On Day 5 of our trip to Japan, Greg and I visited the Nissan Global Headquarters in Yokohama. It's no secret that we don't always see eye to eye with corporate or their product development team. However, when you get down to the basics, we all share a love for the brand. When we were offered a tour of the headquarters and the collection of cars housed here, we couldn't pass up the opportunity. The majority of cars were modern, showing off Nissan's new technology. There was a stunning hand built drivetrain of the current GTR. They also had a beautiful 1952 DC-3, a 1961 Roadster, and a Bluebird Deluxe (very similar to our '63 Bluebird, just fancier).

The headquarters is unique because the walkway through the upper level that looks down on the showroom is open to the public. Approximately 30,00 - 40,000 people a day walk through that building going from the Yokohama train station (the 5th largest in the world) to the heart of Yokohama downtown. Everyone is welcome to come down, grab a cup of coffee from the Starbucks in the lobby, and check out the cars. Staff are on hand to answer any questions you might have. That's a pretty brilliant way to advertise to the masses.

Many thanks to Dan Passe and Dan Sloan for the tour and the hospitality. We really do appreciate it and hope to see you both again.

Below is the link to the pictures. Feel free to ask questions about any of them and I'll be happy to give you details. There was no way we could post up all the pics - there were almost 2,000 of them all together- so we just made an album on the site so you could look at your leisure. There was no way I was taking the time to post a description of each one either. There will be several separate threads so make sure you read them all. The links are specific.

PICTURES
http://www.nicoclub.com/archives/japan- ... rters.html

Things to know about Nissan HQ:
1) There is a Starbucks in the lobby of HQ. If you want to go look at the cars after you finish your coffee, you can just leave your bags on the table and go snap some pictures. Seriously, no one will bother your things. It will all be there when you return, as you left it.
2) Many westerners work for Nissan in Japan and not all of them speak Japanese. Don't try to guess which ones do / don't. You'll be fooled every time.
3) Turns out, all classic Datsuns leak, even the ones in HQ. (If you'll look closely at the pics of the Bluebird, you'll notice the drip pan underneath.
4) The hand built GTR drivetrain is stunningly beautiful. It looks like jewelry.
5) Nissan likes to NISMO all the things. The Z, to be expected. You can also get a NISMO version of the Note, the Rogue (X-trail), the Juke, and the Serena.
6) Nissan does not offer the Murano, the Pathfinder, the Titan, or the Armada in Japan. The traffic lanes are too narrow to accommodate them.


Again, if you have questions about anything, ask away!

You should have worn a Tshirt the whole time that says "CVT's Suck"

3) Turns out, all classic Datsuns leak, even the ones in HQ...

As I like to say, "family runs deep". That's staying true to form. Kudos Nissan

6) Nissan does not offer the Murano, the Pathfinder, the Titan, or the Armada in Japan. The traffic lanes are too narrow to accommodate them.

Interesting tidbit here. I always knew Japan built-and-also-used vehicles ran a little slimmer than most rhings from Tennessee (for example the y34 M45 was stingy on hip room, as was the R50 pathfinder), but the armada is a little of a surprise considering the Patrol from which it is based should be in Japan. Well, I suppose the extra inch across the waist of the US market SUVs doesn't cut it in the motherland.

This will definitely be on my list if I found myself in Japan. Thanks for sharing