The Prince Motor Company ( Japanese : プリンス自動車工業株式会社 ) was an automobile marque from Japan which eventually merged into Nissan in 1966. It began as the Tachikawa Aircraft Company , a manufacturer of various airplanes for the Japanese Army in World War II, e.g., the Ki-36, Ki-55 and Ki-74. Tachikawa Aircraft Company was dissolved after the war and the company took the name Fuji Precision Industries. It diversified into automobiles , producing an electric car , the Tama , in 1946, named for the region the company originated in, Tama , using the Ohta series PC/PD platform. The company changed its name to Prince in 1952 to honor Akihito's formal investiture as Crown Prince of the nation. In 1954 they changed their name back to Fuji Precision Industries, and in 1961 changed the name back again to Prince Motor Company. In 1966, they became part of Nissan, while the Prince organization remained in existence inside Nissan, as Nissan Prince Store in Japan until Nissan consolidated the Prince dealership network into "Nissan Blue Stage" in 1999.
100-715: Prince had success building luxury automobiles. Among its most famous car lines were the Skyline and Gloria , both of which were absorbed into the Nissan range and continued after their 1966 merger ; however, Prince also built the 15-passenger Homy which was eventually shared with the Nissan Caravan and the Nissan Laurel , a four-door sedan platform mate with the Skyline, on which Prince had begun development before
200-478: A luxury car . It featured a 1.5 L (1,482 cc) GA-30 engine (also known as FG4A-30) producing 44 kW (60 hp ) at 4,400 rpm, which was previously used in the prototype Subaru 1500 , Subaru's first car. It used a de Dion tube rear suspension and was capable of 140 km/h (87 mph). The car weighed around 1,300 kg (2,900 lb). Skylines were produced as four-door sedans and five-door station wagons . Two models were available:
300-457: A triple in power delivery. As such, it also requires crank throws at 60° – . Such designs appear to have been limited to diesel engines such as the Detroit 71 series , marine engines, and outboard motors. Some of the 120 possible crankshaft configurations have useful properties. Still, all of them have a rocking imbalance that may or may not require a balance shaft, depending on
400-626: A 1.8 L flathead petrol engine used by the Opel 8/40 PS . The displacement of this engine was expanded as it was used in later models such as the Opel Kapitän and Opel Admiral , with later versions switching to an overhead valve (pushrod) design. In 1968, the straight-six versions of the Opel CIH engine were introduced, initially using a single overhead camshaft (SOHC) with some later versions using double overhead camshafts (DOHC). Production of
500-506: A LSD, 5-speed close ratio manual transmission and racing suspension kits. In October 1966, the GT received mild facelift similar to S50D-2, but retained its original round taillights. This model was known as S54-3. Still with similar equipment as S54-2, except for seat belts and 5-speed manual transmission (GT-B only) that became standard. The South Australian versions both used the S54B engine,
600-531: A V6 engine replaced it. The Nissan TB overhead valve engine was introduced in 1987 and produced alongside the other straight-six engines. The six-cylinder versions of the Prince G engine were introduced in 1963 and remained in production until 1969, three years after Prince's merger with Nissan. The 1969–1973 Nissan S20 dual overhead camshaft engine (used in the Nissan Fairlady and first generation of
700-402: A chief influence of the car until his death in 2011. Skylines are available in either coupé , or sedan body styles, plus station wagon , crossover , convertible and pickup / sedan delivery body styles. The later models are most commonly known by their trademark round brake and tail lights. The majority of Skyline models are rear-wheel drive , with all-wheel drive being available since
800-674: A four-speed floor shift transmission from February 1965 (Deluxe only). A two-speed automatic option was added to the Deluxe in June 1966. The lower priced and equipped Standard model was added in April 1964; aiming at taxi operators and others it also lacked bumper overriders, making it 11 cm shorter. Three main models of the S50 were built: the S50-1 (1964–1966), the lightly facelifted S50-2 (1966–1967) and
900-437: A grille with a large center bar with 6 vertical slats above it. The side strips ran straight from the rear of the car to the front doors, where it dipped into a V-shape, widening and kicked upwards until it hit the front of the car. The side badge said "Skyline". The ALSID-1 Deluxe featured a different grille compared to the standard model. The large center bar was absent and instead a pair of fog lights are mounted just inside of
1000-402: A large amount of second-hand Japanese car imports to Europe and North America. Starting with the third-generation Skyline (C10) and up to the tenth-generation Skyline (R34), the chassis, suspension and some of the engines were shared with the luxury-oriented longer wheelbase Nissan Laurel . When the former Prince factory at Musashimurayama closed in 2002 (coinciding with the discontinuation of
1100-533: A lower-cost version of the Oakland six, powered by the Pontiac Split-Head Six flathead engine, which used two cylinder heads. This engine was replaced by the 1941–1954 Pontiac flathead six . The unrelated Pontiac OHV 6 overhead valve engine was produced in 1964–1965, based on a Chevrolet design. Pontiac's final straight-six engine was the 1966–1969 Pontiac OHC 6 overhead camshaft engine, which
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#17327871478271200-942: A result the C110 was sold in very large numbers in Japan. Kenmeri was also a play on the term "Meriken" (メリケン) an old Japanese slang term for "American" due to the new Skyline's resemblance of American muscle cars of the time. It sold just as well in Australia (in a 2.4L 6-cylinder form, badged as "Datsun 240K"). There, the 240K was about the same price as a Ford Falcon GT or BMW 5 Series , around AUD $ 5000. The Skyline GT-R hardtop arrived in September 1972 but only lasted until March 1973, when Nissan ceased its production. The 1973 oil crisis saw many people preferring economy cars and high-performance sports cars were looked down upon. Nissan pulled out of Motor Racing shortly afterwards, and so there
1300-455: A single overhead camshaft engine in 1979 and upgraded to dual overhead camshafts before production ended in 2008 (with the 1G-FE being the final variant). Nissan's first straight-six engine was the 1950–1952 Nissan NAK flathead petrol engine, which continued in various forms until production of the Nissan P engine ended in 2003. The 1963-1965 Nissan K overhead valve petrol engine was used in
1400-597: A straight six version of the Chrysler flathead petrol engine. This was replaced by the 1959–2000 Chrysler Slant-6 overhead valve straight-six petrol engine, which was so named due to the 30-degree angle used to reduce the height of the engine (with the trade-off of a wider engine). The Slant-6 was released in the Dodge Dart economy car and used in many models until a V6 engine replaced it after 30 years. The Chevrolet Stovebolt overhead valve straight-six petrol engine
1500-496: A straight-six engine compare favorably with the more common straight-four engines and V6 engines , which experience significant secondary dynamic imbalance, resulting in engine vibration. As engine reciprocating forces increase with the cube of piston bore, the straight-six is a preferred configuration for large truck engines. An even-firing six-cylinder two-stroke engine requires ignitions at 60° intervals, or else it would run with simultaneous ignitions and be no smoother than
1600-415: A straight-six was the 1961–1969 Alfa Romeo 2600 executive car before the company switched to V6 engines. Mercedes-Benz's history of straight-six engines began with the 1913 Mercedes D.I aircraft engine. The first automotive straight-six engine was the 1924–1929 Daimler M836 3.9 L petrol engine. Following World War 2, Mercedes resumed production of straight-six engines with the 1951 introduction of
1700-558: A three-speed automatic, with a column-shifted three-speed manual available on lower end cars and vans. The lowest powered option was the 2-liter LD20 diesel fitted to the Skyline Van 200D (VSC211D); it produces 65 PS (48 kW) at 4600 rpm. The L-series engines were all switched to the cross-flow Z-series in late 1978, although the L16 soldiered on a little longer in the commercial versions. The larger 2.4-liter inline-six
1800-581: A wagon design, no windows were fitted between the C and D pillars. The C110 was the first version to return to the round rear tail and brake lights introduced in 1963 albeit with dual units from the previous generation, and the appearance has become a traditional Skyline feature. The styling also influenced a smaller, more affordable two-door coupe, called the Silvia , introduced in 1975. Nissan introduced its emission control technology, primarily consisting of fuel injection on trim packages ending with an "E", using
1900-550: Is a brand of automobile originally produced by the Prince Motor Company starting in 1957, and then by Nissan after the two companies merged in 1967. After the merger, the Skyline and its larger counterpart, the Nissan Gloria , were sold in Japan at dealership sales channels called Nissan Prince Shop . The Skyline was largely designed and engineered by Shinichiro Sakurai from inception, and he remained
2000-402: Is due to the front and rear trio of cylinders moving in pairs (albeit 360° out of phase), thus canceling out the rocking motion present in a straight-three engine . The secondary balance is due to the crank throws being arranged in three planes offset at 120°, resulting in the non-sinusoidal forces summing to zero for all free forces until the sixth order. The engine balance characteristics of
2100-667: Is similar to the 1960s Lancia Flavia and Triumph Vitesse as Michelotti did contribute to Lancia vehicles during this time; Giugiaro's design of the short-lived Gordon Keeble GT was similarly influenced. Being the first sports-focused model, the Skyline Sport foreshadowed the Skyline GT-R sub-range; its luxurious appearance would later be implemented in its future platform-mate twin, the Laurel . In 1961 Fuji Precision Industries changed its name to Prince Motor Company (for
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#17327871478272200-758: Is sold in Europe, North America, South Korea, Taiwan, and the Middle East as the Infiniti G37 and EX respectively. As of 2024 , the Skyline is the only remaining sedan in Nissan's Japanese lineup following the discontinuation of both the Fuga and Cima in 2022. The first Skyline was introduced on 24 April 1957, at the Takarazuka Theater , in Hibiya , Tokyo, for Fuji Precision Industries , marketed as
2300-464: Is the German brand BMW , which has always used a straight-six layout for its six-cylinder engines. Since 2017, the trend of switching to V6 engines has reversed due to the ability to create a modular engine family of straight engines sharing many components. Examples include the 2017–present Mercedes-Benz M256 engine , the 2019–present Jaguar Land Rover Ingenium engines (AJ300 and AJ300D versions),
2400-570: The BMW M337 (produced until 1958). Production of straight-six engines resumed in 1968 with the BMW M30 single overhead camshaft engine, built for 27 years and used in various models. The 1978–1989 BMW M88 engine was a double overhead camshaft design that was introduced in the BMW M1 mid-engine sport car. BMW's introduction of turbocharged straight-six engines (aside from the low-volume variants of
2500-508: The Duramax Straight-6 turbocharged diesel engine has been available in several General Motors SUV and light truck models since 2020. On March 25, 2022, Stellantis announced their new turbocharged straight-six engine, called Hurricane. Two outputs are available, a standard 400 or 500 hp (298 or 373 kW; 406 or 507 PS) high performance rated at 450 or 475 pound force-feet (610 or 644 N⋅m) of torque. The turbos on
2600-534: The Ford 240 I6 from 1965 through 1972. The Ford 300 cu in (4.9 L) version of the straight-six engine was built from 1965 until 1996, with notable uses in trucks, SUVs, and vans. However, Ford straight-sixes were replaced by V6 engines in passenger cars during the mid-1970s. In 1908, the Oldsmobile Model Z was powered by a flathead straight-six petrol engine, which was produced until 1912 (in
2700-674: The Ford Falcon large sedan was introduced with a locally-built version of the American Ford Straight-6 overhead valve engine. In 1998, these engines were upgraded to a single overhead camshaft design. This was followed in 2002 by the Ford Barra dual overhead camshaft engine in 2002, which was produced in both naturally aspirated and turbocharged versions. The Ford Barra engine remained in use until Ford Australia ceased local production in 2016. The Chrysler Valiant
2800-461: The Infiniti Q50 (2013+). Up to 1961, Prince used a four-letter model code for its vehicles. The first letter stood for the engine code (A was 1500 cc, B was 1900 cc), the second letter stood for the chassis model, the third letter stood for the body type (S for sedan, T for cabover truck, V for van, P for pickup truck and so on) and the fourth letter was the order of production. A fifth letter
2900-686: The Mercedes-Benz M180 overhead camshaft engine. In 1985, the Mercedes-Benz OM603 3.0 L diesel straight-six engine was introduced. In 1996, the company replaced its petrol straight-sixes with a series of V6 engines, although it continued producing diesel straight-six engines. Production of petrol straight-six engines resumed in 2017 with the introduction of the Mercedes-Benz M256 turbocharged DOHC engine. Opel began production of straight-six engines in 1927 with
3000-757: The New Class series, in deciding to build a small, affordable, performance coupe and sedan. The S50 was sold in some markets with an A150 designation. In European markets (and other export markets), it was also marketed as the PMC-Mikado A150. The S50-2 was also sold as the S56 SE A190D for export markets in Europe and Asia (such as in British Hong Kong ), which was equipped with the 55 hp (56 PS) 1.9 liter D-6 OHV diesel engine. This model had trim and equipment levels similar to
3100-659: The Nissan Cedric Special 50 luxury car. Using a similar design, the Nissan H30 engine was used in several luxury cars from 1965 through 1989. In 1966, Nissan began production of the six-cylinder versions of the Nissan L single overhead camshaft engine, which was produced until 2009. The 1985–2004 Nissan RB engine , used in the Nissan Skyline and several other cars, was produced in single overhead camshaft and dual overhead camshaft configurations until
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3200-721: The Nissan Skyline GT-R ) was based on the Prince G engine. Mitsubishi produced six-cylinder versions of the Mitsubishi KE engine from 1963 to 1970, as well as the rare six-cylinder versions of the Mitsubishi 6G34 version of the single overhead camshaft "Saturn" engine from 1970 to 1976. The 2000–2006 Daewoo Magnus (also called the Chevrolet Evanda, Chevrolet Epica, Holden Epica, or Suzuki Verona)
3300-531: The Oldsmobile Limited luxury car) in displacements of 453 cu in (7.4 L), 505 cu in (8.3 L) and 706 cu in (11.6 L). Oldsmobile's next straight-six engine was introduced in the 1913 Oldsmobile Six luxury car, initially with a displacement of 380 cu in (6.2 L), followed by a displacement of 177 cu in (2.9 L) for the 1917-1921 Oldsmobile Model 37 luxury car. The later generations of
3400-536: The Oldsmobile Straight-6 also used a flathead design from its introduction in the 1923 Oldsmobile Model 30 luxury car until it was replaced in 1950 by Oldsmobile's V8 engine. The 1913–1929 Oakland Six luxury car was powered by a flathead petrol engine produced in displacements of 177 cu in (2.9 L) and 334 cu in (5.5 L). In 1926, the Pontiac Six was introduced as
3500-613: The Prince Skyway , was offered with this generation. A hardtop coupé was introduced in October 1970. The Skyline chassis and suspension was now shared with the all-new, luxury-oriented, and longer wheelbase Laurel and was unique to the Nissan Store as a junior companion to the executive limousine Nissan President . The suspension used MacPherson struts for the front wheels and Semi-trailing arm independent suspension for
3600-448: The "NISSAN" badge under the backup light disappeared (the badge on the grille remained), and the "Prince" badges were replaced by "NISSAN", but the stylized "P" emblem on the hood remained. The C10 series of August 1968, which began its development under Prince at the company's Ogikubo R&D centre in the suburbs of Tokyo, was marketed with a Nissan badge. By the time the C10 went on sale,
3700-477: The 0.7 L (43 cu in) Benelli 750 Sei motorcycle engine to the 6.7 L (409 cu in) Cummins B Series engine pickup truck engine have also been produced. Due to its well-balanced configuration, the straight-six can be scaled up to substantial sizes for heavy trucks, locomotives, industrial and marine use. If an appropriate firing order is used, a straight-six engine has perfect primary and secondary engine balance . The primary balance
3800-453: The 1.9 L GB-4 engine from the S21D. While only a few hundred were built, Prince Motors had a very aggressive product placement group and they can be seen (along the company's mainstream models) in many Toho films of the early 1960s. The canted headlights reflected a similar appearance on the late 1950s through early 1960s Lincoln Continental , Buick , and Chrysler 300 . The appearance
3900-675: The 1938 Jaguar 3½ Litre sports saloon/coupe and the 1948 Jaguar Mark V luxury car. The 1927 Rover Two-litre luxury car introduced the company's IOE straight-six petrol engine. This engine was used in various Rover models until the Rover P5 was discontinued in 1973, and in various Land Rover models from the 1961 Land Rover Series IIA until 1980 Land Rover Series III . The 1928 Austin 20/6 luxury car introduced Austin's flathead straight-six petrol engine. The 1938-1939 Austin Twenty-Eight used an enlarged version of this engine. This
4000-459: The 1998–2006 Volvo S80 ) used the uncommon design of a transversely-mounted straight-six engine. Production of Volvo straight-six engines ceased in 2015. BMW's first product was the 1917 BMW IIIa straight-six aircraft engine. The company began production of automotive straight-six engines in 1933 with the BMW M78 petrol engine, a 1.2 L overhead valve design that evolved over the years into
4100-569: The 2021–present Stellantis Hurricane engine and the 2022–present Mazda Skyactiv-X and Skyactiv-D engines. Alfa Romeo's first production straight-six engine - 6.3 L flathead petrol engine - was introduced in 1921 in the Alfa Romeo G1 luxury car. An overhead valve design was introduced in the 1922 Alfa Romeo RL sports car, and an overhead camshaft design was used in the 1927 Alfa Romeo 6C sports car and various racing cars from 1927 until 1954. The last Alfa Romeo model using
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4200-636: The ALSIS-1 standard and the ALSID-1 Deluxe. The ALSI-1's appearance seems to be influenced by 1950s American cars (the front end was similar to the 1957 Chevrolet ); the car featured rear tail fins, chrome molding and two-tone paint. The ALSI-1 generation was sold in the United States, but did not sell well, and remain extremely rare. In 2020, a 1960 left-hand-drive model reappeared in an Idaho junkyard. The ALSIS-1 standard model featured
4300-654: The GC10 2000GT's engine power was decreased to 105 hp (78 kW), Nissan introduced an automatic variant in June 1970, as well as a 2-door coupe in October 1970. In September 1971, the KGC10 2000 GT-X received a 2.0 L (1,998 cc) L20SU straight-six engine instead of the Prince G-7 engine . The chassis was already designed to fit a straight six, to avoid the S54 extension problem. 130 PS (96 kW; 128 hp)
4400-739: The Hurricane Standard Output deliver a peak boost of 22 psi, while the Hurricane High Output turbos deliver 26 psi of peak boost. The 3.0 L Hurricane is produced at Stellantis’ Saltillo Engine Plant in Mexico. Toyota's first straight-six engine was the Toyota Type A , produced from 1935 through 1947. The Type A was an overhead-valve petrol engine based on the Chevrolet Stovebolt engine. This
4500-607: The L16T and L18T designates twin carburetors. On the L20ET and later engines, "T" designates a turbo engine instead. Models: Straight-six engine The straight-six engine (also referred to as an inline-six engine ; abbreviated I6 or L6) is a piston engine with six cylinders arranged in a straight line along the crankshaft . A straight-six engine has perfect primary and secondary engine balance , resulting in fewer vibrations than other designs of six or fewer cylinders. Until
4600-476: The Laurel that same year), the Skyline used the then-new FM platform that was shared with the 350Z starting with the eleventh-generation Skyline (V35). The eleventh-generation Skyline (V35) was another major turning point for the nameplate, as it dropped some of the previous generation Skyline's trademark characteristics such as the straight-six engine (replaced with a V6 ) and turbocharging (reintroduced in
4700-505: The M30 engine in the 1980s) was in 2006 BMW N54 and the production of naturally aspirated engines ceased in 2015. As of 2022 , the BMW B58 turbocharged straight-six engine remains in production, along with its higher performance BMW S58 variants. Rolls-Royce's first straight-six engine was a 6.0 L IOE petrol engine, which was used in the 1905 Rolls-Royce 30 hp luxury car. This car
4800-667: The Opel CIH engine continued until 1993, when a V6 engine replaced it. Volvo began production of straight-six engines with the 1929–1958 Penta DB flathead petrol engines. The company resumed production in 1969 with the Volvo B30 overhead valve petrol engine, followed by the straight-six versions of the Volvo Modular Engine introduced in 1995 and then the Volvo SI6 engine introduced in 2006. Several models (such as
4900-722: The Prince Skyline 2000GT (S54B-2) was released to the Japanese market, followed by the less powerful 2000GT-A (S54A-2) in September on the same year and S54B-2 model was renamed to 2000GT-B. The GT-B model featured three Weber 40DCOE-18 carburetors (G7-B; producing 125 PS (92 kW; 123 hp) at 5,600 rpm and 17.0 kg⋅m (167 N⋅m; 123 lb⋅ft) at 4,400 rpm), rear torsion bar suspension , Nardi steering wheel, power brakes and front disc brakes as standard. The cheaper GT-A did not receive Nardi steering wheel, booster brakes, front disc brakes and rear wheel torque rod. Both models could get additional options such as safety belts, radio, heather, bigger fuel tank,
5000-431: The Prince name to become the Nissan Prince Store . In August 1967 the S50-3 was introduced. The tail lights and front side indicators were changed to a wider rectangular shape, but otherwise the car remained identical to the S50-2 series. The S50-3 was the last Prince model to use the G-1 engine. The Deluxe trim was rebranded as the S57 series. Prince launched racing and road version of Skyline 2000GT in May 1964. It
5100-452: The Prince nameplate had been completely phased out on cars and trucks. The dealer network selling the cars became the Prince channel of Nissan, and the marketing group stayed at the Prince headquarters in Mita instead of moving to Nissan's headquarters in Ginza . The C10 Skyline was launched with Prince's 1.5 L OHC G15 I4 like the S57. A 1.8 L G18 version was also available. A station wagon variant, known previously as
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#17327871478275200-463: The S50 also appeared with Nissan Prince Skyline badging. In October 1966, the S50-2 was introduced. This light facelift included a new grille and rectangular taillights, as well as changes to the interior, and with the addition of an extraction vent on the C-pillar. It was sold as Prince Skyline, Prince A150, or PMC A150, depending on the market. All "Prince" dealership locations were added to the existing Nissan/Datsun Japanese dealerships, while retaining
5300-431: The S50-3 (1967–1968). These all used the same engine, with the later S57 receiving a more modern unit. Externally, the S50-1 was installed with rounded brake lights and integrated tail lights, with a centrally installed turn signal, similar in appearance to the Ford Galaxie of 1961. The significant appearance change from the previous generation seems to reflect a similar approach done by German company BMW in 1962 with
5400-474: The S50S-2. In Europe, period testers commented on the car's compact size (more like a 1.0 than a 1.5) and its sprightly performance, in large part due to the extremely low gearing. The car's ample lighting was also noted, offering twin headlights, a bevy of warning lamps, numerous engine room light fittings, etcetera. Also lauded were the cars road manners, as evident by the six-cylinder Skyline's competition successes. In August 1966, Nissan and Prince merged and
5500-556: The Skyline first appeared in several European export markets, such as Germany. The GT-EX replaced the discontinued GT-R with a turbocharged engine, the L20ET . As installed in the recently renewed Nissan Cedric / Gloria , this had been the first turbo engine to power a Japanese production vehicle. One notable aspect of the turbo versions was that they were not intercooled and there was no form of blowoff valve , only an emergency pressure release valve. As usual with Japanese cars of this period, there were four- or five-speed manuals and
5600-525: The application. The six pistons with six unique phases cannot be "paired" as in the four-stroke case. The Detroit engines used a configuration that, once the primary rocking couple was balanced out, was also perfectly balanced at all other rocking couples until the 6th order. Mercury came to use a configuration that canceled only the primary rocking couple and was run without a balancer. The reciprocating masses of all configurations are still imbalanced at only 6th-order and up in their plane of motion. Still,
5700-465: The balance of kinetic energy exchange between pistons has improved to a residual 6th-order-and-up inertial torque oscillation compared with the four-stroke design being imbalanced at 3rd-order and up. Crankshafts for straight-six engines usually have either four main bearings (i.e., a bearing in between each pair of crankpins and one at each end) or seven main bearings (i.e., a bearing between every crankpin): The first production straight-six engine
5800-421: The debut of the eighth-generation Skyline (R32). While not distributed in the United States until its importation as the Infiniti G-series in the early 2000s (the first generation Prince Skyline was imported, but sold poorly), the Skyline's prominence (particularly for the GT-R variant) in video games, movies and magazines resulted in many such cars being brought in as grey import vehicles there, and makes up
5900-431: The difference was in the gearbox, the GT-A had a 4-speed gearbox, and the GT-B had the European ZF 5-speed gearbox. In August 1967 Prince released the successor of the S50D-2 called the S57. It used a new engine of Prince's (designed before the merger with Nissan), the OHC 1.5 L (1,483 cc) G15 . At 88 PS (65 kW; 87 hp), it was the most-powerful engine in the Japanese 1,500 cc class. The S57D
6000-426: The front turn signals. Between the fog lights "PRINCE" is spelled out in individual gold letters. A painted side strip, surrounded by a chrome strip ran horizontally the length of the car, widening from front to back. On this side strip was the side badge, which said "Skyline Deluxe". The Skyline also spawned the ALPE double cab pickup truck and the ALVE delivery van, both marketed as the Skyway . The ALSI-2 series
6100-404: The latter with a longer wheelbase and front end. This line continued through August 1981. A rare variant would be the wagon version, which had a unique styling treatment behind the rear doors, of a much smaller window than usual between the C and D pillars. The Skyline received an internal and external facelift in late 1978, which led to a change of the model code from 210 to 211. This was also when
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#17327871478276200-402: The merger but was introduced after the merger in 1968. Prince had also begun development on a small car to compete with the Toyota Corolla and Nissan Sunny , but after the merger, the car was introduced as the Nissan Cherry using front wheel drive . The former Nissan Gloria and the Nissan Skyline are known in the US as the Infiniti M (2003 - 2004), the Infiniti G (2003 - 2006), and
6300-552: The mid-20th century, the straight-six layout was the most common design for engines with six cylinders. However, V6 engines became more common in the 1970s. By the 2000s, V6 engines replaced most straight-six engines. In terms of packaging, straight-six engines are almost always narrower than a V6 engine or V8 engine , but longer than straight-four engines , V6s, and most V8s. Straight-six engines are typically produced in displacements ranging from 2 to 4 L (122 to 244 cu in), however engines ranging in size from
6400-435: The moniker Nissan NAPS also in 1975. In February 1976, the model was facelifted and became C111 model. The C110 Skyline was better known as the "Ken & Mary" or "Kenmeri" (ケンメリ) Skyline, stemming from the advertisement campaign in Japan at the time which featured a young couple (Ken and Mary) who relaxed and enjoyed the countryside in Ken and Mary's Skyline (ケンとメリーのスカイライン). The ads were highly successful and perhaps as
6500-452: The rear wheels. The brake- and tail-lights were modified to square units, but now included dual units for both the left and right side of the vehicle. As the Skyline was now a Nissan product, it was repositioned above the Bluebird as a more sport-oriented sedan and coupe, while the Bluebird was unique to Nissan Store locations. Its appearance shows some resemblance to the earlier 1961 Fiat 2300 , designed by Pininfarina . In October 1968
6600-428: The second time). Two years later, in September 1963, the S50 Skyline Deluxe (S50D-1) was launched, followed by the Skyline Standard (S50S-1) in April 1964. This was the second generation car, and became one of the more desirable cars in Japan. It was powered by the G-1 engine, a 68 hp or 70 PS (51 kW) version of the old GA-4. The S50 series were available with a three-speed column shift transmission, or
6700-449: The success of the race vehicle. The S54A-1 was available with the standard single carburetor (G7-A) 2.0-liter inline-six engine (producing 105 PS (77 kW; 104 hp) and 16.0 kg⋅m (157 N⋅m; 116 lb⋅ft)), 4-speed manual transmission and tachometer as standard. The triple Webber carburetors, a LSD , 5-speed manual transmission, sport steering wheel and oil cooler were available as additional options. In February 1965,
6800-433: The thirteenth-generation/V37 model), and eventually separated the GT-R into its own line . Nissan decided to retain the Skyline for the luxury-sport market segment formerly held by the Laurel, while its platform-mate , the 350Z, revived the Z line of pure sports cars. The V35 was the first Skyline made for export to North America, being sold under Nissan's luxury marque Infiniti as the G35 in 2002. The Skyline (V36/J50)
6900-454: The track. The sedan racked up 33 victories in less than two years, and the coupé stretched this to 50 through 1972. The C10 raced against many cars including the Toyota 1600GT , Isuzu Bellett GTR, Mazda Familia (R100) & Capella ( RX-2 ) – even Porsche . In late 1971 the new Mazda RX-3 became the GT-R's main rival. The GT-R managed a few more victories before the RX-3 ended the GT-R's winning streak. Models : The C110 generation
7000-447: The turbocharged GT-EX offered. Originally marketed as the Datsun 240K-GT in Europe, the fuel injected version was sold as the Datsun Skyline in most markets where it was available. It has a claimed top speed of 186 km/h (116 mph). In June 1980, the two-liter, fuel injected inline-four Z20E engine was added to the lineup, as was the 2.8 liter straight-six GT-Diesel with 91 PS (67 kW; 90 hp). The "T" designation on
7100-401: The twin headlights). The side strip design was changed on standard models; the V-shape in the side strip was moved from the front doors to the rear doors. On Deluxe models the side strip design remained the same. The standard model gained quad headlights in September 1960 with the release of the ALSI-2-2 series. The BLSI-3 series was released in May 1961. The 1500 engine used in the ALSID Deluxe
7200-454: Was almost identical to the S50S-3 except for using different grille with a red "88" badge (for 88 PS) and an "OHC" badge above the right side reversing light. The trunk badge said "Prince" and the side badges said "Skyline 1500" or "Skyline 1500 Deluxe". There was a "NISSAN" badge of the left side of the grille as well as well as below the left side backup light. After the Prince name was dropped,
7300-601: Was available from this new engine. In March 1972 the lineup was expanded to include a four-door GT-X sedan. The first GT-R Skyline appeared in February 1969. Called the PGC-10 (KPGC-10 for later coupé version) internally and Hakosuka (ハコスカ) by fans. Hako (ハコ) means box in Japanese, and suka (スカ) is short for Skyline (スカイライン; Sukairain ). It used the 2.0 L (1998 cc) S20 I6 . This new DOHC engine (which
7400-823: Was based on the S50D-1 and used the G-7 engine from the Gloria S41 , though the car needed a 200 mm (8 in) extension to the wheelbase (all forward of the cowl) to provide space in the engine bay for the inline six . It entered the second Japanese Grand Touring II (GT-II) on 3 May 1964 and they hoped to win the race. Competing against the Porsche 904 , the Skyline GTs managed second through to sixth places. Only 100 units S54A-1 were made for homologation purpose (92 road cars and 8 racing cars) and sold out instantly due to
7500-581: Was designed by the former Prince engineers) produced 160 hp (119 kW) and 180 N⋅m (133 lb⋅ft) of torque, and was similar to the GR8 engine used in the Prince R380 racing car. The GT-R began as a sedan, but a 2-door coupé version was debuted in October 1970 and introduced in March 1971. The cars were stripped of unnecessary equipment to be as light as possible for racing, and performed well at
7600-524: Was dropped and instead used the 91 hp (92 PS) 1.9L GB-4 (also known as FG4B-40) OHV four-cylinder engine from the Gloria. The BLSI series was otherwise identical to the ALSI series, except for a "1900" badge on the side. The standard model received the new engine in October 1961. Commercial variants remained available, also equipped with the new engine. The S21 series was released in September 1962. It
7700-469: Was followed by an IOE version in 1916. The 1951 Hudson Hornet introduced a 308 cu in (5.0 L) flathead straight-six engine. These engines dominated dirt track and NASCAR racing at the time. Production of the Hudson I6 continued after the 1954 merger forming American Motors Corporation and was eventually replaced by a new Rambler V8 after 1956. In 1924, Chrysler began production of
7800-589: Was followed by the AJ6 and AJ16 engines, produced from 1984 to 1996, before being replaced by a Ford-derived V6 engine. The 1948–1959 Lagonda straight-6 dual overhead camshaft petrol engine was used in various Aston Martin and Lagonda cars. This engine's successor was the Tadek Marek-designed straight-six used in the DB4 (1958), DB5 (1963), DB6 (1965) and DBS (1967). The Ford Zephyr 6 overhead valve engine
7900-412: Was followed by the 1962–1988 Chevrolet Turbo-Thrift engine (also using an overhead valve design), which was replaced by various General Motors V6 engines. The 1952 through 2006 AMC Straight-6 petrol engine initially used a flathead design before being upgraded to an overhead valve design in 1956. A new I6 design with a short stroke and seven main bearing crankshaft was introduced in 1964. The engine
8000-423: Was followed by the first generation Toyota F overhead valve engine, which was produced from 1949 to 1975, which in turn was followed by the 2F version from 1975 to 1988 and the fuel-injected 3F / 3FE version from 1988 to 1992. This was replaced by the dual overhead camshaft Toyota FZ engine , produced from 1993 until 2008. Produced alongside these engines was the single overhead camshaft Toyota M engine , which
8100-517: Was in production until November 1963. The front end was redesigned in an attempt to update the look of the car. The result was rather unsuccessful as the car now looked like a 1950s body with a 1960s front end. The S21 continued to use the 1.9L GB-4 engine. The 3-door van was dropped and replaced with a 5-door station wagon; a double cab pickup truck remained available. The S21 Deluxe-based Skyline Sport featured hand-built Michelotti bodies in stylish coupe and convertible versions. These cars used
8200-531: Was introduced in 1929 as a replacement for the brand's straight-four engines and was produced in displacements of 181 cu in (3.0 L), 194 cu in (3.2 L) and 207 cu in (3.4 L). The second generation of this engine family - often referred to as the Blue Flame engine - was produced from 1937 to 1962 in displacements of 216 cu in (3.5 L), 235 cu in (3.9 L) and 261 cu in (4.3 L). This
8300-407: Was introduced in 1965 and produced over seven generations until 1993 (with the 7M-GTE being the final version of the M engine). The M engine was replaced by the dual overhead camshaft Toyota JZ engine , which was produced from 1990 to 2007 and is arguably known as Toyota's best straight-six engine. Toyota's third line of straight-six engines was the 2.0 L Toyota G engine , which was released as
8400-670: Was introduced in the Willys Jeep Station Wagon . At the time of its introduction, the Tornado engine had the lowest specific fuel consumption of an American gasoline (petrol) engine. The Tornado engine was replaced by the AMC I6 engine. In 2001, General Motors resumed production of straight-six engines with the Vortec 4200 dual overhead camshaft petrol engine. This engine was used in various SUV models until 2009. Also,
8500-647: Was introduced in the Dutch Spyker 60 HP racing car in 1903. Straight-six engines increased in popularity in the years after and by 1909, approximately 80 manufacturers were using them (including 62 in the United Kingdom). Prior to the 1950s, V6 engines were rarely used, due to the poorer engine balance of V6 engines compared to straight-six engines. Since the 1980s, however, the shorter length of V6 engines has seen most manufacturers replace straight-six engines with V6 engines. An exception to this trend
8600-492: Was never offered in the domestic Japanese market; having been reserved for export. Export engines were rated in DIN horsepower, so while a Japanese-spec L24 promised 130 hp (97 kW; 132 PS), European market cars with the same engine only claimed 111 hp; 83 kW (113 PS). On the other hand, European buyers could also get the fuel injected L24E with 127 or 130 PS (93 or 96 kW) DIN, about on par with what
8700-539: Was no purpose for the GT-R. It was not officially exported anywhere, although Nissan contemplated exporting to Australia. Only 197 KPGC110 GT-Rs were ever sold in Japan through specialist Nissan Performance shops (before it was called NISMO). This was the last GT-R for 16 years until the BNR32 in 1989. The succeeding C210 series of August 1977 continued to split the Skyline range into basic four-cylinder and six-cylinder models,
8800-527: Was powered by a 1.3-1.6 L overhead camshaft straight-six petrol engine. The 1931–1932 MG F-type tourers, 1932–1934 MG K-type sports cars, and 1934–1936 MG N-type sports cars were powered by an overhead camshaft straight-six petrol engine. During the mid-1930s, the Riley MPH sports car and Riley Kestrel 6 saloon were produced in small numbers and were powered by dual overhead camshaft straight-six petrol engine. The 1947 Bristol 400 luxury car
8900-613: Was powered by an overhead valve straight-six petrol engine based on the design of the BMW M328 engine. This engine remained in use until the Bristol 406 was discontinued in 1961. The dual overhead camshaft Jaguar XK6 engine petrol engine was produced from 1948 to 1992 in the Jaguar XK120 sports car. Introduced as a 3.4 L, it was used in passenger and racing cars, produced in displacements of 2.4 to 4.2 L. The XK6 engine
9000-516: Was powered by the Daewoo XK6 straight-six petrol engine, which is one of the few straight-six engines to be used in a transverse engine front-wheel drive car. From the 1950s to the 2010s, many cars produced in Australia were powered by a straight-six engine. Holden's first car, the 1948 Holden 48-215 sedan, was powered by the Holden 'grey' motor , an overhead valve petrol engine. This engine
9100-534: Was produced from September 1972 through August 1977. For export in the 1970s, the C110 and GC110 Skyline was sold as the Datsun K-series, with models such as the Datsun 160K, 180K and Datsun 240K. The body styles were, once again, four-door sedan, two-door hardtop coupé, and five-door station wagon. The C110 was more fussy in its styling than its predecessor, particularly so in wagon form, where unusually for
9200-614: Was released in October 1959 and was nearly identical to the ALSI-1 series except for the engine. Higher quality fuel allowed for an increase in compression and a power increase to 70 hp (71 PS). This new engine was designated the FG4A-40 (this engine was also known as the GA-4). The ALSI-2-1 series was released in February 1960. The Deluxe, along with the commercial variants, were updated with quad headlights (the standard model retained
9300-419: Was replaced by Chevrolet's straight-six engine and Buick's V6 engine. a The overhead valve Buick Straight-6 petrol engine was introduced in the 1914 Buick Six luxury car and was produced until 1930. Buick did not make another six-cylinder engine until they introduced a V6 engine in 1962. The 1916 through 1926 Hudson Super Six was powered by a 289 cu in (4.7 L) straight-six petrol engine. This
9400-605: Was replaced by the Austin D-Series engine , an overhead valve engine initially designed for trucks, which was used in passenger cars from 1947 until 1968 (along with several Jensen Motors models from 1946 to 1962). The overhead valve BMC C-Series was used by various BMC brands from 1954 to 1971, followed by the 2.2 L version of the BMC E-Series overhead camshaft engine, which was produced from 1970 until 1982. The 1930–1936 Wolseley Hornet six lightweight car
9500-532: Was replaced by the Holden 'red' motor , which was produced from 1963 to 1980 and in turn followed by the 1980–1984 Holden 'blue' motor . The final locally produced Holden straight-six was the 1984–1986 Holden 'black' motor , which was initially replaced by the Japanese-built Nissan RB30 engine before Holden switched to a locally-built V6 engine. Ford produced straight-six engines for the longest time of any Australian manufacturer. In 1960,
9600-479: Was replaced by the 1906–1926 Rolls-Royce Silver Ghost , which switched to a flathead (side-valve) design for its straight-six engine. In 1906, the Standard Six luxury car was introduced, powered by a 20 hp (15 kW; 20 PS) I6 petrol engine. Standard's engines were also used in several cars built by SS Cars and its successor Jaguar, such as the 1932 SS 1 sports car, the 1936 SS Jaguar 100 and
9700-467: Was rugged, reliable, and became noted for longevity. A turbocharged racing engine based on the AMC Straight-6 engine block produced 875 hp (652 kW) and competed in the 1978 Indianapolis 500 race. The final application for the AMC Straight-6 engine was the 2006 Jeep Wrangler (TJ) , after which a V6 replaced it. The 1962 through 1973 Jeep Tornado overhead camshaft straight-six engine
9800-492: Was sometimes added, and this was the model version (S for standard, D for deluxe). A number was added to the end to delineate revisions of the same model. This number was a Roman numeral until 1956, after which it was an Arabic numeral. From 1962, Prince switched to an alpha-numeric code, similar to what Nissan would eventually use. The Prince Motor Company had two origins. Nissan Skyline The Nissan Skyline ( Japanese : 日産・スカイライン , Hepburn : Nissan Sukairain )
9900-575: Was used in several of the company's sports cars. The 1906–1908 Ford Model K luxury car used a 405 cu in (6.6 L) straight-six petrol engine and was the only Ford six-cylinder passenger car engine until the 1940s. The Ford flathead I6 was produced from 1941 until 1951, followed by the Ford OHV I6 overhead valve engine from 1952 through 1964, then the Ford Thriftpower Six overhead valve engine from 1960 until 1982, and
10000-742: Was used in the Ford Zephyr executive car and several other models from 1951 to 1966. The Triumph I6 overhead valve straight-six petrol engine was produced from 1960 to 1977 and debuted in the Standard Vanguard Six sports saloon. The Leyland PE166 engine was loosely based on the Triumph design and was produced from 1977 to 1986. The 1972–1977 TVR 2500M sports car was powered by the Triumph I6 engine. Then, from 1999 to 2007, TVR's own TVR Speed Six dual overhead camshaft engine
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