Nissan Silvia CSP311
Before Silvia meant turbo drift cars, it was a jewel-like, hand-finished coupé built in only hundreds.
1966 Nissan Silvia CSP311 at Toyota Automobile Museum · Rikita · CC BY-SA 4.0
Research pending
A matching completed auction sale has not been verified for this exact year, body, trim, engine, transmission and market.
Joyride shows this gap instead of substituting an asking price, unsold bid or mismatched special vehicle.
More than a set of wheels.
Nissan showed the shape as the Datsun Coupe 1500 at the 1964 Tokyo Motor Show and launched it as the Silvia CSP311 in March 1965. The exact Heritage Collection car is a 1966 example. Its nearly seamless body and carefully trimmed cabin were semi-handmade on the Datsun Fairlady 1600 chassis, limiting total production to about 550 over four years.
Look a little closer.
In December 1965, Kanagawa police selected the first-generation Silvia as Japan's first high-speed highway patrol car for the new Daisan Keihin Road.
Photos show an example of the model or generation. The pictured vehicle’s year, equipment, or modifications can differ from the specification described here.
Launch year versus museum-car year
Nissan's history says the CSP311 was introduced in March 1965, while the fully measured Heritage Collection example is dated 1966. This packet uses the preserved 1966 car for every dimension and mechanical number, and records 1965 as the model's launch rather than pretending the museum chassis was built then.
Source: Nissan Heritage Collection · 1966 Silvia CSP311 ↗Why so few were built
Nissan designers Kazuo Kimura and Fumio Yoshida created the exterior and interior with advice from consultant Albrecht Goertz. Nearly seamless bodywork and an elegant interior required semi-hand finishing, so production stayed at roughly 550 cars despite the shared Fairlady 1600 SP311 chassis.
Source: Nissan Heritage Collection · 1966 Silvia CSP311 ↗Where these facts come from
- Nissan Heritage Collection · 1966 Silvia CSP311
- Nissan Heritage Collection · Silvia history and March 1965 launch
- Nissan Heritage Collection · Silvia becomes a highway patrol car
Selected facts checked for this edition. Some source pages link to broader model families. Last reviewed September 30, 2026.