Details of Cars

Nissan Lucino: coupé and hatchback under one name

NISSAN

Nissan Lucino B14 coupe
A two-door Nissan Lucino of the B14 generation. Photo by 先従隗始, CC0 via Wikimedia Commons.

The Nissan Lucino was a small car nameplate used between 1994 and 2000. It applied at the same time to two entirely different vehicles: a two-door coupé version of the Sunny and Sentra (B14) and badge-engineered versions of the Pulsar and Almera (N15) three- and five-door hatchbacks. Despite the different bodies, both shared the same floorpan.

Nissan Lucino at a glance

Nissan Lucino key facts
Nameplate used 1994–2000
Coupé base Nissan Sunny / Sentra B14
Hatchback base Nissan Pulsar / Almera N15
Coupé launched May 1994
Hatchbacks from 1995
Coupé trims MM and GG (1.5), 1.8SS (1.8), VZ-R from 1997
Coupé engines 1.5 GA15DE, 1.8 SR18DE, 1.6 SR16VE in the VZ-R
Sold at Nissan Satio Store
Abroad Nissan 200SX in the United States and Canada

based on one source: the English Wikipedia article on the Nissan Lucino.

History of the Nissan Lucino

B14 coupé (1994–1999)

The B14 Lucino coupé was launched in Japan in May 1994 as the replacement for the Sunny B13 two-door, sharing its styling, front-wheel-drive chassis and dashboard with the Sunny. Nissan decided to give the two-door its own name in Japan to appeal to buyers familiar with the Sunny, while keeping the Sunny as a four-door saloon. The name comes from Lucina, the Roman goddess of birth. It competed with the Toyota Corolla Levin and Sprinter Trueno, Mitsubishi Mirage Asti, Honda Civic coupé and Subaru Impreza Retna.

Nissan Lucino hatchback
A Lucino hatchback, the rebadged Pulsar N15. Photo by DY5W-sport, CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons.

Trims and engines

The coupé came in MM and GG trims with the 1.5-litre GA15DE and the 1.8SS with the 1.8-litre SR18DE, with a five-speed manual or four-speed automatic. In early 1996 the Nissan subsidiary Autech built a special 1.8SS with the 2.0-litre SR20DE tuned to 175 PS, a viscous limited-slip differential, sports suspension, a strut brace, aero kit and 15-inch alloys. A June 1996 facelift added a mesh grille, new upholstery and standard dual airbags and ABS. In September 1997 the 1.8SS gave way to the VZ-R with the high-revving 1.6-litre SR16VE, also 175 PS, and the range gained a dual-tone paint option.

Hatchbacks and export

The Lucino hatchbacks, badge-engineered Pulsar N15 three- and five-door cars, arrived in 1995. Production in Japan ended in 1999 except for the five-door, which lasted until 2000. In Mexico the coupé was sold under its own name from 1996 to 2000, built in Cuernavaca in GSE and GSR forms; in the United States and Canada it was the Nissan 200SX, sold from 1995 with the 1.6 GA16DE or the 140 hp 2.0 SR20DE in the SE-R.

Design and features

  • Two cars, one name: a Sunny-based coupé and Pulsar-based hatchbacks.
  • Autech 1.8SS: a 2.0-litre SR20DE conversion with 175 PS.
  • VZ-R: the 1.6-litre SR16VE engine from 1997.
  • 200SX in America: the coupé sold under another old nameplate.

Nissan Lucino versions

  • Lucino MM (1994–1999): 1.5-litre GA15DE.
  • Lucino GG (1994–1999): 1.5-litre with sport seats and a spoiler option.
  • Lucino 1.8SS (1994–1997): 1.8-litre SR18DE.
  • Lucino VZ-R (1997–1999): 1.6-litre SR16VE with 175 PS.
  • Lucino hatchbacks (1995–2000): rebadged Pulsar N15 cars.

The Lucino coupé was the two-door Sunny, its hatchbacks came from the Pulsar, and abroad it was the 200SX. More cars are in the Nissan collection.

Sources

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