Nissan, Datsun, Infiniti, Mitsubishi, Automotive trends, Auto industry trends, Automotive market research, Automotive market analysis, auto industry news

Nissan is a Japanese OEM that sells cars and light commercial vehicles under the Nissan, Infiniti and Datsun brands. Nissan is also the controlling shareholder in Mitsubishi Motors and has a cross-shareholding with Renault.  This page contains research on Nissan and Mitsubishi's activities and strategy.

Automotive trends, Auto industry trends, Automotive market research, Automotive market analysis, auto industry news

2020

April

  • APB Corporation licenced Nissan’s battery technology for use in stationary storage applications. (Autocar)
  • Nissan’s forthcoming recovery plan will reportedly replace a long-standing sales target of around 6 - 7 million vehicles annually with a lower figure of around 5 million. (Reuters)
  • Nissan is apparently asking banks for a $4.6 billion increase in its credit line. (Reuters)

March

  • Mitsubishi could reportedly take a stake in Renault as part of a bid to strengthen the alliance. (Reuters)
  • Plans to close the Purwakarta, Indonesia factory as part of a global recovery effort. Nissan will probably re-badge vehicles built at Mitsubishi’s nearby plants to maintain a market presence. Insiders hinted that production cuts in Russia are next on the list. (Manichi)
  • Nissan and Mitsubishi are reportedly planning to stop contributions (previously set at up to $200 million per year) to the Alliance Ventures investment vehicle. (Reuters)
  • Nissan’s Russian factory will go to a one shift pattern (from two today) until the market has recovered. The company said the move was unrelated to coronavirus. (TASS)

February

  • Nissan’s new CEO pleaded with shareholders to be given more time to come up with a coherent recovery plan and said he would happily be fired if he fails. (Reuters)
  • Trialling a short-term leasing scheme called “Switch” in Houston, USA. (Nissan)
  • Moving to quarterly sales reporting in the US, following the lead of GM, Ford and FCA. (Nissan)
  • A UK consortium headed by Nissan completed a 230 mile “self-navigated” trip on public roads. (Nissan)

January

  • Rumoured to be planning further spending cuts (on top of the summer 2109 turnaround plan) by cutting 4,300 salaried staff globally (g. some US sales and marketing offices) and closing two (unidentified) factories. The global line-up will be pared to 62 models, but average aim will be reduced to 2.5 years (from 5 today). (Reuters)
  • Reportedly prepared a plan for a hard Brexit that would see Nissan plants on mainland Europe closed and an attempt to capitalise on the lack of homegrown UK production by taking market share from competitors who would be subject to higher tariffs than Nissan (~3% vs 10% of material cost). (FT)
  • Will prioritise the Nissan brand in India (over Datsun), including for designed / made in India products, calling into question Datsun’s market positioning. (Autocar)
  • Nissan, Renault and Mitsubishi announced a series of measures to deepen integration. Nissan will lead engineering on models for China; Mitsubishi for Southeast Asia and Renault in Europe. Engineering of components will also be shared out, although no details were given. The three brands also plan to pool their collective fleet average CO2 in Europe, starting in 2020. (Mitsubishi)
  • Said the diesel engines subject to investigation by German authorities for emissions cheating were supplied by PSA and denied the existence of any defeat devices. (Mitsubishi)
  • Carlos Ghosn reportedly predicted that Nissan would go bust by 2022, according to someone who interviewed him for a book (before he became a world-renowned escape artist). (Bloomberg)
  • German regulators are investigating whether Mitsubishi diesel engines contained defeat devices. (Reuters)
  • Nissan and Renault’s top engineering executives are planning a feelgood session to reignite shared projects (Reuters) or, Nissan is angling for a sell-down of the cross-shareholding. (Bloomberg) You decide.
  • Revealed that 10,000 hours has been spent investigating compensation and other payments stemming from Carlos Ghosn’s ouster, with several others found to have benefitted (but kept anonymous). Amongst actions Nissan is taking to improve corporate governance, the practice of retaining former senior executives as consultants will be ended, meaning that outgoing CEO Saikawa will leave the company for good when he steps down. (Bloomberg)
  • Nissan is reportedly making contingency plans to go it alone in engineering and manufacturing in the eventuality of a complete split with Renault. (FT)
  • After Carlos Ghosn held a press conference accusing Nissan executives and unnamed Japanese government officials of orchestrating his downfall, his former Nissan colleagues said the claims were predictable. Ghosn said that the root of the issue was the need to find a scapegoat for Nissan’s performance, and moves by the French state to deny Nissan what the Japanese company saw as a fair say in Renault’s governance. Ghosn also said that he had been about to retire before the board persuaded him otherwise and now wishes he hadn’t listened. (Bloomberg) / (CNBC)
  • Nissan’s number three executive resigned to take up a post at supplier Nidec. (Reuters)
  • Mitsubishi has reportedly decided not to design any new diesel engines, although it will continue development of existing architectures. (Nikkei)
  • Ex-CEO Ghosn fled pre-trial detention in Japan, saying things were taking too long and offering to give his side of the story. Journalists were more interested in how he escaped. (Nikkei)

2019

Q4 & FY 2019 Results

  • Mitsubishi’s Q4 2019 revenue (fiscal Q3) of 1.67 trillion yen (about $15.3 billion), down (7)% versus the same period in 2018. Operating profit of 3.6 billion yen (about $33 million) fell (96)% from prior year. (Mitsubishi)
  • Nissan reported Q4 2019 (fiscal Q3) revenue of 2.504 trillion JPY (about $22.8 billion) fell (18)% from the same period in 2018. Ordinary income was 37 billion JPY (about $337 million) but there was a net loss of (22) billion JPY (about $(200) million). The forecast for full year operating income was slashed. (Nissan)

December

  • Japan’s market watchdog recommended that Nissan be fined $22 million for under-reporting Carlos Ghosn’s compensation. (Nissan)
  • Nissan told US office staff not to turn up for work at the start of 2020, hoping to cut costs. (Detroit News)
  • Nissan’s recently departed CEO says the company discounted the Leaf too heavily to meet aggressive sales targets and this damaged the brand. (FT)
  • Nissan’s limited edition GT-R50 is going into production soon - and you can still order one. (ItalDesign)
  • Although Nissan will be introducing some plug-in hybrids in Europe, executives say the firm views the technology as a stopgap until battery electric cars fall in price. (Auto Express)
  • Appointed Renault’s Hadi Zablit as the general secretary for the Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi alliance. (Renault)
  • Nissan and Renault both want to concentrate on improving their financial performance before returning to the subject of the correct capital structure for the alliance. (FT)

November

  • The head honchos of Nissan, Renault and Mitsubishi thrashed out a new organisation structure that will see combined activities led by a General Secretary (yet to be appointed). (Nissan)
  • Automating a several factory jobs that have traditionally required extensive training or put physical strain on employees such as headliner and powertrain installation on assembly, plus sealant application in the paint shop. Nissan says it has developed special ways to make minute adjustments and detect clips locking in place. (Nissan)
  • Nissan announced a series of executive changes. (Nissan)
  • Nissan is recalling almost 400,000 cars to fix problems with the braking. (The Guardian)

October

  • Nissan announced a series of executive changes, including a new CFO. (Nissan) Mitsubishi did too. (Mitsubishi)
  • Despite previously announced plans to expand Datsun’s portfolio, Nissan reportedly now intends to stop development of new products and drop the brand when current cars’ lifecycle ends. (Autocar)
  • Nissan showed two concepts in Tokyo, both all-electric: Ariya, an SUV; and IMk, a small people carrier. (Nissan)
  • Mitsubishi also showed two concepts in Tokyo: an electric dune buggy called Mi-Tech and a preview of the next generation of Japanese market kei cars. (Mitsubishi)
  • Reportedly open to offers for factories in Barcelona, Spain and Sunderland, UK as part of a bid to slim down Nissan’s footprint in Europe. (Bloomberg)
  • Announced that Makoto Uchida, the head of Nissan’s operations in China, as the new CEO with Mitsubishi’s COO, Ashwani Gupta, taking the same role at Nissan. Jun Seki, seen as one of two frontrunners was given a new role as deputy COO, the fate of current interim CEO Yasuhiro Yamauchi is unclear. All the changes will be effective from 1st January 2020. (Nissan)
  • Said that a no deal Brexit, with accompanying tariffs on finished vehicles sent between continental Europe and the UK would potentially render the entire European business “unsustainable”. (BBC)
  • Ending the night shift at the Sunderland, UK, plant but beefing up the line rate so that the factory’s output and workforce will remain the same. (BBC)
  • Nissan has started using an automated process for metal forming that uses two robots applying pressure to a panel from each side, rather than using conventional press tools, essentially recreating artisanal techniques. Nissan says it will use the technology for aftermarket body kits and to produce spare parts for very old cars. (Nissan)
  • Reportedly considering moving production of the Juke and Qashqai out of the Sunderland, UK, plant in the event of a no deal Brexit. Nissan refused to confirm or deny the rumours. (Detroit Free Press)
  • Despite persistent rumours of Nissan pulling out of South Korea, the firm says it will continue there. (Korea Herald)
  • Nissan unveiled the IMk, a concept small MPV that the brand says uses an all-new electric vehicle platform. The vehicle shows Nissan’s interpretation of a near-buttonless cabin. (Nissan)
  • Nissan’s board has reportedly been conducting an analysis of the leadership qualities possessed by the shortlisted candidates for the CEO role and found that the acting CEO is favoured by the old guard whilst the recent head of Nissan’s China operations is better liked by younger managers and is seen as more likely to be revolutionary. (Reuters)

Q3 2019 (Q2 Fiscal Year 2019/20) Financial Results

  • Mitsubishi reported Q3 2019 (fiscal year Q2) revenue of 592 billion JPY (about $5.4 billion), down (3)% on a year-over-year basis and operating profit of 6.4 billion JPY (about $59 million), down (78)%. Mitsubishi reduced full year profit guidance. (Mitsubishi)
  • Nissan reported financial results for Q3 2019 (fiscal year Q2). Revenue of 2.6 trillion JPY (about $26 billion) fell (6.6)% on a year-over-year basis, while operating profit of 30 billion JPY (about $280 million) fell (70.4)% YoY. Nissan slashed the full year outlook: revenue forecast is (6)% lower and operating profit is (35)% worse. (Nissan)

September

  • Recalling 1.23 million vehicles to fix a problem with the reversing camera. (CNN)
  • There are reportedly three candidates in the running to become Nissan’s next CEO, one of whom comes from outside the automotive industry. (WSJ)
  • Nissan expanded an existing relationship with utility company EDF that offered electric vehicle charging and payment services to UK customers. The collaboration will now include France, Belgium and Italy too. (Nissan)
  • Reportedly in talks to sell its spare parts distribution business, with a figure of $1 billion mentioned. (Reuters)
  • Agreed to pay the SEC $15 million to settle charges of misstating director earnings. (Nissan) Carlos Ghosn also settled, paying $1 million for his role in the debacle, and agreeing to a 10 year ban on US directorships. (Sky News)
  • Nissan unveiled the next generation Juke B-sized crossover. (Nissan)
  • After an audit that revealed several Nissan executives, including CEO Saikawa had received inflated compensation, which Saikawa admitted to reporters several days before Nissan published the findings, Saikawa resigned, effective 16th September, the COO will become interim CEO. (Nissan)
  • Nissan reportedly has a list of 10 candidates to succeed outgoing CEO Saikawa. (Reuters)
  • Reportedly planning to pull out of South Korea amid dwindling sales due to heavy competition and consumer boycotts of Japanese products. (Korea Herald)
  • Alliance Ventures invested in design outsourcing company Superside (TechCrunch) and Sanity.io. (Sanity)
  • Nissan’s US operations suffered five days of disruption to IT systems, affecting everything from new car ordering to customers attempting to make monthly payments. (Automotive Logistics)

August

  • Renault and Nissan are reportedly making progress in discussions that will see Renault reduce its Nissan stake in return for the latter’s approval to a tie up with FCA. (Il Sole 24 Ore)

July

  • According to leaked emails, Nissan and Renault are in the middle of intense negotiations to see whether Nissan would approve the proposed FCA / Renault merger if the French company reduced its current 43.4% stake in Nissan. (WSJ)
  • Showed off a new version of the Skyline. (Nissan)
  • Renault’s chairman said the alliance with Nissan was back on track, there were no plans to restart merger talks with FCA and that no one talks about Carlos Ghosn anymore. (AP)
  • Mitsubishi will invest in ride hailing firm GoJek (the Mitsubishi trading company had already been announced as an investor but this is the first time the motor company has come on board). (Mitsubishi)
  • Nissan and Mitsubishi merged their Japanese finished vehicle logistics operations. (Mitsubishi)
  • Alliance Ventures invested in Maniv Mobility’s new $100 million fund. (Economic Times of India)
  • Renault and Nissan might stop publishing their customary annual cost saving declaration. (Reuters)

June

  • Nissan’s CEO said he was postponing talks on further integration between alliance partners, preferring to focus on his firm’s financial recovery, warning the alliance could break apart “quickly” if Nissan wasn’t happy. (Reuters)
  • The Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi alliance VC unit invested in The Mobility House, a company that uses batteries from electric cars to provide storage for power grids. (Renault)
  • Mitsubishi is moving US headquarters from California to Tennessee. (Mitsubishi)
  • Announced plans to add Renault’s chairman and CEO to two of the new oversight committees. (Nissan)
  • Renault and Nissan signed an “exclusive” deal with Waymo for mobility services in France and Japan. (Renault)
  • Nissan is being sued by its partner in a Middle East distribution joint venture, who claims that Nissan didn’t maintain the level of exclusivity it had initially promised. (WSJ)
  • Appeared to back down from an earlier stance that Renault executives shouldn’t be on the new oversight committees Nissan intends to establish. (Les Echos)
  • Off-the-record sources said new Renault chairman Senard has decided that the CEOs of both Renault and Nissan are “irritants” impeding good relationships between the alliance partners. (Reuters)
  • Renault complained that it was under-represented in Nissan’s new corporate governance plan, but didn’t object to the new framework, threatening to abstain from any shareholder vote (and effectively block the move). Nissan called the stance “regrettable”. (Nissan)
  • Nissan could refuse to support any revamped merger proposal between FCA and Renault unless the latter sells some of its Nissan stake. (Reuters)

May

  • Nissan will dock the CEO’s pay by 50% because of his role in the Ghosn scandal. (Nissan)
  • Nissan’s CEO said the firm wasn’t opposed to FCA’s proposed merger with Renault. (Nissan)
  • The Infiniti brand’s will move from Hong Kong to Japan as part of cost-cutting measures. (Nissan)
  • FCA says that if the proposed merger with Renault went ahead, Nissan and Mitsubishi would save €1 billion per year on top of current alliance plans. (FCA)
  • Mitsubishi will reportedly change the sizes of SUVs in the next generation to create a gap of around 200mm between the overall lengths of different models. (Autocar)
  • Nissan reportedly wants to take a 25% stake in a Chinese electric car brand and has shortlisted WM Motor, Zhejiang Hozon and CHJ Automotive. (Deal Street Asia)
  • Said that lidar need further work to be worthwhile, given the relative costs and capabilities of radar and cameras. Unlike Tesla, Nissan appeared to leave the door open for application in future, and has made less extravagant promises about when the technology will be commercially available. (Reuters)
  • Announced a plan for Renault’s CEO to join the Nissan board, whilst current CEO Saikawa stays in charge of Nissan, despite indicating he might be ready to stand down. (Nissan)
  • Standard & Poor’s said Nissan had a negative credit rating outlook. (The Mainichi)
  • Mitsubishi’s current CEO Osamu Masuko will become chairman and Takao Kato will take over as CEO. (Mitsubishi)
  • Outgoing CEO Masuko says he will remain in charge of alliance discussions with Renault and Nissan. (Japan Times)
  • Will debut hands-off highway driving on the forthcoming Skyline. (Nissan)
  • The Alliance Ventures VC unit is partnering with Plug and Play China to reach start-ups in the country. (Renault)
  • Will cut 600 jobs at the Barcelona factory. (Economic Times of India)
  • The head of the Infiniti brand left to join FCA. (Nissan)
  • Will re-organise the board structure. (Mitsubishi)

April

  • Announced a series of senior executive changes. (Nissan)
  • Reportedly continuing to rebuff Renault’s attempts to engineer a full merger, or something that looks very similar to it, on the grounds that Renault would have the upper hand. (Reuters)
  • Vehemently denied newspaper reports that the 2019/20 fiscal year plan will reduce production by (15)%. (Nissan)
  • Suing Carlos Ghosn, alleging that he made payments to distributors that were actually going to him. (Nissan)
  • Will build the next generation Navara pick-up truck at the Rosslyn, South Africa, plant. (Nissan)
  • Carlos Ghosn was rearrested and will be held in detention until at least April 14th. (Reuters)

Q1 2019 (FY Fiscal Year 2018/19) Financial Results

  • After denying newspaper reports of an output cut for the remainder of 2019, Nissan released a profit warning for the fiscal year ended March 2019. Although this was mainly blamed on increased operating expenses, the statement alluded to sales headwinds resulting from the Ghosn scandal. (Nissan)
  • Mitsubishi produced 1,441,227 vehicles in the fiscal year ended March 2019, 13% up on prior year. (Mitsubishi)
  • Mitsubishi reported financial results for the full fiscal year to March 2019. Revenue of 2.5 trillion JPY (about $22 billion) and operating profit was 119.9 billion JPY (about $1.1 billion). Although Mitsubishi expects revenue to increase in the next year, profit is forecast to decline. (Mitsubishi)
  • Nissan reported earnings for the fiscal year ended March 2019. Revenue of 11.6 trillion JPY (about $105 billion) dropped (3.2)% on a year-over-year basis whilst operating profit of 318 billion JPY (about $2.9 billion) fell (44.6)% YoY. Nissan believes that in the next fiscal year sales will rise slightly but revenue and operating profit will both be worse. (Nissan)

March

  • Completed the sale of Nissan’s battery business to Envision. (Nissan)
  • Nissan has a reworked approach for determining compensation for directors and executives. (Nissan)
  • Renault reportedly wants to give Nissan a short post-Ghosn cooling off period and then resume talks on a full merger within the next 12 months, so that after that the combined entity can take on FCA. (Reuters) Nissan’s CEO said that he doesn’t know anything about it. (Reuters)
  • Released a report into the Ghosn scandal, saying he had become too powerful. Nissan’s CEO was exonerated by findings that he had been tricked into signing documents, and that Ghosn never really stopped being CEO anyway until his arrest. (Nissan)
  • Denied reports that internal mid-term Nissan targets for Chinese market sales were downgraded by 8%. (Reuters)
  • Nissan announced a number of senior executive moves effective 1st (Nissan)
  • The Infiniti brand will no longer be sold in Western Europe after 2020 and production of vehicles in Sunderland will also cease as the company focuses on electric vehicles in China and North America. The cost of investing in technology to meet EU CO2 regulations for 2020 and beyond was a key reason for the move. (The Guardian)
  • Mitsubishi announced a series of executive moves effective 1st April, including a new COO. (Mitsubishi)
  • Nissan and Mitsubishi launched four new kei cars (two each). (Mitsubishi)
  • Nissan is testing invisible-to-visible (I2V) technology that the company claims can create 3D images of objects, people or even cartoon characters in a vehicle cabin. (Nissan)
  • Renault, Nissan and Mitsubishi published an MoU for their new governance structure. Although the existing joint operating companies will not be dissolved, they will become vassals of a new supreme council made up of CEOs from each OEM, plus Renault’s chairman. As part of the deal, Renault appear to have accepted a demotion: Renault’s chairman will be a “natural candidate” to become vice chairman of Nissan. (Nissan)
  • Nissan CEO Saikawa reportedly told employees he intends to stay in role for another three years, seemingly contradicting earlier comments that he would be headed for the exist much sooner. (Bloomberg)
  • Nissan said stories about a plan to reduce production of Qashqai and Leaf in Sunderland by going from three shifts to two were rumours, but didn’t issue an outright denial. (Sky News)
  • Mitsubishi unveiled the Engelberg Tourer SUV and suggested that the car can be used as a back-up generator if the customer adopts the firm’s Dendo house concept for connecting the car to the home grid. Previous concepts of this nature have centred on battery electric vehicles, thus haven’t been able to explore this idea before. (Mitsubishi)
  • Announced that the e-Power range of motor-as-generator vehicles will launch in Europe by 2022. Concepts shown by Nissan at Geneva hint that the Qashqai and X-Trail will both receive the powertrain. (Nissan)
  • Renault, Nissan and Mitsubishi are discussing a new governance structure that would oversee joint projects, in a way that would not require a change to the shareholding structure. (Renautlt)
  • Carlos Ghosn was granted bail but wasn’t allowed to attend a Nissan board meeting. (BBC)

February

  • Allegedly under investigation for being part of a cartel fixing prices for spare parts in Europe. (Automotive News)
  • Says that a new JV plant in Algeria will cost $160 million, with operations to begin by 2021. (Nissan)
  • Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi’s VC unit invested in PowerShare, a Chinese company that coordinates transactions between EV owners and different charging networks. (RNM Alliance)
  • Rumours continue to swirl about how Nissan will structure the role of chairman. Some of the more convoluted ideas appear to make sense only in the context of preventing Renault from controlling the role. (ReutersNominated Renault’s new chairman as a director but stopped short of recommending him as chairman. (Nissan)
  • Renault Nissan Mitsubishi is rumoured to be in talks with Waymo to use the latter’s self-driving system. (Nikkei)
  • Started production of the Qashqai in St Petersburg, Russia. (Nissan)

January

  • Mitsubishi teased an electrified SUV concept named Engelburg (after a Swiss town) it will bring to the Geneva show. The brand was silent on rumours of a sub-series named after the Yorkshire town of Hambleton. (Mitsubishi)
  • Reversed a plan to produce the next generation X-Trail in Sunderland, UK as a satellite plant of the main Kyushu, Japan factory. Instead, all production will be single-sourced to Kyushu. Nissan explained the decision as capital allocation in the face of high powertrain investment requirements, but said Brexit was not helping. (Nissan)
  • Sources say the production rate of Infiniti Q30 and QX30 models at Sunderland has fallen to below 25 cars per day, from a high of around 450. (Sky)
  • The UK government said that a grant of £60 million to Nissan would be unaffected, then changed tack and stated that almost the entire value was up for debate following the X-Trail decision. (BBC)
  • Carlos Ghosn gave an interview from prison attributing his detention to a plot from Nissan executives set against his integration plans for Renault, Nissan and Mitsubishi. Ghosn described a plan for an umbrella holding company that would own all three OEMs but allow them considerable arm’s length autonomy. Nissan’s reservations appeared to stem from Ghosn guaranteeing equilibrium only if each unit displayed “solid performance”, something he implied that Nissan was failing to deliver. (Les Echos)
  • The French president reportedly told Japan’s prime minister that Nissan and Renault should both have the same chairman (i.e. Renault’s recently appointed ex-Michelin boss). (Les Echos)
  • Following Nissan’s upheaval over executive pay the SEC is said to have started its own investigation. (Reuters)
  • Nissan’s CEO said he will step down once he has reformed the governance structure. (Automotive News)
  • The Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi Alliance Ventures fund invested in dealership software provider Tekion. (RNA)
  • Cutting a shift at the Canton, Mississippi plant, leading to 700 job losses. (Tennessean)
  • Suffered the ignominy of the Infiniti QX electric concept car losing power as it drove to the stage during its big Detroit show reveal. (Detroit Free Press)
  • The French government took steps to impose an end to the Ghosn saga by openly championing Michelin’s CEO as an ideal replacement for Ghosn and reportedly telling the Japanese government that it wanted to integrate Nissan and Renault under a single holding company -- something Nissan is resistant to and the government appeared to back away from publicly (for now). (Reuters)
  • Nissan and Mitsubishi said that payments of almost €8 million had been made to Carlos Ghosn by the Nissan and Mitsubishi joint venture company without properly consulting their CEOs and will take legal action to recover the money. (Nissan)
  • One of Nissan’s independent directors speculated that it may not be necessary to have a chairman. (Bloomberg)
  • Carlos Ghosn’s said in court that the foreign exchange contracts at issue had cost Nissan nothing and that he had been offered much more money by Ford and Gm to join them. (Nikkei)
  • Released a Nissan Leaf (dubbed e+) with a 62 kWh battery pack. (Nissan)
  • After a short leave of absence related to the Ghosn scandal, Nissan’s chief performance officer resigned. (Reuters)
  • Nissan’s board said it was committed to the alliance with Renault and Mitsubishi and would claw back control over some business decisions from executives. (Nissan) An executive has been appointed to improve governance, slightly odd in the context of an executive team where certain elements had supposedly gone rogue. (Nissan)
  • Carlos Ghosn’s son said the former Nissan CEO will mount a vigorous defence. (Detroit News)
  • Created a concept car that features augmented reality to show information that is either in a blind spot or beyond the driver’s visual range. (Nissan)
  • Released images of the Infiniti QX concept car to be unveiled at the Detroit show which promises to show the brand’s future direction with an all-electric portfolio. (Nissan)
  • Abruptly placed two more senior executives on a leave of absence, apparently related to the probe into Carlos Ghosn’s financial affairs. (Financial Times)

2018

Q4 2018 (Fiscal Year Q3) Financial Results

  • Nissan sold 5,653,683 vehicles in 2018, a drop of (2.8)% from 2017. (Nissan)
  • Mitsubishi reported financial results for Q2 -Q4 2018 (fiscal first to third quarter). Net sales of 1.518 trillion yen (about $13.8 billion) were up 18% versus 2017 whilst operating profit of 85 billion yen (about $770 million) rose 31%. Mitsubishi reaffirmed full year outlook. (Mitsubishi)
  • Nissan reported financial results for the fiscal third quarter (Q4 2018). Revenue of 3.045 trillion yen (about $27.5 billion) was up 5.9% versus a year earlier and operating profit of 103.3 billion yen (about $930 million) was 25.4% better. Despite the improvements in the quarter, Nissan reduced full year guidance for profit and revenue, mainly due to reduced volume assumptions. (Nissan)

December

  • Nissan’s US operation said that it had learned several things about marketing electric vehicles: customers really want a decent range (200 miles+); because there is less of an existing infrastructure for electric cars than gasoline and diesel vehicles the customer needs to be provided with additional services; people want a wide choice of bodystyle; cultural and other factors mean that response is different across markets. (Green Car Reports)
  • Will reduce production in China by 30,000 units between December and February because of slow sales. (Reuters)
  • Eliminating 1,000 jobs at two Mexican plants due to falling demand. (Reuters)
  • Mitsubishi strengthened strategy oversight at a board level, with a bias towards external directors. (Mitsubishi)
  • Opened a new software development centre in Kerala, India. (Nissan)
  • Journalists said that Nissan was making unusually large cash transfers from its Chinese subsidiary to the Japanese parent to build a war chest for a potential fight with Renault. Nissan said it was business as usual. (Bloomberg)
  • Sources said Nissan plans to appoint more external directors. In addition to providing oversight, the move could have the (useful?) side effect of diluting Renault’s board presence (but not its shareholder voting rights). (Reuters)
  • Mitsubishi is moving to a new headquarters in Tokyo. (Mitsubishi)
  • Conspiracy theories about Carlos Ghosn’s ouster continued to swirl with rumours that he was about to replace Nissan’s CEO. (WSJ)
  • Announced a new series of inspection procedure problems in Japanese plants that require around 150,000 vehicles to be recalled and re-tested because the methods used were not strenuous enough. (Nissan)
  • Carlos Ghosn, another director and Nissan were all charged by Japanese prosecutors for falsely reporting Ghosn’s income. (Nissan)
  • The Nissan GT-R50 by Italdesign will go into production. 50 will be built and the price tag is €990,000. (Nissan)

November

  • There was a joint Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi press release saying that the boards of the three companies “emphatically” reiterated the importance of the alliance between them. The press release was only necessary because executives from Nissan and Mitsubishi had openly questioned the sustainability of the present arrangement. (Renault)
  • Nissan’s CEO reportedly told staff that the alliance with Renault was unequal and needed to be reviewed. (Reuters)
  • Illustrated how Nissan’s various pilot projects about an electrification ecosystem link together and should ultimately result in a broad customer offering. (Nissan)
  • Nissan’s board voted unanimously to terminate Carlos Ghosn’s role as chairman and set up a committee to review governance but held off naming a direct replacement. (Nissan)
  • Mitsubishi deeply apologised for Ghosn’s alleged offences and said it would remove him as chairman. (Mitsubishi), then chose the CEO to become CEO and chairman. (Mitsubishi)
  • In a shock announcement, Nissan said that an investigation started by a whistleblower discovered that Chairman Carlos Ghosn had under-reported income and used company funds for personal use, and was aided in a cover up by one of the directors. Nissan took steps to dismiss both and has cooperated with Japanese authorities. (Nissan)
  • The Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi VC fund invested in lithium ion battery developer Enevate. (Alliance Ventures)
  • 40% of Nissan Serena minivan buyers in Japan are choosing the series hybrid option. (Nissan)
  • Nissan will make a new small van, called the NV250, based on Renault’s Kangoo and produced in Maubeuge, France. Mitsubishi will launch a 1 ton van based on the Renault Trafic to be manufactured in Sandouville. (Renault)
  • The Alliance Ventures VC unit invested in Canadian multi-modal app Transit. (Renault)
  • Mitsubishi believe that plug-in hybrids will not be cost effective for a few years and that 60 miles EV-only range will be the standard in the next generation. (Autocar)
  • Magazine tests suggested that Infiniti’s new variable compression engine wasn’t having quite the fuel economy benefit that was hoped for. (Green Car Reports)
  • Opened a new technical centre in St Petersburg, Russia, that houses 120 staff. (Nissan)

October

  • The Alliance Ventures VC unit invested in Chinese self-driving technology start-up WeRide.ai. (Nissan)
  • Said it had enough Nissan Leaf vehicles enrolled in its vehicle-to-grid scheme to qualify as a power station under German regulations. (Nissan)
  • Mitsubishi commenced production at its new engine plant in China, a joint venture with GAC. (Mitsubishi)
  • Nissan created a new business unit to cover Latin American markets. (Nissan)
  • Nissan now offers a range of aftermarket option packs aimed at fleet. Nissan says the products can increase residual values and fleets will benefit from discounts and the availability of dealers to fit the accessories. (Nissan)
  • The Alliance Ventures VC unit invested in mobility data company Coord. (RNA Alliance)
  • Delayed pay talks with UK unions until 2019, awaiting the outcome of Brexit negotiations. (Sky News)
  • Increasing production capacity of the Xpander from 160,000 to 200,000 units annually. (Mitsubishi)
  • Carlos Ghosn said Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi may extend its cooperation with Daimler to include battery technology, autonomy and mobility services. (Reuters)

Q3 2018 (Fiscal Year Q2) Financial Results

  • Nissan reported financial results for the second quarter of the financial year (Q3 2018). Revenue of 2.8 trillion yen (about $24.7 billion) fell (2.7)% on a year-over-year basis. Operating income of 101 billion yen (about $890 million) fell (21)% YoY. (Nissan)
  • Mitsubishi reported financial results for the second quarter of the financial year (Q3 2018). Revenue of 1.2 trillion yen (about $10.2 billion) was up 23.4% on a year-over-year basis whilst operating income of 56.9 billion yen (about $500 million) was up 28.6% YoY. (Mitsubishi)

September

  • Launched production of the all-new Altima at the Canton, USA plant. (Nissan)
  • Infiniti has now dropped all hybrid models from its US line-up. (Green Car Reports)
  • The R-N-M alliance announced a collaboration with Google to use the latter’s Android system for in-car infotainment, with Google Maps providing directions from 2020. (Renault)
  • Nissan will recall about 240,000 vehicles to fix problems with the brakes that could cause fires. (Detroit News)
  • Undertaking a minor restructuring in Europe, eliminating around 200 posts. (Chronicle Live)
  • Took a stake in the e.DAMS racing team that will run Nissan’s Formula E entry. (Nissan)
  • Unions are unhappy with a voluntary redundancy scheme the alliance has offered at its Tamil Nadu, India, plant saying the company should have consulted with them first. (Business Standard)
  • Believes that car sales in the US may make a partial recovery as interest rate increases and higher gasoline prices may SUVs less affordable. (Bloomberg)
  • Looking to expand in the Indian market with twice as many sales and service points (270 today) by 2021. The product strategy will be reshaped with Nissan concentrating on the higher end of the market and more vehicles from the Datsun brand to cater to budget conscious customers. The company will also hire 1,500 people at Indian technical centres. (Nissan)
  • Increased the range of remanufactured parts available in a bid to retain customers once the warranty period expires by offering lower prices; Nissan says about by 30%. In addition, it is expanding the offering of lower cost consumables. Less clear is how Nissan plans to market the parts to retail consumers and incentivise dealers to offer them. (Nissan)
  • Nissan’s design chief seemingly confirmed the company is working on a new Z (sports) car. (Which Car)

August

  • Launched production of the new Altima sedan at the Tennessee, USA plant after a $170 million refit of the plant facilities and tooling. (Nissan)
  • Production of the China market-only Slyphy BEV began at Dongfeng’s plant in Huadu, China. (Nissan)
  • Mitsubishi is increasing production of the Xpander small crossover from 100,000 units annually to 150,000 units by 2019, citing wild sales success in the ASEAN region, particularly Indonesia. (Mitsubishi)
  • Nissan has trademarked “h-POWER”, leading to speculation that it could be used in hydrogen vehicles. (Auto Guide)

July

  • Nissan has agreed to sell a majority of its AESC battery division to Envision. (Envision)
  • Nissan executives expect 35% of the brand’s European sales in 2025 to be electrified vehicles. (Autocar)
  • May add another plant in China, but wants to maximise existing capacity first. (Bloomberg)
  • Said it is on track for its Japanese electric car sharing venture to reach 500 sites by March 2019. (Nissan)
  • Dropped the slow-selling Juke in the US market. (Car Buzz)
  • If demand is sufficient, Nissan will build 50 GT-R50 supercars, with a likely price tag of €900,000 each. (Top Gear)
  • Disclosed that end of line emissions tests had been falsified at some Japanese factories. The implications remain unclear without knowing to what extent measured values deviated from homologation. (BBC)
  • Daimler reportedly ended a joint project with Infiniti to produce a luxury compact car. (Automotive News)

Q2 2018 (Fiscal Year Q1) Financial Results

  • Nissan reported net revenue of 2,716 billion yen (about $24.5 billion) in Q2 2018 (Nissan’s fiscal first quarter), down (1.6)% on a year over year basis. Operating Income of 109 billion yen (about $1 billion) was down (28.8)%, which Nissan blamed on lower sales and unfavourable exchange. (Nissan)
  • Mitsubishi reported financial results for Q2 2018 (fiscal first quarter). Net sales of 560 billion yen (about $5 billion) were up 19% versus the same period a year earlier. Operating profit of 28.1 billion yen (about $250 million) was up 7.5%. (Mitsubishi)
  • Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi collectively sold 5,538,530 vehicles in the first half of 2018, an increase of 5.1% on a year-over-year basis. (RNA Alliance)

June

  • CEO Ghosn said the company was “in the dark” about what form Brexit would take and was therefore struggling to plan an appropriate response. (City AM)
  • Cancelling the sale of its battery business to GSR Capital because the buyer has not provided the funds it promised. The company will now consider its options. (Bloomberg)
  • Carlos Ghosn said that although discussions about a deeper relationship between Renault, Nissan and Mitsubishi, a full takeover by Renault was not one of the options. (Reuters)
  • Nissan announced long term targets for its expansion plan covering Africa, the Middle East and India; there were few specifics about how Nissan intends to accomplish its goals. (Nissan)
  • Said that ultrahigh tensile steel was a key element of its weight reduction strategy, with a target of 25% usage by weight (at an unspecified point in the future) -- it already overachieved this figure in the new Infiniti QX50. (Nissan)
  • Announced that annual synergies from the Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi alliance reached €5.7 billion in 2017, up from €5 billion in 2016 driven by new measures such as including Mitsubishi in spare parts, retail financing and benchmarking. (Renault)
  • Launched a new sustainability strategy with goals for the year 2022 covering the environment, society and governance. (Nissan)
  • Reportedly decided to end development of diesel engines. (Nikkei)

May

  • Reportedly planning to cut production of Nissan vehicles by up to 20% in North America due to falling profitability. The cuts should have been fully implemented by the end of the year, without no redundancies forecast. (Reuters)
  • Carlos Ghosn said a merger of Renault and Nissan was unlikely before 2020. (Bloomberg)
  • Alliance Ventures will invest in Maniv Mobility’s technology fund and aims to do a deal per month. (Reuters)
  • Nissan’s CEO said there was no merger negotiation going on with Renault but acknowledged that the two companies continue to discuss their future relationship. (Les Echos)
  • Announced a new CFO, their predecessor is retiring. (Nissan)
  • Launched a new offering in the UK that provides solar panels, stationary storage and home energy management (potentially including vehicle charging). Customers will have a choice of either brand new or used electric vehicle batteries. (Nissan)
  • The implied take rate of Nissan’s ProPILOT driver assistance technology suite is around between 20% - 25% on vehicles where it is offered. (Nissan)
  • Plans to “discontinue diesel gradually from passenger cars at the time of each vehicle renewal”. (Reuters)
  • Renault CEO Ghosn said “nobody can answer this question” when asked whether Renault and Nissan would merge by 2022. He also said that “more than 95%” of vehicle content needs to be Chinese to be competitive in China and that this requires joint ventures. (Macau Business)

April

  • Nissan’s CEO said there was “no merit” in a full merger with longtime partner Renault, citing unspecified “side effects”. (Economic Times of India)
  • The Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi alliance has joined Didi Chuxing’s project to increase availability of BEV and PHEV vehicles for ride sharing drivers. (Nissan)
  • Showed the China-market only Sylphy electric vehicle, derived from the Leaf. (Nissan)
  • Launching a voluntary redundancy program at its Sunderland, UK plant, aiming for “hundreds” of takers. Nissan called the program “short term”. (The Guardian)

Financial Year 2017/18 Results

  • Nissan reported financial results for the 2017/18 year. Net sales of 11.95 trillion yen (about $110 billion) were up 2% on the prior year, operating income of 574.7 billion yen (about $5.2 billion) was down (22.6)%. In the coming financial year, Nissan expects sales to be slightly better but operating profit to decline slightly to 540 billion yen. (Nissan)
  • Mitsubishi reported 2017/18 fiscal year financial results. Revenue of 2.2 trillion yen (~$20 billion) rose 15% on a year earlier whilst operating profit of 98 billion yen (~$900 million) was almost 20 times the prior year. (Mitsubishi)
  • Nissan Q1 2018 global sales totalled 1,496,573 vehicles, a (1.5)% drop versus a year earlier. (Nissan)
  • Mitsubishi Q1 2018 global production totalled 378,489 units, an increase of 18% on Q1 2017. (Mitsubishi)

March

  • Both companies continued to deny persistent rumours that Nissan and Renault are engaged in merger talks with a view to a new company headquartered in either London or the Netherlands. (Les Echos)
  • Signed an agreement to produce Datsun cars in Pakistan from 2019 onwards. (Nissan)
  • Aiming to sell 1 million electric cars per year by 2022, a mix of BEVs and hybrids. The company gave a bit more detail on its intended product portfolio saying that there will be 8 new BEVs by 2022, including a kei car and a C-sized crossover. There will also be an “electric car offensive” in China. (Nissan)
  • Told US dealers that it was slowing production at a number of plants as it aims to reduce inventory to between 50 to 60 days. (Bloomberg)
  • Opened a lithium ion battery recycling plant in Japan as a joint venture with Sumitomo. The plant will repurpose used car batteries and depending on the condition may re-use them in vehicles or put them into packs for industrial vehicle use or stationary storage. (Nissan)
  • Started offering “refabricated” battery packs for the Nissan Leaf -- using a combination of new and good condition used components. At the moment, the offer is for Japan only. Pricing for a 40 kWh packs is around $7,800, giving an effective per kWh price of $195. (Nissan)
  • The Renault Nissan Mitsubishi alliance announced a series of joint appointments to strengthen shared operational teams. Many of the announcements were matched pairs. As part of the move, cooperation with other OEMs, such as Daimler, was made an alliance responsibility rather than sitting with the individual companies. (Nissan)
  • Aiming to produce cars with solid state batteries by 2030, with 2025 as an internal stretch objective. (Next Green Car)
  • Following press speculation that it might buy the Renault stake owned by the French state, Nissan said it was not looking to change the relative ownership balance. (Reuters)
  • Selling new Leaf in Europe at a rate of one every 12 minutes -- equivalent to around 45,000 units per year. (Nissan)

February

  • Announced new initiatives for the Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi alliance, including a deeper involvement for Mitsubishi. By 2022, the group expects to sell 9 million units from 4 common platforms (about 65% of sales) and for 75% of vehicles to use common powertrain. (Nissan)
  • Said that tests of its previously announced Easy Ride robo taxi pilot scheme would start on March 5th. (Nissan)
  • Will start Datsun sales in Zimbabwe. (Nissan)
  • Announced a new investment plan for its Chinese JV. The aim is to increase volumes from 1.52 million in 2017 to 2.6 million by 2022. The DFL Triple On plan will see new models launched, including 20 electrified models (not all BEVs) -- by 2022 the JV expects these models to make up 30% of sales. (Nissan)
  • Published a research report that said 37% of ASEAN customers planning to buy a car are open to an EV. (Nissan)
  • Announced a collaboration with carpooling app Hytch whereby Nissan will sponsor a system of reward payments made to both drivers and passengers who choose carpooling instead of separate journeys. (Nissan)

January

  • Chairman Ghosn is creating a new structure in the Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi alliance to divide operations and strategy roles after he steps down. He believes that it was appropriate to combine these functions in a single person (himself) to form the alliance but that it could harm the continued running. (Reuters)
  • Nissan’s Infiniti brand said it will start selling both hybrid and BEV vehicles in 2021 and that by 2025 over half of global sales will be vehicles with electrified powertrains. (Nissan)
  • Nissan, Renault and Mitsubishi announced their venture capital fund. The rumoured €200 million investment turned out to be only the first year amount with the partners prepared to commit up to $1 billion over five years. (Nissan)
  • Will end production of the Pulsar and a passenger derivative of the NV200 at its Barcelona plant, with increased production from new pick-ups for Mercedes and Renault compensating for the lost workload. (Europa Press)
  • Has sold 75,000 vehicles equipped with its latest L1/L2 ADAS suite, almost all of them were in Japan. (Nissan)
  • Expected to announce a €200 million fund to invest in mobility companies with 40% of the capital from Nissan, 40% from Renault and 20% from Mitsubishi. (Les Echos)
  • Will demonstrate advances in brain-to-vehicle technology at CES. Nissan says that it can be used to improve reaction times and enhance computer-assisted driving. (Nissan)

2017

2017 Full Year Earnings

  • Nissan reported financial results for Q4 2018, revenue of 2,943 billion yen was down (2.2)% on a year-over-year basis, profit of 163.5 billion yen was down (15.1)%. Nissan held its forecast FY revenue but reduced the profit outlook by (12.4)%. (Nissan)
  • Mitsubishi reported financial results for Q4 2017, revenue of 1.5 trillion yen was up 13.1% on a year-over-year basis. Operating profit of 64 billion yen was a marked improvement from a (23) billion yen loss in 2016 Q4. (Mitsubishi)

December

  • Nissan’s Canadian finance arm suffered a data breach in which customer data was taken. (Nissan)
  • Offering customers in Japan free home solar panels if they buy a Nissan Leaf and agree to a 20-year electricity supply contract. (Nissan)
  • Announced a series of executive moves. (Nissan)
  • Nissan is launching an all-electric carsharing scheme called e-Share Mobi in Japan. (Nissan)
  • Created a new brand for robo taxi ride hailing called Easy Ride, in partnership with DeNA. The companies are planning a two week long public trial in March 2018 in Yokohama, Japan. Full services will be introduced by the “early 2020s”. (Nissan)
  • Mitsubishi signed an MoU with the Indonesian government to find ways of promoting electrified vehicles in the country. This seems to be an opportunity to influence government policy around incentives. (Mitsubishi)
  • Will investigate vehicle-to-grid applications for electric vehicles in Japan with TEPCO -- Nissan already has several projects running in different European countries. (Autocar)
  • CEO Carlos Ghosn gave an interview in which he said that the industry would be totally transformed in 10 years, with large changes starting in the next three to four years. He said that significant further guidance from regulators was necessary before the winning technology set could be identified. He also said the best business advice he had ever been given was “if you want recognition, buy yourself a dog”. (Nissan)

November

  • Said that it will introduce a new internal combustion technology, variable compression, in the 2019 Infiniti QX50, claiming at least 30% improvement in fuel economy over the prior generation vehicle. (Nissan)
  • Issued its report into the final inspection scandal. Following the incidents, Nissan’s CEO will forego some of his pay. (Nissan)
  • Said that it might need a new factory in the US because existing plants are “maxed out”. (Bloomberg)
  • Installed a solar roof on its Netherlands distribution centre that has been funded in part by selling long-term claims on the electricity produced to local households. (Nissan)
  • Carlos Ghosn said in an interview that car ownership would continue and the growth of ride-hailing did not affect negatively affect sales volumes “a lot of people think this is substitution, it’s not -- it’s addition”. (Bloomberg)

October

  • Said that it had decided fixes for the problems with its final inspection routines in Japan and would be soon implementing them across plants. (Nissan)
  • Said that it will join Formula E from the 2018/19 season, taking over Renault’s participation. (Nissan)
  • Said that it wants to have a 5% market share in India by 2020 -- setting a 250,000 unit sales target. (Economic Times of India)
  • Showed a concept of an all-electric small SUV with a claimed 600 km of range. (Nissan). The company has created a sound called “Canto” that future Nissan electric vehicles will use at speeds of up to 30 kmh -- only time will tell if it becomes as iconically annoying as the Nokia ringtone (Nissan)
  • Has begun testing fully autonomous vehicles in Tokyo and remains committed to making the technology available from 2020. (Nissan)
  • Said that the new Leaf was selling well with 9,000 orders taken so far, including 2,000 in Norway alone. (Elektrek)
  • Mitsubishi announced targets for its three year plan called “Drive for Growth”. The company is aiming for a 6% operating profit by 2019 with a massive sales increase and will launch 11 new models, focus on core markets and reduce costs. (Mitsubishi)
  • Said that despite an earlier stoppage, it had discovered that several plants had continued to carry out inspections by incorrectly certified personnel and therefore production in Japanese factories was shut down. The problem appears to be that vehicle plants divided up quality checking tasks in a way that had not been approved. (Nissan)
  • Said that it was adding a 2nd shift (457 workers) to its St Petersburg plant in order to increase production of Qashqai, X-Trail and Murano. (Nissan)
  • Mitsubishi will undertake a vehicle to grid trial with PHEVs in the Netherlands. Although there are several schemes under trial with various manufacturers, this seems to be the first PHEV specific one. It is in collaboration with NewMotion (recently purchased by Shell). (Mitsubishi)
  • Following on from Nissan’s delivery suspension notification, the issue turned out to be improper certification of final inspection personnel. The Japanese transport ministry launched a series of spot checks on Nissan plants. (Reuters)
  • Held an event called Nissan Futures 3.0 where it unveiled a longer range version (280km) of the e-NV200 light commercial vehicle; said it would increase its charging network from 4,600 to 5,600 points within the next 18 months; showed off new charger and home storage products (developed with 3rd parties); and said it was working on vehicle to grid charging offers with electricity companies across Europe with the aim of providing sufficient revenue from the services to pay for the electricity needs of customer vehicles. (Nissan)
  • Said that all-electric cars could capture an 8% share in Spain within the next three years through a combination of infrastructure development and suitable government incentives. (Faconauto)
  • Said that customers would now be able to use Amazon’s Alexa service to carry out remote commands for such features as locking the vehicle or flashing the lights. For those worried about unauthorised use, Nissan has created the option of a four digit pin, which is spoken out loud (so that should stay a secret then). (Nissan)

Q3 2017 Earnings

  • Reported Q3 2017 / 1H fiscal year financial results. Although revenues were up, profits were down, in part due to market mix. Nissan reduced full year profit outlook, partly due to the final inspection issues in Japan. (Nissan)
  • Mitsubishi reported Q3 2017 / 1H fiscal year results. Revenue was up 9.6% on a year-over-year basis and the business has a YTD operating margin of 4.7%, up from a negative (3.7)% margin the previous year. (Mitsubishi)
  • Reported Q3 2017 global sales of 1,414,864 units, an increase of 6% on a year-over-year basis. Sales were down (3)% in North America, but up in all other regions -- by 26% in Japan. (Nissan)

September

  • Announced that it will suspend all registrations of vehicles in dealer and factory inventory in Japan. Nissan cited unspecified type approval irregularities as the reason. The fix appears to be a check of the affected vehicles after which, if they pass, they can be released to customers. (Nissan)
  • Infiniti executives said that the brand will launch an all-electric vehicle -- likely to be a sports car -- in 2019. The car will use Leaf technology but will have its own platform. (Autocar)
  • Mitsubishi is to add a vehicle to its Kaluga, Russia plant. The company will employ 440 people on 2 shifts to make the Pajero Sport. (Mitsubishi)
  • Following an in-depth research project, Nissan has found that 86% of people are driving the wrong colour of car for their personality. Apparently, more than half of participants claiming that they chose their favourite colour -- so the implications are, of course, enormous (from a philosophical standpoint). (Nissan)
  • Announced an updated set of targets for the Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi alliance to achieve by 2022: annual sales of 14 million vehicles; €240 billion turnover; €10 billion of synergies (an artificial figure -- €5 billion claimed currently). The group intend to have 12 purely electric vehicles on sale by 2022 and will launch various levels of driverless systems across 40 vehicles, culminating in a fully autonomous vehicle on sale in 2022. The alliance aims to become an operator of robo taxis, without providing further details. (Nissan)
  • At the launch of the new Leaf, Nissan said that the new generation would have a 40 kWh battery and 378km (European drive cycle) range (150 miles on US EPA rating) as well as a number of driver assistance technologies. Nissan executives said they hoped to sell 90,000 vehicles per year and that the company believed electric technology alone was “not enough” to change travel and buying behaviour and therefore they had combined the all-electric vehicle with new technologies in order to present a more compelling prospect to customers. Nissan will be progressively offering features of a service called Nissan Intelligent Integration which aims to help customer’s manage their overall energy supply. (Nissan)
  • During the media reveal of the new Leaf, Nissan executives said that a higher performance derivative to launch in 2018 would have a 60 kWh battery and that “we might have a crossover [SUV] EV shortly in the future”> (Economic Times of India)

August

  • Announced that the Renault-Nissan Alliance would create a new joint venture with Dongfeng, to be called eGT New Energy Automotive, to produce electric vehicles in China. Ownership will be 25% Nissan, 25% Renault and 50% Dongfeng. The initial product will be an A-sized SUV with a sales target of 120,000 units per year, to be launched in 2019. (Nissan)
  • Announced July sales and production results. Global sales of 448,906 units was up 4% on a year-over-year basis. (Nissan)
  • A pilot vehicle-to-grid scheme in Denmark operated by Nissan and Enel is paying a company €1,300 per vehicle per year to allow its plugged in vehicles to be use for grid management. It isn’t clear if this is a special incentive to participate in the scheme or the energy company genuinely believe V2G systems are profitable at this level. (Bloomberg)
  • Nissan engaged in a bit of dodgy maths by saying that there would be more electric vehicle charging stations than fuel stations in the UK by the year 2020. Given that a charging point is more analogous to a fuel pump than an entire fuel station, the comparison seems designed for headlines over analysis. (Nissan)
  • Selling its battery business to GSR Capital. In order to complete the transaction, Nissan will first buy out NEC’s share of the JV and then sell the complete business. The deal includes three manufacturing sites. (Nissan)
  • Said that 60% of customers were taking the opportunity to add personalisation options to their new Nissan Micras, spending an average of €400 each in order to do so. Nissan said the ability to personalise the vehicle was the number one reason for purchase given by customers. (Nissan)

July

  • The attempt by US union the UAW to organise the nearly 6,000 workers at Nissan’s Mississippi plant failed. (The Guardian)
  • Said that it had started a second shift at its Resende, Brazil, plant due to high demand for the Nissan Kicks in the region. (Nissan)
  • Will face a vote for union recognition at its Mississippi plant in early August with the UAW accusing the company of intimidation tactics. (More…)
  • Said that the new Leaf will have an e-pedal -- a device that will allow almost complete control of braking and acceleration with a single pedal. (More…)
  • Said that it expects 20% of European sales to be fully electric by 2020 “where the market conditions are right”. (More…)
  • Announced a second shift at its St Petersburg, Russia plant. 450 employees will be recruited as a consequence. (More…)
  • Said that in 2016, the Renault-Nissan alliance had delivered €5 billion in annual synergies, a 16% increase over the figure for the previous year. With the addition of Mitsubishi and further application of CMF-based vehicles, R-N expect this saving to reach at least €5.5 billion by 2018. (More…)

Q2 2017 Earnings

  • Reported Quarterly financial results (Nissan reports this as Q1 of its 2017 financial year). Operating profit of 153.3 billion yen was down (12.8)% year-over-year whilst revenues were up 4%. Nissan explained the profit reduction as primarily due to raw materials, exchange and the removal of Calsonic Kansei from reported figures. (Nissan)
  • Said that combined sales of Renault, Nissan and Mitsubishi vehicles meant that on a year to date basis the alliance was the largest seller of vehicles at 5,268,079 units. (Renault)
  • Reported production and sales figures for June. Global sales of 502,878 vehicles was up 6.7% on a year-over-year basis. Sales in Japan were up 46.1% YoY and rest of the world was up 3.5%. (Nissan)
  • Reported sales results for US and Europe. US sales of 143,328 were up 2% on a year-over-year basis. European sales of 70,757 units were up 4.4% YoY. (..)

June

  • Announced May 2017 production and sales results. Global sales of 460,554 units were up 6.7% on a year-over-year basis, led by sales of passenger cars in Japan. (More…)
  • Early model (2011) and high mileage Nissan Leaf owners are reporting range degradation of over 50%. They are also discovering that Nissan’s earlier statements about battery replacement cost are not being honoured by dealers. (More…)
  • Said that the next generation Leaf will have ProPiot features that allow autonomous driving in single-lane highway driving (i.e. the system will not change lanes but it will follow curves). Over time the system will be expanded and will “eventually” be capable of city intersections -- earlier company materials have suggested that this is not until the 2020s. (..)
  • Mitsubishi said that electric vehicles will be a major part of their strategic plan and that they had changed their thinking, having previously been of the opinion that EVs were “promising, but the price was too big and the range was limited. (More…)
  • Said that the Renault-Nissan alliance intends to launch driverless on-demand services “within 10 years”, though likely not starting before 2020. The services at launch are intended to be heavily geo-fenced, including specific pick-up and drop-off locations. (More…)
  • Said that the search for the new Mitsubishi CCEO will include all corporate officers. An exact timing for the new CEO was unclear with “April on” being mentioned -- presumably April 2018. (More…)
  • Announced that it had reached an agreement with unions at its factory in Avila, Spain that will see the plant remain open but convert from vehicle production to a parts depot. (..)
  • Following on from its announcements around a US charging network with stations of up to 150kW, Nissan has signed a contract with DBT to upgrade its European network to 150kW in the coming years. (More…)
  • Nissan is in dispute with the unions at its Avila, Spain plant. It has given a deadline on 14th June for the workforce to accept the same terms as Renault’s plants in the region or face closure. (..)
  • Reportedly planning a 100 MW battery storage facility in partnership with Renault and a business called The Mobility House. The site would contain both new and used batteries. (..)
  • Saw media speculation about succession planning for CEO Carlos Ghosn’s replacement. The Renault-Nissan alliance is reportedly considering appointing a joint executive who would pursue synergies between the two. The role would be a platform for potential future leadership of both companies and may well be a current Renault or Nissan executive. (..)

May

  • Reported May US sales of 124,957 units. This was an increase of 2% on a year-over-year basis. Declines in passenger car volumes of 3.1% YoY was more than offset by a 21.5% increase in truck volumes. (..)
  • Bloomberg wrote a report critical of Nissan’s use of fleet sales to keep market share in the USA. (..)
  • Will reportedly sell its 51% stake in its Lithium Ion battery JV with NEC to Chinese private equity firm GSR capital for about $1 billion. (..)
  • Said that a credit card it had launched in partnership with Synchrony Financial could form the basis of a payments platform for mobility services. (..)
  • Will be part of an 11-company consortium that aims to accelerate roll-out of hydrogen stations in Japan, targeting 160 stations and 40,000 fuel cell vehicles by 2020. (More…)
  • A recent North America supplier relations survey saw Nissan drop to the bottom of the comparative ranking table of how Tier 1 suppliers perceive OEMs. (..)
  • The CEO of Mitsubishi Motors said that he will stay in post for the 2017 financial year and has not yet decided on his future beyond that. (..)
  • Renault CEO Carlos Ghosn said that it was “good news” that Emmanuel Macron had been elected president of France. Macron was the architect of the move by the French state to purchase a sufficient stake in Renault to force the Florange law terms for double voting rights for long term shareholders to pass. (..)
  • Confirmed that the Nissan Sunderland plant had experienced problems due to the “WannaCry” cyber attack but that there was “no major impact”. (..)

April

  • Saw a 1.5% year-over-year drop in US sales in April. (..)
  • Launched a pilot project in Italy with Enel Energi and IIT for vehicle to grid technology that allows electric cars that have been parked and plugged in to supply energy to the grid at times of high demand. (..)
  • Carlos Ghosn ruled out a full merger of Nissan and Mitsubishi. (..)
  • Said that Nissan’s global sales and production set new records between April 2016 and March 2017. Sales and market share in Latin America were a highlight with a 6% year-over-year volume increase. (..)
  • Announced that Nissan will join Mobileye’s Road Experience Management platform that provides high-quality real time maps. The partnership has been speculated about for a while. (..)
  • Aims to sell 1.4 million vehicles in China this year. (..)
  • Will build a second “advanced recharging corridor” in the USA with partner EVgo. The route will create charging stations between Boston and Washington D.C. 50 chargers will be installed and the sites will be capable of 150kW chargers but initial installation will be 50kW per charger. (..)

Q1 2017 Earnings

  • Mitsubishi Motors announced results for financial year 2016. Global sales of 926,000 units was a 12% fall year-over-year. Full year revenues of 1.9 trillion yen were down 16% YoY. Full year operating profit was 5.1 billion yen with a net loss of 198.5 billion yen. Despite the losses, the performance in the last six months was seen as positive progress after the fuel economy crisis that lead to Mitsubishi’s rescue by Nissan. (..)
  • Nissan announced 2016 financial year results. Global sales were 5.63 million units. Revenue of 11.72 trillion yen was down 3.9% year-over-year. Operating profit of 724 million yen was down 6.4% YoY. Nissan said that the profit and revenue falls were more than explained by exchange and that adjusting for this the YoY performance would have been revenue up 6.4% and profit up 29.1%. The company also gave an outlook for the current financial year. It expects sales to increase to 5.83 million units but operating profits to fall to 685 billion yen. The profit drop was mainly explained as being due to higher raw material costs and exchange volatility.  (..)
  • Announced that its 2016 fiscal year sales in Europe were a new record, with a 2.6% year-on-year increase. (..)
  • Reported March 2017 US sales were up 3% year-over-year. Infiniti brand sales accounted for almost all the increase (Source)
  • Canadian sales up 5.5% YoY

March

  • Said it would make efforts to improve its relationship with the UK dealer network after receiving a 4.0/10 score in the NFDA survey

April

  • APB Corporation licenced Nissan’s battery technology for use in stationary storage applications. (Autocar)
  • Nissan’s forthcoming recovery plan will reportedly replace a long-standing sales target of around 6 - 7 million vehicles annually with a lower figure of around 5 million. (Reuters)
  • Nissan is apparently asking banks for a $4.6 billion increase in its credit line. (Reuters)

March

  • Mitsubishi could reportedly take a stake in Renault as part of a bid to strengthen the alliance. (Reuters)
  • Plans to close the Purwakarta, Indonesia factory as part of a global recovery effort. Nissan will probably re-badge vehicles built at Mitsubishi’s nearby plants to maintain a market presence. Insiders hinted that production cuts in Russia are next on the list. (Manichi)
  • Nissan and Mitsubishi are reportedly planning to stop contributions (previously set at up to $200 million per year) to the Alliance Ventures investment vehicle. (Reuters)
  • Nissan’s Russian factory will go to a one shift pattern (from two today) until the market has recovered. The company said the move was unrelated to coronavirus. (TASS)

February

  • Nissan’s new CEO pleaded with shareholders to be given more time to come up with a coherent recovery plan and said he would happily be fired if he fails. (Reuters)
  • Trialling a short-term leasing scheme called “Switch” in Houston, USA. (Nissan)
  • Moving to quarterly sales reporting in the US, following the lead of GM, Ford and FCA. (Nissan)
  • A UK consortium headed by Nissan completed a 230 mile “self-navigated” trip on public roads. (Nissan)

January

  • Rumoured to be planning further spending cuts (on top of the summer 2109 turnaround plan) by cutting 4,300 salaried staff globally (g. some US sales and marketing offices) and closing two (unidentified) factories. The global line-up will be pared to 62 models, but average aim will be reduced to 2.5 years (from 5 today). (Reuters)
  • Reportedly prepared a plan for a hard Brexit that would see Nissan plants on mainland Europe closed and an attempt to capitalise on the lack of homegrown UK production by taking market share from competitors who would be subject to higher tariffs than Nissan (~3% vs 10% of material cost). (FT)
  • Will prioritise the Nissan brand in India (over Datsun), including for designed / made in India products, calling into question Datsun’s market positioning. (Autocar)
  • Nissan, Renault and Mitsubishi announced a series of measures to deepen integration. Nissan will lead engineering on models for China; Mitsubishi for Southeast Asia and Renault in Europe. Engineering of components will also be shared out, although no details were given. The three brands also plan to pool their collective fleet average CO2 in Europe, starting in 2020. (Mitsubishi)
  • Said the diesel engines subject to investigation by German authorities for emissions cheating were supplied by PSA and denied the existence of any defeat devices. (Mitsubishi)
  • Carlos Ghosn reportedly predicted that Nissan would go bust by 2022, according to someone who interviewed him for a book (before he became a world-renowned escape artist). (Bloomberg)
  • German regulators are investigating whether Mitsubishi diesel engines contained defeat devices. (Reuters)
  • Nissan and Renault’s top engineering executives are planning a feelgood session to reignite shared projects (Reuters) or, Nissan is angling for a sell-down of the cross-shareholding. (Bloomberg) You decide.
  • Revealed that 10,000 hours has been spent investigating compensation and other payments stemming from Carlos Ghosn’s ouster, with several others found to have benefitted (but kept anonymous). Amongst actions Nissan is taking to improve corporate governance, the practice of retaining former senior executives as consultants will be ended, meaning that outgoing CEO Saikawa will leave the company for good when he steps down. (Bloomberg)
  • Nissan is reportedly making contingency plans to go it alone in engineering and manufacturing in the eventuality of a complete split with Renault. (FT)
  • After Carlos Ghosn held a press conference accusing Nissan executives and unnamed Japanese government officials of orchestrating his downfall, his former Nissan colleagues said the claims were predictable. Ghosn said that the root of the issue was the need to find a scapegoat for Nissan’s performance, and moves by the French state to deny Nissan what the Japanese company saw as a fair say in Renault’s governance. Ghosn also said that he had been about to retire before the board persuaded him otherwise and now wishes he hadn’t listened. (Bloomberg) / (CNBC)
  • Nissan’s number three executive resigned to take up a post at supplier Nidec. (Reuters)
  • Mitsubishi has reportedly decided not to design any new diesel engines, although it will continue development of existing architectures. (Nikkei)
  • Ex-CEO Ghosn fled pre-trial detention in Japan, saying things were taking too long and offering to give his side of the story. Journalists were more interested in how he escaped. (Nikkei)