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Ghosn's lawyers say he's 'happy' after days of French questioning

BEIRUT — Ex-Nissan boss Carlos Ghosn has answered hundreds of questions by French investigators over the past week in Beirut and was “happy and satisfied” to have had the opportunity to explain himself over accusations of financial misconduct, his lawyers said Friday. The 4 1/2 days of questioning marked the first opportunity for Ghosn, a French national, to defend himself against the French allegations — including spending on lavish parties and private planes — since his 2018 bombshell arrest in Japan and escape to Lebanon a year later. However, as Ghosn was being interrogated outside of French soil, it was unclear how he could, if at all, be handed down preliminary charges. His lawyers said they will now seek the right to ask for witnesses and expert testimony in the French investigation. Earlier, the auto magnate-turned-fugitive told The Associated Press that he has done nothing wrong and hopes the investigations are eventually dropped. He didn't speak to reporters throughout the Beirut interrogation, which began on Monday. It is an unusual move for French magistrates to question a suspect abroad. Ghosn, who was given sanctuary by Lebanese authorities, grew up in Lebanon and also has Lebanese citizenship. Lebanon will not extradite him. He is Brazilian-born. Ghosn was questioned about the financing of parties he threw at the Versailles Palace as the head of the Renault-Nissan car alliance. The French investigators, in cooperation with Lebanese judicial authorities, were also examining 11 million euros in spending on private planes and events arranged by a Dutch holding company, and subsidies to a car dealership in Oman. “It was his opportunity to explain his positions,” said Jean Yves Le Borgne, a member of GhosnÂ’ defense team. “It has now happened and he is satisfied and happy.” “Still unresolved, of course, is the problem of the next step in this procedure,” Le Borgne added. Ghosn has not so far been charged with anything in France, but could be, given preliminary accusations of fraud, corruption, money laundering, misuse of company assets, or aggravated breach of trust. Whether Ghosn could be charged or not by the French, Carlos Abou Jaoude, his Beirut-based lawyer, said Lebanese and French authorities have to determine what GhosnÂ’s “status” will be. Ghosn is campaigning to clear his name against multiple legal challenges in France after Japanese accusations triggered scrutiny of his activities there.

Interest in an Infiniti EV is muted, to say the least

More than a quarter-million people have bought an electric vehicle from the Renault-Nissan Alliance. When it comes to Nissan's Infiniti luxury nameplate, though, there's not a lot of confidence. The Alliance doesn't have much hope that the badge will add to that total anytime soon. So says Emirates 24/7 in its report that Infiniti is planning on opening two showrooms in Abu Dhabi. Models such as the QX80 SUV, the Q70 sedan, and the Q50 will be shown off to those looking to live the high life, Infiniti style. But company executives told the publication that no battery-electric Infiniti models would be in the works until at least the end of the decade? The reason? Lack of demand. It's a far cry from three years ago, when a concept version of the Infiniti LE electric vehicle was shown off at the New York Auto Show. The model boasted 134 horsepower and 240 pound-feet of torque as well as wireless-charging capabilities. It was about the size of the Infiniti G sedan. At the time, the automaker's executives were estimating that car would hit the market by 2014. Those plans didn't come to fruition, obviously. As for the Alliance, Renault and Nissan celebrated the sale of their 250,000th electric vehicle this past summer. And while the lion's share of those were in the form of the Nissan Leaf, the 250,000th vehicle was actually a Renault Zoe that was bought by a computer engineer in Bordeaux, France. That's a long way from the UAE, and a long way from an Infiniti EV.

Nissan bringing 2014 Versa Note to Detroit

Nissan today confirmed that it will be showing the 2014 Versa Note - not Versa, not Note, but Versa Note - at next week's 2013 Detroit Auto Show. And while we can't see a whole lot from this one teaser image, we're willing to bet that the car looks a lot like this.
All Nissan will tell us at this time is that the Versa Note will have "segment-exclusive technology, outstanding fuel economy, smart packaging and class-leading cargo space." Sounds... class-competitive.
Given how turned-off we are by the second-generation Versa sedan, it'll be interesting to see just what's in store for this Notably more functional version of the affordable compact. Stay tuned for the full details live from Cobo Hall in just a few days, and scroll down to read Nissan's brief press blast.