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Carlos Ghosn's lawyers in Japan quit after client's flight to Lebanon

TOKYO — Japanese attorneys representing Carlos Ghosn, including lead lawyer Junichiro Hironaka, quit on Thursday following the former Nissan chiefÂ’s flight to Lebanon from Japan, where he had been fighting financial misconduct charges. Hironaka had been representing Ghosn in his defense against financial misconduct charges. His move, announced Thursday, was widely expected after Ghosn escaped to Lebanon late last month. A second lawyer in GhosnÂ’s three-person legal team, Takashi Takano, also quit on Thursday, according to an official at his office. A person who answered the telephone at the office of the third lawyer, Hiroshi Kawatsu, said she did not know if he still represented the former automotive executive. Hironaka said in a statement that the entire team working on the case at his office will quit but did not outline reasons. He has said before he felt some empathy for Ghosn's reasons for escape, while stressing he had hoped to win vindication in court. Hironaka is respected for winning high-profile cases in this nation where the conviction rate is higher than 99%. Among the cases he has handled is that of Atsuko Muraki, a Welfare Ministry official accused of falsely approving a group to qualify for mail discounts. She was acquitted in 2010. Also Thursday, Nissan released steps it was taking to prevent a recurrence of Ghosn's scandal, and reiterated its denouncement of Ghosn. The automaker said in a report submitted to the Tokyo Stock Exchange that Ghosn had the authority to “single-handedly” determine directors' compensation and such information was not shared with other departments at the company. The underreporting of his future compensation is among the allegations Ghosn faced in Tokyo. In a news conference last week in Beirut, Ghosn insisted again that he was innocent of the charges, which also included breach of trust in diverting Nissan money for his personal gain. He said he fled because he felt he could not expect a fair trial in Japan. Ghosn's flight while he was out on bail awaiting trial means his case will not go on in Japan. Interpol has issued a wanted notice but his extradition from Lebanon is unlikely. Ghosn has accused Nissan and Japanese officials of conspiring to bring him down to block a fuller integration of Nissan with its French alliance partner Renault SA of France. Ghosn, who has signed on an international team of lawyers, has expressed willingness to stand trial in Lebanon.

Rob Parsons, paraplegic, can drift better than you

"When something happens, you deal with it, and you move on. You don't dwell on something you can't control." Those are positive words coming from anybody. But it's particularly inspiring when the speaker is Rob Parsons. He was a competitor and later an event judge in the Dsport series until a dirt bike crash took Parson's ability to walk. He didn't let that get in the way of custom building a drift car that works with hand controls. And now that it works, he's plans to use his car to help other who share his automotive passion but can't operate pedals. The vehicle itself is based around a 1991 Nissan 180SX chassis with a 5.7-liter supercharged LS1 V8 under the hood, according to his website. To make the machine drivable for people without the use of their legs, Parsons made a hand control setup, and he claims to be faster now than years ago. This story of fighting past the seeming insurmountable challenges is truly heartwarming, and it's amazing to watch Parsons at work. A warning: there is some brief, not-safe-for-work language early in the video. News Source: Chairslayer, Keep Drifting Fun via YouTube Motorsports Nissan Coupe Racing Vehicles Performance Videos drifting drift

2014 Nissan Rogue gives us our best look yet

Nissan is reportedly fast-tracking the development of its next-generation Rogue crossover, and judging by this latest set of spy shots, the new small CUV is coming along quite nicely.
To no one's surprise, the new Rogue takes the vast majority of its design cues from the Hi-Cross concept that debuted at the 2012 Geneva Motor Show, and specific elements like the pronounced wheel arches, angular nose, flat roofline and more stylized taillmaps should make for a Rogue that's far more style conscious than the model it replaces. This stronger design language should help the new Rogue to better stand out in the sea of Honda CR-V and Toyota RAV4 rivals.
There's far more to the new Rogue than just some swoopier sheetmetal, though. This crossover is expected to be the first vehicle to ride on the Renault-Nissan CMF (Common Module Family) platform, an architecture flexible enough to eventually support a host of new products. As we reported earlier, the next Rogue will be built in the US, in Tennessee.