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Facts point to legal violations by Carlos Ghosn, says Nissan external review

YOKOHAMA, Japan — An external committee reviewing governance at Nissan Motor Co said on Wednesday there were enough facts to suspect violations of laws and the private use of company funds by ousted chairman Carlos Ghosn. Following a three-month audit of Nissan's governance after a scandal that shook the global auto industry, the committee put the blame squarely on what it called Ghosn's concentration of power. It also acknowledged Nissan CEO Hiroto Saikawa's role in Ghosn's salary arrangement at the heart of the scandal. Twenty years to the day since French automaker Renault SA agreed to rescue Nissan, the committee described a corporate culture at Nissan "in which no one can make any objections to Mr. Ghosn," who was "in a way deified within Nissan as a savior who had redeemed Nissan from collapse." A representative for Ghosn replied in a statement that the allegations made against the former Nissan chairman "will be revealed for what they are: part of an unsubstantiated smear campaign against Carlos Ghosn to prevent the integration of the Alliance and conceal Nissan's deteriorating performance." The group issued 38 recommendations to bolster Nissan's governance, including that top executive positions at the Japanese car maker should not be held by people serving in executive positions at Renault or junior partner Mitsubishi Motors. It also proposed that the majority of directors, including the chairman of the board, be independent, outside directors and that the role of company chairman be abolished. Responding to the committee's comments, Saikawa told reporters on Thursday that Nissan would seriously consider the committee's recommendations, which he characterized as "tough." Saikawa, who was speaking outside his home, did not specifically address his responsibility in the scandal but has previously said that top management, including himself, were responsible for weak governance which led to the misconduct. The recommendations from the external, seven-member committee came weeks after Nissan and Renault said they would retool their alliance, one of the world's biggest automaking groupings, to break up the all-powerful chairmanship previously held by Ghosn. "There are facts sufficient to suspect violations of laws and regulations, violation of internal rules and private use of company funds and expenses ... by Mr. Ghosn," the committee said in its report.

Nissan to take over for Renault in Formula E

Formula E has generated a lot of news lately, even in the off-season, as major automakers continue to either join the series or express interest in participating. The inclusion of a number of European rivals makes the series particularly interesting. One thing missing from the lineup is a Japanese automaker. That will change, though, as Motorsport reports that Nissan will be taking over its Alliance partner Renault's spot on the starting grid. It's not confirmed when the switch will happen, but with the Renault e.dams Z.E. 17 (seen in testing above) already having been unveiled for next season, it's likely the switch will come in for the 2018/19 season when the series moves away from the practice of swapping cars mid-race. Renault has been a successful part of Formula E from the very beginning, providing (with partner Spark) the cars each team used in the first season, and scoring the series' first Team Championship in 2015, and then again in 2016 and 2017. Nissan, though, has the globally popular Leaf EV, and has been eyeing an entry into Formula E for some time now. Joining the series will not only boost the visibility of Nissan's electrification strategy, it will do the same for its Nismo arm as well (and, as we've already learned, there could be a Leaf Nismo offered in the future). The change would also free up resources for Renault to focus on its F1 efforts. As Motorsport also reports, Formula E CEO Alejandro Agag has said of the Japanese brands Nissan, Honda and Toyota, that "one of those three, maybe two, will end up" in the electric racing series, without elaborating further. Nissan isn't expected to confirm its Formula E entry soon, but it could happen at the Geneva Motor Show next year. Related Video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. News Source: MotorsportImage Credit: Formula E Green Motorsports Nissan Renault Green Culture Electric Racing Vehicles Formula E nismo fia formula e championship

Are you the next Nissan Frontier?

A reader of the Phillippine site Autoindustriya.com sent in what appear to be naked spy photos of the pickup that Nissan recently teased first in photo then in video. The shots, one taken from the front and one from the back, have been found on the Nissan Navara Club Thailand forum. The details in the two photos, one from the front and one from the back, match up with the details we can make out from the teaser video, lending credence to the idea that this is indeed the next Nissan Navara, which is essentially the Frontier in overseas markets. Nissan US has reportedly disavowed this as our next Frontier, though; the mysterious photo on Twitter was put there by Nissan Thailand, supposedly the location of these two trucks.
The only other detail submitted with the images is that there's a 2.5-liter turbodiesel under the hood putting out 187 horsepower and 332 pound-feet of torque, running through either a seven-speed automatic transmission or a six-speed manual. The reveal is scheduled for June 11, which is when we should know a lot more about the Navara and how much it is or isn't indicative of what we'll get with the next Frontier, a vehicle we're still not expecting for some time.