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Question of the Day: Most heinous act of badge engineering?

Badge engineering, in which one company slaps its emblems on another company's product and sells it, has a long history in the automotive industry. When Sears wanted to sell cars, a deal was made with Kaiser-Frazer and the Sears Allstate was born. Iranians wanted new cars in the 1960s, and the Rootes Group was happy to offer Hillman Hunters for sale as Iran Khodro Paykans. Sometimes, though, certain badge-engineered vehicles made sense only in the 26th hour of negotiations between companies. The Suzuki Equator, say, which was a puzzling rebadge job of the Nissan Frontier. How did that happen? My personal favorite what-the-heck-were-they-thinking example of badge engineering is the 1971-1973 Plymouth Cricket. Chrysler Europe, through its ownership of the Rootes Group, was able to ship over Hillman Avanger subcompacts for sale in the US market. This would have made sense... if Chrysler hadn't already been selling rebadged Mitsubishi Colt Galants (as Dodge Colts) and Simca 1100s as (Simca 1204s) in its American showrooms. Few bought the Cricket, despite its cheery ad campaign. So, what's the badge-engineered car you find most confounding? Chrysler Dodge Automakers Mitsubishi Nissan Suzuki Automotive History question of the day badge engineering question

Nissan delays GT-R LM Nismo's return to WEC after poor Le Mans showing

After a catastrophic run at the 24 Hours of Le Mans in June and a widely publicized review of the program, Nissan is delaying the GT-R LM Nismo prototype's next showing in the World Endurance Championship season. The team will continue testing and working out the car's crippling issues. "We know people will be disappointed, but be assured that nobody is more disappointed than us," Shoichi Miyatani, the president of Nismo, said in a statement. "We are racers and we want to compete, but we also want to be competitive. That is why we have chosen to continue our test program and prepare the GT-R LM Nismo for the strong competition we face in the World Endurance Championship. When you innovate, you don't give up at the first hurdle. We are committed to overcoming this challenge." The big issue for the GT-R at Le Mans was its Energy Recovery System. Its failure meant the racer was forced to rely on engine power alone, hobbling the program significantly. "We have many areas to work on – not least ensuring that we have the best ERS option available to us. The team is pushing hard on track, in the wind tunnel and at Nismo's various facilities around the world to deliver the long list of improvements we know that we need," Ben Bowlby, Nissan LM P1 technical director, said in a statement. The GT-R was met with skepticism upon its debut, thanks to the way it eschewed the hallmarks of most successful racers. Not only was the engine in front – a rarity in the past four or so decades of prototypes – but it also sent its power to the front wheels. And it was a lot – 1,250 hp to be precise, with 700 hp coming from electric motors alone. Despite this frankly absurd output, the competition from Porsche, Audi, and Toyota easily bested the GT-R LM Nismos. Scroll down for the official press release from Nissan. Nissan to address technical issues of LM P1 car before returning to World Endurance Championship Nissan GT-R LM NISMO to remain in test program before re-joining World Endurance Championship LONDON – Nissan today announced that it will delay its return to the LM P1 class of the FIA World Endurance Championship and instead focus on technical issues that challenged its race team during the Le Mans 24 Hours. Issues with the energy recovery system (ERS) meant that Nissan had to run at the Le Mans 24 Hours on engine power alone.

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