Nissan S-Chassis - Look At This S-Car Go

Of all the tuning shops in the world, none other is synonymous with the S-chassis than Yashio Factory. Led by Kazuyoshi Okamura, affectionately known as Oka-chan, he has built and raced S-chassis to legendary status. He says, "Besides the fact that it is one of the very few FR platforms in Japan, it has an amazing amount of potential. Tuning changes are easy to make and deliver results that can be directly felt behind the wheel. The further you push the limits of the car, the further it performs. It's a car you can take from 1'12.00'' at Tsukuba Circuit and transform it to click off a 57.70''."

One driver who needs no introduction is Nobiteru "NOB" Taniguchi, the infamous drifter and racecar driver who has long been a fan of the S-chassis. This man has been behind of the wheel of almost every modern sports car and numerous racecars. His love of the S-chassis goes beyond the track, which he also won a D1 Championship with. He owns an S13, 14 and 15 as daily drivers. When asked why he chose the Silvia out of any car he could own, he said, "I love the car for the pure enjoyment I get out of driving it. I've owned my Silvia for a long time and I never get sick of it."

S-Chassis Styling
The current "Hella Flush" madness can be partly attributed to the S-chassis. Along with the AE86, the S13 helped to popularize lower offsets, wider wheels and stretched tires on Japanese cars. Along with that came aggressively low body kits, over fenders and incredibly low stance. When styling got too pretty and out of hand, the trendsetters turned everything around, making zip ties, primer and broken fiberglass look good. No matter how old the S-chassis gets, they are continuously evolving style-wise, making them as cool or cooler than than any new car.

The Future of the S Car?
No other car has been modified for so many decades more than the S-chassis. Not just popular in the US and Japan, the cars have been widely accepted in every continent of the world for all types of racing. Parts are still being developed today, making the S-chassis competitive with modern day performance cars. Unfortunately, in 2002, Nissan stopped the production of the S15 and has since ended the Silvia line. Although there were rumors of an S16 project, Nissan has since said they have scrapped the project. We can only hope that one day they will bring back a line of affordable and tuner friendly FR cars.

S-Chassis Vocabulary
S13 - '89-94 240SX (US), '89-94 Silvia (Japan), '89-98 180SX (Japan)
S14 - '95-98 240SX (US), '95-98 Silvia (Japan)
S15 - '99-02 Silvia (Japan)
Silvia - Japanese S13, S14 and S15 coupe (not the S13 hatchback)
180SX - Japanese S13 hatchback
Zenki - Early models, pre-refresh ('89-90 S13, '95-96 S14)
Chuki - Middle models, after first refresh, if there's a second ('91-94 S13)
Kouki - Late model, last revision ('95-98 S13, '97-98 S14)
Strawberry Face - S15 front end; the Japanese word for 1 (ichi) and 5 (go) are similar to 'strawberry' in Japanese
Sileighty - An S13 Silvia front end (coupe) on an S13 180SX (hatchback)
Onevia - An S13 180SX front end (hatchback) on a S13 Silvia (coupe)
S13.4 - An S13 with a S14 front end
S13.5 - An S13 with a S15 front end
S14.5 - An S13 with a S15 front end
S14.3/S15.3/S15.4 - The LAMES. You never go with an older front end. Never!