When is a Nissan not a Nissan? When it’s a Mitsuoka. This leads to the next question: if it also looks like a Zimmer, and is built like a Zimmer, but is assembled in Japan, then what the heck is it?
It’s a Le Seyde.
You can be forgiven for not catching this one right away, as only 500 examples of the 1992 Mitsuoka Le Seyde shown in this eBay auction listing were ever built. It’s described as a Nissan. Welcome to the weird world of ultra-custom Japanese cars that are so niche that they fall outside of even Japanese tastes, and according to the seller, mostly end up being exported to Great Britain.
The rear of the car is smoother than the 1970s Zimmer retro-luxo mobile that inspired its styling.
Mitsuoka Motor Company started in 1979 as a coachbuilder that hand-produces exotic bodywork that it wraps around existing vehicles. The company continues to produce some of the wackiest blended models and micro-cars you’ll ever see. Its latest model, the Ryugiwagon, is a blend of a Toyota Corolla hybrid wagon (not sold in the US) and, get ready, a Rolls-Royce.
Mitsuoka Motor Company’s 2016 Ryugiwagon
In the creation of Le Seyde (sometimes spelled Le-Seyde), Mitsuoka clearly drew its inspiration from Zimmer “faux classic” cars of the 1970s, which were were titanic beasts typically sitting on the frames of full-size luxury cars. If that wasn’t odd enough, Le Seyde went the opposite route and chose the Nissan Silvia coupe’s underpinning as the hose for its custom fiberglass body.
Sold in the US as the Nissan 240SX, this car would later rise to prominence as the drift weapon of choice for aspiring racers, but back in the day it was mostly known for its sleek lines and its dependable arsenal of four-cylinder motors, including the turbocharged SR20DET.
The tight dimensions of the 240SX chassis, combined with the styling zeitgeist of the early ‘90s, created a Zimmer-clone that was distinctly smoother at the roof and the rear as compared to its predecessor. Paired with an automatic transmission and a naturally-aspirated 2.0-liter four-cylinder delivering well under 200 horsepower, the Le Seyde provides distinctly genteel acceleration, although according to owners, handling was not compromised as compared to its Nissan roots.
The Nissan roots are most visible inside the cockpit.
The original run of Le Seyde sold out in an incredible four days, and two other versions were later put on the market by Mitsuoka—including a convertible based on the Fox-body Mustang (with 5.0 V8 power), and another 240-derived car (the S15 Silvia platform).
It’s uncommon to see these cars for sale in North America, but the Canadian origins of this auction make sense when considering the laxer import laws on that side of the border. It’s likely at least a few years before this 1992 model is totally legal for registration in the United States, but in the meantime you could pick it up now and just admire it in your garage until it’s time to prowl your local cruise in a car everyone will mistake for something it’s not. They probably won’t believe the truth even when told all about the Nissan-Zimmer mashup.
