On this page you will find information about various
books and magazines that have featured the Silvia, or that will be of interest
to Silvia owners. This page also contains details of material printed by
Nissan such as owner's manual and promotional material for the Silvia.
This is almost certainly not a complete list of Silvia literature, if you
know of any items that are not listed here please let me know.
Silvia Magazines
.
.
.
.
.
This is a list of magazines that have articles about
the Silvia.
Aust.Motor Sports - January 1965 "Datsun
will release high performance coupe" a small article and a photo of the soon-to-be-released
"Datsun 1500 Coupe" Motor Manual
- June 1965
"Datsun Coupe" a small article with a photo of the Silvia
and a photo of the dashboard Wheels
- June 1965
"Open Air Invasion" a three page article about the Silvia plus
the Toyota Sports 800 and the Daihatsu Compagno Spyder Sports Car World - August 1965
"The coming of the coupes" a small section on the Silvia. Modern Motor
- April 1966
"Alfa-beater ? " a two page article with three photos Sports Car World - August 1966
"Three thrifty coupes" An article about the Silvia plus the Mazda
1000 Coupe and the Isuzu Bellett GT. Has two pages on the Silvia, the Silvia
is featured on the cover of the magazine. Sports Car World - December 1966 "Gas
gear for summer go" a men's wear fashion featurewith
people modelling clothes, standing next to a Silvia and other lesser cars. Motor Manual Int. - October 1973 "Evolution
of the Datsun Sports Car" a five page article about Datsun sports
cars, including the Silvia. Nissan Quality Service Communicator - February
1988 "Nissan Silvia CSP311" a Nissan Motor Co. Aust. in-house magazine. Z Car Magazine - Late 1999 - Vol. 4, No. 15
"Nissan Silvia - A Lesson in Design" a highly detailed 5 page article about
the Silvia. Thoroughbred & Classic Cars - April 2000
"The Mysterious Count Albrecht von Goertz" a three page article about 'the Man' .
Article talks about the Silvia and his other creations.
The following are magazine articles that are from
an unknown source. These are articles that have been copied and given to
me, but the name of the magazine and the printing date were not supplied.
The name of the article and an estimated printing date is shown below.
??? 1964
"New autos introduced at Tokyo Motor Show" ??? 1965
"Nissan Silvia Coupe" ??? 1965
"Luxury sports model is coming-1600 Coupewill
catch eyes" ??? 1965
"Quiet grace and vivid performance" ??? 1990s
"feature Classic Car Gallery Silvia 1600 Sports Coupe" from one of Nissan's own publications
- possibly "MyCar"
Silvia Books
.
.
.
.
.
These are books that have a
significant amount of information about the Silvia, or that have information
that should be of interest to Silvia owners.
DATSUN AUTOMOBILES FROM JAPAN by Halwart Schrader published by Schrader and Partner
GmbH Munich, Germany 1976 This is one of the best books on Early Nissans
and Datsuns I've ever seen. Printed in Germanywith
text in German and in English, it includes well over 100 photos (all black
and whiteunfortunatly) covering every
major model from 1932 to 1976, plus pre Datsun carsincluding
the Dat, Datson, Gorham and Lila. Only a very small section is on the Silvia,
but well worth having for the details about other early models.
THE COMPLETE HISTORY OF THE JAPANESE
CAR by Marco Ruiz published by Crown Publishers
Inc. New York,USA.1986 A very good book about the Japanese car industry
covering all major brands. It has a large section on Nissan, the Silvia is mentioned,
but only breifly. Mostly all the photos are in Black and white. I think it is still available.
THE RECKONING by David Halberstam published by Bantam Books London
1987 "How Japan beat the United States in the auto
industry war and rewrote the rules of international buisness competition."
This book explores the difference between Japan end the USA by examining
the history and buisness practises of Nissan and Ford. No photos and no mention of the Silvia but
it does have one of the most thoroughly researched corporate histories
of Nissan (and Ford) you will ever see.
NISSAN SILVIA RESOURCE BOOK compiled by Alan Bent I can't forget to mention this book! This
is a book that I compiled and wrote myself. It is intended as a reference
book for the owners of the Nissan Silvia, but it will also be of interest
to anyone wanting to learn more about the Silvia. For more information
about this book click
here .
DATSUN ROADSTER PARTS CATALOG printed by Rallye Enterprises
Ltd. Rallye Enterprises is a buisness in the USA
run by a major Early Datsun nut and specialises in parts for Fairladies. There
is practically nothing these guys can't get for a Fairlady. Their
parts catalog is very detailed containing many exploded views reprinted from original Nissan parts books.(exploded
views are extremely useful when rebuilding things such as carbs, steering
boxes etc.) It also has heaps of great tips and tricks to keep your car going, plus road tests
and pretty pictures of Fairladys. There is nothing in the book that is
specifically for the Silvia, but because the Silvia is mechanically identical
to the Fairlady 1600 the technical and mechanical information is quite
useful for Silvia owners. You can order it fromRallye
Enterprises, P.O.Box 367, Graham, Washington,USA, 98338. Or e-mail Dann
at Rallye@datsunroadster.com
FAIRLADY-1 published by Neko Publishing
Co. Ltd. Fairlady-1 is the first book in a 3 book series about Datsun Sports
Cars. Fairlady-2 and Fairlady-3 are mostly about Z cars. Fairlady-1 is about the Fairlady
1500, 1600, 2000, the Silvia and the 240Z. It is a spectacular book, with many detailed
photos of each model, including many close-up photos. It probably makes facinating reading
too. I wouldn't know because the only thing wrong with the book is that it's all
printed in Japanese! You can still learn lots about the cars as the Japanese use the
same number system as we do. Even still, it's worth getting just for the pictures. A large
section of the book is dedicated to the Silvia. Oh, the other problem with thebook is that it's enormously
expensive. Don't expect much change out of $100.
DATSUN 311-1600 & 2000 SPORTS
CAR published by Chilton's This is a reprint of the factory workshop manuals for the Fairlady
1600 and Fairlady 2000. To the best of my knowledge Nissan never printed
a Workshop manual specifically for the Silvia, because the Silvia is mechanically
identical to the Fairlady 1600 they just used the Fairlady manual for the
Silvia. So this is effectively a reprint of the Silvia manual. The factory
manuals aren't the best, but there is a lot of useful information. DATSUN 311-1600
& 2000 SPORTS CAR published by Motorbooks International Basically the same as the book listed above. This is a reprint of
the factory workshop manuals for the Fairlady 1600 and Fairlady 2000.
***COMING SOON*** Phill Brook is working on a new book on pre-1970
Datsun sports cars. It should be out in early / mid 2000. Keep an eye out for it,
it sounds like it will be well worth having. It will be listed here as
soon as it becomes available.
Nissan Motor Co. Literature
.
.
.
.
.
In this section you will find information about various
books and promotional materials printed by the Nissan
Motor Co. Ltd. for the Silvia.
Silvia owner's manual (English version)
Publication # 16141 (101301) a 37 page booklet that was supplied with
the Silvia when new. All text is in English. Silvia owner's manual (Japanese
version) Publication # (no number is shown)
a 48 page booklet that was supplied with
the Silvia when new. All text is in Japanese. This booklet is larger and
more detailed than the English language version. Silvia parts catalog - Publication
# C-026 printed in 1965 a 59 page parts book featuring close-up
detailed photos of the various sections of the car, rather than the exploded
view diagrams used in the majotity of early Nissan parts books. Datsun Sports Car Model SP(L)311
Service Manual - Pub. # 45121(008318) To the best of my knowledge a service manual
specifically for the Silvia was never printed. Because the Fairlady 1600
(SP311) is mechanically identical to the Silvia, the Fairlady 1600 manual
is used to work on the Silvia. Datsun Sports Car Model SP(L)311
Service Manual - Pub. # (11230160) This is the same as the above manual except
that it is updated to include both the initial 3 main bearing engine and
the new 5 main bearing engine. Introduction of Nissan Silvia
- Service Bulletin It is not known whether this book actually
exists! Service bulletins were printed and distributed to all Nissan dealers
to supply them with details about each new model and also to advise about
any changes in the specification of any existing models. Theoretically
this book should exist, but I have never seen one, and nor has anyone I
know. Maintenance Handbook - Publication
# 36111 (10570900) A booklet that was supplied with the Silvia
(and other Nissan/Datsun cars from this era) that contains a log book with
service details and the warranty papers for the car. Silvia Sales Brochure - Publication
# PE603-611210 a 4 page, 4 colour sales brochure with
"Crisp Look", "Datsun Coupe 1600" on the cover with a Japanese couple standing
next to the car. Text is in English. Silvia Sales Brochure - Publication
# PE641-503250 Identical to the above brochure except
that it also lists the Nissan Motor Corporation in USA addresses on the
back. This is highly unusual considering the Silvia was never sold in the
USA. Silvia Sales Brochure - Publication
# (no number shown) Printed in Australia and showing the address
of the Nissan Motor Distributors (Australia). It uses many of the photos
from #PE603-611210 but is a different design. Cover says "Crisp Look",
"Datsun 1600 Coupe" and "Datsun- leads in automotive design". Also has
a photo of 2 golf bags that allegedly came out of the boot of the car. Silvia Press Photo - No Publication
number - From 1965 Press photo of the "Nissan Silvia/Datsun
Coupe 1500" Sales Brochure with the Silvia
and Fairlady - No Publication Number - 1966 Brochure from Belgium titled "This is Datsun".
Flemish text. Silvia Press Photos - No Publication
Numbers - From 1967 2 x colour press photos of the "CSP311
- Nissan Silvia/Coupe 1600" Silvia Colour Press Slides -
No Publication Numbers - From 1967 3 colour transparency slides, 2 featuring
a Silvia Gold coloured Silvia on a country road and one of a white Silvia
on a concrete pavement with a concrete wall in the background. Silvia Dealer Showroom Poster - No Publication Number
- Circa 1965 A colour poster issued to dealers to promote the Silvia. Has
the same photo as the cover of the sales brochure (Publication
# PE603-611210), with a photo of a Silvia with a Japanese couple with a
blue background. Has the words "New Products" printed on the top and "Datsun
Coupe 1600 ("Silvia")", "2-Seater, 1,595cc, 96hp (SAE)" printed on the
bottom.