Yutaka Katayama, the Nissan executive behind the Datsun 240 Z, died this week at 105. A native of Japan, Katayama basically cracked the code on selling Asian cars in America. Decades after the man made his mark, his life holds stark, vibrant lessons regarding the automobile.
"The fun of driving cars is the same as riding a horse," Katayama said, late in life. "We need a car that is like riding on horseback. We are making robots. Robots don't like human control." Translation: Make cars people want to drive, and that feel like they’re meant to be driven, not ridden in.
Katayama joined Nissan in 1935 and started out working on publicity, then advertising. His style of leadership was distinctly divergent from the norm. The typical Japanese business style of the time, at least in the auto industry, was based on consensus, says Pete Brock, an automotive designer who raced Datsun cars in the 1970s. "You give them information, they have a closed meeting, and they call you back weeks later with a decision." Katayama was different. His "was very much an American style, and he was just amazing in his understanding of how Americans did business."
Katayama came to America in 1960 in a sort of corporate exile. Japanese executives of the time viewed America as an undesirable place where cars couldn't be sold and World War II sentiments lingered. The product was largely to blame: Japanese cars of the time were tinny and underpowered. Their small engines often had piston speeds and components unsuited for the rigors of stateside driving. (Translation: They blew up a lot.)
When Katayama was handed control of Nissan sales for the Western United States, with a small office in LA, Nissan sold roughly 1,000 cars a year in America. He was given two employees and an ad budget of $1,000, and he ended up pitching vehicles door-to-door. At the time, Nissan’s Datsun brand ranked seventh in import sales in the US. By the time he retired in 1977, it was number one.
Katayama pushed for the creation of the 240 Z, a less expensive take on the Jaguar E-Type and one of the prettiest things ever built. He didn't personally design the car, but "found the right two designers [in Japan] and encouraged them,” says Brock. “When management tried to thwart him, and wouldn't let them build the car, he said, 'I will take the year's production of those cars entirely for the United States.’”