a 1991 Nissan Figaro: Dayton Cars & Coffee, May 12, 2019

I never saw a car like this before.   A 1991Nissan Figaro. Turbocharged! The owner imported it from Japan only after it had reached the 25-year threshold to bring a car like this in the US.


From Wiki:

The Nissan Figaro is a two-door 2+2 retro-styled fixed-profile convertible manufactured by Nissan for model year 1991, and originally marketed solely in Japan at their Nissan Cherry Stores.

With its design variously attributed to Naoki Sakai^[ and/or Shoji Takahashi, twenty thousand examples were marketed by Nissan in the convertible's single year of production — all with right hand drive.^]

The Figaro was introduced at the 1989 Tokyo Motor Show under the slogan "Back to the Future". The name references the title character in the play The Marriage of Figaro by Pierre Beaumarchais.

Based on the Nissan Micra, the Figaro was built at Aichi Machine Industry,^[1] a special projects group which Nissan would later call "Pike Factory," which also produced three other niche automobiles: the Be-1, Pao, and S-Cargo.

As a fixed-profile convertible, the upper side elements of the Figaro's bodywork remain fixed, while its fabric soft top retracts to provide a less fully open experience than a typical convertible. The fixed-profile concept is seen on other convertibles, including the Citroën 2CV (1948–1990), the Nash Rambler Convertible "Landau" Coupe (1950), and the 1957 Fiat 500 — as well its 2007 Fiat 500 successor.

The Figaro was marketed in four colors representing the four seasons: Lapis Grey (Winter), Emerald Green (Spring), Pale Aqua (Summer) and Topaz Mist (Autumn), listed in order of number produced, highest first. Two additional cars were also painted in different colors.

The Figaro was equipped with leather seats, air conditioning, CD player and a fixed-profile slide-back open roof.

8000 were originally available with an additional 12,000 added to production numbers to meet demand. Total production of the Figaro finished at 20,073 units.^[5] Prospective purchasers entered a lottery to purchase a Figaro. Limited edition cars came with passenger side baskets and cup holders.

In 2011, design critic Phil Patton called the four Pike cars "the height of postmodernism"^[2] and "unabashedly retro, promiscuously combining elements of the Panhard Dyna Junior, Citroën 2CV, Renault 4, Mini [and] Fiat 500."^]