Once A Thorn in Nissan's flesh, DATSUN Is Set For A Comeback

Before there was Toyota, there was Datsun. Its first cars went on sale in 1931, a half a decade before Toyota's, and were a key part of the global car market until 1986, when the brand's owner, Nissan Motor Company, controversially phased it out completely in favor of its own name.

But Datsun is now set to make a comeback.

Nissan said Tuesday that it will revive the Datsun name on a line of inexpensive small cars that will be sold in India, Indonesia and Russia. The announcement was made by Nissan/Renault chief executive Carlos Ghosn, during a visit to Jakarta. Ghosn plans for Datsun to become Nissan's third global brand, along with Nissan and Infiniti.

By sticking to new models for emerging markets, Nissan most likely can avoid the headaches that it encountered in the United States.