2011 Nissan 2.0 Sr on 2040-cars

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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

Geely and Renault joint venture will develop internal combustion and hybrid tech

China's Geely Automobile Holdings and French car maker Renault SA on Tuesday said they will invest up to 7 billion euros ($7.71 billion) in a new equally held joint venture to develop gasoline engines and hybrid technology for automobiles. The JV is aimed at manufacturing more efficient internal combustion engines and hybrid systems at a time when the focus of much of the automobile industry has been on the capital-intensive transition to purely electric vehicles. "We are pleased to be embarking on this journey to become a global leader in hybrid technologies, providing low-emission solutions for automakers around the world," said Eric Li, Geely Holding Group chairman. The new company will employ 19,000 people at 17 engine plants and five research and development hubs, Renault said. At launch, it is expected to supply to multiple industrial customers including Volvo, Proton, Nissan, Mitsubishi Motors, and PUNCH Torino. The JV aims to have an annual production capacity of up to five million internal combustion, hybrid and plug-in hybrid engines and transmissions, Renault added. Reuters reported in March that the new venture will see 15 billion euros ($16.53 billion) in annual revenue. Saudi Aramco, which signed a letter of intent with Renault and Geely in March, is evaluating a strategic investment in the new company, Renault said. The Saudi oil producer has been involved in advanced discussions to take a stake of up to 20% in the JV, sources said earlier this year. Big oil firms have worked with automakers to develop sustainable fuels and hydrogen engines in recent years. But a deal here would make Aramco the first major oil producer to invest in the car business. The joint venture is expected to be launched in the second half of 2023. Earnings/Financials Green Mitsubishi Nissan Volvo Renault

Nissan to unveil next-gen Qashqai on Nov. 7

Never heard of the Nissan Qashqai? That's alright, because Nissan has a big crossover lineup, and this one is only sold overseas. But in the markets where it's available, it's been an unbridled success and the cash-cow its name suggests. It was introduced in 2007, and by the end of that year, Nissan had already sold 100,000 of them in Europe alone. By 2011 it had made a million of them, and to date has sold over two million worldwide. And now it's preparing to launch an all-new model to replace it.
Spied while undergoing development a few months ago, Nissan has now announced that it will reveal the new Qashqai on November 7th. But to keep us on our toes, the Japanese automaker has released this teaser image.
Cloaked and looking like something out of Tron, the new Qashqai promises to borrow heavily from the Resonance concept shown earlier this year in Detroit (a bit ironic since the Qashqai isn't sold here) and follow the lead of the new Rogue (or X-Trail as its known in markets where it shares showroom floorspace with the Qashqai).