Nissan Tsuru

"Eric @ opposite-lock.com" (theyrerolling) 11/14/2016 at 07:50 • Filed to: Mexico

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I’m not sure how I feel about this car. It’s sort of the modern VW Beetle of many parts of the developing world and was clearly exceptionally popular here in Mexico. Around here, I’d estimate that about 1/3-1/2 of taxis are Tsurus, followed by Versas, and Sentras. They’ve been making them with only the slightest updates since 1991, so large portions of the design are at least 25 years old, which means the earliest examples of the B13 Sentra would be eligible for vintage/collector plates in most states...

“1991 car design that people still buy new. Deal with it.”

Honestly, I kind of like dat ass better than the old US spec ones.

One of the good things about a car becoming common, like the Beetle, is that parts become common and therefore cheap. I can definitely understand the appeal.

They are unusually small, though, and it becomes glaringly clear when you compare one to basically anything modern. Not sure how these are practical for transporting more than about 4-5 people at a time (We once crammed three fat Americans in the back seat of one and another up front, but that was a really tight squeeze.). After being in one, the Versa feels cavernous.

What are your thoughts and/or how do you feel about Nissan selling them in almost unchanged form all these years?

Also: I’m up watching the supermoon.

pip bip - choose Corrour > Eric @ opposite-lock.com 11/14/2016 at 07:54

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we never got them down under.

Eric @ opposite-lock.com > pip bip - choose Corrour 11/14/2016 at 07:55

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You ever got the B13 Sentra? I thought it was sold almost everywhere...

jimz > Eric @ opposite-lock.com 11/14/2016 at 07:56

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Foisting unsafe, obsolete stuff onto developing countries doesn’t seem all that noble to me.

Eric @ opposite-lock.com > jimz 11/14/2016 at 08:08

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They’ve been selling them since they weren’t considered “unsafe” or “obsolete”. You could argue the same was true of the Beetle, except for basically the entire world (and plenty of those are still wandering the streets here). In a Beetle-Tsuru accident, I’d much rather be in the latter than the former.

When it comes down to it, a lot of cars sold here are terrible from a safety standpoint, even new cars that aren’t or can’t be sold in countries with strict safety regulations.

duurtlang > Eric @ opposite-lock.com 11/14/2016 at 08:09

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Never got it in Europe either. Not in my part of Europe at least. We got the Nissan Sunny (/Pulsar) instead. I haven’t seen one in ages.

pip bip - choose Corrour > Eric @ opposite-lock.com 11/14/2016 at 08:24

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no.

EL_ULY > Eric @ opposite-lock.com 11/14/2016 at 08:32

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Long live the Tiida (new Tsuru)

Jack Does Cars > Eric @ opposite-lock.com 11/14/2016 at 08:52

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Bainbridge must be a bit too wet if you want to retreat to Mexico.

RT > duurtlang 11/14/2016 at 09:07

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Yep, there was the Sunny instead, but we did get the estate version of the Sentra/Tsuru available for a limited time.

duurtlang > RT 11/14/2016 at 09:08

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Interesting. I remember those and they do look a bit different than the normal Sunny. A bit more, I don’t know, agricultural.

RT > duurtlang 11/14/2016 at 09:13

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Yeah, this bodystyle was sold under a different name in Japan after all, so I guess that ‘agricultural’ look was intentional. It’s like an Astravan with windows.

Vicente Esteve > Eric @ opposite-lock.com 11/14/2016 at 09:29

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As someone who has driven a couple, and lived around them they are an institution. This car is THE car that defined Nissans reputation in the country.

I can safely say that thanks to the Tsuru, Nissan is (and has been for a long time) the best selling car brand in Mexico.

As for the car, it can be fixed in the side of the road with stuff in your kitchen (Seen that happen.). To drive, it is a PAIN. Manual steering, crank windows, no AC, hardest seats in any vehicle, surfaces that can make you bleed. It literally is a mule, but it is a mule that won’t die.

Is it sad to see it go? For taxi drivers I guess, but it had to be done. The issue is though that the Mexican does this with any car that isn’t that unreliable. They buy loads of them, and when the new gen comes out they keep the older ones with other model designations such as “classic” or “first”. It happened with the MK4 Jetta, the MK1 Vauxhall Corsa, the last gen Nissan Versa and currently the last gen Spark. The cars can’t stand the test of time and they become literal deathtraps due to the stubbornness of the Mexican buyer but no one learns. Either way, farewell Tsuru.  

Cé hé sin > Eric @ opposite-lock.com 11/14/2016 at 10:06

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Nope. Nowhere in Europe so far as I know.

Got this instead.

Followed by the Almera (widely sold) and the Tiida (sold in only a few places and in small numbers) and then by the Cashcow.

Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To > Eric @ opposite-lock.com 11/14/2016 at 11:44

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I have a rusty `1993 Sentra SE-R. It is returning to Mother Earth with disturbing rapidness but it’s fun as all hell to drive.

Eric @ opposite-lock.com > Cé hé sin 11/14/2016 at 13:57

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Cashcow = Qashqai?

Eric @ opposite-lock.com > Jack Does Cars 11/14/2016 at 14:09

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Not really. Vacation. I do not enjoy this heat.

Cé hé sin > Eric @ opposite-lock.com 11/14/2016 at 14:31

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That’s the one!

Jack Does Cars > Eric @ opposite-lock.com 11/14/2016 at 14:35

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Ah. I miss Bainbridge, haven’t been there in over a year.

Aaaron > Eric @ opposite-lock.com 11/15/2016 at 14:03

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You might wanna do a little more research before writing off the beetle as being more unsafe than the Tsuru. I’ve been in crashes in beetles. They are really tough in accidents, the front crumples properly, and the cab keeps its shape pretty well.

Look at how much the front half of the cab in the Tsuru crumples...