Prince Gloria History
Prince's top-of-the-range luxury sedan (1959–1966), home to Japan's first mass-produced SOHC six-cylinder engine.
Photo: “Prince-GloriaBLSI.jpg” by Kzaral / Wikimedia Commons, licensed under CC BY 2.0. Cropped to 16:9.
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The Gloria was introduced in February 1959 as Prince's prestige flagship, designed to appeal to government ministries and senior executives. Crown Prince Akihito received the first example as a wedding anniversary gift in April 1959, cementing its status as a car of national significance. The name 'Gloria' was chosen as a tribute to the royal household.
The second-generation Gloria S4 series (from 1962) raised the technical stakes considerably: in June 1963 Prince fitted it with Japan's first mass-produced SOHC (single overhead camshaft) six-cylinder engine, the 2.0-litre G7, producing 106 PS at 5,400 rpm. The Gloria Super 6 was the result — a genuine technological milestone for Japanese industry. The Grand Gloria S44P followed in May 1964, ahead of the Tokyo Olympics, offering a 2.5-litre engine and electric power windows.
When Prince merged into Nissan in 1966, the Gloria continued under Nissan badging and remained a long-running Japanese luxury nameplate sold in parallel with the Nissan Cedric through the 1990s.
Generations
First generation · BLSI series
Photo: “Prince-GloriaBLSI.jpg” by Kzaral / Wikimedia Commons, licensed under CC BY 2.0. Cropped to 16:9.
Luxury sedan derived from the Skyline ALSI platform; presented to Crown Prince Akihito in 1959.
Second generation · S4 series
Photo: “Prince S41D-1 Gloria Super 6 (open version) (23050410432).jpg” by 先従隗始 / Wikimedia Commons — CC0 1.0. Cropped to 16:9.
Introduced Japan's first mass-produced SOHC six (2.0-litre G7, 106 PS) in the Gloria Super 6; Grand Gloria added 2.5-litre engine and electric windows for 1964.
1963 Photo: “1963 Prince Gloria 01.jpg” by Mytho88 / Wikimedia Commons, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0. Cropped to 16:9.
1964 Photo: “Prince Gloria Super 6 Model 41, 1964 (7137367483).jpg” by Iwao from Tokyo, Japan / Wikimedia Commons, licensed under CC BY 2.0. Cropped to 16:9.
Body styles
- Sedan
- Wagon
Notable special editions & performance variants
Gloria Super 6
First Japanese production car with an SOHC six-cylinder engine (2.0-litre G7, 106 PS) — a landmark in postwar Japanese automotive engineering.
Grand Gloria
Flagship long-wheelbase variant with 2.5-litre engine and electric power windows, launched ahead of the 1964 Tokyo Olympics.
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