First half of the history of Nissan
Only foreign cars from Ford and GM (General Motors) were seen on Japan's roads in the Meiji and Taisho eras. At that time, men like Yoshisuke Aikawa had zealously begun manufacturing vehicles. They are the ones who built the foundation of Japan's automobile industry of today.
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![]() The DAT car was named by combining the initials of three men who invested in Kwaishinsha: Den, Aoyama and Takeuchi. The DAT car was entered in the Taisho Exposition held in the same year. |

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The Kwaishinsha Motor Car Works grew in size to 600 thousand yen in capital, with 60 employees. They completed and released Model 41 DAT in the following year, mounting the first single body casting 4-cylinder engine in Japan. |
William R. Gorham, an American engineer, developed a three-wheeled vehicle in 1919. This drew attention from a businessman in Osaka, who established Jitsuyo Jidosha Co., Ltd.. The mechanical equipment, auto parts, and materials were ordered and imported from the United States. ![]() |
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![]() Kwaishinsha established DAT Jidosha & Co., Ltd. for the purpose of strengthening sales. |
![]() Jitsuyo Jidosha Seizo Co., Ltd. became DAT Jidosha Seizo Co., Ltd. and merged with DAT Jidosha Trading Company. |
![]() Tobata Casting Co., Ltd., who was manufacturing the automobile parts, planned to advance to the automobile industry and received DAT Jidosha Seizo to be affiliated under them. |
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1932 The birth of Datsun In 1931, DAT Jidosha Seizo Co., Ltd. became a subsidiary of Tobata Casting Co., Ltd., and developed its first 495cc compact size passenger vehicle. In the following year, 1932, the company changed its name to Datsun: DAT was taken from the initial letters of three men. The SON was changed to SUN, since the SON sounded the same as a word meaning "disadvantage" in Japanese. |
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Tobata Casting Co., Ltd. set up an Automobile Division in March 1933 and began automobile production in earnest. In October of the same year, the company purchased more than 66,000m2, of reclaimed land in Shinkoyasu on the coast in Yokohama City (the site where the present Yokohama Plant is located).
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