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Nissan plans to slash May car output in Japan by 78%

TOKYO — Nissan plans to slash the number of cars it produces at home in May by 78% from last year, as the impact of the coronavirus shakes the troubled automaker which has already been struggling with falling sales. As global automakers reel from plunging sales amid lockdowns imposed in many countries to curb the spread of the virus, the hit is particularly severe for Nissan, whose profitability has been deteriorating as it grapples with the turmoil that followed the ousting of former Chairman Carlos Ghosn. Nissan plans to manufacture around 13,400 vehicles next month, according to documents seen by Reuters, compared with nearly 61,000 units made in May last year. The cut represents a big hit to Nissan's plant in Kyushu, southern Japan, which the automaker plans to operate on a single shift for much of this month and all of next month, due to a lack of demand for the Rogue Sport SUV crossover model, according to the documents, which are not public. Output will decline 70% from initial plans to build around 44,800 units. In June, domestic production will be cut to 33,700 vehicles, a drop from around 63,700 units last year, and down 43% from a previous plan for around 59,300. Nissan declined to comment on its production plans. The automaker has stopped production at its plant in Tochigi, north of Tokyo, since early April, and plans to keep output suspended through the end of May. Periodic stoppages at Nissan's Oppama plant in Kanagawa Prefecture have been common since earlier this month. The coronavirus pandemic has piled urgency on Nissan's efforts to downsize, after two years of falling sales, deteriorating margins and depleting cash reserves has forced the company to restructure. Nissan's management has become convinced that the company needs to be much smaller and its latest recovery plan due next month will likely assume a cut of 1 million cars to its annual sales target, senior company officials told Reuters earlier this month. Automaking partner Mitsubishi, also suffering from a cut to demand for its cars, is planning to slash domestic output by nearly one-third over the next two months. As both Nissan and Mitsubishi struggle with tanking sales, production plans show one bright spot: Nissan is planning an increase in production of the Nissan Dayz minicar model, which Mitsubishi manufactures for Nissan for the Japanese market. Related Video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.

Panoz mulls suing Nissan for ZEOD RC's Deltawing likeness

Imitation might be the sincerest form of flattery, but in racing, where something as simple as a car's shape can lead to a competitive advantage, imitation can be a big no-no. That reality is being played out right now, with the DeltaWing prototype and the Nissan ZEOD RC. The two cars, as you can see from the images above, bear a striking resemblance to each other. They're so similar, in fact, that Dr. Don Panoz, one of the big names behind the DeltaWing program, is assigning some legal eagles to investigate any patent infringement.
The similarity shouldn't be a shock, though. Both cars are penned by Ben Bowlby, and the DeltaWing - which will be arriving as a coupe in the very near future - had Nissan branding and power for a not-insignificant amount of time. But for Panoz, the ZEOD RC's resemblance is just a bit too much, as he told Autoweek, "It's been interesting to watch people from Nissan trying to dodge the question, but the fact is that in their own press release they admit that the configuration of the ZEOD is the same as the DeltaWing. And we do have patents, in fact another one was just issued last week. We are in discussions with our legal advisors and we'll see what happens."
Frankly, it's not difficult to see what Panoz means. The general shape of the ZEOD RC, with its wide rear track and narrow front track arrangement - not to mention the headlights mounted over the rear wheel arches and any arrangements not visible under the body - are so reminiscent of the DeltaWing that differences like the shape of its closed cockpit and more upright front end might not prove different enough to avert Panoz's legal action. We'll stay with this one and let you know as more becomes available.

Renault names new leaders as jailed Carlos Ghosn bows out

PARIS — Renault appointed Michelin boss Jean-Dominique Senard as its new chairman on Thursday, after Carlos Ghosn was forced to resign in the wake of a financial scandal that has rocked the French carmaker and its alliance with Japan's Nissan. Senard will become chairman immediately, the company said, with deputy chief executive Thierry Bollore taking over Ghosn's other Renault role as full CEO. The appointments may begin to ease a Renault-Nissan leadership crisis that erupted after Ghosn's Nov. 19 arrest in Japan and swift dismissal as Nissan chairman. Senard, 65, now faces the task of soothing relations with Renault's Japanese partner and resuming talks on a new alliance structure to cement the 20-year-old partnership. "It's important that this alliance remain extremely strong," Senard told reporters after a board meeting - citing the mounting investment demands of new vehicle technologies. "It is our compulsory duty to go forward together." Ghosn's exit also marks a clear end to one of the auto industry's most feted careers, two decades after he was despatched by former Renault boss Louis Schweitzer to rescue newly acquired Nissan from near-bankruptcy — a feat he pulled off in two years. After 14 years as Renault CEO and a decade as chairman, Ghosn formally resigned from both roles on the eve of the board meeting. Ghosn's arrest and indictment for financial misconduct has strained the Renault-Nissan relationship, threatening the future of the industrial partnership he transformed into a global carmaking giant over two decades. For two months, the tensions deepened as Renault and the French government stuck by Ghosn despite the revelation he had arranged to be paid tens of millions of dollars in additional income, unbeknownst to shareholders. Ghosn has been charged with failing to disclose more than $80 million in additional compensation for 2010-18 that he had agreed to be paid later. Nissan director Greg Kelly and the Japanese company itself have also been indicted. Both men deny the deferred pay was illegal or required disclosure, while not contesting the agreements' existence. Ghosn has denied a separate breach of trust charge over personal investment losses he temporarily transferred to Nissan in 2008. Ghosn had agreed in recent days to step down from Renault, Reuters reported on Tuesday — but only after the French government, Renault's biggest shareholder, called for leadership change and his bail requests were rejected.