The Day With Nissan Silvia - Day 4

Double takes, lots of doubles takes--that's the reaction from about just anyone who notices that there isn't a person sitting on the left side of the JDM Evolution Silvia. Stopped at a light, we caught the biker in front of us looking back, nothing unusual. But a quick double take on his part was really funny. It must've taken his brain a split second to "see" what his eyes saw.

Weird, though, most people first stop us and ask, "What is it?" We reply, "A Silvia." The expected follow-up to that is, "It's European, huh?" We continue, "Japanese, actually." As beautiful as the Silvia is, and she is beautiful, we're sure part of the allure is the right-hand drive portion of the equation; same goes for the Skyline GT-R.

We're fond of cars that are as quick and as fun to drive as the Silvia. Like its Fair Lady bigger sister, the Silvia maintains a good balance of driving dynamics and everyday creature comforts. An entirely digital climate control system is not unlike what we'd see on a fancy Infiniti vehicle or higher end Nissan.

Black-on-white lighting from the climate control matches the face on the in-dash, single-disc, CD-Player and the digital read-outs within the gauge cluster. The CD-player could use a few more watts, however, as it just barely passes the window-down test. We can't fault Nissan too much for keeping the sound system simple, most people will ditch the stock stuff for some better aftermarket goods, anyway.

Some weekend racers will also likely swap out the stock Silvia seats for some Brides, Nismos or Recaros. We can see why someone would do this, partly for show and some for go, but the stock seats are very supportive and totally comfortable. The seats match the dark interior, but various colors and materials are available as well as leather, too. A/C can only do so much to keep you cool and for the Silvia we'll gladly take clothe over dead cow.

Until further notice JDM Evolution will only import Spec-S and Spec-R trim models. This has to do with federalization issues, but also logistical issues. Who would want to import a rare car with a 2.0L naturally aspirated engine that only puts out about 160 ponies. That's not worth it in our book.

Actually, we take that back. For us Silvia freaks the car is awesome in any trim level and, to us, the engine isn't as important as the sleek lines and highly unique look of this pre-Renault Nissan. For larger market appeal, JDM Evolution has made the wise choice in bringing over truly stout 2.0L turbocharged examples.