For more than half a century, motor racing has drawn crowds in Japan. But for motorsports fans, one grand prix stands out: the 1964 meeting at Suzuka.
It was the day the Skyline legend began.
The GT-II race and a team of Skyline GTs lined up. They were modified sedans but were about to do the unthinkable – and challenge the established champions from abroad.
The Skylines nearly didn't get to the race at all. To qualify, a hundred units of the production version of the car had to have been made. Prince Motor Company, later to merge with Nissan, only just made the target.
The Skyline GT had a longer nose and a straight six, triple-carbureted engine. It was the brainchild of the chief engineer, Shinichiro Sakurai.
Reunited with the No. 39 he drove in the race back in 1964, Yoshikazu Sunako remembers that at first the modified car seemed far from perfect.
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