A Nissan Cefiro 20G sedan, seen in China in 2018. The pretty Nissan sedan was in a very good shape. It was painted in dark blue with tinted windows and classy factory-standard alloy wheels.
White license plates for passenger cars were only issued in 2002 and 2003 in Beijing, Hangzhou, and Shenzhen. It was an experiment were citizens were allowed to come up with their own alphabetical/numerical combinations.
The experiment was cancelled after citizens came up with far too much creativity, choosing for various combinations with ‘sex’, ‘CIA’, ‘FBI’, and the infamous USA-911 which appeared on a Beijing car not long after the September 11 attacks. After the ensuing uproar the experiment was killed off but owners were allowed to keep the non-offensive plates.
The Cefiro has SUN · 169. Not sure how the owner got to keep the number ’69’!
The ‘A33’ Nissan Cefiro was manufactured from 1998 until 2004. It was sold under various names in export markets, including Maxima, Maxima QX, and QX. There was an Infiniti version called I30 and a Samsung version called SM5. The engine line-up was V6 only, with a 2.0 V6, a 2.5V6, a 3.0V6, and a 3.5 V6. Transmissions were a 4-speed automatic and a 5-speed manual. The Cefiro was front-wheel drive.
The Cefiro had a luxurious interior with lots of leather and wood trim. This one has dark-beige leather seats. The steering wheel is and the gear lever knob are enormous, as they all were at the time.
The center stack is a feast of buttons, dials and switches. The Cefiro was equipped with luxuries such as a CD-player with a 5-disc CD changer.
The A33 Nissan Cefiro was officially sold in China as an import. Its Chinese name was Fēngdù (风度). This name is currently used for a series of cars under the Zhengzhou-Nissan joint venture.
In China, the Cefiro was available with only two engines: the 2.0 V6 and the 3.0 V6. The Cefiro 20G model, like the one we have here, had the 2.0 under the bonnet. Output was 140 hp and 179 Nm. Only gearbox option was the 4-speed automatic. Top speed was 200 km/h and 0-100 took 11.3 seconds. Price in 2004 was 288.000 yuan. The 3.0 V6 model sold for 328.000 yuan.
The Cefiro badge in a very pretty font.
The 20G badge.
The A33 Cefiro was a sturdy car and even today there are still quite a few of these fine Japanese sedans around. But only one has a white SUN · 169 license plate.
An official Nissan China marketing photo of the Cefiro, with the sedan nicely photo-shopped on a coastal road.