180SX or S13 Silvia? How they differ, and what that means when you buy one in Japan

The 180SX and the S13 Silvia are easy to mix up from abroad. They share a platform, they were both sold under other names outside Japan, and people call either of them "an S13". In Japan they're two different models, and the differences matter when you're buying one you can't see. Photos show less than you think, and one of the differences is underneath, where listing photos rarely go.

What Nissan's own records say

Nissan's heritage collection describes the 180SX as a three-door hatchback coupé that shares its platform with the S13 Silvia. It was launched first in North America and Europe as a 1989 model, under the names 240SX and 200SX, and arrived in Japan in April 1989, with pop-up (retractable) headlights.

The two then went separate ways. In 1993 the Silvia moved on to the S14, while the 180SX carried on without a change to its basic design until 1998. So a 180SX for sale in Japan can be a much later car than any S13 Silvia.

Nissan's collection lists its own early 180SX, a 1990 car, as type RS13, with the same 1.8-litre turbo engine (the CA18DET) as the Silvia K's. Nissan's newsroom page on the 180SX also includes a photo captioned "1994 SR20DET engine".

How to tell them apart on a listing

Our founder, who owned a 180SX, puts it plainly: the two aren't variations of one car, they're different models, and the difference is easy to see once you know where to look.

• The body. The S13 Silvia is a coupé with a boot. The 180SX is a hatchback.
• The headlights. The 180SX has pop-up headlights. The S13 Silvia's are fixed.
• Underneath, on the passenger side. On a 180SX, a frame-like member under the floor on the passenger side (the left, on a right-hand-drive Japanese car) isn't joined up. There are parts made specifically to join it, so on a 180SX it's worth asking whether that has been done.

The first two show in any listing photo. The third doesn't, unless someone takes a photo from ground level on that side.

Which engine is in it

On the S13, our founder's preference is clear: the SR20DET. He'd also consider a naturally aspirated car built up with individual throttle bodies. He's wary of the CA18: there weren't many to begin with, a lot of them were taken out of cars and scrapped years ago, and if one fails he'd expect a replacement engine to be hard to find.

So whichever car you're looking at, ask which engine is fitted now, not only which one the car was built with. On cars of this age and this kind of history, the two aren't always the same.

Where each one tends to suffer

Both were popular drift cars, and both are covered in their own guides: where to look on a 180SX and on an S13 Silvia. If the car has been lowered or braced, see also lowered and modified cars from Japan.

What photos can't tell you

• Whether the passenger-side member on a 180SX has been joined, or how well, unless a photo was taken from ground level on that side.
• Whether the engine fitted is the one the car was built with. We can photograph what's in the engine bay as far as it can be seen. We don't judge whether an engine or a part is original or genuine.
• How far any rust goes. A photo shows the surface. We don't lift cars, so anything we can't see from ground level is marked Not verified in our report.

Weighing up a 180SX against an S13 in Japan, or not sure which one a listing really is? Send us the link and tell us what you'd want photographed.

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Photos to ask the dealer for

1. A side view and a front view, so the body and headlights are clear
2. Under the floor on the passenger side, from ground level, on a 180SX
3. The engine bay, wide enough to see the whole engine
4. The registration certificate (shaken-sho), where the dealer is willing to show it, so you can compare the model type printed on it with the listing

Car a long way from the Tokai region (Aichi, Gifu and Mie)? A Remote Check is where we phone the dealer in Japanese and ask for photos of the passenger-side floor and the engine bay, before anyone travels.

Written by Yoshiaki Sagara, a paintless dent repair and detailing technician in Japan. He looks at cars for overseas buyers through Ninja Desk Japan. About us

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