Lost in the Noise: The A31 Cefiro
The A31 Cefiro is somewhat lost in the noise when it comes to RWD Japanese four-door sedans. It was released at a time when Toyota had a fully stacked roster of cars, the Chaser, Cresta and Mark two, these were their flagship mid-sized Sedans. Nissan was feeling a little threatened by Toyota and decided to do something about it.
Nissan had two mid-sized sedans on the market at the time, the four-door R32 Skyline and the C33 Laurel but there was a gap. They wanted something to compete with the Toyota Mark II. This is where the A31 was born, it shares a very similar chassis with the c33 Laurel and the Leopard. Fun fact: the A31 was one of the first-ever cars in Japan to come with a 5-speed automatic transmission, which is more than likely what was removed from this car once it ended up in the right hands.
The magic of A31 is the fact they share so many similar parts with the s13 and r32 skyline. It might have been hard to see the potential at the time but a lot of the FR machines coming out of Nissan at that time shared a lot of similar parts. This came in handy a couple of years later when people started exploring the possibilities with this one-hit-wonder.
The Cefiro almost looks like an S13 up front, it’s roughly around the same size as a four-door R32. Nissan decided to create a brand new chassis with the Cefiro instead of going the same route as Toyota with the X series. They only ran the FR layout with the Ceifro for one generation and produced it for six years. Most of them were naturally aspirated and automatic. In very rare cases, customers could have an RB20DET 5-speed manual.
Because of its desirable layout, the A31 eventually ended up in the hands of the Japanese drift world. They saw the potential and began experimenting with these cars. This particular example car was sold as an automatic RB20DE which meant a manual conversion was pretty straight forward, this work was done before the car landed in Ireland.
These days, not too many companies offer aero parts for this chassis. There is no market for these cars in Japan. Luckily when Chris got his hands on this one, it was fitted with a full Uras kit, turning a somewhat reserved sedan into an aggressive-looking drift skid machine. I love the older Uras stuff, its super basic but works on pretty much any 90s RWD four-door Nissan.
Under the hood, it has an expected collection of upgrades to match the exterior look. An RB20DET has been fitted with a TD05H 16g Turbo, Greddy Top Mount Manifold, a Greddy external wastegate with a screamer pipe, GTR 440cc injectors and has a GTR front mount, the list goes on.
The engine is running 390BHP @1.4 bar but has been toned down for reliability. At the time of this shoot, Chris had been daily driving this car. He was the only person who had one of these on the road here in Ireland. These were a rare import to Ireland, apparently New Zealand took them all from Japan, or from what I can gather they made a good stab at it. We’ve been told they are everywhere down there.
Chris has kept most of the interior but removed the rear seats. A single red Bride Brix 1.5 seat pops against the dark exterior. Very period correct.
Inside, a Nardi Classic looks at home, along with a dash dodger cage, Razo gear knob and a selection of gauges from HKS and Blitz, it’s a nice place to be.
It’s a shame they only did one run of the RWD Cefiro. The Laurel continued with an FR platform along with the Skyline, they ran parallel with the X series Toyotas. Nissan should have kept the FR setup going with these cars well into the 90s. I can only imagine what another generation of Cefiro would have looked like, maybe it would have taken styling cues from the S14? That would have been interesting…
This was originally a four stud car with smaller brakes, it has since been converted to 5 stud and fitted with Z32 calipers. I love the fact Chris selected lesser-known Mesh wheels like Weds Kranze ERM upfront and Stitch Gulf mesh at the rear. Shoe choices that suit the overall look of the car and place its styling firmly in the early ’00s.
I’ve always been drawn to the more obscure cars from Japan. Our friend Pete Taylor had a mean-looking Cefiro back in the day. It had the same style kit and big wheels. I remember being drawn to the cars looks, it was an unusual Nissan I had never seen before but I instantly wanted to know more. From this image, you could easily mistake this thing for a PS13, the brick style headlights and lack of grill is a tough look.
This A31, along with our friend Pete’s, are two of nine known Cefiros that were ever imported into Ireland. People overlooked these cars when the import boom was at its all-time high, I guess most people had no idea what they were, or what kind of potential could be unlocked. The same could be said for Reubens Laurel, this was a chassis that was on no one’s radar back in 2007.
Its a little depressing to think that no more six-cylinder four-door sedans are being produced in Japan. It died with the x110 series for Toyota and the C35/R34 for Nissan.
This Cefiro is a great example of a lesser-known Japan sedan. Its FR setup was an ideal base for many people to build a perfect car for drifting. These were sold in the middle east and other Asian countries and it did fairly well. For Europeans, far from Japan, the Cefiro is a strange four-door Nissan from Japan.
My favourite thing about doing this while Juicebox site, is being able to shoot and document these cars that for some reason, get me pretty excited, along with the people you meet along the way. I’m sure most of you have seen the vlog episode with this absolute legend. He came at the very end of the shoot and added Gold dust to the end of the last episode. Every town in Ireland has an old car legend like that, filled with mad stories from their past. Someday we will be those guys, sharing stories with the next generation.
Hope you enjoyed these photos and accompanying text. Lots more stuff coming over the next few weeks.
– Neil
Engine:
This originally came automatic RB20e
Conversion done in Japan
RB20DET
RB20DET Manual Box
OS Giken Super Single with a new clutch plate
Front Facing Plenum
Custom 1 Piece Cold & Hot Side Piping
GTR Front Mount
TD05H 16g Turbo
Greddy Top Mount Manifold
Greddy External Wastgate With Screamer Pipe
Custom 2″ to 3″ Downpipe
Hard Pipe intake with BLITZ Filter
Splitfire Blue Coilpacks
RB26 GTR 440cc injectors
Custom Injector Loom With Resistors made by MDT
Nistune ECU
Walbro 255lh Fuel Pump
Decat
Full Cat-Back (No Mufflers)
Mapped by Stiv @MD Tuning
Currently running 320hp @1.1bar
Made 390hp @1.4bar/1.5bar but kept it low boost for reliability.
Suspension & Handling:
Tein Coilovers
Damper Adjustable
Front Camber Plates
Hicas Delete
Converted to 5×114.3 All Round (Originally 4 Stud)
Uprated Nissan Z32 Calipers
Front Project MU Pads
Welded Viscous Diff
Exterior:
Full URAS Kit
URAS Front Bumper
URAS Rear Bumper
URAS Skirts
Brick style Headlights.
Rare Laurel Style Grill
Wheels
Front Wheels: Wed’s Kranze ERM 18×9.5
Rear Wheels: Stich Gulf Mesh 18×10 ET15
Interior
Full Dash Dodger Cage
Red Bride Brix 1.5 Driver Seat
Bride Super Low Rail
Nardi Steering Wheel
Driftworks Snap off hub
Razo Gear Knob
HKS Boost Gauge
Blitz Turbo Timer
HDi Electronic Boost Controller