The U12 Bluebird's Australian twin, the Pintara, was built under a government model-sharing scheme and even rebadged as a Ford Corsair. Neither sold, and Nissan shut its Australian factory soon after.
Median 115 hp across 376 similar cars
Lead trim: 1.6 CA16S (79 PS) · up to 201 hp
Nissan Bluebird U12 / Stanza / PintaraHNU12/U12 · 1987–1992
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Nobody in Burbles has spotted a Nissan Bluebird U12 / Stanza / Pintara yet. See one on the street, point the app at it, and the first card is yours — with your @handle permanently credited on this page.
FactThe U12 Bluebird's Australian twin, the Pintara, was built under a government model-sharing scheme and even rebadged as a Ford Corsair. Neither sold, and Nissan shut its Australian factory soon after.
Replacing the boxy U11 in September 1987 with a rounder shape as a four-door sedan and four-door hardtop (later with a centre B-pillar). Grades were the SSS (SSS, twin-cam SSS, SSS-X, the SSS-R competition special and the SSS Attesa Limited top model at ¥2,998,000, against the 1600LE at ¥1,198,000) and the LE/SE/XE sedans, with Nissan's ATTESA mechanical four-wheel drive (the 1.8 CA18DET RNU12, 1987–90) and the SR20DET, which arrived in the series 2 HNU12 (1989–91). The October 1989 facelift moved the 1.8 to the SR family (SR18Di, 110 PS, over the 88 PS CA18i) and left the 1.6 as the 79 PS carburetted CA16S; the "Bluebird Aussie" five-door (May 1991, only 1,300 sold in Japan) was a rebadged Australian Pintara Superhatch. It was sold as the Nissan Stanza in North America and the Pintara (with a Ford Corsair twin) in Australia, whose Project Matilda flopped and helped end Nissan's Australian manufacturing; in Malaysia the CA20E Super Select made 115 PS.
Collectors Spotted in the Nissan Bluebird Lineage
No member has published a public street spot of the Nissan Bluebird yet — the First · Worldwide stamp is wide open.
Trims & Figures
6 published trims in the catalogue. A blank is a figure not recorded, not zero.
| Trim | Years | Engine | Power | Torque | 0–60 | Drive | Gearbox | MSRP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1.6 CA16S (79 PS) | 1987–1991 | 1.6 L Inline-4 | 78 hp | 91 lb-ft | — | FWD | — | — |
| 1.8 CA18DET turbo RNU12 ATTESA | 1987–1990 | 1.8 L Inline-4 | 166 hp | 168 lb-ft | — | FWD | — | — |
| 1.8 CA18i (88 PS) | 1987–1989 | 1.8 L Inline-4 | 87 hp | 105 lb-ft | — | FWD | — | — |
| 1.8 SR18Di (110 PS) | 1989–1991 | 1.8 L Inline-4 | 108 hp | 111 lb-ft | — | FWD | — | — |
| 2.0 CA20E, Malaysia (115 PS) | 1987–1992 | 2.0 L Inline-4 | 113 hp | — | — | FWD | — | — |
| 2.0 SR20DET turbo | 1989–1991 | 2.0 L Inline-4 | 201 hp | 202 lb-ft | — | FWD | — | — |
Owning one
We don’t estimate running costs for a car like this. What it costs depends on its condition, its specialist and how it is driven, and an average would mislead.
Owners’ builds
Nobody has claimed one yet.
Photographs
This was the last Bluebird of all — and the only market that ever got it new was Japan itself, even as the nameplate lived on abroad as the Altima.
This Bluebird beat the industry by two decades: its Hardtop models got the first Active Noise Cancellation system ever fitted to a production car, long before ANC became a mainstream feature.
The U12 Bluebird SSS ATTESA Limited debuted Nissan's ATTESA all-wheel-drive system alongside the now-cult SR20DET turbo engine, both new on the Series 2 cars built 1989-1991.
The U12 Bluebird's Australian twin, the Pintara, was built under a government model-sharing scheme and even rebadged as a Ford Corsair. Neither sold, and Nissan shut its Australian factory soon after.
The U11 Bluebird's turbodiesel actually beat its petrol engines on fuel economy in standardized testing — counterintuitive, since diesels usually win only when driven gently.
George Fury's 1984 Bathurst pole lap remains the fastest by a closed sedan on the old 6.172 km layout.
Reviewers were not kind to this Bluebird: Australia's Wheels magazine dismissed the 200B as simply "a 180B with 20 more mistakes" — and it lasted barely three years before Nissan rushed its replacement.
Nissan's own catch-line for launch was "Bluebird U – Up You!", dropped fast once someone translated it back.
To save money on export models, the 410/411 Bluebird's wipers swept outward from the center of the windshield instead of side-to-side — a cost-cutting quirk you'd never see on a car today.
The 1960s Bluebird 311 had a trim built specifically for women drivers: the pale-yellow 'Fancy Deluxe' came with a high-heel shoe holder under the dash and a turn signal relay that played music.
Rivals
Same body, same money, other badges — tap any card to flip.
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