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For next Nissan CEO, priority is profit before Renault partnership

The next head of Nissan Motor Co will need to prioritize a recovery in profits at the troubled Japanese firm ahead of trying to fix its relationship with top shareholder Renault SA, executives and analysts say. Reviving earnings would strengthen the carmaker’s hand in negotiations with its French partner, and is something Renault itself would welcome as the owner of a 43.4% stake in Nissan. JapanÂ’s second-largest automaker said on Monday CEO Hiroto Saikawa would step down on Sept. 16 after he admitted to being overpaid in breach of company rules. ItÂ’s another heavy blow for Nissan, which is already reeling from the arrest of former chairman Carlos Ghosn last year and a subsequent plunge in earnings. Its stock is down 20% this year. For SaikawaÂ’s yet-to-be-named replacement, the top priority will be lifting profits from a more than decade low. Earnings have been undercut by years of heavy discounts and low-margin sales to rental firms that have cheapened NissanÂ’s brand image. Renault, which has unsuccessfully sought a full-blown merger with its larger partner, is likely to give the Japanese firm time to focus on its turnaround, a Nissan executive said. “It goes without saying recovery is the biggest priority,” the executive said, declining to be identified because the information is not public. “We have RenaultÂ’s understanding on that.” Tensions in the Nissan-Renault partnership worsened after GhosnÂ’s arrest. He is awaiting trial in Tokyo on financial misconduct charges that he denies. The strain has sparked investor concern about the future of the Franco-Japanese automaking alliance at a time when car companies desperately need scale to keep up with sweeping technological changes like electric vehicles and ride-hailing. Nissan executives have long complained about their unequal partnership with Renault, which saved the Japanese firm from bankruptcy in 1999. Nissan holds a 15% stake in Renault, but without voting rights. Tokyo is also seen as being uneasy about the French governmentÂ’s 15% holding in Renault, which makes Paris an indirect shareholder in Nissan. “Profitability is likely to remain under pressure and it (Nissan) is unlikely to promptly reach an agreement with Renault over the future shape of the alliance,” analysts at Standard & PoorÂ’s said in a note. Tensions worsened when Renault tried to in vain to merge with Nissan and then Fiat Chrysler.

Nissan, Infiniti will each show a next-gen concept EV in Detroit

The chief designer for Nissan and Infiniti said Wednesday that both brands will debut concept electric vehicles at the 2019 North American International Auto Show in Detroit in January that will likely show off Nissan's next-generation electric drive systems and the evolution of the brands' EV design direction first hinted at with Infiniti's stunning Q Inspiration. Alfonso Albaisa, senior vice president of global design for Nissan, said the concepts will reflect a similar departure from standard vehicle proportions as the Q Inspiration. He would not say exactly what segment or segments the concepts would represent, but he dropped some hints at a couple possible powertrains for the concepts. Similar additional concepts will follow later in the year at the Tokyo Motor Show, he said. "The Q Inspiration kind of hinted at it and we avoided discussing too much about what's driving that car. Of course, we talked about VC-Turbo, which is also possible," he said in an interview with Autoblog. "But if you really look at the car, Q Insipiration shifted the cabin forward. It was the first one to break the [mold] of Infiniti. So how to still have this artistry and this sense of carrozzerie" (Italian for coachbuilding) "of Infiniti without kind of the stereotypical long hood and the cabin shifted back and the windshield has to go through the center of the front wheel, these golden rules." Infiniti debuted the Q Inspiration concept sedan in Detroit in January, with a swoopy, ghost-like design influenced by an archer shooting an arrow through the air, and innovative design features like an elongated cabin that expands interior space, a relative lack of chrome, and other features. It's powered by a compact variable compression turbocharged engine, which can change compression ratios on the fly to maximize efficiency and power, depending on the situation. But Albaisa said the two concepts for Detroit could feature Nissan's e-Power series hybrid technology, which has mostly featured in Japan, and which features small, isolated gasoline engines that exist only to charge the batteries, not drive the wheels. They will also feature a new generation of battery packs, which he calls a "magic carpet." "It's getting denser, it's getting thinner, the cars are able to get a little bit bigger, more space, we can really do much more," he said.

Cadillac tops Tesla in Consumer Reports semi-automated driving test

General Motors' Cadillac outscored Tesla in a new ranking of partially automated driving systems tested by Consumer Reports and released on Thursday. The highly influential nonprofit organization, which tests and rates a variety of consumer products from appliances to vehicles, said it compared Cadillac's Super Cruise and Tesla's Autopilot with similar systems from Nissan and Volvo. Nissan's ProPilot Assist was ranked third and Volvo's Pilot Assist fourth. Consumer Reports said it has been testing partially automated driving systems for several years but elected to conduct a formal study intended for publication, because "we are at a tipping point where they are now going mainstream," according to Jake Fisher, director of auto testing. The organization said its tests, conducted on a private track and on public roads in Connecticut, were designed to measure the systems' ability to automatically control steering and speed in certain situations, while helping drivers pay attention and regain manual control of the vehicle when required. CR noted that any of these systems can increase driving risk if used in inappropriate situations, or if drivers become inattentive or over-reliant on them. While they can help relieve driver stress and fatigue, Consumer Reports said, the partially automated systems are "not intended to be self-driving features." The systems typically use cameras, radar and other sensors, as well as mapping data, to monitor location and traffic conditions and help keep a vehicle centered in the lane at a safe distance behind other cars. Each system has limitations. Cadillac's Super Cruise, for instance, only functions on divided highways that have been mapped by GM. In contrast, Tesla's Autopilot can be used even on small, curvy roads with poor lane markings, but "operates erratically in those situations," Consumer Reports said.The organization tested Super Cruise on the Cadillac CT6; Autopilot on the Tesla Model 3, Model X and Model S; ProPilot Assist on the Nissan Leaf and Infiniti QX50; and Pilot Assist on the Volvo XC40 and XC60. Consumer Reports said Cadillac's Super Cruise did "the best job of balancing high-tech capabilities with ensuring the car is operated safely and the driver is paying attention." Tesla's Autopilot was cited for its capability and ease of use, while Nissan's ProPilot Assist did a better job than Autopilot or Volvo's Pilot Assist in keeping drivers engaged.