This Nissan Micra was not a Nissan Micra

The fact that the Nissan Micra has not always been the same everywhere is of course apparent from the fact that the first four generations of the model in Japan, among others, did not bear the Micra name at all. Instead, the Micra was called “March” in Japan. The current fifth generation Micra is not even available there. In addition, the previous Micra in India was a Renault and the second (K11) and third (K12) Micra in homeland Japan consisted of pleasantly disturbed versions of Mitsuoka. We’ll stick with the second-generation Micra for a while. There was also a totally unknown sedan version in Taiwan and the Philippines: the March Cubic. But there’s more! In Japan, for example, Nissan casually carried a station version of the Micra, the March Box, and there was even a March Cabriolet with a fabric hood.

Nissan March Box: a stationary version of the Micra (K11)

For the enthusiast of automotive curiosities, those March Box and March Cabriolet may be reason enough to curse the car gods for withholding them from European consumers. With a bit of luck, we’re not the only ones who get a cozy feeling in the stomach at the sight of the somewhat unfortunate, but perhaps because of that, desirable sedan versions of the model. Yet that three magical Micra’s is not what this article is about. After a long detour we arrive at a Nissan Micra that is not called Micra or March and is not even a Nissan. At least not visible.

And what about this mighty March Cubic?

Meet the Muji Car 1000. The Muji Car 1000 was an extremely minimalistic version of the Nissan Micra, on which you did not even find Nissan logos. In fact, it didn’t even have a single logo or emblem on it. The Muji Car 1000 had a simple, vinyl-covered rear seat, no hubcaps but blank center caps and was only delivered in the fortunately still somewhat fancifully christened Marble White paint. The marble-white ‘Micratje’ got its own grille with horizontal slats instead of the copy of the 1998 facelifted Micra. It also got taillights that closely resembled those of the pre-facelift version, although the Muji was not introduced until 2001,

The Muji Car 1000 in all its stripped-down glory.

Fully cloth-covered soft headrests? Forget it. The Muji Car 1000 had cheaper ‘open’ plastic copies and got a simple vinyl mat in the luggage compartment. Striking detail: just like the bumpers, the exterior mirrors were also finished in simple black, but they were nicely electrically foldable! In addition, you always got air conditioning and a creamy white instrumentation and a rear seat that, in contrast to the more spacious Micra’s, could be folded down in two unequal parts. Furthermore, the Muji Car 1000 was bareer than the Bolivian salt flats and also in engine terms the Muji Car 1000 had little more to offer than the bare minimum. It will not surprise you that the Muji Car 1000 did not have the 75 horsepower 1.3 as its powerplant. Instead, he was helped in motion by the familiar 55 hp 1.0, a machine that was also always tied to a four-speed automatic. That 1.0 also explains the number in the name of the car.

Okay, so the Muji Car 1000 was an extremely bare Micra without badges, but what was it exactly? Well now. The Muji Car 1000 was an experiment limited to 1,000 pieces by the Japanese Muji, a retail chain with a minimalist house style that sells products without a brand name or logos. Muji wanted to put its digital sales channels and online marketing to the test by offering the Muji Car 1000 online only. Please note: we are talking about 2001 here. Even 21 years later it is still self-evident that you can also order a car from a dealer, barring exceptions. The Muji Car 1000 cost in Japan converted €6,517. Delivery of the car and maintenance was covered by the usual Nissan dealers, so you didn’t have to bring the Muji Car 1000 to the service counter of the Muji department store.