Nissan Trade: the Spanish van that outlived Ebro

The Nissan Trade is the most common name for a family of light commercial vehicles produced by Ebro Motor Ibérica from 1976 to 1986 and by Nissan Motor Ibérica from 1986 to 2001 in Spain. The truck was sold only in Europe and replaced the Ebro F108, itself a rebadged Alfa Romeo Romeo sold only in Spain.

Nissan Trade at a glance

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

History of the Nissan Trade

Ebro and Avia

The design was first sold under the Ebro and Avia brands, having been created by AISA, the company that owned Avia. Avia was taken over by Ebro in 1977 and Nissan bought a share of the company in 1979, took a majority stake in Ebro in 1982 and began phasing out the Avia brand. In 1985 the Ebro F-series went on sale in Britain as the “Nissan Ebro Trade”, though only with Ebro badging. After a significant facelift in 1986 the Ebro nameplate was retired and the range was sold as the Nissan Trade. The original design was square and simple with trapezoidal elements, and used Perkins diesels licence-built in Spain by Motor Ibérica; Avia built it in its own plant as the Avia 1000, 1250 and 2000, while the nearly identical Ebro models were the F260, F275 and F350.

Layout and engines

Heavy-duty versions had rear-wheel drive and the lighter ones front-wheel drive. The lighter cars used the 1.8-litre Perkins 4.108 of 47 hp, while the heavier F350 and Avia 2000 used the 2.7-litre 4.165 of 65.5 hp. The JX update completed in 1984 brought square headlights and extra black plastic and ended the Avia name. Nissan-built engines replaced the Perkins units: a Japanese-designed, Spanish-built 2-litre diesel LD20II of 58 hp, or the A428, a Nissan derivative of the Perkins 4.165 bored out to 2.8 litres with a revised head and 68 hp. A 2-litre petrol version was offered in some continental markets. The JX programme also produced a right-hand-drive model for Britain, where a Spanish-made truck could avoid quota limits on Japanese imports; the only engine offered there at first was the LD20II, the heavier 2.8-litre being too heavy to stay under the 1,525 kg threshold for goods vehicle rules.

The Nissan years

The JX Trade had a short life because the design was updated again in 1986. The PF modernisation brought updated LD20II E and A428II engines, a more comfortable interior and a new longer front with a geometric look and wrap-around indicators, and the Ebro name was retired nearly everywhere. The range came as vans and chassis cabs, with a simpler Trade Van using swing-leaf side doors instead of sliding ones, a glazed nine-seat Trade Combi and a high-roof Trade Largo. A December 1989 facelift changed the character line, moved the Nissan text to the right, improved rust proofing and added a single key for locks and ignition. A further facelift in 1991 called TC was designed by Francisco Podadera, with larger clear wrap-around headlamps and a modernised interior, but the outdated design kept it from selling well outside Spain and Italy.

Design and features

• Spanish-only van: never sold outside Europe.
• Ebro and Avia origins: three brand names on one design.
• Front or rear drive: depending on the heavy-duty version.
• 1991 TC: the last redesign, by Francisco Podadera.

Nissan Trade versions

• Ebro F260, F275 and F350: the original Spanish models.
• Avia 1000, 1250 and 2000: the Avia-built versions.
• Nissan Trade PF (1986–): the modernised range.
• Trade Van, Combi and Largo: the commercial, minibus and high-roof versions.
• Trade TC (1991–2001): the final facelift.

The Trade came out of the same Spanish operation as the Atleon trucks, and its role in the van range passed to the Primastar. More cars are in the Nissan collection.

Video: NISSAN TRADE 100 3.0 TURBO

Video by YouTube on YouTube.

Sources

• Nissan Trade, English Wikipedia: Ebro and Avia history, engines, facelifts, body variants