Nissan Motor Company Ltd, a multinational automaker with its headquarter in Japan was one of the best car brands in Malaysia for 2009. The total units sold in 2009 was 25, 957 (around 5 percent). Nissan was formerly marketed under the brand name, Datsun which has been among the top automotive brands in the 70s and 80s.
Heard of Datsun before?
The Datsun name actually dates back to as far as 1914. It was originally called the DAT which represented the 3 surnames of the investors then. They were Kenjiro Den, Rokuro Aoyama and Meitaro Takeuchi.
Nissan was established in 1933 in Yokohama City in the Kanagawa Prefecture in Japan. The newly established company took over all operations for manufacturing Datsun and changed the name to Nissan Motor Company Ltd. Founder Yoshisuke Aikawa aimed to produce around 15,000 vehicles per year.
Nevertheless, in just two years’ time, the first small-compact Datsun was assembled at Yokohama Plant in 1935 and exported to Australia. To further expand the sector, Nissan bought design plans and plant facilities from Graham-Paige Motors Corporation from the United States in 1936. This time around, Nissan aimed to produce and manufacture passenger cars and trucks. Nissan successfully manufactured engines for army’s planes during the war.
Most successful model include Nissan Skyline
This automobile maker merged with the Prince Motor Company in 1966 to introduce and launch more upmarket cars such as Gloria and Skyline. Nissan later launched a new luxury brand Infiniti in US market in 1989 to appeal to more customers in the upper-scale market.
Nissan is also affiliated to several other reputable companies such as Ford Motor Company and Austin Motor Company. Between 1993 and 2002, Nissan collaborated with Ford to market two minivans, the Nissan Quest and Mercury Villager. Eventually, the production for Mercury Villager stopped to make way for Freestar and Monterey. On the other hand, Nissan Quest enjoyed a facelift in 2004. Subsequently thereafter, the partnership between Nissan and Ford broke off.
Nissan Iconic models
Fairlady – The Nissan Fairlady is one of the most iconic vehicles produced by Nissan. It was said that the name started when Nissan used pretty ladies to promote their models back in 1964. However, the Z-Car was rolled-out in 1969 in Japan as the Nissan Fairlady Z and continued to grow to its latest model, the Nissan 370Z. Its aerodynamic looks and unique design was considered to be way ahead of its time.
Another model that Nissan is known for is the Nissan GT-R. Said to have originated from the Skyline series, the GT-R is one model which every racing enthusiast will know. It stands among the big names like Mitsubishi Evo and others. The GT-R has always been a buzz whenever a new version was released.
This high performance model was once called the Nissan Skyline GT-R and has won all types of rallies across the world. It is designed to be a car which is meant for anyone who likes car racing as it has supreme handling and very strong output.
Nissan Malaysia
The company owns an assembly plant in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia which is distributed and marketed by Edaran Tan Chong Motors, one of the oldest automotive groups in the country. Among some of the models available here are Latio, Latio Sport, Grand Livina, Sylphy, Vanette, Vanette Pickup, Sentra, X-TRAIL, Frontier, Urvan & Commercial Trucks.