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| The new-generation Micra underpins the Viewt Mk2 |
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The base Micra used to kick off at around ¥900,000 (around £3,900 at 91 prices) but fully optioned up and on the road, most Viewt buyers (most of them 20-30-year-old Japanese women) allegedly didn't mind parting with the thick end of ¥3m (£13,000). It was a nice earner for Mitsuoka, who said he used to shift more than 1,000 new Viewts a year.
Things ticked on until Nissan brought out the latest shape Micra in 2002, when Viewt production wound down. But Mitsuoka came up with another bright idea: buying in and reselling used Viewts. Today, with new Micra underpinnings, we're onto Viewt Mk 2, which starts at £11,800 and comes at you with a choice of 1.2, 1.4 and 1.5 engines and even 4WD.
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| Some of the accessories that can push the value of your Viewt to over £13000 |
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What's more, being slightly longer, wider and taller, and with a smoother roofline, it could be argued that it aesthetically - if that's the right word - works a bit better than the original. Just how funny would it be to ship one to the UK and take it to a Jaguar Mark II owners' meeting?
When Mitsuoka came up with the Zero-1, his Mazda MX-5 engined Caterham Seven tribute in 1994, building his own chassis meant that he officially qualified as Japan's 10th carmaker. It also gave him entry to his own stand at the Tokyo Motor Show, quite a coup for such a tiny manufacturer.
After the Zero-1, Mitsuoka came up with the more flowery Classic Type F in 1996 - essentially the same car with 1.8-litre MX-5 twin cam, but styled this time after a 40s single-seat racer. Apparently...
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