Auto blog

Japanese automakers ramping production for renewed American sales

The 2011 earthquake and tsunami that struck Japan took quite the toll on the automotive industry in that nation. Not content to lean on that tragedy as excuse for slagging sales, the Japanese automakers are planning on a major production expansion in North America. The aim is to reclaim the market share lost from the Tsunami-based dip, and overcome a dollar/yen exchange rate that makes exporting to America unprofitable.
Following the Tsunami, Japanese automakers ramped up production in their North American facilities to compensate, but according to Automotive News, Nissan, Honda and others have all reported plans for still-further increased production in the year ahead. As part of this ramp-up, Mazda will open a facility in Salamnca, Mexico before March of 2014. Part of that increase in output is 50,000 units of a Toyota-badged compact car, which Mazda will produce.
Other Mexican production facilities opening include a Honda plant, which will open in Spring 2014 in Celaya, and a Nissan plant, set to open later this year in Aguascalientes. Nissan also said that it will need another plant in North America within the next five years. According to Nissan Boss Carlos Ghosn, the company aims to raise its stake in the US market from 8 percent to 10, and adding production will help achieve that goal. Even Mitsubishi is aiming to boost production at its Normal, Illinois plant. Production of the Outlander Sport is currently at 50,000, which Mitsubishi wants to raise to 70,000.

Nissan Leaf Nismo RC Concept [w/video]

Nissan took the wraps off its Leaf Nismo RC Concept at the New York Auto Show more than two years ago. As inferred, the vehicle shares many of its pure-EV components with the production Leaf currently sitting in your dealer's showroom. But don't assume the concept is a placid, family friendly, four-place, front-wheel-drive plug-in for grabbing groceries - the RC (as in "Racing Challenge") is a purpose-built, two-seat, rear-wheel-drive prototype race car tuned for the short track.
The RC Concept is fitted with an 80-kW AC synchronous motor driving the rear wheels and drawing power from a 48-module lithium-ion battery. While the motor and battery are nearly identical to the consumer-friendly Leaf, a sleek full carbon-fiber monocoque body shell and a slew of other enhancements mean the RC is 40-percent lighter, a foot shorter in overall height and nearly seven inches wider than its commuter namesake. Nissan says the RC Concept will hit 62 miles per hour in about 6.8 seconds, top out at 93 mph and run for about 20 minutes under race conditions (it will accept an 80-percent charge in 30 minutes with a quick-charger). Understandably, if a zero-emissions motorsport series comes to fruition, the races would be short and nearly silent.
We caught up with the Leaf Nismo RC concept in Southern California, where we were offered the opportunity to zip it around a tight autocross at the former Marine Corps Air Station, El Toro.

Nissan Canada to end Versa sales with Micra launch

There's plenty of space in Canada. In fact, with the second largest land mass of any country in the world, Canada has a population density of just nine people per square mile. But apparently there isn't enough room for more than one cheap Nissan in the True North, Strong and Free.
As you may recall, Nissan Canada recently announced it would begin offering the Micra hatchback with a starting price of less than ten thousand Canadian dollars - significantly less than the nearly $12k it charges for the Versa sedan. As a result, Nissan will reportedly cease offering the Versa sedan in new home of the olympic gold medal for hockey.
Apparently the Versa was a slow seller in Canada, a country in which European tastes tend to prevail - particularly in the Eastern provinces - more than they do in the United States to the south. Nissan evidently hopes that the Micra (a model created principally for the European market) will do better than the American-centric Versa ever did there. According to sales numbers cited by Automotive News, Nissan sold barely more than 12,000 Versa sedans and hatchbacks in Canada last year, but over 117,000 in the United States.