a commercial vehicle that was originally only offered at Nissan Bluebird Store. The 520 series Datsun Truck shared its platform with the Datsun Bluebird, plus the larger Nissan Junior sharing an engine with the Nissan Cedric; Nissan decided to duplicate the success it had with a Bluebird-based pickup truck for the new Sunny platform. The Sunny was engineered by newly acquired Aichi Machine Industry Co., Ltd., and gave the new acquisition the ability to demonstrate their profitability to their new Nissan owners. The Sunny truck dimensions were in compliance with Japanese Government dimension regulations and the small displacement engines reduced the annual road tax obligation. The B20 used the same wheelbase and running gear as does the Datsun Sunny VB10 van, and shared its dimensions. B110 (1970–1973) The second-generation Nissan Sunny (B110) was launched in January 1970 and was known as the Datsun 1200 in export markets. This new model was slightly larger in all dimensions to match its market rival, the equally popular Toyota Corolla. The two companies continued a game of one-upmanship which had started when Toyota gave the Corolla an 1,100 cc engine and prominently featured the additional displacement over its Sunny rival. Predictably, Nissan responded by giving the second generation Sunny a 1,200 cc engine and a somewhat controversial marketing campaign with the theme "the car next to me looks small." The Datsun 1200 featured MacPherson strut front suspension with optional disc brakes and an economical 1.2-litre A12-series engine, an enlarged version of the A10 used in the B10-series Sunny. A five-door station wagon was added to the Sunny range in addition to the three-door wagon. In April 1970 a GX (Grand Luxury) trim with twin-carburetor engine was added for the Japanese market. In January 1972 a minor facelift occurred in the Japanese market with a new hood, grille and other small modifications and equipment fitting. In August 1972 the GX-5 model was added in Japan, which improved on the GX by fitting a direct-fifth (non-overdrive) five-speed manual transmission. The Sunny Coupé 1200GX was offered as an alternative to the Toyota Corolla Levin and Toyota Sprinter Trueno, which were performance package trim levels on the more economical Corolla and Sprinter models. For the 1973 model year, US models were re-specified with energy-absorbing bumpers, fire-resistant interiors and other government-mandated safety items. The B110 made its racing debut at the Fuji 200-mile race on 23 November 1970 in