The Datsun 17 was little more than a face-lifted version of the previous Datsun 16, though not all the changes were improvements.
The most obvious change to the vehicle was to it's radiator grille. The grille surround, which was painted the same colour as the body of the car, was largely unchanged, but on the Datsun 17 there is now a wide vertical bar that travels from the top of the grille opening to the bottom. This vertical bar is painted the same colour as the body. The 15 and 16 had a vertical bar in the same location, but it was much narrower.
Much of the rest of the car remained the same as the Datsun 16. The 17 continued to use the same bonnet vent arrangement as the Datsun 16, and under the bonnet it continued to use the same 722cc 4 cylinder 16hp Datsun Type 7 engine.
Nissan's "Fact File 2000" shows that production of the Datsun 17 ended in January 1944, but it seems almost certain that the actualy production run finished in late 1938.
