Nissan - what do they do again?

[Shopkeep]

Stellantis. Assuming they haven't gone already.

This week our local Jeep/Dodge/RAM dealership swapped locations with the BYD dealership, the Jeep site was previously A grade prime and the BYD was a small basic lot with a couple of portable buildings for offices. A clear indication from this dealership group of where they see the future of the auto industry going.

 

[DaveB]

Not looking too good for Nissan lately. I mean, what vehicle do they actually manufacture that is desirable.
The outgoing Patrol - not on the hit list for anyone I know to acquire or even contemplate.
The new Y63 to come - non-diesel non-starter except for a few wanting a low-dose testosterone kick... good luck with MPG on that unit with its TT petrol.
Leaf? I have not seen many around.
Juke? - golly gosh.
Navara - yeah, they sell some but were lemons for so many years it tarnished the brand. Better, more reliable and cheaper options from competition.
Xtrail / Pathfinder - it is a loaded segment and anyone looking at these are buying HAVALs for $15K less base.

They are running at a loss in their big markets and there is nothing in the pipeline that will drag their sales figures up. Bring back the S200 and a proper Skyline and an actual new 4X4 that is comparable to the current 4X4 market.

They seem to make a lot of vans, trucks and commuter vehicles for different countries.
I hired a Y62 Nissan Patrol in Perth a few months ago and it was a horror to drive.
So big, bulky and thirsty.
No idea what was in front of the bonnet from about halfway past the windscreen.

 

[DaveB]

those guys ran Carlos Ghosn out of town and look where that took them.
Nissan used to have cool products but last couple of years hasn't been inspiring.

They didn't run him out of town.
He stole a shitload of money and then hid in a box to go on a freighter.

 

[bigleonski]

This week our local Jeep/Dodge/RAM dealership swapped locations with the BYD dealership, the Jeep site was previously A grade prime and the BYD was a small basic lot with a couple of portable buildings for offices. A clear indication from this dealership group of where they see the future of the auto industry going.

Interesting. Our local Ineos dealer has taken on the Leapmotor EV franchise as well. (Chinese - I’d never heard of it either)
At $50k drive away you get a far whack of car which will appeal to a much broader market, and I’m thinking sooner or later the Grenadiers will start to be parked at the back behind the brand that sells more.

 

[Mountain4x4]

Very popular with the aged members of the population.

And man, nearly every Honda is being driven 10 under the speed limit. They are slow as Priuses on the road. Hondas are definitely ultra conservative and boring, but then again most cars are. They cannot all have Hell Cats.........OR COULD THEY?

 

[ADVAW8S]

This week our local Jeep/Dodge/RAM dealership swapped locations with the BYD dealership, the Jeep site was previously A grade prime and the BYD was a small basic lot with a couple of portable buildings for offices. A clear indication from this dealership group of where they see the future of the auto industry going.

They are building your dream!

 

[ADVAW8S]

All you guys get some decent options. We just get Vinfast. Literally a ball of fire.

 

[Shopkeep]

All you guys get some decent options. We just get Vinfast. Literally a ball of fire.

There was a fascinating article in the New York Times by Thomas Friedman that suggested as the rest of the world transitions to Chinese made self driving EVs "....America will become the new Cuba — the place where you visit to see old gas-guzzling cars that you drive yourself".

 

[Shopkeep]

Interesting. Our local Ineos dealer has taken on the Leapmotor EV franchise as well. (Chinese - I’d never heard of it either)
At $50k drive away you get a far whack of car which will appeal to a much broader market, and I’m thinking sooner or later the Grenadiers will start to be parked at the back behind the brand that sells more.

I think you will see most metro Jeep/RAM dealers transition to being mainly Leapmotor over time, it is a good looking value for money family option. Not getting rave reviews from the motoring press but they will only get better with each new model release. Might be a different story in rural Queensland and WA.

 

[bigleonski]

I think you will see most metro Jeep/RAM dealers transition to being mainly Leapmotor over time, it is a good looking value for money family option. Not getting rave reviews from the motoring press but they will only get better with each new model release. Might be a different story in rural Queensland and WA.

Yep. A very different cockpit to the Grenny that’s for sure.
And no, I can’t see too many of these west of Toowoomba or east of Perth.

 

[ADVAW8S]

Yep. A very different cockpit to the Grenny that’s for sure.
And no, I can’t see too many of these west of Toowoomba or east of Perth.

View attachment 7882311

Mix of Tesla, Land Rover defender armrest

 

[Zimm]

Hondas are likely the best engineered cars out there… and clearly that’s never much appealed to me as evidenced by my current purchase. I approach cars like I approach women. … Just think, if in the final stages of development (if that’s what one calls what occurred at Ineos) they gave Honda engineers 6 months to make our turd buckets glitch free. *sigh*. Too bad Honda never attacked a truck like this, the same way they went at bikes.

 

[parb]

They didn't run him out of town.
He stole a shitload of money and then hid in a box to go on a freighter.

I'm not so sure. I read the evidence and the indictment and to me it read more like a palace coup aided by cops to run a foreigner out of town. The evidence just seemed thin and based on poor record keeping than on an exec with his hands in the till.

And at 99% conviction rate its hard to argue that ghosn would have a fair trial. I just don't believe that the Japanese system is without flaws thus I'm skeptical about 99% conviction rate represents a fair judiciary.

I lived 2 years in Japan as an gaijin exec. And I would live there again. But the mid 2000 era of foreigners running Japanese companies has ended, Carlos was overstaying his welcome and that is what really did him in. Or at least that's my opinion without knowing anything more than what is publicly available.

 

[DaveB]

I'm not so sure. I read the evidence and the indictment and to me it read more like a palace coup aided by cops to run a foreigner out of town. The evidence just seemed thin and based on poor record keeping than on an exec with his hands in the till.

And at 99% conviction rate its hard to argue that ghosn would have a fair trial. I just don't believe that the Japanese system is without flaws thus I'm skeptical about 99% conviction rate represents a fair judiciary.

I lived 2 years in Japan as an gaijin exec. And I would live there again. But the mid 2000 era of foreigners running Japanese companies has ended, Carlos was overstaying his welcome and that is what really did him in. Or at least that's my opinion without knowing anything more than what is publicly available.

You are probably 99% correct.
Problem is the man in charge can't use the excuse of poor record keeping as.......he was incharge
Always a problem with Japanese and Chinese ......you can do a better job than them...... you can run their companies better than them.....but if you are going to keep telling them and everyone else..... best you do it from another country.

 

[parb]

I'm hesitant to lump Japan and China together as I think their respective motivations are vastly different. But perhaps the net effect to an external observe is similar.

 

[NQ94]

Innovative? Um. One of the reasons for the merger is because one of them didn't innovate.

View attachment 7882238

Nissan Honda and Mitsubishi are in discussions for a merger.

 

[parb]

Well they have to. They are bankrupt within the next 12 months without new cash. Their combined hope it's that combining their business will reduce costs by sharing technologies. The same ideas that was so prevalent in the US 20 years ago that led to craziness like fiat-Chrysler and Ford-Volvo.

Nissans core problem isn't really cost, it's sales. They are now selling 30% less cars than they did a pre covid because their cars are not very exciting to customers. Nissan is losing both in design and technology with their cars. Until they fix that no amount of cash infusion will really matter.

Honda hasn't touched their recipe in years and the formula of affordable, reliable and boring has found their segment with the accord, civic, CR-V and to a less extent the pilot. Will Nissan help them expand...? Maybe but I think mergers of cultures with Honda sales is leading vs Nissans engineering is leading are very difficult mergers.