1980s

Fairlady Z / Nissan 300ZX

Japan ranked as the world's top car-producing country in 1980, mostly due to its high U.S. sales. But its car exports became a major source of bilateral trade friction, prompting Japanese makers to begin opening factories stateside.

Notable models in this era include the March (1982), a new-generation basic car, and the unique Pike car series' Be-1 and PAO, which were based on the March.

The appreciation of the yen in the wake of the 1985 Plaza Accord triggered a bubble economy in Japan.

This led to a luxury car boom that produced some of history's most famous cars. The 1988 Cima became a symbol of the luxury car boom, and the 1989 Fairlady Z created a sensation with its unprecedented performance.

On the R&D front, the Nissan Technical Center in Atsugi, Kanagawa Prefecture, began operations in 1981 as a comprehensive technology-development base. This was followed by the 1983 establishment of Nissan Research & Development Inc. (now Nissan Technical Center North America, Inc.) in the U.S.

1980
1981
1982
1983
1984
1985
1986
1987
1988
1989

1980

January	▪	Nissan acquires an equity interest in Motor Iberica, S.A. in Spain. Cumulative exports surpass 10 million units.
February	▪
March	▪
April	▪
May	▪
June	▪	Safari Model 160
July	▪	Nissan Motor Manufacturing Corporation U.S.A. (NMMC) is established. (The first Datsun truck rolled off the line in June 1983; the first Sentra (Sunny), in March 1985.)
August	▪	Caravan/Homy Model E23
September	▪	Leopard Model F30 Leopard Model F30
October	▪
November	▪	Laurel Model C31 Laurel Model C31
December	▪	Laurel Model C31 Laurel Model C31

1981

January	▪
February	▪
March	▪
April	▪
May	▪
June	▪	Construction of the Kambara Manufacturing Plant, the satellite facility of the Yoshiwara Plant, is completed, and operations begin.
July	▪	Nissan begins worldwide marketing of vehicles under the Nissan name as part of a new corporate identity program.
August	▪	Skyline Model R30 Cumulative production surpasses 30 million units. Skyline Model R30
September	▪	Nissan is tied up with Volkswagen AG of West Germany to produce and market passenger cars in Japan.
October	▪	Sunny Model B11 Sunny Model B11
November	▪	The Nissan Technical Center is completed.
December	▪	Atlas Model H40

1982

January	▪
February	▪	Atlas Model F22
March	▪	Construction of the Kurihama Manufacturing Plant, the satellite facility of the Yokohama Plant, is completed. (Production begins in May 1982.)
April	▪	Pulsar Model N12 Silvia Model S110 ↳ World-first: Voice recognition power-assisted windows Construction of the head office annex is completed. Nissan wins the Safari Rally for the fourth consecutive year. Pulsar Model N12
May	▪
June	▪	Nissan concludes a technical assistance agreement with Martin Marietta, U.S.A., in the aerospace sector.
July	▪
August	▪	Prairie Model M10 Civilian Model W40 Prairie Model M10
September	▪	Datsun Vanette Largo Model GC120 Sunny Vanette Largo Model GC120 Cherry Vanette Largo Model GC120
October	▪	March Model K10 Sunny AD Van Model VB11 Pulsar AD Van Model VB11 Datsun AD Van Model VB11 March Model K10
November	▪
December	▪	The new corporate mark is announced.

1983

January	▪	Nissan Motor Iberica, S.A. begins production of the Patrol (Safari). Patrol 160 Type 1
February	▪
March	▪
April	▪
May	▪
June	▪	Cedric Model Y30, Gloria Model Y30 ↳ World-first: Windshield wipers that adjust to changes in rain/snow level Cedric Model Y30
July	▪	Nissan Research & Development, Inc. is established in the United States.
August	▪	Silvia/Gazelle Model S12
September	▪	Fairlady Z Model Z31 Fairlady Z Model Z31
October	▪	Bluebird Model U11 Bluebird Model U11
November	▪
December	▪

1984

January	▪
February	▪	In line with its agreement with Volkswagen AG, Nissan begins production and sales of the Santana.
March	▪
April	▪	Nissan Motor Manufacturing (UK) Ltd. is established. (Production begins in July 1986.)
May	▪	Cumulative domestic sales surpass 20 million units.
June	▪
July	▪
August	▪	Skyline Model R30 ↳ World-first: Plasma Spark ignition system
September	▪
October	▪	Bluebird Maxima Model PU11 ↳ World-first: Super Sonic Electronic Control Suspension with ultrasonic road surface sonar Laurel Model C32 ↳ World-first: Electric retractable colored door mirrors and Auto Reflex Room Mirror (automatic antiglare LCD) Laurel Model C32
November	▪	Construction of the Oppama Wharf is completed. (The harbor had been opened in May 1983.)
December	▪

1985

January	▪	World-first: Insulated rear window glass to improve air conditioning performance
February	▪
March	▪
April	▪
May	▪
June	▪
July	▪	Nissan acquires an equity interest in Yulon Motor Co., Ltd. in Taiwan.
August	▪	Skyline Model R31 ↳ World-first: System that allows locking and unlocking with only a card Datsun Truck Model D21 Cumulative production surpasses 40 million units. Skyline Model R31
September	▪	Sunny Model B12 Vanette Model C22 Vanette Model C22
October	▪	Construction of Nissan Overseas Training Center (now called Nissan Overseas Business College) is completed.
November	▪
December	▪

1986

January	▪	Construction of the Kawasaki Parts Distribution Center is completed.(Operations begin in February 1986.)
February	▪	Leopard Model F31 Leopard Model F31
March	▪
April	▪
May	▪	Pulsar Model N13 Vanette Largo Model GC22 Pulsar Model N13
June	▪
July	▪
August	▪	Terrano Model WD21
September	▪	Caravan/Homy Model E24
October	▪
November	▪
December	▪	New corporate philosophy and corporate principles are announced.

1987

January	▪	The Pulsar, EXA, Langley, and Liberta Villa win the '86-'87 Japanese Car of the Year award. ↳ World-first: Triple Viscus Full-Time 4WD
February	▪
March	▪
April	▪	Cumulative exports surpass 20 million units.
May	▪	Daewoo Motor Co., Ltd., begins production and marketing of Vanette trucks in South Korea.
June	▪	Cedric Model Y31 Gloria Model Y31
July	▪
August	▪	The H-I rocket, featuring the fixed apogee motor designed and produced by Nissan in Japan, successfully launches the engineering test satellite KIKU-5.
September	▪	Bluebird Model U12 Bluebird Model U12
October	▪	Bluebird Model U12 Bluebird Model U12
November	▪	Safari Model Y60 Safari Model Y60
December	▪	Safari Model Y60 Safari Model Y60

1988

January	▪	Cedric Cima Model FY31 Gloria Cima Model FY31 Cedric Cima Model FY31
February	▪	World-first: Painting with fluorocarbon polymers
March	▪
April	▪	Nissan's ARC-X wins the "Car Design Award 1988, Torino---Piemonte".
May	▪	Silvia Model S13 ↳ World-first: Head-Up Display on mass-produced vehicle Silvia Model S13
June	▪	Nissan European Technology Centre Ltd. is established in the United Kingdom.
July	▪
August	▪	Nissan acquires equity in Barrett Industrial Truck Inc. of the United States, a manufacturer of forklifts, and decides to locally manufacture forklifts.
September	▪	Cefiro Model A31 ↳ World-first: Automatic antiglare door mirrors Prairie Model M11
October	▪	Maxima Model J30 The Nissan Silvia Q's win "Good Design Grand Prize" for 1988.
November	▪
December	▪

1989

January	▪	Laurel Model C33 The Silvia wins the '88-'89 Japanese Car of the Year award. Laurel Model C33
February	▪
March	▪
April	▪	180SX RS13 Nissan Europe N.V., the Company's regional headquarters for European operations, and Nissan Distribution Service (Europe) B.V., are established in the Netherlands. (Operations begin in April 1990.) 180SX RS13
May	▪	Skyline Model R32
June	▪	Cedric / Gloria Model Y31 ↳ World-first: Full-range electronic controlled 5-speed automatic transmission
July	▪	Fairlady Z Model Z32 ↳ World-first: Four-wheel multi-link suspension system Fairlady Z Model Z32
August	▪	Skyline Model GT-R R32 Skyline Model GT-R R32
September	▪
October	▪
November	▪	Infiniti Q45 Model G50 ↳ World-first: Hydraulic active suspension in a passenger car
December	▪

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