THE little Datsun Go has got some spunk for sure. It may be on the tiny side, but it makes up for that in attitude.
Datsun has re-emerged in South Africa in recent times, and the Go has certainly attracted some attention.
It’s a good option for a city or runaround type car.
Going off-road is not really an option. It’s also a good idea to avoid any potholes.
Fortunately this shouldn’t be too much trouble as it’s fairly nimble.
I discovered with both alarm and relief that my wife got her driver’s licence in an old Datsun bakkie.
Upon further reflection, this made sense. The Datsun is really easy to drive, whereas some of the bigger vehicles make you feel like you’re steering a boat at times.
It was also a relief to know that the aforementioned wife really does have a licence!
The Go is fairly zippy around town, with decent acceleration.
On the highway it can get to around 120km/h without too much trouble, but is more comfortable at 110km/h.
It can go faster if you don’t have the aircon on.
There’s a hint of its bakkie history inside, with the handbrake similar to a bakkie’s, ie: a pullout from near the steering wheel as opposed to a pull up in between the seats.
It’s a four-door, with a fairly spacious back seat considering it’s a small car.
The boot space isn’t terrible, but only opens from the inside, via a pull switch.
The sound system is okay. It buzzes along on the smell of an oil rag – the petrol gauge barely budged.
At a price of around R90 000, it could appeal to many motorists who need something to get to work and back, and then take on the occasional trip to Durban.
Overall, the Go isn’t bad looking, with some splashes of colour on each side of the white one I drove.
It kind of grew on me the longer I drove it.
Sure, I endured some teasing after having driven a few Mercs around town, but I had fun, it has to be said.
Andrew Thompson is the dealer principal at the branch in Shelly Beach.
He said Datsun has always provided reliable, affordable motoring and is fondly remembered by many, many South Africans.
“We are very excited to have the opportunity to welcome Datsun back into the Thompson Motors family,” he said.
“Our association with Datsun started in 1967 in Pietermaritzburg and then on the South Coast from 1974,” he added.
The first Datsun 1200 bakkies were launched in South Africa in 1972 at a price of R1170. These bakkies were commonly referred to as the ‘Champions of Africa’.
Datsun originated in Japan as DAT-Go (the DAT-car) almost a century ago.
The word ‘DAT’ means ‘lightning-fast’ in Japanese but is also a reference to the three financiers who supported the business at the time, namely Mssrs Den, Aoyama and Takeuchi, thus an acronym of the first letter of each name.
