The Violet Series
The Violet, like the Laurel, was a new line introduced to fill a supposed hole
in the Nissan spectrum. This hole was between the economy level Sunny and the
ever more deluxe Bluebird. Essentially the Violet is the Chevy Cavalier of the
Nissan line up, not the lowest econo box, but not really a true family sedan.
73 1400GL
First introduced in January 1973, the Violet, or 710, came with 2 engine
choices, the 1428cc version of the L series, and the L16 engine on the SSS
models. The 710 designation often leads to confusion among Nissan fans, as many
think this car is the bridge between the 610 Bluebird and the 810 Bluebird
series. The 710 was actually manufactured similtaneously with the Bluebird line.
73 1600SSS
The 710 Violet was soon available in 6 1.4 liter versions(Deluxe and GL 2dr,
4dr and Hardtop) and 7 1.6 liter Versions in Deluxe, GL, and SSS 4 door sedan
or 2 door Hardtop.
76 NAPS 1600SSS
The Violet 1600 SSS got the NAPS treatment in February 1976. The line was
reduced to 5 1.4 liter cars and 5 1.6 liter models.
1977 1400 GL
77 1600GL-L
The next major restyling of the line came in May of 1977, with the introduction
of the A10 series Violets. The A10 actually became 3 different car lines, the
Violet line, the Auster line, and the Stanza line. Just to add to the
confusion, the A10 was launched in the US as the 510(HL510/A10) in an attempt
to take advantage of some of the popularity of that earlier Bluebird model. An
astonishing 28 variations of the A10 series were soon available, under three
brands including a Stanza Maxima model. You could choose from Sedan, hatchback
or coupe in 3 engine sizes 1.4, 1.6, and 1.8 liter engines.
77 1600 like the 510 series sold in the US
78 1600CS-e
1981 was the next restyling year, and a new name was added to the Violet
laundry list, the Liberta(not Liberta Villa) brand. 37 varieties of the Violet
were available in 1981. In 1982, Nissan introduced the Violet/Stanza based
wagon, the Prairie, AKA the Multi in Canada, and the Stanza Wagon in the US. I
believe it was also called the Axxess at some point.
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