We have heard rumors detailing a born-again Nissan Silvia — which was often known as the 200SX and the 240SX in the US — for almost 20 years. We have even seen ideas illustrating what it might seem like. These rumors have by no means materialized, however executives are conscious that the mannequin continues to take pleasure in a loyal following, and Nissan revealed it hasn’t dominated out dusting off the nameplate sooner or later.
Ivan Espinosa, the model’s vice chairman of world product technique, advised High Gear that “a far-fetched concept could be one thing like a brand new Silvia positioned [beneath the GT-R] with adequate energy on the proper worth that clients discover engaging.” He added that “there’s numerous Silvia followers in every single place,” and that bringing again the Silvia is his “dream.” It takes greater than an govt’s remark to create a automobile, nonetheless.
Inserting the following Silvia beneath the GT-R is a given. It has traditionally been positioned beneath the Z when it comes to energy and worth, and it is slightly troublesome to think about Nissan launching a mannequin above the GT-R. The present-generation automobile, which is on its method out, options 600 horsepower and prices about $223,000 together with vacation spot in its strongest and costliest configuration. Studying between the strains suggests the Silvia might return as Nissan’s reply to the Toyota GR86, the Subaru BRZ, and the Mazda MX-5 Miata and priced at about $30,000.
The issue is that the marketplace for sporty, budget-friendly coupes and convertibles is shrinking. Toyota bought 11,078 models of the GR86 in the US in 2023, a rounding error in comparison with the 1,928,228 automobiles it bought right here that 12 months. The mannequin is now not accessible in Europe as of earlier in 2024 as a result of it would not adjust to new security laws, so Toyota cannot rely on European lovers to prop up gross sales.
On this context, can Nissan make a good enterprise case for a brand new Silvia?
“The probabilities are there, however in the long run it is a enterprise so I want to search out methods to make this kind of proposal fascinating to the corporate,” stated Espinosa. “Typically automobiles like this do battle a bit as a result of the viewers is not that massive, however it will possibly work if we discover the proper concept that may be run in every single place on the earth. There’s a likelihood. It will be a problem, but it surely’s my job to search out methods to do stuff like this as a result of I feel it’s going to be nice for patrons and for the model, and if I can put the proper system in place we might make it work.” Put one other method: By no means say by no means.
Nissan shelved the Silvia nameplate in 2002, when it ended manufacturing of the S15-generation mannequin in Japan. This technology of the automobile was not bought in the US. Its predecessor, the S14-generation Silvia, was accessible right here because the 240SX via the 1998 mannequin 12 months. And whereas the S15 retired with out a successor, the Foria idea (pictured) unveiled in 2005 confirmed what a alternative might have seemed like.