We haven’t had a Mitsuoka post in a long time. I am sorry about that, but the rate of 2-3 Mitsuoka posts per annum we had in 2019-23 was unsustainable and it took a little while for stocks to replenish. But now, the hunt is back on and we can go back to examining a few more of the goofier models put out by Japan’s newest and smallest “carmaker.” It’s going to be a “Weird and Small JDM Week” for T87, folks.
It took me a while to find a Yuga. I did encounter a couple of them here and there, but either they were on the move or not accessible for an extended photo session. The main problem is that they are very rare beasts: some sources say Mitsuoka only sold 200 of these from March 2000 to October 2001. Even by Mitsuoka’s modest standards, that was a bit of a dud.
Why did this London taxi wannabe fail to capture the heart, minds and wallets of the notoriously Anglophile Japanese customer? I don’t know. Perhaps because the Austin FX4, though it is an icon of British automotive culture, remains a taxi, and few people want to drive around in something that looks like a cab. Whereas folks do like to own Nissans that look like shrunken Mark 2 Jags or some kind of store-brand Bentley.
The Yuga is based on the first generation (1998-2002) Nissan Cube, which itself is based on the Nissan March K11 and featured a 1348cc DOHC 4-cyl., usually mated to a 4-speed automatic. Not a bad choice for a London Taxi lookalike, which had a bulky, wagon-like shape to it. It also had bigger wheels than the Nissan, which helped in making it look like a rather dignified estate, as opposed to a life-sized HotWheels friction toy.
Another issue is the design of the body kit itself, which is a little uneven. Mitsuoka did a decent job with the front end, i.e. it does look like a classic Austin FX4 from this angle (if you squint real hard on a foggy day).
But for the rear end, the FX4’s classic vertical taillight clusters, which are very distinctive, were inexplicably replaced by these anonymous-looking bulbs. The very definition of half-assed, especially when contemporary Princess VdP lookalikes managed to integrate very convincing BMC-shaped taillights in their body kits. For shame, Mitsuoka. We expected better of you.
Nothing much to report about the interior, except that it’s probably a lot better to sit in than the old Austin taxi ever was. There were apparently two trim levels – “Deluxe” and “Royal” – but I’m not sure which one of these were looking at here, as it’s all stock Z10 Cube in here. The Nissan branding on the steering wheel replaced by a Mitsuoka script, but that’s the extent of the changes they implemented.
Given the nature of the beast, there was a long list of extras and customization options available, including leather seats, wood inserts and the like, as shown in this brochure shot. Whoever ordered our featured car, however, didn’t tick many (if any) of those boxes. None of that bling would have belonged in an Austin Taxi anyway – they were not known for their club atmosphere.
All Mitsuoka model names mean something. “Yūga” is a word in Japanese, it means “elegance.” I’m not sure that was the most apt epithet for this particular car. There are some Mitsuokas that might lean towards elegance (again, in foggy conditions), but this one would not have been the one I would have picked.
Just like some artists become more widely appreciated posthumously, the Yuga became more sought-after about decade after its initial production run. This has led to many Yuga copies, known in Mitsuoka-speak as “make-up cars.” These are based on the widely-available gen 1 Cube and fitted with Mitsuoka-sourced bits, but the job is done by a third party and the cars are not titled as Mitsuokas. Crazy as it may sound, there are now rumoured to be more “make-up Yugas” on the market than the real thing.
Is this one an original Yuga or a later recreation? I have no idea – without looking at the registration or the chassis plate, it’s nigh on impossible to tell. The license plate is no help, as it’s a Setagaya number and those were only created in 2014. Ultimately, it doesn’t matter much anyway. Whether it’s a 25-year-old Yuga or a 25-year-old Cube subsequently dressed to look like a Yuga, it’s now part of the great Mitsuoka family, for better and for some of the worst neo-Anglo-retro designs ever attempted. Thank you for stopping, Cabbie, but on second thought, I’ll walk.
I hope it is has the smell of diesel and an AI voice telling you that ‘See that (insert name of any woman in the press). I’d (expletive deleted) her one. Etc.’
A repro of a repro! That’s like Simulated Pleather, or Imitation DiNoc!
Looked at this twice today, still no looking any better. Eye of the beholder?
I can appreciate the thought behind these. The idea of making a London cab (-ish) with modern underpinnings certainly has some appeal but I cannot imagine that the result filled anyone with a sense of accomplishment on the implementation. The proportions are just too off which is a shame as they did a nice job on the nose. The second to last photo looks quite good with the bushes hiding the last 2/3 of the car. 🙂
I quite like these retro mixes. The early Viewt’s are charming in their own way but sadly this one misses the mark. They must have some fans as when I look on the inventories of importable JDM cars these seem to have retained more value than I would have thought.
This is one where the more you look at it, the worse it gets. Mitsuoka is the leader when it comes to awkward, misshapen cars but this must be one of their most “interesting” efforts.
Certainly excited for a whole week of this – you’ve set the bar high on the first day T87!
To me, everything is “fine”, in a Mitsuoka kinda of way, except for the rear section of the rear door, or specifically it’s interface with that little window. It screams for some kind of louvre (as terrible as those things are) or whatever is in the place of a side window in an Alfa Romeo Montreal, anything to get rid of the triple rear window (as much as that might make Jimmy Steward and Alfred Hitchkok fans happy).
If you think about it, it’s no weirder than the weird DS420 Limo from Daimler, and they had Jaguar’s money and styling studio to work with, or the Vanden Plas Princess, and they had BMC’s money to blow, or the Triumph Mayflower.
typo (how did that happen?) Jimmy Stewart