2009 Nissan Murano Sl Sport Utility 4-door 3.5l on 2040-cars

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Renault invests in French electric car plant upgrade

PARIS — Renault will invest more than 1 billion euros ($1.2 billion) to increase electric vehicle production capacity in France and add new models, the carmaker said on Thursday. The Zoe production line in Flins, west of Paris, will double its maximum output with the battery-powered subcompact's next upgrade, the company said in a statement, and its northern Douai factory will tool up to build electric cars on a new architecture shared with Japanese affiliate Nissan. "The acceleration of our investments in France for electric vehicles will increase the competitiveness and attractiveness of our French industrial sites," said Renault Chairman and Chief Executive Carlos Ghosn, who also chairs Nissan and Mitsubishi Motors and heads the carmakers' three-way alliance. The Cleon plant will triple its electric motor production capacity, while Maubeuge in eastern France receives tooling investment for the next Kangoo van including its electric version, Renault said. Reporting by Laurence Frost. Related Video: Image Credit: REUTERS/Jacky Naegele Green Plants/Manufacturing Nissan Renault Electric

Nissan wants an American driver for its Le Mans team

"We'll use every driver development tool we have to take them to the next level, but they will also have to step up." - Darren Cox
Nissan is aiming to put an American behind the wheel of one of its LMP1 racecars in 2016 as part of plans to grow its motorsports program in the United States.

Nissan VP suggests next Z will offer multiple engines

Roel de Vries, the corporate vice president and global head of marketing and brand strategy for Nissan, told Australia's CarAdvice that as far as he's concerned, any engine in the 370Z "[needs] to deliver on what the car stands for and if the 370Z stands for real performance and real driving I think it doesn't need a V6 to do that." At first read, it could look like de Vries is softening us up for a next-generation Z that doesn't come with a V6, a move that would disappoint a lot of the coupe's fans. Or, what if de Vries was actually getting us ready for a Z with multiple engine options, instead of only a V6, in order to expand its global appeal? That appeared to be the gist of his comments, the exec saying that they couldn't sell a V6-engined Z in Europe, but even if they offer a four-cylinder there, the V6 could live on because, "why should we give it up?" With the coupe's current name a factor of the 3.7-liter displacement of it's V6, though, what is the future for a car with several engine options? Said de Vries, "We [will] definitely keep the Z name, but when we did 350 to 370 it was because of the capacity, but who says the next-generation doesn't have three engines and its not just called Z?" This kind of talk has been going on all year, the real question being how many engines will the car get and what's the endgame. At the beginning of the year, ex product chief Andy Palmer said the car codenamed Z35 would use a "downsized four-cylinder turbocharged engine." In August, Motor Trend reported that the next Z would offer "a mixture of smaller but powerful engines," including a hybrid, but that a V6 would remain the headliner. Two weeks later, MT said that Nissan wanted to transition customers from the naturally aspirated V6 to a turbocharged four-cylinder with the same power, eventually, but would begin with both on the menu. Parallel to that are Shiro Nakamura's out-loud musings about how to merge the next Z and the IDx concepts into "a more affordable, more approachable sports car." The answers, whatever they are, will be a big deal for the brand.