The revitalised Datsun brand on Monday unveiled its first new car for the twenty-first century.

The all-new Go will go on sale in India early next year.

The unveiling follows the commitment made by Nissan Motor Company in March last year, that it would return its defunct Datsun brand to the marketplace.

Datsun now forms the third leg of a three-tiered brand strategy for the Japanese car manufacturer, along with the mainstream Nissan and premium Infiniti badges.

“This is an historic day for Nissan Motor Company and for our customers and partners in some of the world’s fastest-growing markets,” said Nissan Motor president and CEO Carlos Ghosn as he unveiled the car.

The five-door, front-wheel drive Go is sold with a 1.2 l engine, and is paired with a five-speed manual transmission.

Datsun says the hatchback seats five, and is 1 635 mm wide, 1 485 mm high and 3 785 mm long.

The Go also offers a mobile docking station that allows drivers to access their music through their smartphones.

Datsun Go is expected to be priced below R70 000 in India.

Nissan says the “all-new car is built to meet the needs of a recent rising group of optimistic customers in high-growth markets who seek better value propositions. These are people who want transportation that supports their everyday needs, but that also fulfills their dreams and ambitions for a better tomorrow. They are literally on the move. They want to go further, so the name of the car reflects this aspiration.”

The name of the hatchback is inspired by the first Datsun, the DAT-GO, launched almost a century ago in Japan.

Datsun models will be individually developed for different markets, but the vehicle concepts will all follow a common inspiration.

The Go will be the first of several Datsun models that will be launched later in 2014 in Indonesia, Russia and South Africa.