I love cars and so a part of me wants every brand to thrive if only so they last long enough to produce some kind of extremely niche product that appeals only to the people who make and/or read this website. Call it the “Pontiac G8 ST Effect.” I’m still sore about Steve Rattner killing Pontiac before we got our neo-El Camino.
High on the list of brands I’m worried about is Nissan. The company is in poor shape and its survival is not guaranteed. There’s a bright spot, however, in that I think the brand is starting to recognize that it’s hosed and is starting to make the right moves to avert disaster.
Is this a hopeful edition of The Morning Dump? Sure, let’s do it. If Nissan can turn it around so can Volvo. The automaker got caught flat-footed by EV market disruptions but still managed to beat profit forecasts. Stellantis is rumored to be fleeing to Mexico with its Ram 1500, though the company insists it’s just preparing for when it runs out of production space in the United States. That’s 18 different kinds of wishful thinking right there.
And, finally, the Department of Energy thinks it’ll be able to rush a lot of money out the door for EV plant conversion… just in case.
Nissan Realizes It Can’t Celebrity Itself To Success
I distinctly remember having a conversation in early March about my daughter’s birthday party. There were rumors of COVID-19 popping up in our community and we wondered if getting a bunch of kids and grandparents in the same room might, in fact, be a bad idea. We ended up cancelling the party.
Around this time Nissan launched an ad with Brie Larson called “Compromise” which is a pro-feminist message about, well, not compromising. This was to sell Nissan Sentras because those, too, were not compromises. Predictably, there was a modest online backlash to the perceived wokeness of the ad and, it seems, Nissan has entirely memory-holed the event by removing all of its press releases and YouTube videos of the ad. Thankfully, a copy of it is still on Facebook and I’ve embedded the video below.
While I’m generally sympathetic to the message, it’s clunky as hell. I have no issue with wokeness and often find people complaining about it to be telling on themselves but, yeah, this is truly terrible. It’s preachy, didactic, and all in the service of making people money. I think the best word to describe it is: cringe. It’s extreme cringe.
I’d actually forgotten about this whole timeline because a few days after this ad was released the entire world shut down and I was too busy worrying about keeping my daughter from seeing the biohazard-suited EMTs taking my dying neighbor out of her apartment to have opinions on Brie Larson.
The whole debacle is indicative of the journey Nissan has been on since 2018, when CEO Carlos Ghosn was arrested in Japan for alleged corporate malfeasance. Since then the company has been lost, trying to divorce itself from Renault while also failing to attract new customers. In the United States, market share has dropped by a third since 2018 and nearly 40% of dealers have reported being unprofitable. I’ve argued that Nissan and Honda should merge.
Nissan had a goal of ending the fiscal year 2024 (which ends in March 2025) with a 6.2% market share. They’ll be lucky to get 5.6%.
To solve a problem you first must acknowledge it and, to its credit, Nissan’s new head of marketing Vinay Shahani seems to understand the issues. He did an interview with Automotive News where he was as frank as you’ll see a marketing exec get about what’s wrong (it helped that Shahani has been at Lexus so it’s not his fault):
Shahani’s strategy to flip old perceptions and draw new buyers targets the rational and emotional impulses in car buying.
Nissan’s new marketing steers away from celebrity-powered advertising. New commercials emphasize vehicle features, technology and the dealership experience.
“The car has to be the star,” Shahani said. “I want to make sure people see all the innovation we have to offer.”
Nissan’s “6 under $30K” campaign highlights the brand’s value-priced sedans and crossovers and is tuned to these times of high interest rates.
“Affordable pricing is more important than ever before,” Shahani said. “Third-party data show a 70 percent drop in new vehicle [listings] priced under $30,000 since 2019.”
So no more Brie Larson, I guess? Focusing on affordability is a great message. But more than messaging is needed. What Nissan probably should do is cut its dealerships like Buick has, but that costs money and Nissan doesn’t have enough money to do that right now.
If there’s any silver lining here it’s that the new product looks much improved. The new Nissan Murano, in particular, could be a winner. Nissan also needs hybrids and needs to figure out some way to get people to care about the Nissan Ariya, but there seems to be some sort of plan to build better cars. [Ed Note: I myself am rather excited to drive the new Kicks, which looks awesome for its price. One thing about Nissan is that it does have a number of sub-$30,000 offerings, which I think is great. -DT].
Volvo Isn’t In Quite As Terrible Shape
Volvo was going to be the next great EV automaker and had a plan to quickly ditch its gas-burning cars in an effort to address climate change (and also increase the company’s value). It turns out that this was the wrong plan, so Volvo is having to quickly readjust.
The slightly good news is that the company’s operating profits in Q3 hit $550 million, up from what the market expected. Will that hold? Volvo is being cautious.
Volvo Cars said it now expects its retail sales to rise by 7-8% this year, down from a forecast in July of 12-15% growth, anticipating no growth in the fourth quarter.
“There’s no doubt that the sector’s getting tougher … We’re starting to see a slowdown in consumer sentiment, driven partly by the high inflation,” CEO Jim Rowan told Reuters.
“A lot of people are taking car loans out in order to pay for their new vehicles, and high inflation obviously affects that.”
The company is in the middle of a product refresh and the new stuff looks good, even if it’s not entirely ready for prime time yet.
Possible Ram Production In Mexico Is Just A ‘Relief Valve’ Says Stellantis Exec
The United Auto Workers union and Stellantis are in a standoff over the future. The UAW is threatening to strike over production commitments while Stellantis is making noises about shifting production to Mexico. What should we call this standoff where both parties have something to lose? A Saltillo Standoff? I’ll keep workshopping it.
Right now Ram 1500s are produced in the UAW-held plant in Sterling Heights, Michigan, but it’s become clear that Stellantis is expanding in its Saltillo, Mexico facility to support more truck production. What’s going on here?
Chrysler brand CEO Christine Fuell told the Detroit Free Press that it’s not a big deal:
Asked why that extra capacity wasn’t added in the U.S., and if the Mexico expansion was an effort to slash spending following a new agreement with the UAW, Feuell said it was not a cost-cutting move.
“The plant in Saltillo does a really good job managing the complexity, and they’re already building pickup trucks down there,” she said.
The future home of the Ram 1500 truck, which is currently built at Sterling Heights assembly near Detroit, is under question given the Mexico expansion.
Sure.
DOE Trying To Push Out EV Conversion Bucks For… No Reason
One of President Biden’s big agendas was to upgrade the nation’s green energy infrastructure in order to counter the threat from China and climate change. One piece of that initiative that’s key is the passing out of grants to convert plants to produce EVs and EV-related parts.
For no reason at all the Biden administration is trying to get those grants out as fast as a government agency can according to Reuters:
U.S. Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm said on Tuesday the department is working “as fast as we can” to finalize $1.7 billion in grants to fund the conversion of plants to build electric vehicles and components.
“We are working as fast as we can to finalize as much as we can — to get the commitments in contract with all of those who have been selected,” Granholm said in an interview on the sidelines of a Reuters Next conference. “We have a few months to make sure that we’re doing that.”
What could possibly happen in the next few months that would endanger EV grants? Don’t we all agree that global warming is real and a real threat?
What I’m Listening To While Writing TMD
I don’t wanna hate on Brie Larson too much, so here’s Brie Larson doing “Black Sheep” in Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World. It’s good! She’s talented! She doesn’t make me want to buy a Nissan but that’s not entirely her fault!
The Big Question
Let’s remember some great Nissans. What’s your favorite Nissan of all time?
When I was a teenager my mom purchased a new Nissan Axxess, which I swear had a V6, but also which seems highly improbable. Either way, it was the first car I’d ever driven at this point that had any acceleration. So that’s my vote.
Made me snort just a little mid laugh.
It not a badged Nissan, but would a Datsun 280Z count? I think they are sexy hot like some people see in Toyota Supra (not the latest gen) or old Jags.
4th gen Maxima. The 1999 or so Maxima SE 5-speed was a sweet car in the day.
Hell I saw the beginning of Fast and the Furious the other day and forgot that car managed to be part of Dom’s crew alongside the Silvia, Skyline GT-R and the Jetta. Vince was a douche bag, and maybe Nissan paid for it to be in that role, but whatever. I didn’t question it belonging at the time.
My buddy had an early 00’s Sentra SE-R VSpec, 6MT and he liked it a lot. Another friend had a 240SX, would have taken one of those too. Another friend of mine had a hardbody pickup that had a lift on it, big tires, offroad lights. Again, cool car for us late teen, 20-something guys.
Today, I see zero reason to shop Nissan. They don’t do anything particularly well. They aren’t more reliable than a Toyota/Honda. They aren’t really too much cheaper than a Toyota/Honda. Competitor for Toyota hybrids? What is that? They don’t offer a better warranty than anyone to make up for any of those shortcomings. What am I doing there?
I guess maybe if I needed a car for a teenager or something, I’d check out a non-CVT Versa/Sentra because they are cheap and not terrible. But I am not shopping those at my age.
This is a highly biased opinion, but I think the Armada is an absolute steal on the used market. It is a global Land Cruiser competitor with a reliable V8, built in Tokyo, with 8500 lbs of towing capacity, leather and 400HP available for $27-40k for a low mileage current generation example.
I finally caved and bought my 2021 this summer after 2 years of denial looking at 2011-15 LX570s and Land Cruisers that had 120k+ miles. It’s definitely a niche of the market, but I would argue it’s a niche where Nissan / Infinity lead GM, Toyota, Lexus and Ford in value and capability.
If you are shopping LCs, I could see coming to the same conclusion. LC/LXs are stupid expensive used.
Personally, I’m not interested in a full-size SUV that gets 15 mpg. So for me, I don’t see why I’d get a Pathfinder over a Highlander Hybrid, except for the fact Highlanders are impossible to find a dealer lot.
That is a completely reasonable take. 90% of the driving we do is in our Rav4 Hybrid. At no point did it even occur to me to look at a Rogue. The Armada is really just for trailering.
Toyota’s push up market, and up on price has left a flank open for Nissan. 5 years ago, if you asked what the “right” car to buy was, the answer was a new Toyota you could afford in the category you wanted. For practicality, reliability and value, Corolla, Camry, Rav4, Prius, Tacoma, Sienna or Tundra were the answer.
Now? Not so much. In almost every category, there is an arguably better competitor, with better features, and a better price. Given the rocky start of the new Tundra, Tacoma, and Land Cruiser; reliability is also up for grabs.
Nissan’s focus on under $30k seems smart, but I think there other angle of attack should focus on great value up market. The new Armada could be a good start, but they also need genuinely desirable prestige vehicles that look great and perform fantastically at 85% of the cost of Toyota.
3rd generation Maxima for me. A very sharp design that nicely bridged the gap between ’80s rectilinear and ’90s blob, looked esp. good in black. 4DSC baby!
As with most of the Japanese companies, their coolest products never made if to our shores. The S15 Silvia is my all time dream Nissan. And GT3 is to blame. It’s really s a shame the 240SX died before we could get that beauty! It’s on the list for the next import, but dang they are pricey!
I’ve never been a big Nissan guy but I was always partial to the Altima coupe.
Handsomely styled, reasonably priced, plenty of power, available stick shift, and usable space even in a 2 door body. The loss of FWD coupes is really too bad.
Favourite Nissan? Probably the Z31 300ZX. Very 80s and very fun.
Also the early 2000s Sentra SER Spec V. Looked great, went…about as fast as the Sentra SE that predated it.
That era Senra was a good car for a fair price. They should look back at those times for inspiration. And build them so they don’t break. NO CVTs!!
Funny how when Ghosn “left,” they fell apart.
I had an ’03 SE-R Spec V. Good car. I liked it. It was very honest about what it was, and the 2.5L NA motor gave it more low and midrange than its competition. It was legitimately fun to drive.
I had an 04 Spec-V that I wrung out for 238k miles. I still miss it sometimes.
I really like Scott Pilgrim vs The World. It’s a fun, lighthearted movie.
Maybe Nissan should double-down with Renault, instead, and cross-sell the Dacia models. Rebuild the brand with people under 30.
This is a good take. The Duster and Sandero look pretty nice, and having a wagon on offer seems like an opportunity.
The SR20DET in my LoCost will forever and always be my favorite Nissan.
Oh please tell me more! I want desperately to build a Caterham type project one day with the kids, a LoCost would be amazing but I don’t think my skills are good enough for that. Do you have a build blog or anything like that I can obsess over?
Ha, afraid not. I bought it off of the builder in Kingsport, TN. He races Silvias, and was selling the Locost to build his daughter one. It is dyno’d at 368 hp (on full boost) and weighs 1600lbs. I don’t drive it at full boost, it is rowdy as it is.
I was looking for something visceral to maybe wean myself off of motorbikes after a couple times VERY nearly being rear-ended by a truck that didn’t see me waiting for someone a couple cars up to turn left. I haven’t been on a motorcycle since I brought the thing home.
Oh ok. That’s still freaking cool though! Do you find people are more likely to see you in that than on a bike? I had way more close calls with that in my low sports cars than I ever had on the bikes, but I also had a neon orange reflective backpack I wore 95% of the time, I like to think I was pretty hard to miss.
One of my bike crashes was at noon on a straight road, clear summer day, on a bright green Ninja, with both headlights on, neon yellow helmet and jacket, no cars in front of me, some guy in a Honda Pilot coming the other way made a left across my lane right in front of me; then said “I didn’t see you” /facepalm
Yeah… People are incredibly dumb. I had a laser blue Lotus Elise for about a year, and almost got hit at least weekly in situations like that, they had to have just been looking too high. No one is used to cars that are only 3 ft tall so even the neon color wasn’t enough.
Oh great. There goes my false sense of security.
So far so good. Knock wood. The thing is loud and looks very illegal, so maybe that helps. Fully registered, though, as a 1968 Lotus in Virginia!
Datsun pickups are the best Nissans.
I’m a long time big Nissan fan, but my love ends around OBD2. I currently own a Sil80 built S13, 2 720 pickups, a 71 510 wagon, a ’69 roadster and am custom building a quad cab 720 with suicide doors on the rear, which I made suicide using Nissan Titan king cab hinges. I’ve one a couple of pathfinders, like 5 other 720s, and at least one other 240sx.
So many questions. Please tell me you are a member so I can do a write up?!
You’re living my dream there!
“I’m still sore about Steve Rattner killing Pontiac before we got our neo-El Camino.”
Why do you do this to us? Just when the pain was starting to subside?
I wanted one of those also, was just waiting for them to be available. Plus I was doing work at the GM Tech Center at the time and you would see some around there.
The Murano CrossCarbiolet. I just saw another one on the road this weekend and it’s just remarkable… in a “they made what?!” kind of way.
someone in my town must have one as I see one every few weeks. why???
cars that make you ask ‘why?’ are the greatest!
It looks like they stuck a bike pump into a convertible and blew it up like a balloon. I am ALWAYS entertained when I see one in the wild.
I mean the MegaVan is a Nissan. I have no other Nissan preferences.
Dealership experiences were sleazy. Dealership maintenance was performed incorrectly or lied about on every occasion.
I do my own work now and recommend people avoid Nissan dealers.
I always wanted an early ’90s Sentra SE-R. Or an NX2000. Ended up with an Escort GT with the 1.8 Mazda engine instead.
I was always jealous of an old roommate’s stubbornly stock 240SX hatch, and an old friend’s ratty 280Z.
And I’ll never forget my years of owning a 1980 Datsun 210 in high school. Gifted from my then-girlfriend’s dad, he put some fresh gas in it and drove it out of a field on her grandparents’ property and into my possession, where it promptly needed just about everything replaced. Being a broke high schooler, it was the perfect car to learn some basic wrenching on, and most crucially, it had a 5 speed and was even fitted with a tachometer. The hatchback was surprisingly roomy and made for a easy move to the college dorms when the time came, and it looked nice enough with a set of old 200SX wheels I found on Craigslist.
Man. So many cool old Nissans and Datsuns. So very few that are even remotely interesting these days.
Throwing the CEO who drove the company from a slow start into near stardom was not a good move. Especially as it turns out all the mansions and jets they were hopping about are actually owned by…Nissan.
Fond memories of Datsun 120Ys and 140Ys — long, long road trips, 30 hours non-stop except to change drivers, and they ran like the proverbial sewing machines. Hardly used any fuel either, by modern standards.
Then there was the 140Y “coupé, we had, odd looking and a horrible metallic green, at the end of its life which occasionally would have the back step out when going round roundabouts for no reason at all…
Whole Datsun, Nissan saga should be a spy book, but never got printed — apparently the company jumps on anyone who tries.
They were lost before Renault, and I expect they will be lost now, except this time no-one will step in because, you know, prison…
Not a Nissan fan but I guess a first gen 280Z
19 year old me had a 1976 Datsun 610. I check Marketplace for one whenever I’m feeling nostalgic. Easily my favorite Nissan product but it’s probably more connected to the memories made in it than the actual car.
I follow a gay couple based in Palm Springs – one is a recurring Hallmark movie actor, the other runs a gay group vacation business.
They’ve recently done some marketing fluff for Nissan – which is completely ridiculous because they are NOT the target market, nor are their followers.
Meanwhile – it’s a Mexican Standoff:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mexican_standoff
…that’s the joke. Saltillo is the city in Mexico which stands to absorb the production volume from Sterling Hts, MI
My favorite Nissans are the Datsun 510 (any body style) and the 620 pickup.
The best Nissan I ever personally experienced was a buddy in high school had a PS2 in his 1998 Maxima. This was peak automotive awesomeness to me back then.
“What’s your favorite Nissan of all time?”
Easy, the Hardbody pickup. I’m sad that they’ve all rusted away around here. But they were so tough and such good looking little pickups.
When I turned 16 in 1997, the local Nissan dealer was advertising new ones for $7800. I had half of that saved up, but could not convince my dad that it would be smarter to help me with the other half, than to make me buy mom’s Oldsmobile (which promptly fell apart, no I’m not still a little bitter about that, why do you ask?)
Specifically, the red, white, and blue Desert Runner version.
Just awesome.
Yeah, those were the coolest version. But I even like the basic ones, with those 90’s green graphics on the side.
Came here to say the same. D21 with the 5-speed and the 4-cylinder with hydraulic lifters, minimal maintenance, maximal utility.
The best Nissans were never sold in America. But the best Nissan was a Prince.