2014 Nissan Altima 2.5 on 2040-cars

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Nissan considering 200-mile Leaf to take on Chevy Bolt?

With 30,200 units sold, the Nissan Leaf posted its best year ever in the US in 2014. However, Nissan needs to keep looking over its shoulder because the Chevrolet Bolt Concept from the 2015 Detroit Auto Show clearly has success EV in its sights. Chevy claims that for roughly the same price (after incentives) as a Leaf, the future Bolt could offer a 200-mile range. Although, evidence continues to mount that the Japanese brand is hard at work on its next-gen electric hatchback capable of significantly longer driving distances. According to TheDetroitBureau.com, the next Leaf will reportedly debut in about two years and will be offered in a high-output version with 200 miles or more of range. It will all be possible thanks to new lithium-ion batteries with lower weight and higher power density. If accurate, the changes would more than double the model's current EPA-estimated 84-mile range and put the hatchback on sale at roughly the same time as the Bolt's debut, if it happens. "We want to be competitive," said Nissan CEO Carlos Ghosn to TheDetroitBureau.com during the Detroit Auto Show. "It may have even more range." In another speech, he also predicted that the company's EVs would become even more affordable. The statements are hardly a surprise from the company boss. Ghosn is a big proponent of electric power over other zero-emissions alternatives because it is cheaper overall, among other reasons. The latest speculation about battery innovations from the next Leaf actually echoes earlier leaks about the car. Ghosn suggested during a Japanese TV interview that the range could double for the new generation, and an unnamed engineer believed that 250 miles of driving was at least possible. Featured Gallery 2013 Nissan Leaf View 55 Photos News Source: TheDetroitBureau.comImage Credit: Nissan Green Nissan Technology Hatchback Electric Chevy Bolt

Carlos Ghosn asks why Japanese don't question him in Lebanon

BEIRUT — Former Renault-Nissan boss Carlos Ghosn said in an interview aired Monday that French investigators are coming to question him in Lebanon over some legal challenges in France, asking why don't the Japanese do the same thing. GhosnÂ’s comments came two weeks after a Lebanese justice ministry official said a team of French investigators will come to Beirut in January to participate in interrogating the former auto executive. Ghosn, who is a Lebanese, Brazilian and French national, fled Japan in a dramatic escape that drew headlines in late 2019, arriving in Lebanon on Dec. 30 of that year. In addition to his trial in Japan, the 66-year-old businessman is facing a number of legal challenges in France, including tax evasion and alleged money laundering, fraud and misuse of company assets while at the helm of the Renault-Nissan alliance. Ghosn said there is neutrality in Lebanon, where he has been living since fleeing Japan, adding that Lebanese authorities have asked Japanese officials to send the charges against him but Tokyo did not. “What does that mean?” asked Ghosn insisting that he is innocent and was the victim of JapanÂ’s judicial system. “Now the French have charges,” Ghosn said. “They (French) are coming and they will question me. The Japanese are not doing this.” “I consider all the charges to be false,” Ghosn said. After leading the Japanese automaker Nissan for two decades, Ghosn was arrested in Japan in November 2018 on charges of breach of trust, misusing company assets for personal gains and violating securities laws by not fully disclosing his compensation. He denied wrongdoing and fled Japan while out on bail awaiting trial. He is unlikely to be extradited from Lebanon, where he has been since last year. Ghosn said in the interview with the local LBC TV that Lebanon, which is passing through its worst economic and financial crisis in its modern history, “proved that it protects it citizens.” He added: “I am a French citizen, and the French state did not defend me.” At least two Ghosn-related investigations were opened in France. One focused on suspicious transactions between Renault and a distributor in Oman, as well as suspected payments for private trips and events paid by Renault-NissanÂ’s Netherlands-based holding company RNBV. Another investigation focused on suspected misuse of company funds for a party for Ghosn at Versailles.

2013 Nissan GT-R and 2013 Alpina B6 mix it up on track and street

Here we have Autocar making an unforeseen comparison: the Nissan GT-R against the Alpina B6 at Brands Hatch and on public roads. Steve Sutcliffe clobbers the circuit in the 3,828-pound, all-wheel-drive sports car, then sees how well the 4,114-pound, rear-wheel drive grand tourer does against it.
Sutcliffe says there are quite a few similarities between the two cars, but that's really only on the spec sheet. The Nissan's got two turbos attached to its 3.8-liter V6, 542 horsepower and 465 pound-feet of torque. The Alpina's got two turbos attached to its 4.4-liter V8, 532 hp and 528 lb-ft. But one's brief is to be a monster on the track, the other on the boulevard, and if there's anything the video demonstrates, it's each car's focus.