One out of 500 Mitsuoka Le-Seyde vehicles produced has found a new owner at an online auction in the USA, where the Jpanese tuner never officially offered it. Despite the rare status of the car, the winning bid was as low as $14,250.
Mitsuoka Japan built these based on the Nissan Silvia S13 basis with all-original bodywork designed and produced in-house. The seller claims the company drew inspiration from the Zimmer Golden Spirit for this project.
Powering the elderly 1991MY sports car is a 1.8-liter non-turbo four-cylinder maxing out at 133 PS (131 hp / 98 kW) and 159 Nm (117 lb-ft) of torque. A four-speed automatic transmission drives the wheels.
The odometer shows around 63,800 km (39,650 miles) of use. During its lifetime, the car ended up with replacement wheels, exhaust system, steering wheel and Pioneer audio. The body was re-finished from white into dark red.
Despite all the repairs, the coupe is reportedly in a far-from-ideal condition. Notable faults include ubiquitous rust, paint wear, worn trim on the seats, and electric malfunctions. The steering wheel is at the right side, by the way.
Despite the unusual appearance of the car, Cars&Bids host Doug DeMuro was confident the buyer just needed to tank it up and be prepared to return bewildered looks at every traffic light.