5k: Leopard Holiday: 1993 Infiniti J30, Original Owner
The Nissan Leopard J Ferie (jour férié being an old French term for public holiday) was called the Infiniti J30 for the US market, Nissan wisely choosing to find a simple name for its Lexus ES/Acura Legend competitor. The J30 used a longitudinal front engine, rear-drive setup in a segment dominated by transverse front-drive machines and would make an oddly satisfying cheap daily driver. Find this 1993 Infiniti J30, one owner survivor, for sale in Shrewsbury, NJ for $2,900 or make offer, via ebay.
The J30 featured a futuristic jellybean shape that brings to mind modern 4-door coupes like the Volkswagen CC, Audi A7 and Mercedes-Benz CLS. Underneath the J30 shares a chassis with the Y32 generation Nissan Cedric and an engine with the Nissan 300ZX.
The J30 is powered by a 3.0 liter VG30DE V6, rated at 210 horsepower and most importantly powering the rear wheels. It gave the J30 considerably more “fun points” over the competition’s front-drive fun-sucking luxury sedans, but it only lasted a few years.
See a better classic ’90s sedan only driven on the weekends by a little old lady? email us here: tips@dailyturismo.com
Is it weird that I like this?
Yes it is weird. But it is also a car that is likely similar in performance to a BMW e34 528i at a fraction of the future ownership costs. It is also a car that will be a big hit at the Japanese nostalgic car shows in about 20 years and still worth only $3k…think modern day Toyota Corona.
-Vince
AFAIK, there was no E34 528i. Maybe comparable to the 530i, but BMW gave that car a V8 by 1993. This was somehow even heavier than the BMW. The biggest demerit is looks… someday it might be appreciated, but at the moment it looks too much like the most hideous of Tauruses. At least it's better looking than that era's dull I30. These cars were incredibly inefficient on space, being smaller than a Sentra inside. The trunk was tiny. This one should be easier on maintenance than the touring version with HICAS.
AFAIK, there was no E34 528i. Maybe comparable to the 530i, but BMW gave that car a V8 by 1993. This was somehow even heavier than the BMW. The biggest demerit is looks… someday it might be appreciated, but at the moment it looks too much like the most hideous of Tauruses. At least it's better looking than that era's dull I30. These cars were incredibly inefficient on space, being smaller than a Sentra inside. The trunk was tiny. This one should be easier on maintenance than the touring version with HICAS.
Sold for…$1500?!? Wow. Either there was a lot less here than meets the eye, or someone got a seriously rockin' deal.