24 years. That’s how far short Nissan fell of Volkswagen’s successful 49-year run of the Beetle in Mexico, where it was known as the Sédan or vocho. Still, 25 years is a very long time for a car to be sold with no meaningful changes. The 1991 third-generation Tsuru effectively replaced the venerable Volkswagen as Mexico’s most popular car and almost two million units have been produced since the car’s launch. Now, production is wrapping up.
The first two generations of Tsuru mirrored the US and Canadian-market Sentra. The Tsuru replaced the Datsun Sédan (710/Violet) as Nissan’s core model in Mexico in 1983. Tsuru is the Japanese word for crane and it wasn’t the only new name for the Mexican Sentra derivative: the first-generation Tsuru hatchback was called the Samurai and a latter sports variant was dubbed the Ninja Turbo. Much more interesting than Sentra!
Although the current generation of Tsuru has been sold for 25 long years, the first- and second-generation Tsuru followed the same production cycle as the Sentra. The second-generation, badged Tsuru II, was introduced in 1987 and was again available in sedan and wagon guises.
A hatchback coupe, identical to the Sentra Sport Coupe, was also offered. In Mexico, this was known as the Hikari (‘light’).
Although both the first and second generation Tsuru sold well, they didn’t topple the VW Sédan. The tide was turning, however. The Mexican car market’s restrictive tariffs and barriers to entry were gradually reduced during the early 1990s and more modern competitors arrived. The Mexican government also paid more attention to the worsening problem of air quality in the country. This was a serious problem in Mexico City in particular, a sprawling metropolis home to thousands and thousands of vochos, many serving taxi duty. The government stepped in to curb the Volkswagen’s popularity, with Mexico City eventually banning their use as taxis; with only two doors, kidnappers found a VW taxi to be an effective way of trapping their prey. Although the Beetle remained on price lists until 2003, sales were in decline by the 1990s and two cars had quickly filled the vacuum.
One was the Chevrolet Chevy, a Mexican-built version of the Opel Corsa, introduced in 1994.
Even more successful was the third-generation Tsuru, launched in 1991 and identical to the Sentra sold north of the border but manufactured in Mexico.
In 1993, the Tsuru sedans were joined once again by a related wagon, badged Tsubame (“swallow” in Japanese).
A high-performance model known as the 2000 GSR was also offered, sharing the Sentra SE-R’s 140 hp 2.0 four-cylinder.
But it was the regular Tsuru sedan that proved to be the most popular variant by far, outliving the Tsubame and 2000 GSR. The third-generation Tsuru had been launched with a carbureted 1.6 four-cylinder engine mated to a five-speed manual transmission. It gained electronic fuel injection after a couple of years, bumping horsepower up to 115 and torque up to 102 ft-lbs.
The Tsuru went through a significant round of decontenting after the 1994 Mexican economic crisis in order to keep prices low. Power also slumped to 105 hp due to a new, cheaper valve design. The low price of the Tsuru meant it became one of Mexico’s best-selling cars, taking the top spot on the charts for several years in a row despite the Tsuru receiving no changes beyond minor trim details after 1994.
Nissan’s quest to keep the Tsuru’s price low meant the Tsuru never received airbags or anti-lock brakes. Rear brakes were drums, a rear anti-roll bar was missing and the car rode on tiny 13-inch wheels. It also lacked side impact beams and passive restraints.
It was this lack of safety features that resulted in an abysmal 0-star Latin NCAP score in 2014. That organization has attributed 4,000 deaths to the Tsuru’s poor safety and has been vocal in its opposition to the Tsuru’s continued production, something which Nissan finally acknowledged last year by announcing the car’s discontinuation.
Cars sold in the Mexican market do not have to meet any specific crash safety standards, a glaring omission that the government is rectifying by the end of the decade. Mexico isn’t the only market with lax safety standards, however, as the Tsuru is exported to numerous markets abroad.
A low list price has long enticed buyers of new Tsurus. The base price is just under 150,000 pesos, or $USD7500. That’s very cheap, but not as cheap as you would think. This ancient compact costs roughly the same as low-end models of the Chevrolet Spark, Hyundai Grand i10 and Volkswagen Up. Granted, most of those also lack airbags and ABS. However, eminently more modern sedans like the Renault Logan, Volkswagen Gol and Ford Figo offer these safety features and cost only around 10,000 pesos more. It’s apparent, then, why the Tsuru’s sales have been on the decline. Not all of those newer machines are safer, though: the Chevrolet Aveo, a Mexican-built edition of our Sonic’s predecessor, received a 0-star score from Latin NCAP as well. ¡Que malo!
Nissan hasn’t relied solely on the Tsuru for volume. Newer generations of the Sentra have been offered concurrently with the dated Tsuru, as has the Versa.
From 2002 until 2010, Nissan sold the Platina in Mexico, a fruit of the Renault-Nissan alliance that was effectively a sedan version of the Renault Clio. This was badged in other markets as the Renault Symbol, however Nissan stuck its own badges on it due to the enormous popularity of the Nissan brand in Mexico. Despite this, Platina sales decreased each year it was on sale.
Even less successful was the Aprio, a rebadged Dacia Logan built in Brazil and sold between 2007 and 2010. Considering the glut of subcompacts and compacts sold by Nissan de México at any one time, Renault-Nissan eventually decided to sell Renaults and Dacias under the Renault name. This left Nissan with the B-segment March (Micra), Tsuru, Versa and Sentra. At present, Nissan is selling all of those models; both the current generation and the previous generation of Versa are sold in Mexico, the latter badged ‘Tiida’.
The Tsuru won’t be replaced directly, leaving those other compacts – plus increasingly popular crossovers like the Nissan Kicks – to pick up the slack. The Tsuru’s finale is being commemorated with a special Buen Camino limited edition, named after a commonly-used farewell. All models will feature a unique metallic blue paint – Azúl Orion – as well as unique wheelcovers and an aftermarket stereo.
Although the Tsuru still sells well, it has not been Mexico’s best-selling car for several years. Still, Nissan remains one of the dominant players in the Mexican market, along with GM and Volkswagen, even though the Mexican market is host to a wider variety of brands than the US.
Anybody who has been to Mexico in the past 25 years will have ridden in a Tsuru taxi, generally driven aggressively and with no seat belt available to secure one’s self. These cars are extraordinarily popular with taxi drivers because of their fuel economy, reliability and ease and affordability of repair.
Many vocho owners held onto their cars as, despite their high emissions and old technology, they had become a rather beloved fixture of Mexican society. It’s possible many Tsuru owners will feel the same.
When Beetle sales declined considerably during the 1990s, two cars – one from GM, one from Nissan – took its place at the very top of the sales charts. The same scenario has played out with the Tsuru’s decline and demise, as the Chevrolet Aveo and Nissan Versa have become Mexico’s best-selling cars.
I wonder if I’ll be writing a similar retrospective on the Versa’s 25 years of service, or if the Mexican car market will continue to look more and more like the US and other Western markets. Perhaps multi-decade model runs will become a thing of the past. Venerable vehicles like the Tsuru and India’s Hindustan Ambassador are brimming with charm and history but a 0-star NCAP safety rating is something no new car should have, regardless of what market it’s sold in. And that’s why Nissan is bidding the Tsuru buen camino.
Related Reading:
CC Global: The Mexican Carscape In 2016 – Part I, The Newer Metal
CC Global: The Mexican Carscape In 2016 – Part II, The Older Metal
CC Global: The Cars And Facades Of Colonia Obrera, Mexico City
Curbside Classic: 1985 Nissan Sentra (B11) – A Fish Out Of Rodeo Drive
Great writeup.
“for a car to be sold with no meaningful changes.”
I wouldn’t bank on this. This car was seriously modified from the original B13: hard plastic dash, Renault gearbox (according to some sites) and who knows what else. That it looks essentially the same as it did 25 years ago does not mean it hasn’t changed. And that is before we go into the mandatory running changes made from time to time to reduce costs and/or increase efficiency 😉
To keep selling strongly for so many years, a car needs to be [i]amigo del pobre[/i] (friend of the poor): strong, reliable, f-all running costs, easy and cheap to fix, which means parts are plentiful and every mechanic out there knows how to repair it.
Another factor that helps here is, these engines have a timing CHAIN, not belt. In lay terms, they may stretch and the tensors may wear, but ultimately they won’t broke, so no bent valves. No head/valve job = cheap to fix, in any country.
You’re quibbling about the word “meaningful”. Obviously some changes were made, comparable to the VW Beetle over its very long lifespan. But I would agree with William that in this case “no meaningful changes” is quite correct. It has the same body, chassis, engine, etc.. Which means that one critical aspect of its appeal is the ability to fix them easily using components from other Tsurus; not every part, obviously, but the overwhelming majority will work or can be adapted.
I think we will have to agree we disagree. Will also stand by my comment.
Could go on and tell the many possible areas that could have been changed.
The old Fiat Uno is a good example. The car sold in LATAM looked a lot like its Italian brother up to ~1989, but they were completely different animals under the skin.
Something like this may have happened to this car. But without having 2 examples side by side, I cannot honestly tell.
I have personally seen more than one timing chain break. Mazda 626. 22R Toyota. Honda XR200 dirt bike. They WILL break eventually under certain conditions.
This also explains Nissan’s popularity with the Latino population in the US. A few years ago I visited a local Nissan dealer to have a look at the NV200. I quickly realized that I was the only person on the showroom floor, employee or customer, who was a native speaker of English. I made a couple of attempts to communicate with sales people, then gave up and left.
I consider my second-generation ’98 Nissan Altima, one of Nissan’s ‘unsung-heros’.
Unloved by the motor-media when it came out, it’s been the second most reliable used car I’ve owned, after an ’87 Isuzu pickup. One of the reasons I bought it was that, unlike the late ’90s Camry and Accord, the Altima had a timing-chain. Of course, as a used car, it also was about half the price of the other two.
Happy Motoring, Mark
I likewise have had a number of trips in Tsuru taxis while down in a port city in Mexico for work. I find them incredibly endearing, and really wish I could buy something as simple and honest here in the US, with the handsome styling (inside and out) and sight-lines that something like the Versa misses out on. People love them for the cheap and available parts, their decent ground clearance, very rugged and reliable construction, and efficiency.
An excellent write-up, Will. It is mindblowing to me that a design that first went on sale when I was still in *high school* is only just now wrapping up production somewhere.
A college friend had this generation of Sentra SE-R in the late-90’s, and I remember those cars getting a lot of favorable press.
I’m loving the little extra international flair of CC, lately – this piece was a great contribution to that..
According to IIHS the Versa only has an Acceptable Rating so that puts things in perspective. I deal with Versas at work and think of them as unrefined kind of ugly penalty boxes, but they are Buicks compared to the Tsuru in my opinion.
In 2012 I saw a Tsuru in Columbus, NM which was really cool because back in New York almost all the similar vintage Sentras had rusted to death and I hardly ever see Mexican vehicles. I bet you could buy a Tsuru then swap VINs with a Sentra like what people do with Beetles.
http://www.iihs.org/iihs/ratings/vehicle/v/nissan/versa-4-door-sedan
Nice tribute to an evergreen. Yes, these were everywhere in our trips to Mexico, truly the “cockroaches of the camino”. Some of the taxis we rode in the smaller backwaters were in pretty marginal condition. And one could see little shops that specialized in keeping them going.
They really were the Beetle of the times. But their lack of safety features, like the Beetle before them, really did make them obsolete.
I’ve ridden in several Tsuru Taxis in Mexico, I found them to be a pretty reasonable small car, same as I thought years ago when several friends owned Sentras.
They were all aggressively driven and without seat belts as you mention, but also of note was the abhorrent lack of maintenance on the cars.
However I must take exception to your assertion that rear drums constitute a safety hazard. Nothing unsafe about drum brakes, particularly on the rear. Now if you’re in a racing situation or descending a mountain aggressively then the superior heat shedding of discs is preferable, but for normal driving drums work just fine.
Quarter of century in production is nothing compared to our NISSAN JUNIOR(zamyad)pickup that has been in production here since1970.peugeot405 is still in production here since 1988.finally MAZDA B SERIES pickup is still being built since 1978.
Can’t wait for a Persian CC to appear!
When you mention the Peugeot 405, do you mean the IKCO Samand? I believe the Samand uses Peugeot 405 mechanicals. I rode in a Samand taxi in Tbilisi, Georgia. While the ride wasn’t anything out of the ordinary, I relished in the fact that I was riding in an Iranian car. I’m also waiting for a Persian CC with bated breath!
Actually the original 405 is still in production here.i too am looking forward to write a cc .since i have been almost all over the country in past afew years&got tons of pictures in my camera s memory.as soon as i find the right filter breaking device that allows me to upload picture on a USA based website(since the stupid gvmnt here blocks anything from usa& israel).Hopefully soon.
I read this post with much interest as I returned from a trip to Mexico City three weeks ago. I had seat time in one of these Tsurus, albeit only for a short distance from Centro to La Condesa and I found it rather nostalgic to be riding in a 1990’s designed car with large windows and good visibility. The driver, an older gentleman, announced what the fare would be (70 pesos) before he started the trip and his driving was professional. I don’t remember seeing a meter in the cab. Mexico City has an extensive network of dedicated bike lanes with the EcoBici bike sharing scheme and Uber is quite popular there as well, factors which may hasten the demise of these Tsuru taxis.
I know these cars are illegal to import and register in the US, but I’d love to find a cherry B13 locally and swap all the newer Tsuru exterior and interior bits over. Plug and play modernization at its best!
Why not just swap VINs instead?
Because it’s illegal (wink wink) and wrong! (nudge nudge)