The Datsun Cherry (チェリー), known later as the Nissan Cherry, was a series of small cars which formed Nissan Nissan Motor Company, Ltd. (TYO: 7201), shortened to Nissan, is a multinational automaker headquartered in Japan. It was formerly a core member of the Nissan Group, but has become more independent after its restructuring under Carlos Ghosn (CEO)'s first front-wheel-drive Front-wheel drive is a form of engine/transmission layout used in motor vehicles, where the engine drives the front wheels only. Most modern front-wheel drive vehicles feature a transverse engine, rather than the conventional longitudinal engine arrangement generally found in rear-wheel drive and four-wheel drive vehicles model line.
The Cherry featured FF layout In automotive design, an FF, or Front-engine, Front-wheel drive layout places both the internal combustion engine and driven roadwheels at the front of the vehicle, meaning front-engine, front-wheel drive Front-wheel drive is a form of engine/transmission layout used in motor vehicles, where the engine drives the front wheels only. Most modern front-wheel drive vehicles feature a transverse engine, rather than the conventional longitudinal engine arrangement generally found in rear-wheel drive and four-wheel drive vehicles. The Cherry line includes the E10 and F10. Nissan's direct successor FF model line was the Nissan Pulsar, still named in some markets as "Cherry".
In Italy, Alfa Romeo built a derivative of the N12 series known as the Alfa Romeo Arna, which Nissan also sold in the European market as the Nissan Cherry Europe and in Japan as the Nissan Pulsar Milano. These cars had only minor appearance differences: radiator grilles, steering wheels, fabrics, etc. were different.[1]
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Background
Originally, before combining with Nissan Motors Nissan Motor Company, Ltd. (TYO: 7201), shortened to Nissan, is a multinational automaker headquartered in Japan. It was formerly a core member of the Nissan Group, but has become more independent after its restructuring under Carlos Ghosn (CEO), the Prince Motor Company plan of development was to mass produce Mass production is the production of large amounts of standardized products, including and especially on assembly lines. The concepts of mass production are applied to various kinds of products, from fluids and particulates handled in bulk (such as food, fuel, chemicals, and mined minerals) to discrete solid parts (such as fasteners) to assemblies a front-engine front-wheel-drive car, but after the Prince and Nissan merger of 1966, the Cherry was released in 1970 as Nissan's first front-wheel-drive car. In Asian markets there was also a "Cherry Cab" cabover truck model, which was closely related to the Cherry car and the Prince Clipper.
History
1st Generation E10 Series (1970–74)
The E10 was fitted with two types of inline four-cylinder Nissan A-series OHV engines:
- 988 cc A10
- 1171 cc A12
The JDM The term Japanese Domestic Market or Model is used by companies in Japan to refer to the local market for domestic goods and services, as opposed to the international, non-Japanese market. Within the automotive hobbyist import scene, this term most commonly refers to Japanese-brand automobiles and parts designed and constructed to conform to Cherry X-1 model featured twin-carburetted A12T engine with dual-sidedraft Hitachi carburettors.
In Europe, E10 was called Datsun 100A (the Datsun Datsun was an automobile marque. The name was created in 1931 by the DAT Motorcar Co. for a new car model, spelling it as "Datson" to indicate its smaller size when compared to the existing, larger DAT car. Later, in 1933 after Nissan Motor Co., Ltd. took control of DAT Motorcar Co., the last syllable of Datson was changed to "sun& brand being used in place of Nissan in the European market at that time) (with A10 engine) or Datsun 120A (A12, but this engine was only available with the coupé A coupé or coupe is a closed car body style, the precise definition of which varies from manufacturer to manufacturer, and over time. Coupés are often hardtopped sports cars or sporty variants of sedan (saloon) body styles, with doors commonly reduced from 4 to 2, and a close-coupled interior (i.e., the rear seat placed further forward than in a body style). Reportedly, market names of Cherry and Datsun 1000 were also used, however the Datsun 1000 name is normally associated with the early Nissan Sunny The Nissan Sunny is a small car from Nissan. It was launched in 1966 as the Datsun 1000 and although production in Japan ended in 2004, it remains in production today for the African and American markets. In the US, the later models were known as the Nissan Sentra; in Latin America, the Sunny is known as the Nissan Tsuru. The Sunny fit neatly into.[citation needed]
Timeline
- 1970 October: E10 goes on sale in Japan. At the beginning were setting only of four-door sedans and two-door sedans.
- With 1970: 17th Tokyo motor show, exhibiting the concept car "270X" which designates the Cherry as the base.
- 1971 end of September: coupé version added
- 1972 March: three-door van version added
- Cherry coupé debuts in 1972 April race Japan. As a Nissan works entry, it participated also in other domestic Japan races.
- 1972 June: minor model change
- 1973 March: debut of Cherry Coupé 1200X-1 R with "fender flares"
- 1973: Revised model with updated grill, rear lights and hubcaps released
- 1976: Acropolis Rally privateer entry
- 1977: E10 production ceases
2nd Generation F10 Series (1974–78)
The second-generation Cherry was known as F-II in Japan and "Datsun F10" in North America. It was Nissan's first front-wheel-drive model to be sold in North America. Four-wheel independent suspension continued to be used.
The F10 was fitted with three types of inline four-cylinder Nissan A-series OHV engines:
- 988 cc A10
- 1171 cc A12
- 1397 cc A14
A two-pedal type semi-automatic transmission A semi-automatic transmission is a system which uses electronic sensors, processors and actuators to execute gear shifts on the command of the driver. This removes the need for a clutch pedal which the driver otherwise needs to depress before making a gear change, since the clutch itself is actuated by electronic equipment which can synchronise was offered called the "Sportmatic", which used a torque converter A torque converter is a modified form of fluid coupling that is used to transfer rotating power from a prime mover, such as an internal combustion engine or electric motor, to a rotating driven load. Like a basic fluid coupling, the torque converter normally takes the place of a mechanical clutch, allowing the load to be separated from the power obviating the need for a clutch A clutch is a mechanical device, by convention understood to be rotating, which provides driving force to another mechanism when required, typically by connecting the driven mechanism to the driving mechanism. Clutches and brakes are similar; if the driven member of a clutch is fixed to the mechanism frame, it serves as a brake.
In Europe, F10 was known as Datsun 100A F-II (with A10 engine) or 120A F-II (with A12 engine). The A12 powered 120A F-II was the most common model.
In New Zealand the 100A 4-door sedan (1.0L A10 motor) was assembled CKD as a price leader for the Datsun range - due to the choice of engine, it was the smallest engined car assembled in New Zealand, the engine (988cc) being smaller than the Mini The Mini is a small car that was made by the British Motor Corporation and its successors from 1959 until 2000. The original is considered a British icon of the 1960s, and its space-saving front-wheel-drive layout (that allowed 80% of the area of the car's floorpan to be used for passengers and luggage) influenced a generation of car-makers. The's 998cc unit. Production continued well after the N10 model replaced it overseas, eventually being discontinued in late 1980, the N10 5-door hatchback replacing it in 1981.
Timeline
- 1974 September: Sale started in Japan. Body styles included 2 and 4 door sedans, a coupe, and a 3-door wagon.
- 1978: Swedish Rally privateer entry
- 1978 May: The Datsun Pulsar (N10 type) appeared as a successor model to the Cherry. At the time the Cherry name was discontinued on the Japan home market.
Nissan Pulsar (N10) generation
The N10 model of 1978 was known as the Nissan Pulsar in Japan, but was called Cherry in Europe. The body styling was more boxy, and influenced by designs coming out of Europe at that time, although in practice, particularly in wagon form, elements of the styling looked remarkably similar to the Toyota Corolla The Toyota Corolla is a line of subcompact/compact cars manufactured by the Japanese automaker Toyota, which has become very popular throughout the world since the nameplate was first introduced in 1966. In 1997, the Corolla became the best selling nameplate in the world, with over 35 million sold as of 2007. Over the past 40 years, one Corolla and Honda Civic The Honda Civic is a line of compact cars developed and manufactured by Honda. In North America, the Civic is the second-longest continuously-running nameplate from a Japanese manufacturer; only the Toyota Corolla, introduced in 1968, has been in production longer. The Civic, along with the Accord and Prelude, comprised Honda's vehicles sold in of the time. Engine choices were carried over from the previous model, consisting of Nissan's A-Series motor in 1.0L, 1.2L and 1.4L forms.
A unusual styling feature for the car was its long nose - which was due to Nissan envisaging that the car would also be built a with longitudinal rear-wheel-drive layout for developing markets - however only front-wheel-drive models were actually built.
Circa 1980 Datsun Cherry Coupé (European nomenclature) which is the same as a Nissan Pulsar (N10) model Datsun N10 5-door EstateUnusually for a front-wheel-drive car, the N10 Cherry was available in a wide variety of bodystyles, which consisted of 3 and 5 door hatchbacks A Hatchback is a broad term for a car body style incorporating a shared passenger and cargo volume, with rearmost accessibility via a rear third or fifth door, typically a top-hinged liftgate — and features such as fold-down rear seats to enable flexibility within the shared passenger/cargo volume. As a two-box design, the body style typically, 2 and 4 door fastback sedans (which utilized the same body profile as the hatchback models), a hatchback coupe, a 3-door van and 5-door wagon variants.
Later in the car's production life, 1981, the entire range was repowered by Nissan's newly developed OHC E-series motors. The car also had a facelift, involving a new grille and rectangular headlamps.
In 1982 Nissan badges began to appear on the cars, due to Nissan phasing out the Datsun name at that time for its international markets. Production ceased in mid-1982, to be replaced by the all-new N12 Cherry series.
Cherry (Pulsar N12 generation) and Cherry Europe
| Nissan Cherry N12 side view | |
| Production | 1982–1986 |
|---|---|
| Body style(s) | 2-door coupe (EXA) 3-door hatchback 4-door sedan 5-door hatchback |
| Platform | FF layout |
| Related | Nissan Cherry Europe Nissan Pulsar Milano Alfa Romeo Arna |
The Cherry name was still used in Europe on the model N12, an angular, hatchback design.
Derivative of Cherry N12 was also built by Alfa Romeo at Pratola Serra, near Naples, Italy. The Alfa-built version was badged as either the Nissan Cherry Europe or the Alfa Arna in Europe (depending on the dealer supplying it), and as the Nissan Pulsar Milano in Japan, and is distinguishable by slightly different rear light clusters and other minor changes. Under the skin it used Alfa Romeo Alfasud-based components including the engine, transmission, and front suspension. Rear suspension and body panels came from Japan. Both Italian- and Japanese-built versions were available in European markets, but the Italian version helped to overcome strict import quotas imposed on Japanese cars at the time. Arna was an acronym meaning Alfa Romeo Nissan Autoveicoli. The Arna did not sell well and the partnership was not continued.
A high performance turbo version of the Cherry was available for part of the N12 model's life.
After the end of Cherry production, the Sunny was Nissan's only offering of this size in Europe.
Replacement by Nissan Sunny
The Nissan Sunny name was next used in some markets only, starting with the N13 model.
In Japan and some Asian markets, the Pulsar name was used until N15 model.
See also
- Nissan Motors
- Prince Motor Company
- Nissan Pulsar
- RatDat.com - paint colors, sales brochures, and model names
- Japan Wikipedia article "Nissan Cherry"
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