Vehicle Description
Never available in the US from the factory, the Nissan Atlas line
of pickups and light commercial vehicles are very often found
working hard throughout Japan and Europe. From tow trucks to
delivery vans to utility fleets and everything in between, trucks
like these are what keep societies moving forward every day. This
particular 1994 Nissan Atlas F23 4x4 is more than just some beat-up
former laborer, in fact it looks to have barely broken a sweat.
Starting life as a fire truck in Japan, it was decommissioned, a
utility liftgate-style bed was swapped out back, and then it was
fully sorted. Fresh bright red paint, a tidy quad-cab interior, and
a workhorse 2.7L I4 Diesel engine matched up with a 5-speed gearbox
top the list of highlights, but the fact this blue-collar beauty
only has 17,213 kilometers on the clock might be its best
attribute.
If you're familiar with the VW 'Doka' Transporter, then you're
pretty much halfway there when it comes to understanding this
Nissan. Just know that while the VW stays out all night signing
awful Phish songs around the campfire, this Atlas is ready to get
up for work at dawn. Point being, if you're ready to put this 4x4
truck to work, it's up for just about any task. Fortunately, this
one appears to have never worked a day in its life, and has been
expertly preserved and maintained since new. The bright red paint
looks WAY too good to be original, the body panels are super-clean,
and there's not a trace of rust or damage anywhere. Even the color,
which such a nice shade of red, is just what you'd imagine slogging
along a narrow Japanese street somewhere early in the morning,
doing its job. Personally, I love the all-business look of this
truck, with form following function and a minimum of frills. You
could look at this little trucklet for hours and keep finding new
details that were the result of some engineering solution rather
than a stylist's pen, which is probably why these are so beloved.
The utility bed is as functional as you'll ever find, with
drop-down panels, a diamond plate floor and liftgate all covered in
black spray-in bedliner that will protect it forever. Oversized
mirrors, step bars, a roof rack, headache bars, and LED lighting
are all part of the package, and the red-and-black color
combination is flat-out gorgeous.
The cab is spacious and bright, more akin to a big van than, say, a
modern extended cab pickup. The commanding seating position and
upright steering wheel is tilted with a great view of the road, and
with no hood, this truck is a snap to maneuver. The seats are firm
in typical Japanese fashion, but that also means they're going to
wear like iron and still manage to be all-day comfortable. Even the
back seat is surprisingly spacious once you clamor back there
easily thanks to the wide quad-cab design. Gauges are basic, and
the speedometer reading in KPH is another reminder that this truck
was never available in the US. Interesting options in the
bare-bones cabin include cold A/C and hot heat, an upgraded Pioneer
AM/FM/CD/AUX stereo, tilt/telescopic wheel, as well as power
steering and power front disc brakes.
Power comes from Nissan' erstwhile 2.7L I4 diesel engine, which
makes around a 100 horsepower and approximately 170 lb-ft of torque
driving through a smooth-shifting 5-speed manual transmission. With
an instantly recognizable sound and surprisingly good pull in the
lower gears (which makes us think those torque numbers are probably
a bit higher), the Atlas squirts through traffic easily and offers
stable, trusty handling empty or loaded. This one is just as clean
underneath as it is up top, and the utilitarian blacked-out alloys
come wrapped in heavy-duty 215/60/15.5 Dunlop radials with plenty
of tread left.
For import enthusiasts, this is a rare treat, and it's likely that
it won't stick around long once it hits the internet. If you're
interested, I urge you to call today!
