Japan’s oldest carmaker, Nissan, has just celebrated its 80th Anniversary with a pair of very special events.

In conjunction with the Tokyo Motor Show, our crew was on hand at company headquarters in Yokohama as Nissan Chairman Carlos Ghosn unveiled the company’s latest innovation: a radical, electric 3-seater concept called the BladeGlider. Ghosn then invited guests to view a special display of current and historic models.

Well-loved nameplates such as Sunny, Fairlady, and Patrol helped Nissan build an enthusiastic following over the years.  The sleek 240Z and its descendants became worldwide classics on par with the best sports cars in the world, while the iconic Skyline GT-R badge defined performance for generations of Datsun and Nissan fans.

In December, the celebration was capped off-- not with cake and candles-- but with a Heritage Car parade of over 100 Datsun and Nissan models from different eras-- including this 1935 Model 14 Phaeton. The historic car traveled nearly 400 miles to Yokohama to participate in the event.

TOSHIYUKI SHIGA: These cars are a testament to the history of Nissan and the source of much excitement and innovation over the years. Today, I feel that it is necessary for us to keep making and offering Nissan cars that people will cherish for a long time.

YOLANDA VAZQUEZ: Our congratulations to Nissan for 80 years of moving people all over the world.  To see more of their retrospective videos, check out our website at PBS.org/MotorWeek.

And that’ll do it for this edition of Motor News!