Datsun-Nissan Weekend Edition: 1981-1984 Nissan Skyline R30

Another thing that this Nissan photo bank handily shows is that the venerable Skyline was a full line-up with basic models, and that the Iron Mask R30 coupe was just the tip of the iceberg. You got your load-luggers, family saloons, smart lower level coupes and all.
The 2000 RS-Turbo seen above was the most powerful Japanese production car of its time, with 190 horsepower available on command. But as mentioned, there’s much more to Skylines.


Compare the coupe to this champagne gold wagon, offered in 1800 DX guise. With a twin-carb setup, you got 105 horsepower, but it was available with as little power as 77 hp, which I strongly suspect this wagon to have. It’s that basic.

Here’s a base model interior, of which you can note the clock in the gauge cluster instead of a rev counter, plastic seats, four forward speeds, two-spoke plastic steering wheel and a few switch blanks.

In comparison, the full-fat turbo version looks the business, but still spartan enough to be driver-focused with nothing but the essentials. Even the radio is gone.


On some Skyline models in 1981, you could specify the Drive Guide system, a fairly rudimentary geomagnetic compass/navigation setup. It worked like this:

After inputting a departure location and the direction and distance to a destination, processing was performed by a direction sensor and microcomputer, and the direction of the destination and the remaining linear distance were shown on the meter.

In addition to the coupe, saloon and wagon models, the Skyline R30 also came as a good-looking five-door variant. And check out those four-spoke wheels.

Some remember the R30 Skyline for the Paul Newman edition, appearing curiously toy-like in this field shot.