Archive for Nissan

This strange thing is the Nissan Mixim, a 3-seater microcar that will make it’s debut at the 2007 Frankfurt Motor Show next month. The Nissan Mixim is an electric vehicle with a 1+2 seating arrangement accessible via gullwing doors on either sides of the car.

The 950kg car is powered by two “Super Motors” as Nissan calls them, each powering an axle, effectively making the car all-wheel drive.

More pictures after the jump.

Click here to read the rest of Nissan Mixim Concept Electric Car

We will be getting two variants of the Nissan Livina MPV here in Malaysia, according to a report by The Edge last week. The Nissan Livina will be available in Malaysia in locally assembled form with engine capacities of both 1.6 and 1.8 liters, and both models will be priced with an under-RM100,000 price tag. These engine capacities are similar to the options for the recently launched Nissan Latio – the HR16DE and the MR18DE.

Edaran Tan Chong Motor hopes to attract middle-income customers – this will put the Nissan Livina smack in the middle of the mid-sized lower segment MPV market. That would put it somewhat in competition with the Toyota Avanza, the Suzuki ER-V and the larger Toyota Innova. However, the Nissan Livina promises a better, more comfortable drive as it is based on a monocoque car chassis.

More information on the 7-seater Nissan Livina can be obtained in the related posts:

Related Posts:
Nissan Livina to arrive in 2nd half of 2007

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Nissan Motor Co., Ltd has developed a new catalyst for petrol engines that uses only half the precious metals of conventional catalysts.

A catalyst uses platinum, rhodium and palladium to interact with the exhaust gases causing chemical reactions with nitrogen oxide (NOX), carbon monoxide (CO) and hydrocarbons (HC) – into non-toxic compounds such as nitrogen (N2), water (H20), and carbon dioxide (CO2).

However, the high temperatures of the exhaust gas causes the precious metals to cluster up, reducing exposed metal surface area, thus reducing the effectiveness of the catalyst over time. So what manufacturers have done is use excessive amounts of precious metals so that the catalyst still functions sufficiently well even after the effectiveness has been reduced.

Nissan has used nano-technology to keep the fine metal particles separated under high temperatures, so that only the necessary amount of precious metals need to be used – about 50% less. This will maintain cleaner emissions as well as reduce the consumption of precious metals – an effort of Nissan’s Green Program 2010.

Nissan Design Europe has unveiled this new NV200 small van concept that is set to make a real life debut at the 2007 Tokyo Motor Show in October this year. It was a joint effort between Nissan Design Europe and Nissan Design Center Japan.

The NV200 small van concept is designed to have a customisable interior to suit different usages, but this concept was designed specifically to be used by a professional underwater photographer as an example of it’s versatility.

It has a pod which is divided into ‘wet’ and ‘dry’ storage zones for diving and camera equipment. The pod is latched inside the load area when the van is being driven. But when static, it can be slided out rearwards to allow access to the storage zones.

As the pod withdraws from the van, the area left behind is transformed into a mobile office. The front passenger seat swivels backwards on a curved rail to face a computer table, which drops down from the side of the van.

“A light commercial vehicle has a specific job to perform, but thats no reason to design a purely rational vehicle with no warmth. For NV200, function becomes the aesthetic. Our concept is a highly efficient tool but one with a human touch,” says Nissan’s senior vice president and chief creative officer Shiro Nakamura.

NISMO has a 300 unit limited run of a special edition tuned up Nissan 350Z called the NISMO Fairlady Z Type 380RS that has it’s engine displacement up to 3.8 liters from the original 3.5 liters of the VQ35HR engine.

This 3.8 liter engine is a detuned version of the 400 horsepower 380RS-Competition club racer 350Z, putting out a lower 350 horsepower at 7,200rpm and 397Nm at 4,800rpm, but still higher than the facelifted 350Z’s original 313 horsepower.

More photos after the jump.

Click here to read the rest of NISMO Fairlady Z Type 380RS – 3.8 liter 350Z

Here is inspiration for any of you whose booked the Nissan Latio Sport 1.6 liter hatchback that went on sale recently. This is the Impul Tiida, based on the Nissan Tiida in the Japanese market which is basically the same car as the Latio Sport here in Malaysia. There is an Impul bodykit as well as a “shopping trolley” spoiler like the one on the Impul March, but what’s interesting is the performance enhancements.

The Impul tuning kit is for the 1.5 liter Nissan Tiida, but the only engine variant that is offered here in Malaysia for the Nissan Latio Sport is the 1.6 liter HR16DE. But perhaps the same supercharger kit can be fitted to the 1.6 liter engine block?

The HR16DE engine in the stock Latio Sport makes 109PS at 6,000rpm and 153Nm of torque at 4,400rpm. Impul’s Compressor kit (supercharger) boosts power up 35 PS, so the 1.6 liter block could end up with 144PS, the equivalent of a modern 2.0 liter.

The supercharger must be coupled with an Impul high power control unit (uprated ECU) as well as better Iridium spark plugs, and you can also fit a high flow Blast II design Impul stainless steel muffler.

Some other options to complement the car’s greater acceleration are better brakes – we’re talking about 6 piston calipers for the front on 282×21mm rotors fitted with Impul performance brake pads, which should definitely be more than enough for a 144PS car.

I am not sure where you can purchase this Impul forced induction kit for the HR15DE, or whether it can fitted to the HR16DE or not, but it shouldn’t be too difficult to adapt it.

Click here to read the rest of Impul Tiida – supercharged Nissan Tiida/Latio Sport

Just as previously promised, the Nissan Latio is now in Edaran Tan Chong Motor showrooms nationwide. The following are the prices for the Nissan Latio sedan and the Nissan Latio Sport hatchback, non-inclusive of insurance.

Nissan Latio 1.6 ST (M) – RM79,900.00
Nissan Latio 1.6 ST (A) – RM85,300.00
Nissan Latio 1.6 ST-L (A) – RM90,300.00
Nissan Latio 1.8 Ti (A) – RM97,100.00
Nissan Latio Sport 1.6 ST-L (A) – RM92,900.00

Too bad the sporty hatchback only comes with the HR16DE 1.6 liter engine, as the 1.8 liter would have been more excited and suited to the car’s sporty appearance. The manual model comes equipped with a 5-speed manual, while the automatic models have 4-speed auto gearboxes. Anyway, only the 1.8 Ti sedan and 1.6 ST-L hatchback model has Nissan’s intelligent key system for keyless entry and start. The 1.8 Ti also has bi-xenon headlamps, with an auto headlights system which turns the headlamps on automatically when it is required.

All variants come with a predominantly beige interior, however the lower end models use tricot seat and door trim, as well as silver trim for the instrument panel and shift knob, while the higher ened ST-L and Ti models use wood trim.

As a quick recap – some performance stats. The 1.6 liter HR16DE-equipped cars make 109PS at 6,000rpm and 153Nm of torque at 4,400rpm. The 1.8 liter MR18DE-equipped cars put out 126 horsepower at 5,200rpm, and 174Nm of torque at 4,800rpm. Both engines have 16 valves, twin cams, and continuously variable valve timing.

Related Posts:
Supercharger kit for Nissan Latio Sport

The Nissan Titan is Nissan’s full-sized pick-up truck offering in the US, and is powered by a 5.6 liter 32 valve V8 engine codenamed VK56DE, making 317 horsepower and 522Nm of torque at 3,600rpm. It uses the same ladderframe platform as many other Nissan trucks, including the Nissan Frontier available here on local shores.

Nissan wants to change this from being a petrol-only offering to one that has a diesel option by 2009, proving that more and more manufacturers are responding to a growing interest in diesel vehicles in petrol-loving America.

The new diesel engine will be built by U.S. truck and engine maker Navistar International Corp. For it to have more torque than the petrol’s 522Nm, it would need to be at least a 3.0 to 3.5 liter I suppose. A modern turbodiesel around that size could make between 600 to 700Nm of torque.

Now this is some really strange stuff. Contrary to what everyone is saying about how 4X4s and SUVs should be banned because of the excess fuel they consume, apparently Jesus wants you to drive a 4X4. A Nissan Navara to be exact.

At least, according to a branch of the Universal Church of the Kingdom of God (UCKG) in Soweto, South Africa. “God doesn’t want you to be poor and ashamed – he wants you to drive a new car. A brand new Nissan Navarra people. God wants to show his power in your life too,” said a South African preacher of the church.

Why a Nissan Navara? Apparently a couple gave a testimony about how they gave alot of money to the church, and in return God blessed them with a prospering business – which they used the proceeds to buy a Nissan Navara, among other things.

Talk about product placement to the max. That prospering business might have been a Nissan dealership. Anyway, interesting to note that the Brazil-originated UCKG is considered to be a cult that manipulates it’s followers for financial gain.

Source

Keyless entry systems may not be as cool as you think it is. At least, that’s what it’s turning out to be for some buyers of Nissan’s latest cars in the US that come standard with keyless entry systems. Some customers have found that cell phones kept near their Nissan Altima and Infiniti G35’s I-Keys can reprogram and damage the key, causing it to stop working.

“We discovered that if the I-Key touches a cell phone, outgoing or incoming calls have the potential to alter the electronic code inside the I-Key. The car won’t start and the I-Key cannot be reprogrammed,” warned Nissan spokesman Kyle Bazemore. He assured that owners who encounter this problem can get a new key from dealers, and an updated version of the I-Key which solves this problem will be available in Fall 2007.

Seriously, doesn’t the Nissan I-Key have a manual key integrated into it as well? For example, BMW’s keyless entry device has a little manual key integrated into it which you can pull out and use to unlock the doors and etc. Why the warning that it will “stop working”? It would be better to be teaching the public how to use the manual key to open and start their cars instead of just saying the car will be disabled. Plus this shows that insufficient testing was done before launching the product.

The long awaited new Nissan model that we’ve been expecting after looking at spyshots this year will be available at the end of next month. Nissan’s new Latio comes in two variants, a 5-door hatch called Latio Sport and a 4-door sedan called the Latio.

The Latio sedan will be available in 1.6 liter and 1.8 liter form. The 1.6 liter variant uses a HR16DE engine that makes 110hp at 6,000rpm, and 153Nm at 4,000rpm. Fuel consumption is estimated at 13.9km per liter. The 1.8 liter variant uses the MR18DE engine, which is rated at 127hp at 5,200rpm and 174Nm of torque at 4,800rpm. Fuel consumption is rated at 13km per liter. These two engines are new engine families developed after the Nissan-Renault alliance, and are used in Renault cars as well.

The Latio hatchback only has the 1.6 liter version, which is kind of disappointing as a 1.8 liter “warm” hatch would be fun indeed. All variants are available in auto, except the sedan will have one 1.6 liter manual option. Not sure how many speeds for the manual, likely 5-speeds since it is a 1.6 liter, but in overseas markets manual variants of the MR18DE 1.8 liter is paired with a 6-speed manual gearbox, which would have been fun if available in a Latio Sport hatchback.

Edaran Tan Chong Motor has taken a different approach to B-segment offerings here in Malaysia, with competitors choosing to offer 1.5 and perhaps soon 1.3 liter versions of their B-segment offerings, ETCM has decided to offer 1.6 and 1.8 liter variants, making them somewhat like Sentra replacements, though the Sentra is actually from a larger C-segment category.

Some other known specs: it is CKD, McPherson struts at the front and a torsion beam at the rear, as well as a keyless entry system which Nissan seems to be pushing all around the world, with the new Maxima in the US having a big marketing campaign for it. The key for the Latio is simply a transponder you carry with you – starting the car is the matter of twisting a little tab at the steering column where you would typically insert your key. A push button start would be much cooler though.

Full specs of the Latio and Latio hatch will be available once it is launched and available for sale towards the end of next month. Nissan has started a teaser site for the Nissan Latio at www.latio.com.my so go check it out.

Also, check out the related post links below for some spyshots, as well as some previous posts with details of the Latio sold in our neighbouring country Singapore. You will be able to find alot more photos of the exterior and interior there.

Related Posts:
Nissan Latio sedan and the Nissan Latio Sport hatchback spotted in Genting
Nissan Latio Sedan spotted on Jalan Kepong

Nissan is in the red for the first time in 7 years, taking a 54% plunge in group net profit for the 2006 financial year ending March 31 2007, and a net income drop of 11%. Global yearly vehicles sales for the year dropped 2.4% to 3.5 million cars, and US yearly sales dropped 4% to 1 million cars.

Nissan says the drop from 152.4 billion yen to 70.6 billion yen was due to job-reduction costs and higher taxes despite improved quarterly vehicle sales of USD$23.6 billion. Nissan recently cut 1,500 jobs in Japan, roughly 4.5% of it’s workforce – it’s first staff reduction in Japan in eight years as it aims to match lower production in a shrinking Japanese domestic market. It also trimmed it’s US workforce in 2 factories by 775 workers.

Ghosn says this is not something to be alarmed about. “It’s not a near-death experience like 1999. We haven’t gone in the ditch. But we’ve had an early wake-up call. And it is not our nature to hit the snooze button on the alarm and go back to sleep. So we respond with all the lucidity, the vigilance and the sense of urgency that drove our revival.”

This is the best spy video of Nissan’s upcoming spiritual successor to the Skyline GT-R yet. The Nissan GT-R in this video was captured doing some really intensive high speed laps at the Nurburgring track, and is seen tailed by a Porsche 911, which means Nissan’s power and handling performance targets should be similiar to the 911 as a competitor. Check out the video after the jump.

Related Posts:
Nissan GT-R Proto Art
2008/2009 Infiniti GT-R
Nissan GT-R Announced
Nissan Skyline GT-R Proto

Click here to read the rest of Nissan GT-R Spy Video

The above photo is quite a clear photo showing the rear three quarter profile of the new Nissan Latio Sedan to be introduced in the Malaysian market soon by Edaran Tan Chong Motor. This photo was snapped in Genting Highlands once again by reader Din. The Nissan Latio Sedan inherits the typical strange side profile that comes with every sedan that is based on a car originally designed as a hatchback, and check out that Bangle-style bootlid!

Related Posts:
Nissan Latio Sedan spotted on Jalan Kepong
Nissan Latio sedan and the Nissan Latio Sport hatchback spotted in Genting

LATEST UPDATE: Nissan Grand Livina 1.6 and 1.8 launched in Malaysia

Large families that can’t afford the likes of the Wish or Estima. There are so many of them in Malaysia, yet it’s baffling how a certain national car manufacturer has not addressed this need. For awhile, the only way Malaysians could get a cheap people movers was the Naza Ria, but while it was big and spacious people couldn’t really take the fuel consumption of the 2.5 liter V6 quad cam unit under the hood.

Then along came the Toyota Avanza and the Toyota Innova, but these were body-on-frame rear wheel drive designs, which were easy to design and provided good economies of scale because of platform sharing (Toyota IMV: Innova, Hilux, Hiace, Fortuner), however because it is essentially a truck-based design, comfort levels are not as high as they should be.

Enter Nissan’s Livina Geniss project. The Nissan Livina Geniss project spawned two MPVs – the 5-seater Livina and the 7-seater Grand Livina, and the latter will reach our shores sometime in the second half of 2007. It is an economical 7-seater MPV, much like the Toyota Avanza, however it has one key advantage over it. The Nissan Grand Livina is built upon a monocoque car chassis rather than adapted from a truck chassis. This means it is alot more comfortable.

Front wheel drive driving dynamics also mean it is relatively somewhat safer as most people are used to how a car handles when it is front wheel drive rather than rear wheel drive. A car-based chassis also means a lower center of gravity compared to it’s competitors. If you want to see what I mean, just compare the Toyota Innova to the Toyota Wish. Both are 7-seaters of similiar size, yet one is so tall, as if the Innova body was built on top of a generic frame, while the Wish is close to the ground, and looks like the whole body has been designed together with the chassis. The Grand Livina’s chassis is shared with other compact Renault-Nissan vehicles such as the Nissan Note, Renault Clio, and Nissan March.

Two engine options are available, the HR15DE (109hp at 6,000rpm, 148Nm at 4,400rpm) and the MR18DE (128hp at 5,500rpm, 174Nm at 4,800rpm), both now with CVTC Variable Valve Timing. The MR18DE comes with with a 6-speed manual or a 4-speed auto, while the HR15DE’s gearbox offering is similiar except the manual only has 5 cogs.

Based on paper specs alone, the Nissan Grand Livina looks like a much better choice than a Toyota Avanza or a Naza Citra, but let’s see how it really performs once it arrives on Malaysian shores with whatever specs Tan Chong decides to fit it with. For those who always desire a little bit more, you’ll be pleased to know that a bolt-on Impul supercharger for the HR15DE is already available, and will boost power up to 144 horsepower.

Click here to read the rest of Nissan Grand Livina to arrive in 2nd half 2007