Model Year vs Production Year

1993 Nissan Silvia S14

Vehicles 25 years old from date of production are legal to import to the US, exempt from Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards (FMVSS). The date of production is the actual date the vehicle was manufactured. Manufacturer data, or date of first sale, is normally used to verify vehicle age.  Now where we run into some issues with some cars is model year(MY).

"In the United States, for regulation purposes (such as VIN numbering and EPA emissions certification), government authorities allow cars of a given model year to be sold starting on January 1 of the previous calendar year. For example, this means that a 2019 model year vehicle can legally go on sale on January 1, 2018."

Model Year (MY) is used worldwide, to describe approximately when a vehicle was produced. The model year, and calendar year of production rarely coincide.  Introductions of new models are often phased in around the world, meaning that a 1994 model of a particular vehicle may actually refer to two entirely different vehicles in different countries. Therefore, the more common practice for enthusiasts and motoring writers in other countries is to identify major revisions using the manufacturer's identifier for each revision.

A perfect example of this is a Nissan Silvia S14.  The Nissan Silvia S14 was first sold in Japan in October 1993. The S14 version of the Nissan 240SX was sold in the US as a 1995 model, starting in Spring 1994.  In the US, the S13 version was sold from 1989-1994. 

Now if you want to get even more difficult, add in a 1993 Nissan Silvia S14, that has had a Kouki (later) front end swap, and it has a 1998 cc engine.  Some people question us, wondering why we are trying to "pass off" a 1998 (cc) Nissan Siliva as a 1993.  Well, because it is...

  

This is 1998 cc, not the year 1998.  Nissan Information plates like this, don't have the year of production on them. 

 

1993 Nissan Silvia S14 with a Kouki front end conversion.  This 1996 up (1997 up in the US) front end is much more agressive than the earlier cars.