810 Deluxe at its intro- duction in 1981. Probably most well known for the tiny phonograph music box that gave recorded “door is open” warnings to the driver, it grew into a sedan on par with the Toyota Cressida rather than a sprightlier alternative to the The Datsun 710 was Nissan’s attempt to go back to the 510’s magic after the 610 moved upmarket. (©, 2010 Nissan) CHAPTER 1: NISSAN 19 Though it was an important name in the Nis- The A10 Violet, also known as the Stanza and the During the 1970s, san canon in and of itself, the Maxima was a 510, won the Southern Cross Rally three consecu- Nissan and completely different animal from the 510. tive times, from 1978 to the race’s end in 1980. (©, Mitsubishi fought As the wave of front-wheel-drive hysteria 2010 Nissan. relentlessly for the swept across the auto industry in the 1980s, title of rally cham- the Bluebird was converted to an FF layout pion on faraway and given a new chassis code, U11. It contin- continents. The ued to be sold as the Maxima in the United Violet 710 wrested States, but after that the Maxima and Bluebird the title from the lines deviated significantly with little relation Mitsubishi Lancer to each other. The Japanese-market Bluebird 1600 GSR at the made a brief but successful reappearance as 1977 Southern the bubbly first-generation Nissan Altima in Cross Rally. (©, the United States. 2010 Nissan) It’s not surprising then that the 510 is considered the most collectible of the Blue- birds, and one of the top Japanese classics fuel- ing the current boom. That’s not to say 610s, The Holy Grail of 810 collectors is the Datsun 810 710s, and 810s aren’t collectible—in fact, their coupe, which shared mechanicals with a 280Z but was wrapped in a more stately skin. (Photo Cour- THE JAPANESE-MARKET BLUEBIRD tesy Dan Hsu) MADE A BRIEF BUT SUCCESSFUL REAPPEARANCE AS THE BUBBLY FIRST-GENERATION NISSAN ALTIMA IN THE UNITED STATES. curvy lines and easily swappable powerplants have made them a desirable option for those who want a stylish, nostalgic ride. They just happen to be overshadowed by the 510. The The Datsun 810 Maxima was actually a rebadged iconic white-on-red livery of the BRE 510 910 Bluebird in Japan. Arriving just in time for Nis- inspired an entire generation of Datsun fans, san’s US rebranding of Datsun, it confusingly wore and many have built replicas of that famous “Datsun by Nissan” badges during the changeover. racer. After retiring the 510, BRE launched a (©, 2010 Nissan) healthy aftermarket business cranking out 20 CLASSIC JAPANESE PERFORMANCE CARS.