We’ve mentioned the return of Datsun a few times in the last year, but a new report from Japan’s Nikkei newspaper seems to suggest the project has now been given the green light.

The idea is simple, use the Nissan brand for normal models in the developed world (where Infiniti is the luxury platform sitting above) while employing the Datsun brand for ultra-affordable vehicles in the developing world.

The Japanese report suggests the first of the new Datsun vehicles will be priced around 500,000 yen ($5,700) and go on sale in India, Indonesia, Russia and potentially other emerging markets. Cheaper models are expected to follow with requirements tailored to the developing nations.

The history of Datsun is a rather colourful one, with the brand’s name still top-of-mind in many parts of the world. The Japanese giant spent a reported USD $500 million ($465 million) back in the early 80s to initially tell the world that Nissan and Datsun were the same company and eventually that it would no longer be using the Datsun name. Five years after the name change program ended in 1986, the Datsun brand was still better recognised in the United States than Nissan.

So whilst some emerging brands struggle for recognition, it seemed that Nissan had the opposite problem with Datsun. If the report is accurate, and we have little reason to think otherwise, Datsun’s revival will be yet another back-from-the-grave story following the Toyota 86 and soon to be released Dodge Dart.

Although very unlikely for Australia any time soon (if ever), Datsun fans are still aplenty here. Would you like to see Datsun return as a contender in the low-end segment? Perhaps to take on the array of incoming Chinese brands?