Shanghai Auto Show: Nissan's 190HP Compact Sport Concept

Nissan unveiled a new design study called Compact Sport Concept at the Shanghai Auto Show. The prototype three-door hatchback is the work of Nissan's global design center in Japan and the brand's Beijing design studio in China. According to the Japanese automaker, the Compact Sport Concept is designed “for young customers in emerging countries”.

Despite the lack of information, it appears that the aggressively styled concept is loosely based on the Micra, as it borrows several elements from Nissan's supermini including the headlight and the two-part grille designs. The hot hatch sports a heavily-sculpted bodywork, with bulged wheel arches, massive bumpers and a windshield that wraps around the center part of the roof.

Read more »

Nissan Launches Super Clean Micra DIG-S Turbo with CO2 Emissions of just 95 g/km

With CO2 emissions of only 95 g/km, Nissan’s all-new Micra DIG-S has one of the cleanest petrol engines in the world. To achieve this, the Japanese firm's engineers used a 1.2-liter three-cylinder unit fitted with a supercharger and direct injection, which can be coupled either to a manual transmission or a CVT automatic gearbox.

The powerplant uses the Miller cycle and with a peak output of 98HP and 142 Nm (105 lb-ft) of torque, it’s said to be on par with a conventional 1.5-liter four-cylinder unit. Other technical highlights include the 13:1 compression ratio that increases combustion efficiency, the reduced heat, friction and pumping losses thanks to fewer moving parts, and advanced engine management systems with Start/Stop feature and energy regeneration capabilities.

Read more »

Nissan Announces Nine Models for Tokyo Auto Salon Including Juke Sporty and Leaf Aero Concept

At the upcoming Tokyo Auto Salon 2011 with NAPAC (Japan Car Parts and Aftermarket Promotion Association), to be held from January 14 to 16, Nissan, together with Autech Japan and its in-house NISMO performance division, will premiere a total of nine vehicles.

Read more »

New Nissan Sunny Sedan Unveiled at China Auto Show. Is this the New 2012 Versa?

Taking center stage and making its world debut at the 8th China (Guangzhou) International Automobile Exhibition, is Nissan's all-new global small sedan, which will be locally marketed as the Sunny. According to the Japanese automaker, the new small sedan will go on sale first in China in January 2011 and then progressively across 170 countries worldwide under different vehicle brand names.

Even though Nissan's Spartan press release did not mention the Versa, there are one too many styling similarities between the new Sunny and the 2012 Versa sedan teased in an official sketch released by the automaker in October 2010. However, we have to stress the fact that Nissan has not made a connection between the two cars.

Read more »

Nissan Recalls 2.1 Million Vehicles Worldwide Over Ignition Problem

A defect in the ignition system that can cause an engine to stall while running has prompted a massive recall of some 2.1 million Nissan and Infiniti cars and trucks worldwide.

In the U.S. and Canada, the recall involves the 2004-2006MY Nissan Armada and Titan, 2005-2006MY Infiniti QX56, as well as the 2003-2006MY Nissan Frontier, Pathfinder and Xterra models. Other models in the global recall list include the Cube, March/Micra and Tiida.

Read more »

Smart Teases New Four-Door Model for USA, and yes, it's a Nissan Micra in Disguise...

In what could be seen as a rather desperate move to keep the troubled Smart brand alive and kicking in the United States, parent company Mercedes-Benz has announced that it has teamed up with Nissan to launch a Toyota Yaris-sized five-door hatchback on the market in the fourth quarter of 2011.

"The new vehicle will expand smart USA's product lineup, offering five-seat capacity while maintaining the core principles of efficiency and conservation," said Smart USA President Jill Lajdziak.

The company said the B-segment car is to be sold solely in the United States and will be based on vehicle architecture from Nissan, without getting into any more details. However, the maker of the tiny Fortwo released two teaser sketches of the car, clearly depicting Nissan's latest Micra supermini with a Smart-like fascia, headlights, tail lamps and detailing.

Read more »

Nissan to Unveil Townpod EV Concept at Paris Show

At the 2010 Paris Motor Show, which opens on 30 September, Nissan will lift the wraps off a new electric car concept called the Townpod. The Japanese automaker will release full details at the show but for now, all we have about the concept model is this cropped photo of the front headlamp and Nissan's claims that "it combines eye-catching design with a spacious and practical interior," and that " it heralds a new-era of flexible, stylish vehicles that will bring electric-vehicle mobility to the masses."

Read more »

Nissan Micra Production Comes to End in the UK after 18 Years

On Friday, the last Micra to be produced at Nissan's Sunderland plant in the UK, rolled off the assembly line marking the end of an era stretching back to the early Nineties. The very first Sunderland-built Micra came to life on August 10, 1992. The UK plant went on to produce 2,368,704 Micras (two generation models) over the next 18 years, which is more than 40% of all cars built at the plant since production began in 1986.

Read more »

Thai-Made 2011 Nissan March goes on Sale in Japan [Plus 49 Photos]

Following on from the presentation of the 2011 Micra at the Geneva Show earlier this year, Nissan introduced the Japanese domestic market (JDM) version of the all-new supermini called the March, which goes on sale this week.

Unlike its predecessors, the fourth-generation of the JDM March is manufactured in Thailand, marking a new trend for Japanese automakers to move more production out of the country to lower the manufacturing costs.

However, Nissan was quick to point out that it has set up a special inspection process at its Oppama plant in Japan, which produced the previous generation model, to make additional quality checks on the Thai-made March.

Read more »

2011 Nissan Juke Crossover Premieres in Geneva: New Photos Plus Video

Nissan may have introduced a new generation of the Micra at the Geneva Motor Show today, but make no mistake; the Juke is the model that the Japanese automaker is betting on to win the hearts and minds of European consumers in the extremely competitive small car class.

Featuring a radical (or controversial, it depends on your point of view) styling, an interior inspired by motorbikes and a range-topping 190HP 1.6-liter turbocharged petrol engine with four-wheel drive, the Qashqai's smaller brother is pitched by Nissan as an alternative to the traditional B-segment hatchbacks (a.k.a. superminis).

Read more »

All New Nissan Micra Breaks Cover at 2010 Geneva Show

The covers came off the all-new Nissan Micra today at the 80th Geneva Motor Show. Developed and built on Nissan's all-new V-platform, the Japanese supermini goes global with production set to take place at several overseas manufacturing sites including Thailand, India, Mexico and China.

The fourth generation of the Micra is slightly longer and marginally lower than its predecessor with Nissan claiming that the extended wheelbase has further improved interior space.

Read more »

Nissan Planning to Sell a New Low-Cost, Micra-Based Model in the USA

Nissan officials confirmed today that the automaker is planning to add a new entry-level model based on the soon-to-be-revealed Micra in its U.S. market lineup. The next generation Micra (think Toyota Yaris and Ford Fiesta competitor), which was teased with a pair of renderings as well as a set of leaked design sketches, is based on Nissan's so-called "V-platform" that is said to give birth to two additional models aside from the hatchback, including a four-door sedan and a multipurpose vehicle.

"V platform" manager Vincent Cobee said that the Nissan's engineers spent four years to find ways to reduce production costs and weight out of a small car.

According to the company, the new platform will see a 50 percent improvement in fuel economy (we know, it sounds a bit too optimistic) over the current Micra while the firm's engineers have reduced the total number of parts in the car by 18 percent. For example, while the current Micra's cockpit has 56 parts, the new model will have 27.

According to Autonews that attended the press event at the Nissan's headquarters today, the U.S. market will play a significant role in the firm's plan to sell a million vehicles a year from all the derivatives of the newly created "V platform".

However, Nissan did not reveal which of the three models will come to the States nor when they go on sale or if the U.S.-market vehicle(s) will be produced in the States.

Nissan said that the new global Micra, which is set to make its debut next year, will be made in five different plants around the world, including India, China, Thailand and two other unidentified locations.

Via: Autonews

2011 Nissan Micra / March: Official Sketches Reveal the Less Exciting Nature of the Actual Production Model

A couple of weeks ago, Nissan published a pair of design sketches of its next generation Micra (sold in Japan as the March) suggesting that the firm's new global supermini would boast more sportier and dramatic looks than the current model. Well, sorry to say, but these official drawings of the actual production version that were leaked onto the net imply that the 2011 Micra's styling will be far less daring and grandiose than Nissan wanted us to believe.

We'll get the chance to see how the new generation Micra looks in the flesh at a major car show in 2010, quite possibly at the Geneva Salon next March with sales set to follow in Europe sometime during the second half of the year.

The new Micra that will compete in the B-segment against cars like the Ford Fiesta and Citroen C3 will be produced in five countries including India, China and Thailand. Unlike the current Micra that is built at the firm's UK Sunderland plant, the European market version of the 2011 Micra will be sourced from Renault-Nissan's new facility in Chennai, India.

Via: Carmagazine

Next Nissan Micra / March Supermini Teased in Official Sketches, Sales Start in 2010

These are the first official sketches of Nissan's replacement for the current generation Micra city car, also known as the March in Japan, that will be first launched in Thailand in March 2010 and will be available in more than 150 countries. The Japanese firm did not release any specific details on the hatchback model, which at least from these renderings, brings to mind the second-generation Opel Corsa B of the mid-1990s.

While the two latest generation models of the car sold in Europe were manufactured at Nissan's UK plant in Sunderland, the European market version of the next Micra will be sourced from Renault-Nissan's new facility in Chennai, India.

In 2008 Nissan revealed that an all-new subcompact crossover that has yet to be shown in production form will take up the manufacturing capacity created when production of the current version of the Micra ends in Sunderland in 2010

Nissan noted that the new Micra will be built in five countries including India, China, Thailand and two more locations that have not been disclosed yet.