Nissan Sunny - B11 Series

B11 Series

Introduced in late 1981 (at the Tokyo Motor Show), the B11s were the first front-wheel-drive Sunnys, predating by a year and a half the switch to front-wheel drive by their main Toyota Corolla rival, and were exported to the United States as the Nissan Sentra from the 1982 model year onwards. The B11 was the first Sunny to be available with a diesel engine, the 61 PS (45 kW) CD17 of 1.7 litres. Most markets received 1.3 or 1.5 litre four-cylinder engines, although for some markets with strict taxation (such as Greece), the 50 PS (37 kW) 1-litre A10 engine was also available. The fuel injected turbo was rarely exported. The turbo and the diesel were both later additions to the lineup, having been presented in September 1982.

The B11 series was regarded as one of Nissan's most modern ranges at the time, and was the first to abandon the Datsun name formally (though a small 'Datsun' still appeared on boot lids for the first two years). The wagon was known in its home market as the Nissan Sunny California. It was launched in late 1981 and continued into 1985. After the succeeding B12 had been presented, the B11 Sunny soldiered on as the "Sunny 130Y" as a lower-cost alternative in certain export markets, including Malaysia; production there continued well into the nineties. While a hatchback version was available for a little while in Japan (and very briefly in North America), this bodystyle was built in comparably small numbers as the Pulsar generally replaced the hatchback in most markets. The two-door sedan was only sold in North America, with Sentra badges.

The B11 was the first Mexico-market Sunny to be named Tsuru, a nameplate still in use there.

A further spin-off from the Sunny line was the Nissan Laurel Spirit (in Japanese), which was essentially a rebadged and better equipped Sunny sedan designed to capitalize on the premium image of the larger Laurel line.

Yet another version of the Sunny line was the "Nissan Sunny Maxima", which was sold only in limited numbers in the United Kingdom. This was not in any way related to the much larger "Bluebird Maxima" (which was simply just sold as the "Maxima" in the United States). The "Sunny Maxima" line consisted only of upgrades such as a sunroof, enhanced exterior trim, only available with a five-speed manual, chrome tailpipe, dual waveband radio meeting United Kingdom radio authority specifications, and deluxe carpeted floor mats.