Yutaka Katayama, “Father of the Datsun Z,” Dead at 105
02-21-15, 06:30 PM
#1
Yutaka Katayama, “Father of the Datsun Z,” Dead at 105
'Father Of Z' Yutaka Katayama Dies At 105: A Look Back At The Original Japanese Sports Car [w/Video]
http://www.carscoops.com/2015/02/fat...es-at-105.html
Yutaka Katayama, better known as the "Father of Z," has passed away at the old age of 105, his son announced on Saturday, Feb. 21.
Katayama was a former president of Nissan Motor's U.S. operation and was responsible of establishing Nissan as a global brand during the '70s, a very crucial moment in the company's history. However, if there's one thing that immortalized Katayama, it is none other than the legendary Z-car.
During the late '60s, Nissan Motors was a relatively small automaker and realized the importance of introducing a stylish GT car if it wanted to attract attention from the global market. Nissan envisioned a sports car that would combine style, performance, and affordability and named it the Fairlady Z. The final product combined an attractive European sports car exterior styling with a robust 2.4 liter inline-6 engine producing 151 horsepower.
Before the Fairlady Z arrived to North America, Katayama recognized that the "Fairlady" moniker would not be popular in the U.S. market, and decided to replace all Nissan Fairlady Z badging with a more butch Datsun 240Z instead. The decision was inspired: Nissan sold 45,000 Z cars in '71, 50,000 examples in '72, and another 40,000 in '73.
Not only was the Nssan Z the first dedicated front-engine rear wheel drive two-door sports car from Nissan, it is arguably the first true Japanese sports car for the global market. Previously, Honda had built tiny convertibles with underpowered motorcycle engines. Meanwhile, Toyota built only 350 examples of the 2000GT and sold them for $6,800, which was more than the price of Porsches and Jaguars of the time. The Datsun 240Z was a mass-production "Goldilocks."
Following the 240Z, Yutaka Katayama was also intimately involved in the "Z33" 350Z project, which was the Z's rebirth after it was discontinued in 1996.
"A car is a horse. I want to drive a thoroughbred that's in tune with my heartbeat, but not something that's too dressed up for someone like me," Katayama said during a 2002 interview with AP about the Z's comeback.
In 1998, Katayama was inducted in the Automotive Hall of Fame for his contribution of the 240Z as well as Datsun 510. In 2008, Katayama was honored by the Japanese Automotive Hall of Fame as well.
Katayama is survived by his wife, Masako, two sons, two daughters, 11 grandchildren, and 18 great-grandchildren. At the age of 105, Yutaka Katayama lived a remarkably long life, which goes to prove that Z-ownership is good for your health!
Earlier this week, we shared a listing of a rare original '432' Nissan 240Z available for bidding at the RM auctions. Check out the auction listing here. Be sure to watch this awesome documentary of the iconic Nissan Z in the video below!
Katayama was a former president of Nissan Motor's U.S. operation and was responsible of establishing Nissan as a global brand during the '70s, a very crucial moment in the company's history. However, if there's one thing that immortalized Katayama, it is none other than the legendary Z-car.
During the late '60s, Nissan Motors was a relatively small automaker and realized the importance of introducing a stylish GT car if it wanted to attract attention from the global market. Nissan envisioned a sports car that would combine style, performance, and affordability and named it the Fairlady Z. The final product combined an attractive European sports car exterior styling with a robust 2.4 liter inline-6 engine producing 151 horsepower.
Before the Fairlady Z arrived to North America, Katayama recognized that the "Fairlady" moniker would not be popular in the U.S. market, and decided to replace all Nissan Fairlady Z badging with a more butch Datsun 240Z instead. The decision was inspired: Nissan sold 45,000 Z cars in '71, 50,000 examples in '72, and another 40,000 in '73.
Not only was the Nssan Z the first dedicated front-engine rear wheel drive two-door sports car from Nissan, it is arguably the first true Japanese sports car for the global market. Previously, Honda had built tiny convertibles with underpowered motorcycle engines. Meanwhile, Toyota built only 350 examples of the 2000GT and sold them for $6,800, which was more than the price of Porsches and Jaguars of the time. The Datsun 240Z was a mass-production "Goldilocks."
Following the 240Z, Yutaka Katayama was also intimately involved in the "Z33" 350Z project, which was the Z's rebirth after it was discontinued in 1996.
"A car is a horse. I want to drive a thoroughbred that's in tune with my heartbeat, but not something that's too dressed up for someone like me," Katayama said during a 2002 interview with AP about the Z's comeback.
In 1998, Katayama was inducted in the Automotive Hall of Fame for his contribution of the 240Z as well as Datsun 510. In 2008, Katayama was honored by the Japanese Automotive Hall of Fame as well.
Katayama is survived by his wife, Masako, two sons, two daughters, 11 grandchildren, and 18 great-grandchildren. At the age of 105, Yutaka Katayama lived a remarkably long life, which goes to prove that Z-ownership is good for your health!
Earlier this week, we shared a listing of a rare original '432' Nissan 240Z available for bidding at the RM auctions. Check out the auction listing here. Be sure to watch this awesome documentary of the iconic Nissan Z in the video below!
02-21-15, 06:33 PM
#2
Yutaka Katayama, “Father of the Datsun Z,” Dead at 105
Yutaka Katayama, the former president of what’s now Nissan Motor Co.’s U.S. branch, has died at the age of 105, the Associated Press reports. “Mr. K,” as he was known to company insiders and Datsun and Nissan fans, established the Z line of sports cars that guaranteed the racing and sales success of the company in the U.S.
Born in 1909 in Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan, Mr. K was hired by Nissan Motor Co. in 1935. His first job was in publicity and he later worked in advertising, creating novel lifestyle-based ad campaigns in an era when, as Nissan puts it, most car ads just “loudly repeated the car’s name over and over.” Mr. K is also credited with establishing the All-Japan Motor Show in 1954, an industry-wide car show that evolved into today’s Tokyo Auto Show.
But it was a motorsports victory that turned Mr. K’s career down the path toward the Z-car. In 1958, two Datsun 210s won their class in the grueling Mobilgas Around Australia Trial, a 10,000-mile rally across the unimproved roads of the Outback. Mr. K was the racing team manager, and the class victory spurred Nissan to begin global exports.
In 1960, the company sent Mr. K to Los Angeles, and he began building a U.S. dealer networks from scratch. “In the beginning, Datsun dealers had no status or prestige, and they were not wealthy either,” Mr. K said. “During the difficult times, we all gritted our teeth and worked together and we made it through. For me, they are not just dealers but friends. I’m speaking like I’m a big man, but I owe everything to them.”
As Edmunds so eloquently explained on the occasion of Mr. K’s 100th birthday, Katayama’s dogged determination pushed Datsun to the forefront of foreign cars in the U.S. “Katayama built Datsun (as the Nissan franchise in America then was called) into a sales powerhouse, personally canvassing every town in America and turning used-car dealers and lawnmower repair shops into Datsun franchises. He made Datsun the most important Japanese brand in America, a signature of quality and innovation instead of cheap imitation.”
When Datsun introduced the 510 in 1967, Mr. K’s dealer network was ready. And with the company’s parts bin at his disposal, Mr. K set out to create Nissan’s most iconic vehicle: the 240Z. As Katayama himself recalls:
How can we transpose the relationship between man and horse into the one between man and car? Even after I was sent to Los Angeles in 1960 to establish Nissan Motors in the U.S., this question never really left me. Eventually I came up with the concept of the Z-car. It was a sports car with a sleek body with a long nose and a short deck, designed so that it could be built utilizing some of the parts and components that were already used in our other production cars, and it was a car that anybody could drive easily and that would give the driver that incredible feeling of jubilation that comes when car and driver are as one.
In 1970, when the 510-based 240Z reached U.S. shores, it had Mr. K’s fingerprints all over it. Allow Nissan to explain Mr. K’s role in creating the company’s first true sports car:
Though many, many people were responsible for the design and engineering of the first generation 240Z, its success in North America can be attributed to Yutaka Katayama, who was president of Nissan’s U.S. operations at the time. Known affectionately as “Mr. K,” he was convinced that the company’s new sports car design would be a hit in the U.S. There was just one problem—the vehicle’s name: the Fairlady Z.
Mr. K re-christened the car as the 240 Z for the U.S. market, and his wisdom paid off: The Z car was a wild success in motorsports and sales alike, establishing Datsun, and later Nissan, as a major brand with a strong enthusiast following.
Katayama retired from Nissan in 1977, but he remained a car guy right through to the end, earning a spot in the Automotive Hall of Fame in Dearborn, Michigan, in 1998. On his 100th birthday, Mr. K was still as feisty as ever, criticizing the Nissan 370Z as “so-so,” bemoaning its weight and price. “I’d like to have a sports car like the Miata,” Mr. K said in 2009. “The Miata is taking the place of the 240Z …. The fun of driving cars is the same as riding a horse. We need a car that is like riding on horseback. We are making robots. Robots don’t like human control.”
In Nissan’s own profile of the man, he raised similar concerns about the future of sports cars:
A sports car doesn’t have to be luxurious. It should be affordable so that anyone can own one, it should be easy to maintain, and it should be something that you can enjoy without having to spend too much money. To attach a price tag of $50,000 to a sports car just seems uncomfortable to me. You can get any price you want if you increase the number and level of features and equipment. But if you don’t add any extra equipment and features and you can still experience great exhilaration when driving, then that’s the best situation as far as I am concerned.
The beloved Mr. K turned 105 years old in September, attributing his health to the three liters of water he drank every day—though he also loved a good steak. Nissan produced a three-part documentary interview with the automotive legend to commemorate the occasion. It’s equal parts history lesson, business plan, and guide for enthusiastic living.
Born in 1909 in Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan, Mr. K was hired by Nissan Motor Co. in 1935. His first job was in publicity and he later worked in advertising, creating novel lifestyle-based ad campaigns in an era when, as Nissan puts it, most car ads just “loudly repeated the car’s name over and over.” Mr. K is also credited with establishing the All-Japan Motor Show in 1954, an industry-wide car show that evolved into today’s Tokyo Auto Show.
But it was a motorsports victory that turned Mr. K’s career down the path toward the Z-car. In 1958, two Datsun 210s won their class in the grueling Mobilgas Around Australia Trial, a 10,000-mile rally across the unimproved roads of the Outback. Mr. K was the racing team manager, and the class victory spurred Nissan to begin global exports.
In 1960, the company sent Mr. K to Los Angeles, and he began building a U.S. dealer networks from scratch. “In the beginning, Datsun dealers had no status or prestige, and they were not wealthy either,” Mr. K said. “During the difficult times, we all gritted our teeth and worked together and we made it through. For me, they are not just dealers but friends. I’m speaking like I’m a big man, but I owe everything to them.”
As Edmunds so eloquently explained on the occasion of Mr. K’s 100th birthday, Katayama’s dogged determination pushed Datsun to the forefront of foreign cars in the U.S. “Katayama built Datsun (as the Nissan franchise in America then was called) into a sales powerhouse, personally canvassing every town in America and turning used-car dealers and lawnmower repair shops into Datsun franchises. He made Datsun the most important Japanese brand in America, a signature of quality and innovation instead of cheap imitation.”
When Datsun introduced the 510 in 1967, Mr. K’s dealer network was ready. And with the company’s parts bin at his disposal, Mr. K set out to create Nissan’s most iconic vehicle: the 240Z. As Katayama himself recalls:
How can we transpose the relationship between man and horse into the one between man and car? Even after I was sent to Los Angeles in 1960 to establish Nissan Motors in the U.S., this question never really left me. Eventually I came up with the concept of the Z-car. It was a sports car with a sleek body with a long nose and a short deck, designed so that it could be built utilizing some of the parts and components that were already used in our other production cars, and it was a car that anybody could drive easily and that would give the driver that incredible feeling of jubilation that comes when car and driver are as one.
In 1970, when the 510-based 240Z reached U.S. shores, it had Mr. K’s fingerprints all over it. Allow Nissan to explain Mr. K’s role in creating the company’s first true sports car:
Though many, many people were responsible for the design and engineering of the first generation 240Z, its success in North America can be attributed to Yutaka Katayama, who was president of Nissan’s U.S. operations at the time. Known affectionately as “Mr. K,” he was convinced that the company’s new sports car design would be a hit in the U.S. There was just one problem—the vehicle’s name: the Fairlady Z.
Mr. K re-christened the car as the 240 Z for the U.S. market, and his wisdom paid off: The Z car was a wild success in motorsports and sales alike, establishing Datsun, and later Nissan, as a major brand with a strong enthusiast following.
Katayama retired from Nissan in 1977, but he remained a car guy right through to the end, earning a spot in the Automotive Hall of Fame in Dearborn, Michigan, in 1998. On his 100th birthday, Mr. K was still as feisty as ever, criticizing the Nissan 370Z as “so-so,” bemoaning its weight and price. “I’d like to have a sports car like the Miata,” Mr. K said in 2009. “The Miata is taking the place of the 240Z …. The fun of driving cars is the same as riding a horse. We need a car that is like riding on horseback. We are making robots. Robots don’t like human control.”
In Nissan’s own profile of the man, he raised similar concerns about the future of sports cars:
A sports car doesn’t have to be luxurious. It should be affordable so that anyone can own one, it should be easy to maintain, and it should be something that you can enjoy without having to spend too much money. To attach a price tag of $50,000 to a sports car just seems uncomfortable to me. You can get any price you want if you increase the number and level of features and equipment. But if you don’t add any extra equipment and features and you can still experience great exhilaration when driving, then that’s the best situation as far as I am concerned.
The beloved Mr. K turned 105 years old in September, attributing his health to the three liters of water he drank every day—though he also loved a good steak. Nissan produced a three-part documentary interview with the automotive legend to commemorate the occasion. It’s equal parts history lesson, business plan, and guide for enthusiastic living.
http://blog.caranddriver.com/yutaka-...z-dead-at-105/
02-21-15, 06:52 PM
#3
Lexus Fanatic
RIP, Mr. Katayama. Condolences to his family and friends.
The original 240Z caused quite a stir here in the U.S. when it debuted in 1969-70....although, at the time, most younger people were still enthralled with American muscle-cars. Still, the original Z was a blast to drive, though the original versions with the triple-carburator setup and interconnected linkage took time and careful attention in the service bay to keep those feisty carbs operating properly. Fuel-injection replaced them a few years later.
The original 240Z caused quite a stir here in the U.S. when it debuted in 1969-70....although, at the time, most younger people were still enthralled with American muscle-cars. Still, the original Z was a blast to drive, though the original versions with the triple-carburator setup and interconnected linkage took time and careful attention in the service bay to keep those feisty carbs operating properly. Fuel-injection replaced them a few years later.
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