Without any doubt, if there
was an award for the most unattractive early Datsun the DS-4 would win
it easilly. The poor unfortunate Datsun DS-4 is a complete styling nightmare.
Full of odd angles and mis-placed curves, it looks like something assembled
with the panels from five different cars. Probably the only nice thing
you could say about the Datsun DS-4 is that Nissan managed to create a
car so unique that it looks like nothing else on the face of the planet.
(Though the back does remind me of a Triumph Mayflower, which isn't saying
much, as the Mayflower is quite possibly the ugliest British car ever built)
The DS-4 was the replacement for the 1951 Datsun DS-2, no DS-3 model was
built, the numbering instead went from DS-2 to DS-4. The DS-2 was a 2 door
and the DS-4 is a 4 door, but the model naming has nothing to do with the
number of doors as they followed this car with the DS-5 and DS-6, neither
of which has 5 or 6 doors.
As mentioned above, the DS-4 is a four door, whereas the
previous cars were all 2 door vehicles. Rather interestingly, this car
and the Datsun DB-4 which was released at the same time, were the first
4 door cars to wear the Datsun name. The DS-4 is mechanically similar to
the previous DS-2, and it uses the same 722cc 20hp Datsun Type 7 engine,
though it uses a lengthened chassis to provide the extra space needed for
the larger cabin.
The grille on the DS-4 consists of six horizontal chrome
bars with one vertical chrome bar in the middle. The car features rear
hinged 'suicide doors' on the front and conventional front hinged doors
at the back. Individual chrome letters on the front of the bonnet spell
the Datsun name. As with it's predecessor the DS-4 was sold as the Datsun
Thrift. It was replaced in late 1953 with the DS-5, which had a larger
engine. |
A sales brochure for the 1952 Datsun range
|
Datsun DS-4s on the production line
|
1952
Datsun DS-4 Thrift Specifications
Length - 3750mm
Width - 1458mm
Height - 1535mm
Wheelbase - 2150mm
Weight - 930kg
Top speed - unknown
Transmission - Floor change
3 speed |
Engine
Specifications
Model - Type 7
Side Valve 4 Cylinder
Capacity - 722cc
Bore & Stroke 55x75mm
Power - 20hp@3600rpm
Torque- unknown
Compression - 6.5 : 1
Carburettor - unknown
Final drive - unknown |
|
