Nissan Primera
Encyclopedia
The Nissan Primera is a medium sized family car produced by the Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

ese automaker Nissan for the Japanese domestic and Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...

an markets.

Nissan Primera P10 (1990–1995)

Since 1986, Nissan had been building Bluebirds
Nissan Bluebird
Although Nissan's own materials indicate that the Bluebird name emerged in 1959, some records show that the name first adorned a 988 cc, four-door sedan in 1957, which was part of the company's 210 series...

—it was essentially a re-badged home-market Auster/Stanza
Nissan Stanza
The Nissan Stanza started out in Japan as the Nissan Violet in 1973, and then was split into two other models in 1977 called the second generation Nissan Auster and Nissan Violet . All three bore the A10 series identifier, and were built in Japan at Hiratsuka and Oppama, Incidentally, the series...

 – for the European market at its factory in Washington, Tyne and Wear
Washington, Tyne and Wear
Washington is a town in the City of Sunderland in Tyne and Wear, England. Historically part of County Durham, it joined a new county in 1974 with the creation of Tyne and Wear...

, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

.

In the autumn of 1990, Nissan replaced the UK Bluebird with the Primera. It had a conventional front-wheel drive chassis and five-speed manual gearbox, with some versions getting the option of a four-speed automatic. Power came from 1.6-litre carburetor and 1.8-litre and 2.0-litre injection gasoline engines; a 2.0-litre diesel followed from 1992 onwards, a 1.6-litre injection gasoline was introduced at the end of 1993. The 1.8-litre version was never sold in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...

. Bodystyles were four- and five-door saloons and five-door estate
Station wagon
A station wagon is a body style variant of a sedan/saloon with its roof extended rearward over a shared passenger/cargo volume with access at the back via a third or fifth door , instead of a trunk lid...

 the last of which was only made in Japan.

Nissan had deliberately targeted the car at the European market. The Primera saw Nissan's multi-link front suspension applied to front-wheel drive
Front-wheel drive
Front-wheel drive is a form of engine/transmission layout used in motor vehicles, where the engine drives the front wheels only. Most modern front-wheel drive vehicles feature a transverse engine, rather than the conventional longitudinal engine arrangement generally found in rear-wheel drive and...

 for the first time. The 2.0-litre gasoline engine received a power upgrade in 1992 which gave the then eZX, (later renamed the eGT) 150 bhp from the standard 2.0-litre engine and a top speed of around 219 km/h (or 137 mph).

Some five-door UK Primeras were exported back to Japan, Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...

 and Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...

. In the United States, the Japanese-built version of the Primera was rebadged as the Infiniti G20, part of Nissan's upper-scale Infiniti
Infiniti
is the luxury division of automaker Nissan. Infiniti officially started selling vehicles on November 8, 1989 in North America. Marketing operations have since grown to include the Middle East, South Korea, Russia, Taiwan, China, Ukraine and the United Kingdom. Infiniti began sales in additional...

 brand.

Trim levels

The Primera range came in six trim levels at launch: L, LS, LSX, GS, GSX and ZX. The 1.6-litre engine was available in L, LS and LSX trim and the 2.0-litre 115 bhp engine was available in LS, GS and GSX trim. The ZX model had a 2.0-litre 150 bhp engine. From 1992 onwards, the range was facelifted and new L, LX, SLX, SGX and eGT trim levels replaced the original naming scheme. A 2.0-litre diesel
Diesel engine
A diesel engine is an internal combustion engine that uses the heat of compression to initiate ignition to burn the fuel, which is injected into the combustion chamber...

 version was available from 1992.
L cars were basic, and had the 1.6-litre petrol engine only. LX was slightly plusher, but 2.0-litre petrol and diesel versions were also available. SLX was the mid-range model, and this also had a choice of 1.6 and 2.0 petrol, or 2.0 diesel engines. The SGX trim level was the luxury specification version; powered by the 2.0-litre 115 bhp engine. The eGT was the sporting version, with a 2.0-litre 150 bhp engine. Engine power was slightly increased in mid-1994 with the 1.6 model now producing 102 bhp and the 2.0 model, 123 bhp.

From 1994, the range received another facelift, and the trim levels were (almost) the same; although Equation replaced the basic L as the entry-level trim; like its predecessor, it had a 1.6 petrol engine, but there was no diesel option. A rare AWD option was available known as a T4 with 150 bhp.
At this time, SE also replaced SGX. A new "hot hatch
Hot hatch
Hot hatch was originally an informal automotive industry term, shortened from hot hatchback, initially coined by the British motoring press in 1984, for a high-performance derivative of a car body style consisting of a three- or five-door hatchback automobile.Vehicles of this class are based on...

" version, the SRi joined the line-up from 1994, and this had a choice of 1.6- or 2.0-litre petrol engines.

Nissan Primera P11 (1995–2002)

The second-generation Nissan Primera was launched in late 1995 in Japan and in the autumn of 1996 in Europe. Unique in its class, new Primera featured multi-link beam rear suspension with multi-link front suspension.

As before, in the UK and Europe the Primera was sold with 1.6 L and 2.0 L petrol engines and a 2.0 L diesel, with hatchback, saloon and estate bodystyles. While the estate was now based on the Primera's platform, it was assigned a model code of WP11.

In Japan the Primera was initially offered with the SR18DE and SR20DE engines, and initially only as a sedan. The UK assembled hatchback was available only with the SR20DE engine and automatic transmission and began production from November 1997. Estate began production from September 1997.

Alongside the original Primera, the Nissan Primera Camino was launched as a badge-engineered model for different dealer networks. The Japanese models also introduced a CVT automatic transmission during the P11 series, including a six speed tiptronic version in the M6 G-V wagon and Te-V Saloon.

Nissan continued selling the Primera in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 as the Infiniti G20, using the same grille and rear lamp alterations from the Primera Camino.

In 1998 Nissan New Zealand released a limited edition Primera SMX with association with Steve Millen (Stillen Sports Parts). Features include cross drilled brakes, Eibach springs and a more aggressive body kit. There were a total of 24 made in 4 colour choices. This was because until 1998 (due to lifting of import tariffs on cars) Nissan New Zealand had an automotive assembly operation, and for a short time between 1997 and 1998 the P11 Primera was assembled in Wiri, Auckland.

The Primera won the British Touring Car Championship
British Touring Car Championship
The British Touring Car Championship is a touring car racing series held each year in the United Kingdom. The Championship was established in 1958 as the British Saloon Car Championship and has run to various rules over the years – "production cars", then FIA Group 1 or 2 in the late 1960s...

 manufacturers and team titles thanks to RML
Ray Mallock Ltd.
Ray Mallock Ltd., also known as RML Group, is a motorsports racing team and engineering company. In 2010, RML is engaged in the Le Mans Series as well as being the works Chevrolet team in the British Touring Car Championship and the World Touring Car Championship.-Early history:Ray Mallock began...

 in 1998
1998 British Touring Car Championship season
The 1998 Auto Trader RAC British Touring Car Championship was a prominent BTCC season during the 'golden era' of touring car racing in Britain. It was eventually won by Rickard Rydell in a Volvo S40 with a round to spare. The runner-up was Anthony Reid in a Nissan Primera...

 and, in 1999 British Touring Car (P.O.S) backing from the factory took the Independents Cup in 1999 and 2000.

To celebrate the two victories in 1998, Nissan UK released a limited edition of 400 'GTSE' Models, with 16" AZEV alloy wheels, two-tone 'flip' ChromaFlair
ChromaFlair
ChromaFlair is the registered trademark for a pigment used in paint systems, primarily for automobiles. When the paint is applied, it changes color depending on the light source and viewing angle...

 "Mystic" green paint, following the special theme to the interior which featured full leather seating with green piping seats, steering wheel and a Momo gearknob. To celebrate the 1999 "clean sweep" they released a limited edition 'GTLE' model with 16" multi-spoke Enkei alloy wheels, full leather interior with silver piping, Momo gearknob and a colour choice of flame red, kuro black, starburst silver, and Nordic blue.

Nissan Primera P11 Facelift (1999–2002)

In the autumn of 1999, Nissan gave the Primera a facelift, giving it a more modern front end with clear style headlamps featuring projector units—instead of the traditional Fresnel lens
Fresnel lens
A Fresnel lens is a type of lens originally developed by French physicist Augustin-Jean Fresnel for lighthouses.The design allows the construction of lenses of large aperture and short focal length without the mass and volume of material that would be required by a lens of conventional design...

 type. Nissan also introduced their "corporate identity" front, with the "flying wing" grille. The new code-name for this model was "P11-144".

Along with the exterior changes, improved specification levels were present; with the entry level models such as the "S" featuring automatic climate control, driver, passenger, and side airbags. Further up the model range, other features were seen such as Xenon
Xenon
Xenon is a chemical element with the symbol Xe and atomic number 54. The element name is pronounced or . A colorless, heavy, odorless noble gas, xenon occurs in the Earth's atmosphere in trace amounts...

 headlamps.

A new "lean burn" 1.8 L petrol engine, the QG18DE was added to the range.
This facelift was not generally applied outside Europe, with Nissan "formalized" the fronts of other Primeras and Caminos instead, bringing them into line with the look of the American Infiniti model.

Nissan Primera STCC Edition

Only 100 of them were made. It had the same engine as the Primera Sport, but it was lowered 25 mm (0.984251968503937 in) and had a bigger wing.

Nissan Primera P12 (2002–2008)

In December 2001, Nissan introduced the third-generation Nissan Primera, its first all-new car since the alliance with Renault
Renault
Renault S.A. is a French automaker producing cars, vans, and in the past, autorail vehicles, trucks, tractors, vans and also buses/coaches. Its alliance with Nissan makes it the world's third largest automaker...

 was formed two years earlier. The new Primera is more radically styled than previous versions. No Infiniti
Infiniti
is the luxury division of automaker Nissan. Infiniti officially started selling vehicles on November 8, 1989 in North America. Marketing operations have since grown to include the Middle East, South Korea, Russia, Taiwan, China, Ukraine and the United Kingdom. Infiniti began sales in additional...

 equivalent was released; the Nissan Skyline
Nissan Skyline
The first Skyline was introduced in April 1957, by the Prince Motor Company, and was marketed as a luxury car. It featured a 1.5 L GA-30 engine producing 44 kW @ 4400 rpm. It used a de Dion tube rear suspension and was capable of 140 km/h . The car weighed around 1300 kg...

-based Infiniti G35 replaced the G20 in the United States.

New Zealand Primeras are all equipped with continuously variable transmission
Continuously variable transmission
A continuously variable transmission is a transmission that can change steplessly through an infinite number of effective gear ratios between maximum and minimum values. This contrasts with other mechanical transmissions that offer a fixed number of gear ratios...

; there is no manual option. In that market Japanese assembled sedans and wagons were available, until 2006 when English assembled hatchbacks and estates were made available. The CVT is also available in the European 2.0 L and the Japanese 2.0/2.5 L (an engine not available in Europe).

Falling sales saw the Primera withdrawn from sale in the UK at the end of 2006, though production for export markets ended in 2008.

The 2.0 L 6-Speed Manual Nissan Primera 20V has Nissan's SR20VE Neo VVL engine with Variable Valve Lift and Timing. It produces 150 kW (204 PS) of power at 7200 rpm and 206 N·m (21.0 kgf·m) of torque at 5200 rpm.

External links

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