Nissan’s Japanese students have been let loose ahead of this year’s Tokyo Auto Salon motor show, unveiling three unique cars which show what they can do without design boundaries.
Students from the Nissan Automobile College are taught to do everything from work with sheetmetal to vehicle painting, maintenance and even motorsports training.
For January’s Tokyo Auto Salon, students from Nissan’s Aichi and Kyoto vehicle system study campuses have created a trio of concepts which take inspiration from modern and classic models.
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Perhaps the most eye-catching of the three is the Kyoto team’s ‘Z Lealia’ – claimed to be a combination of ‘Lead’ and ‘Familia’ – it’s a wagon with the face and rear design from the Z sports coupe.
Based on the M35-generation Stagea wagon, the fourth year students grafted the bumper of the Z onto the front of the long-roof model, while the rear end is an amalgamation of the Z’s wheel-arches, tail lights and roof with the back of a Nissan Leaf electric hatch.
The exterior is finished in the Z’s Ikazuchi Yellow hero colour, while the interior has been largely unchanged, except for the addition of black and yellow trim, as well as the Z’s steering wheel.
It wasn’t the only vehicle made by the Kyoto team, who also created the ‘NEO Skyline’, a homage to the fourth-generation Skyline Hardtop, sold in Australia as the Datsun 240K.
Also known as the Kemmeri Skyline – named as such due to an ad campaign which featured characters Ken and Mary – the V35-generation based remake was designed with “customers in their 30s to 50s in mind”.
The NEO name stands for Nostalgia, Enthusiastic and Original, though there’s not much original about the design which is part classic Skyline, and part Fiat Coupe (if you squint hard enough).
Like the Z Lealia, the interior changes are largely limited to trim colour and a deep-dish steering wheel. However, its exterior is finished in an all-new paint colour, named Tomoaki Blue.
The final of the three concepts is the Bluebird Kiwami, built by third-year students at the Aichi campus’ maintenance and car body master course.
Based on the PU11 Bluebird Maxima of the 1980s, the four-four sedan is a modern build for young car enthusiasts, with wide boxy guards, a large front bumper, ducktail spoiler and deep rear bumper.
The Aurora Flare Blue Pearl paint colour is from the R35 GT-R, while the Nardi steering wheel and Work wheels are straight from 1990s and 2000s car modifying culture.
These won’t be the only interesting concepts Nissan is bringing to the 2025 Tokyo Auto Salon, with an electric version of the classic R32 Skyline GT-R also set to be displayed.
