GLOBAL PROVING TESTS FOR NV200 BASED ELECTRIC VEHICLES BEGINNINGS

GLOBAL PROVING TESTS FOR NV200 BASED ELECTRIC VEHICLES BEGINNINGS

Japan Post Service Co., Ltd's Test Car

"The role that can be played by zero emissions vehicles in promoting a balance between economic growth and environmental protection in the realm of logistics is large" said Nissan Corporate Vice President Hideto Murakami,　responsible for the Global LCV Business Unit. "We will certainly reflect the customer feedback gained from these proving tests in our future product development, and I expect that our commercial electric vehicles based on the NV200 will contribute to our customers' business and to the development of a sustainable society".

The NV200 was recently chosen as the next generation New York taxi. It is a model aimed for customers around the world, the next-generation compact commercial vehicle suited for a wide variety of situations including business, daily use, or leisure. The NV200 is available in Japan and Europe since FY2009 and China and Singapore from FY2010, and future launches are planned for the U.S. and India. In total, the NV200 is sold in approximately 40 countries throughout the world, and has received positive feedback from customers for its spacious interior, fuel economy, excellent driving performance, and attractive design. At the end of 2009 it was awarded "International Van of the Year 2010" that was based on the selection of journalists from 20 European countries. In March 2011, it was awarded the "Universal Design Award", one of the most authoritative awards in universal design, and the "Universal Design Consumer's Favorite Award", marking the first time in automotive industry to be awarded both awards.

Nissan is aiming to become the leader in zero emissions, and in addition to carrying out the development of electric vehicles, Nissan is also engaged in comprehensive efforts to spread the use of electric vehicles and promote sustainable mobility. The Renault-Nissan Alliance has already concluded more than 90 partnerships related to zero emission mobility with national and local governments and corporations throughout the world (as of June 2011). Nissan is also engaged in related efforts such as the production of lithium ion batteries, developing charging infrastructure, the development of internal speed charging equipment, and the recycling and reuse of batteries.

Preparing electric vehicles for the compact commercial market, aiming to become the leader in zero emissions -

Nissan Motor Co., Ltd. will begin global proving tests starting July 2011 of an electric vehicle (EV) based on the compact commercial vehicle NV200. For the first phase, the Japan Post Service Co., Ltd. (Headquarters: Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo, President and CEO: Shinichi Nabekura) will carry out a test in Japan starting July. One test vehicle will be provided to carry out postal collection and delivery tasks for approximately two months in the city of Yokohama, Kanagawa prefecture, to evaluate the vehicle's capabilities under a customer's normal usage conditions. Later, similar proving tests will be carried out both in Japan and Europe, where similar evaluations will be carried out with other companies.　　

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Japan’s New Car Market hitting the Skids honda motor, toyota motor, nissan motor

Japan’s New Car Market hitting the Skids honda motor, toyota motor, nissan motor

The impact and aftermath of the Japanese earthquake on the US car market has been speculated about and analyzed pretty carefully in the past few days. As the second largest car market in the world, what happens in the US could have a significant impact on sales from Japan’s three largest car makers, Toyota Motor Corp. (NYSE: TM), Honda Motor Co., Ltd. (NYSE: HMC), and Nissan Motor Co. Ltd. (OTC: NSANY).

Sales in Japan accounted for 5.5 million units in 2010, with 19 of the top 20 selling models going to these three companies. What are the prospects for new car sales in Japan for 2011?

Production has stopped at many of Japan’s major manufacturers as the facilities are inspected for quake-related damage and electrical power shortages. But that’s not the big problem. The Japanese will sort this out in due time.

The big problem is buyers. Added to the cost of rebuilding the country’s shattered infrastructure, the threat of radioactive material spreading over the country will likely make potential buyers think twice or three times before heading out to browse auto showrooms.

The availability of credit for auto purchases could also be restricted as the country’s banks are called upon to help finance rebuilding efforts. Buying new cars on credit could simply get too expensive.

Many car makers are preparing to re-start operations as soon as next week, according to a report in The Wall Street Journal. Parts suppliers, too, need to get back into production quickly in order to supply parts for the just-in-time manufacturing processes that the auto makers rely on.

Having the auto makers and parts suppliers back on-line quickly will minimize lost sales around the globe. What impact it will have on domestic sales in Japan is much less problematic.

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Top 30 Ranking best selling cars japan 2011

Top 30 Ranking best selling cars japan 2011

Bad news keep coming from Japan. As predicted, the new car market plunged even further in April, down 51% year-on-year to 108,824 units, the lowest monthly volume since records started in January 1968. Toyota is hit hardest at -69%. More details here.

The models ranking is surprisingly stable amidst this chaos, with the Honda Fit reinforcing its leadership at 8,574 sales, down ‘only’ 30%, well ahead of the Toyota Prius at 4,876 units (-82%) and the Toyota Vitz at 4,644 (-49%). The Honda Freed (-38%) and Toyota Corolla (-57%) follow and are both up one spot.

Mitsubishi Delica D2

Only 4 models in the Top 30 are up year-on-year: the new gen Nissan March (+3%) and 3 Subarus: the Impreza (+13%), Legacy (+8%) and Forester (+38%). The Mitsubishi Delica D2, launched in February, breaks into the Top 30 for the first time at #27, and the Lexus CT200h is up to a best-ever 21st position.

Full Top 30 Ranking Table below.

Japan 2011:

Pos	Model	Apr	/10	Mar	2011	Pos	2010
1	Honda Fit	8,574	-30%	1	62,607	1	2
2	Toyota Prius	4,876	-82%	2	57,399	2	1
3	Toyota Vitz	4,644	-49%	3	46,061	3	3
4	Honda Freed	3,761	-38%	5	24,675	5	5
5	Toyota Corolla	3,268	-57%	6	22,060	6	4
6	Honda StepWGN	3,082	-58%	9	18,053	10	7
7	Nissan March	2,770	3%	7	17,408	11	17
8	Mazda Demio	2,591	-39%	8	18,565	8	11
9	Nissan Serena	2,349	-43%	4	25,167	4	8
10	Toyota Passo	2,319	-67%	10	18,321	9	6
11	Nissan Note	2,217	-41%	13	14,299	13	10
12	Suzuki Swift	1,933	-49%	15	10,480	20	20
13	Toyota Voxy	1,906	-65%	12	15,314	12	9
14	Suzuki Solio	1,810	new	17	13,509	14	-
15	Toyota Ractis	1,795	-43%	11	20,915	7	19
16	Nissan Cube	1,794	-39%	18	10,921	18	15
17	Toyota Wish	1,496	-56%	14	11,910	17	13
18	Nissan Tiida	1,414	-55%	24	7,998	25	18
19	Toyota Noah	1,361	-65%	16	12,078	16	14
20	Subaru Impreza	1,204	13%	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a
21	Lexus CT200h	1,184	new	26	n/a	n/a	-
22	Nissan Juke	1,161	new	23	9,852	22	32
23	Honda Insight	1,099	-62%	n/a	n/a	n/a	23
24	Subaru Legacy	1,094	8%	29	6,629	28	29
25	Subaru Forester	946	38%	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a
26	Toyota Estima	931	-68%	21	10,402	21	16
27	Mitsubishi Delica D2	927	new	n/a	n/a	n/a	-
28	Nissan X-Trail	910	-56%	22	8,538	23	24
29	Mazda Premacy	907	-20%	27	7,244	26	-
30	Toyota Crown	852	-75%	20	10,543	19	22

Source: JADA

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China passing to Japan as top luxury market in 2012

China passing to Japan as top luxury market in 2012

The survey ranks China second with a 27-percent market share of global consumption by the end of May, slightly lower than Japan's 29 percent, and higher than 14 percent for the United States and 18 percent for Europe.

China is expected to replace Japan as the world's top consumer of luxury goods by 2012 due to its growing demand and the declining consumption in Japan, the World Luxury Association (WLA) said Thursday.

The luxury goods sales value in the Chinese market, excluding private jets, yachts and luxury cars, will hit $14.6 billion in 2012,the WLA predicted in a survey released in Beijing. That would be an increase from $10.7 billion in a 13-month period from February 2010 to March this year, according to the WLA.

According to the survey, Chinese spent more on luxury goods overseas, such as the $50 billion worth of purchases of luxury goods solely in Europe last year.

"China has been rising with the fastest annual growth," said Michael Ouyang, the Chief of World Luxury Association China office.

The United States, Europe and Japan have scant room for further sales growth in the next one to three years, while more luxury brands will rush to tap the Chinese market, he said. Those companies that have opened stores in China's first-tier cities will embrace more opportunities in the second and their-tier cities, he added.

Luxury goods sales in Japan, the current top market, have been crippled by the devastating earthquake in March, which forced 49 percent of brand stores to halt business for one month after the disaster, according to the survey.

It expected the slump in sales will continue for a year, and 70 percent of brands will shift their commercial plans to China.

A stronger yuan and a weaker euro will also increase purchasing power of Chinese consumers, the survey said.

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Toyota Yaris Japanese Spec first drive 2012

Toyota Yaris Japanese Spec first drive 2012

Sales of the Toyota Yaris (called Vitz in Japan) took a header last year in the American market, dropping almost 40 percent over 2009, which was one of the worst sales years in forever. To say that Toyota needs to give its small car some love is an understatement, and that makes the U.S. debut of the new 2012 Toyota Yaris all the more important .

“We need to stand out more,” says deputy chief engineer Yoshinari Toyomura. “That is one reason why the new Yaris has grown in size and taken on an edgier look compared to its predecessor.”

Recently, we had a chance to check out the Japanese-spec version of the new car, and we immediately saw what Toyomura meant. The new B-segment bigwig is 3.5 inches longer with a wheelbase that gains 2 inches. Toyota is hoping the new car’s more aggressive edges will appeal to a larger audience (read: males). The car does feel bigger, but the company’s efforts to minimize costs while improving packaging are met with mixed results.

The engine lineup gets new versions of the 1.3-liter and 1.5-liter gas variants as well as a revised 1.4-liter diesel for Europe (expect the 1.5-liter version to continue as the base engine for the U.S., although a 1.8-liter and a hybrid model are also rumored). The highlight of the lineup is undoubtedly the car we tested: the 1.3-liter Smart-Stop Package. Taking just 0.35 seconds to restart after seamlessly cutting the engine at idle, the smart-stop works to improve fuel economy by some 2 mpg, thus achieving 61.5 mpg in the Japanese mpg cycle. But the start-stop is only offered on the 1.3-liter due to its hefty $700 price tag. More strikingly, VSC and TRC traction controls, which are standard on the 1.3-liter version, are not even offered as options on other models, although we’re guessing that will change for the U.S. market version...... READ MORE

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