REPORT: Nissan working on Tata Nano-like cheap car strategy
India's Tata Nano has seemingly shown the world's remaining automakers that it's possible to build a small, inexpensive car for emerging markets that's still profitable. You can reportedly count Nissan among the car makers that are paying attention and the Japanese automaker has plans to launch a new small car platform in Thailand, India and China starting in March of 2010.
The new platform is called V (as in Versatile), and it's been in development since 2005. According to drive.com.au, the car will sport 18-percent fewer parts than current Nissan compacts and as many components as possible will be sourced from local areas.
Crucial to the success of the program is a massive number of sales – a whopping one million vehicles per year by 2013, which would represent nearly a third of all Nissan's sold in the last three months. To make that goal a reality, sales in Europe and the United States are also planned, possibly as early as 2011.
[Source: drive.com.au]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
planetautomatic 10:15AM (11/02/2009)
TATAs probably saying "Been There. Done That."
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Mark Kiernan 10:21AM (11/02/2009)
It would be fantastic if it was an EV.
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Sean 4:27PM (11/02/2009)
I'm all for EVs, but it will be a long time before they can compete with a $2k car.
KK 10:42AM (11/02/2009)
One million conventional cars per year for emerging markets? Yeah, that's very "green".
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polo 3:26PM (11/02/2009)
The tata is actually more efficient (and safer) than the gas powered scooters they drive over there.
KK 3:32PM (11/02/2009)
polo, are you sure about that? I thought Honda Cubs and similar bikes were pretty common "over there". The Cub easily gets 100 mpg. (Wikipedia has it listed as 340 mpg)
Matt 12:50PM (11/02/2009)
"Nissan working on Tata Nano-like cheap car strategy"
Yeah, we saw the Leaf already :)
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Carney 2:50PM (11/03/2009)
Are they going to include compatibility with ultra-cheap methanol fuel, or just keep this "cheap" car unnecessarily locked in to gasoline only, making its drivers vulnerable to another run-up in petroleum prices like the one from $10 per barrel in 1999 to $140 per barrel in 2008? That oil cartel imposed spike collapsed the economy, but as painful as it was for Americans and other first worlders, it was far worse for people in poor countries.
And full flex fuel capability only costs $130 per car to add.
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