Nissan CEO bets on India to make $3,000 Datsun possible.

[Korean]

AFP: Nissan 'wants to offer Datsun at $3,000'

Nissan 'wants to offer Datsun at $3,000'
(AFP) – 5 hours ago

TOKYO — Nissan chief executive Carlos Ghosn wants to relaunch retro-brand Datsun with a price tag as low as $3,000 when it hits the road in 2014, a report said.

The company will target drivers in developing nations -- India, Indonesia and Russia -- offering the barebones model at prices that put it well below current Nissan offerings, according to the Wall Street Journal.

The paper, citing interviews with Ghosn and other executives, said Nissan is aiming for six Datsun models at between $3,000 and $5,000, a price that only a handful of Indian- and Chinese-made cars could compete with.

To cut costs, the company will source parts almost entirely from the country in which the finished product is to be made and sold.

And the absence of rigorous safety standards that would be applied to models aimed at the US or European markets will also help keep the price down, the paper reported.
"If you go to the US, it's not going to end up being $3,000," Ghosn told the paper in an article published Monday.

While Ghosn didn't name the country of origin for this $3,000 Datsun, it most certainly is India.

Thanks to its open foreign auto investment policy, India is quickly becoming the auto export hub of the world.

 

[Zabaniyah]

mmm...I remember seeing Datsuns back in the 80's when I was a kid

Hope to see them return

 

[Korean]

Why Revive Datsun? Nissan CEO Ghosn Offers Answers - Driver's Seat - WSJ

Mr. Ghosn: The responsibility of every CEO is to make sure that you have enough waves for growth for the future…The most obvious one is geographical extension…But all car manufacturers are already practically everywhere. So in a certain way the growth [era] coming from geographical extension is ending because we are all global. We have, in our midterm plan, three [new] accelerators of growth that we have identified. The first one is [Nissan’s luxury brand] Infiniti….The second accelerator, obviously, [is] the [Leaf] electric car…And the third is low-cost cars.

When I say ‘low-cost car,’ I’m talking about the one that we mentioned, $3,000-$5,000, engineered and produced in India first and probably expanded after that to other markets for which we are building platforms and we’re working with partners…The third wave is very important because this is the one which is going to accelerate the move in emerging markets from people who are buying used cars, or people who are driving motorcycles today, or people who have nothing for transportation, to [enabling] people who would like a car. The only reason which is blocking them is the price.

WSJ: Can you make any money on a $3,000 car?

Mr. Ghosn: Oh yeah.

 

[JayAtl]

We call it CAFE standards in the US where all cars by 2016, I think, must have a minimum of 40 miles to a gallon. India must insure that part of lessening it's dependency on oil means all car companies raise their minimum km / liter offered.

 

[Korean]

We call it CAFE standards in the US where all cars by 2016, I think, must have a minimum of 40 miles to a gallon. India must insure that part of lessening it's dependency on oil means all car companies raise their minimum km / liter offered.

I don't think cars in India will get better than 50 MPG, because the 54.5 MPG CAFE rule requires expensive aluminum alloy/carbon fiber construction, hybrid powertrain, and large batteries to comply while still meeting all the crash test requirements. The new Ford F150 is made out of aluminium to cut weight, and this is a full size truck we are talking about.

Only gas saving options available to Indian market cars are high-strength steel construction(to save some weight), more efficient gas engine, and 7-speed automatic transmissions.

 

[KRAIT]

Got for India.....More competition has changed Indian automobile industries.

Look at TATA and their development.

 

[Tshering22]

Excellent. The fallout in our eastern neighborhood has actually started showing results as Japanese automakers vie for new alternates. Datsun is just the beginning "formality". The government must ensure that India becomes a global leader in car manufacturing in terms of the most efficient cars.

Hyundai and Suzuki have had a great success in India. I don't see why others can't.

 

[surya kiran]

So where are they planning the new plant? If 2014, then it better be ready fast!

Gujarat and TN seem to be good bets.

 

[KRAIT]

So where are they planning the new plant? If 2014, then it better be ready fast!

Gujarat and TN seem to be good bets.

They will have tough competition from Mahindra. But good news. We have large market.

 

[ghameed]

So where are they planning the new plant? If 2014, then it better be ready fast!

Gujarat and TN seem to be good bets.

yup...guess the plant will most likely be in these two states. Btw TN already has a Nissan Megafactory so they also have an option of churning out the Datsun brand from this plant.

 

[Korean]

Excellent. The fallout in our eastern neighborhood has actually started showing results as Japanese automakers vie for new alternates.

The Japanese were never going to export out of China; they built in China to sell in China, not to use China as a low-cost export base.

China's 50:50 joint venture rule and the peeping JV "partner" engaged in constant industrial espionage makes China a hostile place to base your low-cost manufacturing export base.

India makes a much better place for global automakers to export out of because of abundance of high quality engineers, the 100% ownership, and the rule of law. And most people speak English in India, while no one speaks English(at least the one you can comprehend) in China.

 

[SinoChallenger]

China's 50:50 joint venture rule and the peeping JV "partner" engaged in constant industrial espionage makes China a hostile place to base your low-cost manufacturing export base.

India makes a much better place for global automakers to export out of because of abundance of high quality engineers, the 100% ownership, and the rule of law. And most people speak English in India, while no one speaks English(at least the one you can comprehend) in China.

LOL at indians being better suited for exploitation by greedy Japanese companies.

 

[Jackdaws]

So where are they planning the new plant? If 2014, then it better be ready fast!

Gujarat and TN seem to be good bets.

They already have a plant in Tamil Nadu - they roll out Nissans and Renaults from there. They would probably use or extend the same plant.

LOL at indians being better suited for exploitation by greedy Japanese companies.

Precisely. Now go back to your Foxconn factory and start putting stickers on the Galaxy Note 2 - I need it.

 

[ChennaiSKing]

Recently we bought a Nissan Micra for our office use in Dubai and I was pleasantly surprised to see "Made In India" written along the bar-code used by Car dealer's Jebel Ali ware house stock management system, also on the car registration card - Vehicle Country of Origin mentioned as "India" - 15 years back not even an extreme optimist Indian would have imagined India exporting such small vehicles to Gulf region, this is a stepping stone in which soon we will see Jag, Land Rower, Benz and other high end cars will be exported from India...

 

[my2cents]

The Japanese were never going to export out of China; they built in China to sell in China, not to use China as a low-cost export base.

China's 50:50 joint venture rule and the peeping JV "partner" engaged in constant industrial espionage makes China a hostile place to base your low-cost manufacturing export base.

India makes a much better place for global automakers to export out of because of abundance of high quality engineers, the 100% ownership, and the rule of law. And most people speak English in India, while no one speaks English(at least the one you can comprehend) in China.

Actually, I did not know that India allows 100% ownership in automotive industry. You are more informed than I am. How about Kia motors coming to India?? You guys make some excellent cars. Hyundai is now second best car company in India.