Nissan · 1973–1992

Nissan Stanza

The Nissan Violet is a compact car that was first released in Japan in 1973 and produced until 1992. It was initially exclusive to Nissan's Japanese Nissan Cherry Store dealerships, as a larger companion to the Nissan Cherry. In 1977, the second generation model arrived. This was split into two additional lines, the Nissan Auster and the Nissan Stanza. All three models bore the A10 series identifier, and were built in Japan at the Hiratsuka and Yokosuka assembly plants. The Stanza was exclusive to Japanese Nissan dealerships called Nissan Satio Store as a larger companion to the smaller Nissan Sunny, and the Auster triplet was exclusive to Nissan Prince Store locations as a larger companion to the Nissan Langley. A new third generation front-wheel drive model was launched in 1981, changing the series name again to T11, and sharing its platform with the Compact MPV Nissan Prairie/Multi/Stanza Wagon. Final versions were Nissan Bluebirds series U12 rebadged for some international markets. In most export markets the car was originally sold as the Datsun 140J or 160J depending on the engine; this name was then gradually changed to Nissan Stanza in most markets in line with Nissan's phasing out of the Datsun brand in its export markets in the early 1980s; in Europe for instance it was sold as the "Datsun-Nissan Stanza" for a short time until the Datsun name was dropped completely in 1984. The Stanza/Auster/Violet were discontinued in 1992. The Stanza was replaced by the Nissan Altima in North America; the Stanza was replaced by the Nissan Bluebird in Japan, and by the Primera in Europe.

Text from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0).

Successor: Nissan Altima

All Nissan Stanza data: UK builds, safety, recalls, model years → + Compare

710 series (1973–1977)

Introduced in January 1973, the Nissan Violet was a smaller version of the Datsun Bluebird 610, which was sold outside Japan under Nissan's Datsun brand as the Datsun 140J/160J — except in the United States where it was marketed simply as the Datsun 710. This model was built as a two-door saloon, two-door coupé, four-door fastback, (and later as a regular four-door saloon), estate, and as a van. Introducing the Violet allowed Nissan to moderately increase the dimensions of the existing Datsun Bluebird. The sporty SSS model has rear independent suspension, others have a leaf sprung rear. Aside from the different name, the North American market 710 received large separate bumpers rather than the curved, fitted pieces used in other markets to comply with United States bumper legislation in 1973. Early export market cars were fitted with tiny chrome cover plates to hide the holes left on top of the front fenders by the Japanese market rear view mirrors. The most powerful version offered in Japan was the fuel injected 1600 SSS-E with 110 PS (81 kW) JIS at 6200 rpm. In export markets the twin-carb 160J SSS claimed 95 PS (70 kW) DIN, five more than the regular 160J. In Japan, the 1800 cc engine arrived in October 1975 and was only available running on LPG, for taxi use. This vehicle was available for sale around the same time as the first generation Toyota Carina. The original four-door bodywork was quite swoopy, with a fastback line. It was one of the first Nissan products to introduce "coke bottle styling", an appearance that had debuted internationally during the 1960s and 1970s. Its controversial appearance led to a certain number of customer complaints, not only about the looks but also at the limited rear vision and dark rear cabin - especially for children. Taxi compan

A10 series (1977–1981)

When the first generation Violet was replaced in May 1977, it grew more rational and somewhat larger than the over-designed original model. Nissan increased the glass area by ten percent vis-à-vis its predecessor. It was also joined by two badge engineered versions: the slightly more expensive Nissan Auster went on sale alongside the Violet and was aiming for an air of "quality and youthfulness." This was accomplished by having a different grille treatment, a somewhat altered dashboard with more round gauges, and offering the option of a dog-leg, five-speed manual transmission. The Auster lineup also received a rear stabilizer bar, for improved handling. The more luxurious, more "European" Stanza followed in August 1977; it was only offered in the higher equipment levels and was also differentiated by having a different bonnet and single rectangular lights rather than the twin round units seen on the Violet and Auster. Stanza, which is Italian for "room" or "apartment", was sold via Nissan Japan dealerships Nissan Saito Store. The more basic Violet, positioned as an affordable family car one level above the Nissan Sunny, was sold at dealership locations called Nissan Cherry Store. The Nissan Auster, which is named for the Latin equivalent of the Greek god Notus for the south wind, was available at Nissan Prince Stores. In Australia, the A10 was called the Datsun Stanza, while in Canada and the United States it was sold as the Datsun 510, a name which recalled the successes of the previous Datsun 510. The 1.6-litre L16 had been updated in February 1976 and continued as a carry-over from the previous generation, but the 1.4-litre L14 engine was replaced with the new A-series engine (not available in the Stanza), producing 80 PS (59 kW) at 6,000 rpm. North American market

T11 series (1981–1986)

A front-wheel drive Stanza was introduced in 1981 – the first middle-class Datsun to be of that configuration, and the first Japanese car in the category built to the principles which had been established in Europe for this class since a few years back. In Europe, front-wheel drive and a liftback design were becoming the norm in this segment, although more traditional Japanese buyers still preferred the rear-wheel drive Bluebird. It remained on sale in Britain until 1986, after which Nissan sold the first British-built Bluebird as its only product in this market sector. Nissan was previously building a smaller, front wheel drive car, beginning with the 1970 Nissan Cherry, and then reconfigured the Violet to front wheel drive. 3-door hatchback, 4-door saloon, and 5-door liftback models were produced. After 1982, Nissan tried to standardize the Stanza name in its export markets – in addition to phasing out the Datsun marque in favor of Nissan. In the United States the T11 Stanza with the CA20S engine replaced the 510 for the 1982 model year. In the United States, the Nissan Prairie was also sold as part of the range, renamed the Stanza Wagon. In 1984, Nissan changed the engine in the Stanza from the carbureted CA20S to the fuel-injected 2.0 L, straight-four CA20E. This car was 1981 Semperit Irish Car of the Year in Ireland. Japanese and some other export models were called "Stanza FX", and were offered with 1.6 and 1.8 L engines. This version was sold in the United Kingdom and Europe as the Nissan Stanza; the range was "L" 1.6 L, "GL" 1.6 L, "SGL" 1.6 L and "SGL" 1.8 L. Some markets (such as Belgium, where it came fitted with the full SGL equipment) also received a 1.7-litre turbodiesel engine with 73 PS (54 kW), beginning with the 1984 model year. European market cars w

T12 series (1986–1990)

Nissan renewed the Auster and Stanza lines in 1986 (T12 series), introducing squared-off styling. Japan and the US received this model. The US Stanza used the same CA20E engine found in the previous generation. The car was unusually heavy for its class, due to sharing a platform with the contemporary Maxima and as a result of its small engine, underpowered. In markets outside of North America, Nissan also offered turbocharged models, badged "Bluebird GTi" in Europe and "Stanza Supremo" in Japan; the sister model was called the "Auster XTT". Europe received a version of the Nissan Auster as a Datsun/Nissan Bluebird replacement. These were built in Sunderland, in the United Kingdom, and badged as the Nissan Bluebird. The estate was the only "real" Bluebird in this range, imported from Japan. In the Middle East, the T12 Auster/Stanza T12 was called the Nissan Liberta (not to be confused with the Nissan Liberta Villa), a partial replacement of the Nissan Liberta Violet T11. The Stanza line was not seen in most other export markets after the 1986 model year. The growth of the Sunny and Pulsar models from below meant there was little room for it. Bluebird (Europe). The T12 was introduced in Europe in 1985 as a replacement for the U11 Bluebird. From July 1986, the T12 was imported as a knock-down kit from Japan and assembled at Nissan Motor Manufacturing UK. The saloon versions (four door) were available first and the hatchback (five door) became available in January 1987. Using the U11 platform, Bluebird Estates were still sourced from Japan. Although it was not the first Japanese car to be built in Britain (the Honda-based Triumph Acclaim predated it by five years), the Bluebird was instrumental in proving that a British factory could produce vehicles to the same quality sta

U12 series (1989–1992)

For the 1990 model year, the American version of the Stanza was replaced by a basic version of the Nissan Bluebird (U12), wearing Stanza badges. In Japan, the Stanza was replaced by the Nissan Cefiro while the Auster was replaced by the Nissan Primera also in 1990. The JDM Bluebird has the rear license plate higher between the tail lights, whereas the Stanza's is mounted on the bumper. In Australia, this generation is called Pintara, and it's similar to the JDM model. The fourth generation was offered in North America in two trim levels, "XE" and "GXE", with a sportier SE trim added for 1992. The 4th Gen used the 2.4 L inline-4 Nissan KA24E engine, an upgrade from previous generations in displacement (from 1974 cc to 2398 cc), power (from 94 hp (70 kW) to 138 hp (103 kW)), and torque (from 114 lb⋅ft (155 N⋅m) to 148 lb⋅ft (201 N⋅m)). The KA engine was not used on Japanese-spec Bluebirds. The fourth generation had EPA estimated fuel economy of 18 mpg‑US (13 L/100 km; 22 mpg‑imp) city and 25 mpg‑US (9.4 L/100 km; 30 mpg‑imp) highway for the 4-speed automatic transmission. For the 5-speed manual transmission the Stanza has EPA estimated fuel economy of 18 mpg‑US (13 L/100 km; 22 mpg‑imp) city and 26 mpg‑US (9.0 L/100 km; 31 mpg‑imp) highway. The Stanza was discontinued after the 1992 model year, superseded by the American-built, Bluebird-based Altima. The last American Stanza was assembled on 27 March 1992, its nameplate used on in the first generation Altima, which was marketed as the "Nissan Stanza Altima".

Sections adapted from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0); text is shortened. Read the full article for the complete history and citations.

Specifications

name

Nissan Violet

aka

Datsun Violet, Nissan Auster, Datsun/Nissan Stanza

Manufacturer

Nissan (Nissan Shatai)

Production

1973–1992

Class

Compact

Layout

Front-engine, RWD (1973–1981), Front-engine, FWD (1982–1992)

Successor

Nissan Altima (US), Nissan Bluebird, Nissan Primera (Europe), Nissan Tiida

Assembly

Oppama Plant and Hiratsuka Plants, Kanagawa, Japan, Rosslyn, Gauteng, South Africa

Specification summary from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Check the linked sources for citations.

More photos

Sources

• Wikidata — https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q1993858CC0 1.0 · retrieved 2026-10-01
• Wikipedia — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nissan_VioletCC BY-SA 4.0 · Text © Wikipedia contributors; revision 1371218982 · retrieved 2026-10-01
• Wikimedia Commons — https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:STANZA1st.jpgCC BY 3.0 · Photo: CEFICEFI · retrieved 2026-10-01
• Car Model Index — https://models.autoculturesociety.com/Compiled record. Sources that do not permit reuse are not copied; this index is credited instead.

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