Every carmaker has an electric car “planned”, but most of these concepts are what they are – concepts – and few actually “walk the talk”. However, some of them mean business. Mitsubishi is a pioneer in putting EVs on the road with the i-MiEV, which will also sell in Europe with Peugeot and Citroen badges.

Renault-Nissan is also betting big time on an electric future – the Alliance aims to be the world leader in electric vehicles and will roll out 500,000 units per year across the globe from 2012. Designed to be affordable and mass market, Renault’s Z.E family of EVs and Nissan’s Leaf are on track to “electrify” the industry.

Nissan has announced that its Leaf will be made in Sunderland, UK, joining two other manufacturing hubs for the EV. Production will begin in Oppama, Japan later this year followed by Smyrna, Tennessee, USA in 2012. Sunderland will come on-line in early 2013 with an initial annual production capacity of about 50,000 units. Also, construction of Nissan’s advanced lithium-ion battery plant will begin next month. The facility, which will be located at Sunderland, will have a production capacity of 60,000 units per year. It will start supplying battery packs to Renault and Nissan come 2012.

To go on sale later this year, the Leaf is a zero-emissions EV powered by an 80kW electric motor. It has a real world range of 160 km and charges to 80% capacity in under 30 minutes. Top speed is “more than 140 km/h”, so this is not a city-only vehicle. Billed as the “world’s first affordable, mass produced zero emission car”, the Leaf is a five-seater C-segment hatchback sitting on an all-new dedicated EV platform. Will it come to Malaysia in the future? Possible, since the official pictures show a right-hand drive car, but it’s not easy for car companies to plan ahead when our country doesn’t have a clear roadmap on green cars and technology.

Click here for videos and images of the Nissan Leaf.

© 2010 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 21 Mar 10 06:56:43 +0000.

Nissan Motor Thailand (NMT) has announced that the new Nissan March will be the first model offered for sale under Thailand’s “eco-car” program, created to encourage the development of energy-efficient vehicles. Still fresh from its Geneva debut, production has started and the car will be launched at the Bangkok motor show on March 26.

Designed to appeal to both developed and emerging markets, the March is built on a new platform. It will come with a new 1.2-litre, 3-cylinder engine with 78 bhp/108 Nm. Nissan’s Thai dealers have begun accepting bookings, and vehicle delivery will start within a few weeks for the five-speed manual version. The CVT variant will reach buyers in June. The price range is from 375,000 baht to 537,000 baht.

Our northen neighbour will join China, India and Mexico as global manufacturing hubs for the March (known as the Micra in some markets), which ultimately will be offered in 160 countries. NMT will export the March to countries in the Asian and Oceania markets, according to Toshiyuki Shiga, COO of Nissan Motor Co.

As a recap, to obtain eco car status, a car has to achieve at least 20 km/l and emit less than 120g/km of CO2. Engine capacity must not exceed 1.3 litres if petrol-powered and 1.4 litres for diesels. The manufacturer is rewarded with a 50% cut in excise duty, no income tax for eight years and no import duty for factory machinery imports.

Live images of the March from the Geneva show is after the jump.

© 2010 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 21 Mar 10 06:56:43 +0000.

Nissan has given its Navara and Pathfinder a mid-life facelift. The Navara is basically the pick-up version of the Pathfinder SUV and vice versa. It’s somewhat like the relationship between the Triton and the Pajero Sport, or the Hilux and the Fortuner.

Nearly all body on frame pick-ups have body on frame SUVs as counterparts, including the Isuzu D-MAX. It’s just that the Pathfinder and the Thai-built D-MAX-based Isuzu MU-7 are not sold here in Malaysia.

The ‘mother trucker’ is the largest and most powerful body on frame pick-up you can buy here in Malaysia. The facelift gives it a more powerful engine. The 2.5 liter turbodiesel engine which already packs 174 PS and a massive 403Nm of torque in its current incarnation has actually been upgraded to 190 PS and 450Nm of torque with this new facelift, yet still consumes just 8.5 liters per 100km on the combined cycle while hauling around such a heavy vehicle.

Overseas, there is also a new more powerful diesel option – a new turbodiesel 3.0L V6 with 231 PS and a mind-boggling 550Nm. The V6 engine is quiet and refined and idles at a low 650rpm. As much as 500Nm starts to kick in from 1,500rpm before peak torque of 550Nm is reached at 1,700rpm. You can ride on this 550Nm peak all the way to 2,500rpm. Now that’s a seriously nice engine to be having but I suspect it’s actually a very new and modern engine that needs ‘modern diesel’ so I don’t think it will be available here. In fact it sounds exactly like the new 3.0 V6 that’s going into the European market Infiniti SUVs. But who knows, Tan Chong might surprise us!

And of course you have the cosmetic changes. The overall bumper design remains similiar but if you notice the new bumper is now more rounded and the edges rise up and blend into the wheel arches as one single piece while with the pre-facelift that’s sold here, there seems to be a ‘lower bumper’ piece and another upper piece which joins with the wheel arches.

There are also changes on the inside – revised door trims, new seat fabric, larger storage areas, the addition of chrome highlights, and revised dials. There is also the option for a touch screen system called Nissan Connect Premium complete with a 40GB hard drive for data storage. Our Navara currently uses a 6-CD changer.

Other than the new more powerful engines of course, something else that’s interesting to me is that the Electronic Stability Control that was previously only available on the Pathfinder has now been added to the Navara. The ECU uses feedback from wheel speed sensors, steering angle, and longitudinal and lateral G and yaw rates to anticipate and control wheel slippage.

This means that if Tan Chong’s product planners tick the right boxes on the option sheet, we could potentially have the only pick-up truck in Malaysia with stability control, which would be very good and increase appeal if it were to be used by an average Joe as a lifestyle vehicle.

Look after the jump for a full gallery of the new facelifted trucks.

© 2010 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 21 Mar 10 06:56:43 +0000.

We really have to take our hats off to Nissan for bringing the wacky Qazana concept (shown here last year) to production as the Juke without watering it down much. As a younger sibling to the Qashqai crossover, the Juke is meant to be an alternative to the B-segment supermini class, just like how the Qashqai tempted many Golf/Focus to opt for something less conventional.

And it’s not just the looks that stand out, for the Juke has surprisingly advanced mechanicals when Nissan could have got away relying on just the funky styling. Three engines will be available when European sales start later this year: a 1.5 diesel and two 1.6-litre petrol units, all Euro 5 compliant. The range topping engine is a new turbocharged petrol engine with direct injection, producing 187 bhp and 240 Nm. Nissan claims “performance from a 2.5-litre engine with the economy of a smaller engine”.

The other petrol unit is the HR16DE that Malaysian Latio and Grand Livina owners are familiar with. Improved for the Juke, the 1.6-litre engine gets a unique dual-injection system which allows finer metering of the fuel sprays for better combustion. Other changes include a larger exhaust manifold, retuned intake manifold, twin VTC, improved intake tumble flow and new catalyst with a hexagon cell formation. New pistons with revised crowns and integral oil jet cooling have been adopted along with low friction techniques such as diamond-like carbon coating on the valve lifters. With all those tweaks, vital figures now stand at 115 bhp and 157 Nm from 108 bhp/153 Nm, while fuel efficiency is claimed to be much improved. Petrol engines come with either a six-speed manual or Nissan’s Xtronic CVT.

The range topping turbo variant gets Nissan’s All-Mode 4X4-i electronic system with a new function – lateral torque vectoring capability. This not only splits torque between front and rear axles, but from side-to-side across the rear axle as well. The system counts wheel speed, steering angle, yaw rate and lateral G to distribute torque, and is effective in reducing understeer. In total, up to 50% of total available engine torque can be sent to either rear wheel. The rear axle incorporates electric couplings at either end plus a new final-drive. So now when your BMW X6 owner friend boasts about his torque vectoring system, share with him this piece of news.

I took the chance to sit in the Juke and found the rear quarters to be quite tight compared to superminis like the Honda Jazz and Perodua Myvi/Daihatsu Sirion. I fit in, but six footers are sure to brush their heads against the headlining. The driver enjoys a nice steering wheel with sporty instruments, while the climate control screen is a full-colour unit incorporating readouts such as fuel consumption. Pleasing design, but dash plastics are hard.

UPDATE: Fresh live pictures added to the gallery, including headroom shots that some have requested for.

More live pictures after the jump.

Nissan Juke live images from Geneva

© 2010 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 21 Mar 10 06:56:43 +0000.

Nissan’s new B-segment ‘Thai eco-car’ has been unveiled at the Geneva show today. Like previously revealed, it uses a new family of inline-3 engines that also surprisingly include supercharged and direct injection versions that will come later. But for now we’ll make do with the HR12, which produces 80 PS and 108Nm.

The supercharged direct injection model will come later and that one will make 98 PS and 142Nm, the equivalent of a 1.4 to 1.5 liter engine. Both engines will be mated to either a 5-speed manual or a new CVT transmission. At least that’s what the planned offering in Europe is. Nissan has been known to swap out a CVT for a regular 4-speed auto. But since the new CVT has been touted as one of the main features of this new Micra, perhaps if it ever comes to Malaysia from the Thailand plant, we might get it with the CVT.

The new Micra sits on Nissan’s new V-platform. It was designed and tested in Japan, and Nissan has planned for four different production hubs for the car around the world. Thailand will definitely be one of them, and the other three sites are expected to be India, Mexico and China. Despite being a small car, the safety options that can be equipped is extensive, including ABS, ESP, dual front airbags, curtain airbags, and side airbags. In Europe, ALL of these will be STANDARD.

Look after the jump for hi-res images and a video of the new Micra.

© 2010 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 21 Mar 10 06:56:43 +0000.

A new Nissan compact car will be unveiled at the Geneva show at the end of this month, and Nissan has given us a preview of what they will be launching in the form of a video that shows interviews of members of the project team.

Some juicy details revealed include the fact that the car will be powered by a new 1.2 liter 3-cylinder engine, although both 3-cylinders and 4-cylinders were considered at first. According to Nissan, it was “obvious” that the 3-potter delivered the best balance of performance, cost effectiveness and environmental friendliness. This new engine will also be mated to a new CVT transmission that uses a sub-planetary gear. All these new components will sit on a new platform called the “V-platform”.

This new compact car will be none other than the new Nissan March/Micra and we’ve actually already seen spyshots of this car (shown above) – and they seem to match the previously released sketches (shown at the top).

Check out the video below. You’ll have to put up with the team members going on and on about what a breakthrough the car is though. Nissan says sales of the production car will begin in Thailand in March, with European sales starting in the autumn. Wonder if a Thai introduction means ETCM are able to bring it in Malaysia anytime this year?

© 2010 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 21 Mar 10 06:56:43 +0000.

What you see above is the 5-seater Nissan Juke crossover. It looks familiar because it is based on the Nissan Qazana concept that was previewed in Geneva last year. This crossover is underpinned by Renault-Nissan’s B-Platform and measures 4 meters long, 1,765mm wide and 1,570 meters tall. Its wheelbase measures 2,500mm. This makes it a size smaller than the Rogue/Qashqai/Dualis.

The crossover (which looks a little weird if you ask me) will be sold in Europe, Japan and in the United States. There are several engine options including a 1.6 liter normally-aspirated engine with 117hp and a turbocharged version of the engine that can output 190hp and 240Nm of torque. Diesel fans don’t worry as Nissan also has a 110hp 1.5 liter dCi unit for the Juke. This unit also produces 240Nm of torque.

Transmission wise potential buyers can choose between a 5-speed manual cog box or a continuously variable transmission. Apart from a standard front wheel drive setup buyers can also opt for an ALL-MODE 4×4-i system. The Juke will premier at the 2010 Geneva Motor Show, till then you can feast on some images after the jump.

© 2010 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 21 Mar 10 06:56:43 +0000.

We’ve just saw the 20th Anniversary Limited Edition Mazda MX-5 and here’s another “edition” car, this time it’s Nissan with the 370Z Black Edition that marks the 40th anniversary of the Z-car. Available from April as a coupé only, and in a limited run of just 370 units in Europe, it comes in two metallic shades: black and quartz. Both paints use Nissan’s pioneering Scratch Shield technology which “heals” the finish in the case of stone chip damage.

You can spot a Black Edition by its dark grey 19” aluminium forged RAYS wheels, red brake callipers and 40th Anniversary emblem at the rear. Inside, there’s red leather and suede on the seats and door trim, with embossed 40th Anniversary logo on the chairs. To match that, the leather steering, centre console and knee pads come withe red stitching. Nissan’s Connect Premium combined touch-screen satellite navigation and audio system with USB connectivity (9.3GB hard disk) tops it all off.

No change under the skin. The 370Z is powered by a 324 bhp 3.7-litre V6 capable of 0-100 km/h in 5.3 seconds (5.6 seconds for the automatic version) and is Euro 5 compliant. Edaran Tan Chong sells the standard 370Z in Malaysia at RM370,000. Interestingly, our car is quoted to have 328 bhp – perhaps Nissan had to sacrifice a few horses to meet Euro 5 standards.

More pictures after the jump.

© 2010 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 21 Mar 10 06:56:43 +0000.

The Renault Nissan Alliance, which now counts Russia’s AvtoVaz Lada brand as part of its group, captured 9.8% of the global auto market in 2009, an increase from 2008’s 9.4%. This result was achieved in a global market that contracted 4.5% last year, and desipte the decline in volumes for Renault (-3.1%) and Nissan (-9.4%). Renault and Nissan sold 2,309,188 and 3,358,413 vehicles respectively, while Lada accounted for 417,457 units.

In Western Europe, Renault reclaimed third spot, mainly due to new additions Megane and Twingo. In its home market, Renault sales increased by 7.3% and it retains the title of France’s best selling brand with a 23.5% market share. The brand also grew in Korea through subsidiary Renault-Samsung Motors.

Nissan meanwhile closed the year with total sales of 3,358,413 units or a market share of 5.4%. In China, now Nissan’s second largest global market after the US, passenger car sales increased 38.7% to 755,518 units. Sales were led by the Teana flagship model (108,504) followed by the Sylphy (96,174).

The new Teana should be launched in Malaysia this year as Nissan’s challenger to the Accord and Camry. In Thailand and Singapore, the D-segment contender can be had with two engines; the MR20DE 2.0-litre (as found in the Sylphy) and a 2.5-litre V6 with 180 bhp and 228 Nm, figures that are slightly higher than the Accord 2.4.

Nissan (Jatco) makes some of the best CVT gearboxes around and the Teana will get that instead of a torque converter automatic. Prices are bound to be much more competitive than the previous model, which only sold by the handful due to a scary sticker price.

© 2010 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 21 Mar 10 06:56:43 +0000.

Nissan has unveiled in America that it is currently developing the replacement for its Nissan Versa and it will be ready to hit North American streets in 2 years time from its assembly plant in Mexico. The new second generation Versa/Tiida/Latio will be built on a platform that Nissan calls the global V platform. This means that we’ll be able to see a new Nissan Latio/Nissan Tiida in about the same time as well, since the Nissan Versa is basically just an American name for the Tiida/Latio. In the meanwhile, the current first generation car has been facelifted in Thailand but there’s still no news on our local model getting the facelift.

© 2010 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 21 Mar 10 06:56:43 +0000.

If you’re looking for a Nissan SUV and are bored with the aging X-Trail that’s being hawked here for the longest time, you can check out the Nissan Dualis which is being imported by grey importers.

As part of Naza’s Chinese New Year sale, a 2007 Nissan Dualis can be had for RM151,000, and a newer 2008 model is priced at RM166,000. And from what I hear these prices are negotiable at the showroom if you’re really interested. I don’t expect the Dualis to be available from Tan Chong directly anytime soon as across all ASEAN markets except for Singapore (where it is known as the Qashqai), the only SUV being offered is the X-Trail.

Nissan calls the Dualis a ‘hatchback’. It’s a crossover based on the Nissan C platform. The body does look like a hatchback but its ride height is higher, putting the Dualis right in the middle of the definition of a hatchback and an SUV. It is a proper ‘crossover’ in true form, instead of just slapping any vehicle with a coupe-like roofline with compromised rear headroom and calling it a ‘crossover’.

In the engine bay is the MR20DE mated to a CVT transmission that we are already quite familiar with since it has been introduced in the Malaysian market installed in the Sylphy.

As part of the Dualis launch promo in Japan, Nissan actually commissioned Shoji Kawamori (of Macross and Robotech fame) to design a robot (mecha) version of the Dualis. The robot Dualis stands 3.5 meters tall. Check out these Dualis mecha videos which Nissan produced as part of a promo campaign in Japan – after the jump!

© 2010 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 21 Mar 10 06:56:43 +0000.

This is the Silver Wolf, Japanese tuner Tommy Kaira’s take on the Nissan GT-R. Fans of racing game series Gran Turismo should be familiar with this Kyoto based tuner, who interestingly started out by modifying Mercedes cars! The company has since focussed on Japanese models, and its latest project is the mighty GT-R. Honestly, which tuning house can resist tinkering with the greatest performance car to come out from Japan in recent times?

Tommy Kaira shows a lot of sense by not attempting to improve on the GT-R’s twin-turbo V6 engine, instead focussing on upgrading the brakes, suspension and exhaust system. There’s also a wide body styling pack made from carbon fibre. The Silver Wolf looks decent and not too over the top, but why not call it “Black Wolf”? We’re also not sure how much “improvement” can be made on a car as good as the Nissan GT-R, and if the differences can be felt by the average car enthusiast. What do you think?

More pictures after the jump!

© 2010 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 21 Mar 10 06:56:43 +0000.

This is the GT1 Spec Nissan GT-R that will run in the 2010 FIA GT World Championship. The GT-R will race in the top tier GT1 class along the likes of the Maserati MC 12, Corvette Z06, Ford GT and Saleen SR7 (GT2 class features lower powered cars like the Ferrari F430, Porsche 911 GT3 RS and Aston V8 Vantage). Nismo campaigned a GT-R last year, but Nissan’s motorsports outfit has found two customer teams for 2010 – Sumo Power GT (UK) and Swiss Racing Team. The season starts in April at Abu Dhabi’s Yas Marina Circuit.

The 2010 spec GT1 GT-R is powered by a 5,552cc V8 engine with 600 bhp (the regulation limit) and “over 650Nm” of torque. Power goes to the rear wheels via a six-speed transaxle gearbox. The race car only weighs 1250 kg, so you can imagine the performance of offer even though Nissan doesn’t give any figures. Brakes have six-piston calipers with carbon discs and pads all round.

Go ahead and download a new wallpaper from the hi-res gallery after the jump!

© 2010 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 21 Mar 10 06:56:43 +0000.

The Nissan Sylphy is now available as a new variant called the “Luxury Navi Package” variant which includes an in-dash touchscreen GPS navigation and entertainment system. The system is the TCAT Multimedia Navigator System which boasts some interesting specs.

From doing a little research it appears that the system runs on the SpeedNavi SQ software, which was created by M&Soft, a Hyundai-related company. The touchscreen player uses a 7 inch truecolour touch screen with 800×480 resolution – that’s some pretty impressive resolution so text and graphics should appear quite crisp.

The GPS navigation’s mapping system includes 3D junction view and 2.5D building view for a better idea of exactly which junction you have to take. Maps have 15 zoom levels and are for both Malaysia and Singapore, while language options include English, BM, Cantonese, Mandarin, Thai, Japanese and Korean.

Other features include a reverse camera system with night vision compensation (which auto-engages during reverse), and an audio and video player which streams audio to the car’s 6-speaker audio system through an FM transmitter. Video and audio can be loaded through either an SD card or a USB data drive.

The Luxury Navi Package trim level is only a RM1,500 premium (RM120,380.00) over the Luxury package which I feel is quite good value. If you purchase the TCAT Multimedia Navigator system along with the reverse camera and etc on its own the RRP is RM3,500.

© 2010 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 21 Mar 10 06:56:43 +0000.

This is a teaser image of Nissan’s Juke crossover, which will be unwrapped for the media next month. It is basically the Qazana crossover concept that Nissan showed off at the 2009 Geneva Motor Show which looks to have survived the transition from concept to production car unharmed. We can see that the glasshouse, mega wheel arches and lights that sit ON the bonnet are all retained, although we can’t really tell if the concept’s rear-hinged “suicide doors” are incorporated.

This means that the Juke, which will be made alongside the Qashqai at Nissan’s Sunderland UK plant, will be one of the most distinctive cars on the road once it goes on sale in October. It is positioned between the Note compact car and the Qashqai in Nissan’s range.

According to Nissan’s customer research, a large proportion of European compact car buyers’ needs are not met by “copycat hatchbacks” which they perceive to be uninspiring options. This is where the funky Juke comes in.

To view pictures of the Qazana concept, click here.

© 2010 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 21 Mar 10 06:56:43 +0000.

Renault-Nissan’s electric car battery production site will be in Portugal. The new plant, which will manufacture lithium-ion batteries for the Alliance’s upcoming electric cars, will be located at the Renault CACIA industrial complex in Aveiro, 250km north of Lisbon. Nissan will be forking out €160 million for the project. Construction will start next year with production commencing in 2012. Projected annual capacity is 50,000 units.

The host country will work with Renault-Nissan to implement a zero emission mobility program from 2010. In this plan, the latter will supply its electric vehicles from January 2011, while the Portuguese government will set up a network of 1,300 recharging stations across the country over two years.

The Renault-Nissan Alliance – the world’s third largest automotive group by volume – is postinioning itself as a leader in the electric vehicle movement. Starting with the Nissan LEAF in late 2010, it has already announced plans for seven EVs to be mass marketed under Renault, Nissan and Infiniti brands. In addition to Portugal, the Alliance has also confirmed battery production locations in France, Japan, USA and UK.

© 2010 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 21 Mar 10 06:56:43 +0000.

Nissan has just unveiled its facelifted Qashqai mid-sized crossover, a car positioned in Europe as an alternative to traditional VW Golf class hatchbacks. Since its March 2007 launch, the Qashqai has exceeded Nissan’s sales expectations, with the 500,000th customer delivery set to take place before the end of 2009. Last year saw the introduction of the Qashqai+2, a seven-seat long wheelbase version of the original. The Qashqai is called the Dualis in Japan, and a few of those can be found on our streets as grey imports.

The biggest visual change is at the front with a new bonnet, front bumper, wings, grille and headlamps. Behind, the redesigned light clusters retain the same shape but are tweaked to reduce drag, while the tail lights are now of the LED variety. Two new five-spoke rim designs are available as well. Coefficient of drag (cd) has dropped from 0.34 to 0.33.

Inside, the cabin features a new dial design for added clarity while the redesigned trip computer with white text display sits between them. Further improvements include ambient lighting around the front footwells. New cubbys have been added too. Nissan claims improved isolation against noise, vibration and harshness, achieved by adding multi-layer insulation material around the front bulkhead, plus the fitment of an ‘acoustic’ windscreen. Wind noise around the A-pillar has also been lowered. Finally, the suspension has been tuned for improved ride comfort.

Joining the two petrol (1.6 and 2.0) and two diesel (1.5 and 2.0) models is a 1.5 dCi Pure Drive variant that produces only 129g/km of CO2. This is achieved via weight reduction, aerodynamic wheel covers, blanking of the fog lamp sockets, low rolling resistance tyres and lengthening of the final drive ratio.

More pictures after the jump.

© 2010 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 21 Mar 10 06:56:43 +0000.

Nissan and Sony Computer Entertainment Europe have joined forces to bring Gran Turismo fans the ultimate competition. Called GT Academy 2010, it will go live on 17 December, and will use the virtual world of the new PlayStation Gran Turismo 5 game to find a real-world racing driver. Prize? The winner gets to swap his dirty sofa for a snug race bucket with safety harness in an intensive race training programme and a season-long drive in a the European GT4 Cup! He or she will be driving a full race-spec Nissan 370Z. Think of this as the car enthusiast’s Idol singing competition.

In the inaugural GT Academy 2008/09, Lucas Ordoñez, a 23-year-old Spanish student, graduated from his PlayStation 3 to debut in the Dubai International 24 Hour race alongside former F1 driver Johnny Herbert. He then teamed-up with British driver Alex Buncombe to campaign a Nissan 350Z in the European GT4 Cup, which runs alongside the FIA GT series. Driving for the RJN Motorsport GT Academy team, their season included two race wins and two second-place finishes that left them second in the drivers’ classification and winners of the Teams’ Championship – proof that the world of virtual racing can unearth a real racing talent!

The GT Academy is open to participants from 15 European countries, Australia and New Zealand. Anyone who holds, or has held, a national or international race license is ineligible. I reckon that had the competition been open to Malaysia, one of our own would be going very far!

© 2010 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 21 Mar 10 06:56:43 +0000.

The best part is for those who have already had problems with their CVT transmission and incurred some costly repairs after their initial 5 years warranty period expired, Nissan will be reimbursing the repair money paid. They will even reimburse you if you have sold your CVT-equipped Nissan car but have paid money for CVT transmission repairs in the past! You do not need to do anything to have your warranty extended but if you have a claim to make, you must do so before 31 July 2010.

Of course this is only for Nissan USA customers. I’ve shot an email to Edaran Tan Chong Motor to find out exactly what their warranty coverage for their CVT transmission is. ETCM currently sells two models with CVT transmissions – the Murano and the Sylphy.

The Honda Jazz and the Honda City used to be available with CVT but not anymore. Another common car with a CVT here in Malaysia is the Mitsubishi Lancer. The Audi A4’s 1.8 liter TFSI and the Mercedes-Benz A-Class and B-Class engines are also mated to CVT transmissions.

READ: Full announcement on CVT warranty program by Nissan

© 2010 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 21 Mar 10 06:56:43 +0000.

Here’s some interesting news – the 2nd generation Nissan X-Trail that has been around since year 2007 is making its debut in Thailand in Q1 2010.

The photo you see above is of the new model although it looks very similiar to the old one. More of a minor evolution of the old one in terms of design. The interior has been completely revamped though, and the center meter panel is now gone, replaced with a conventional one behind the steering wheel. The chassis is a new one shared with the Qashqai, with wheelbase increased by 5mm over the old model to 2630mm.

The X-Trail will be launched with a sole engine option – a 2.0 liter model mated to an XTRONIC CVT transmission with a 6 speed manual shifting mode. The 2.0 liter engine is not the old QR20DE found in the first generation X-Trail 2.0 sold here but the newer MR20DE model that you can also find in the Nissan Sylphy.

With the X-Trail soon in Thailand, there could be a chance that we can finally enjoy the new X-Trail here in Malaysia, as the SUV can be sourced from Indonesia whether in CBU or CKD pack form. Yes, the Thai market X-Trail is built in Indonesia, but the MR20DE engines are built in Thailand. Tan Chong tends to drag on their model lifespan here for as long as possible, resulting in a product lineup that’s an utter yawnfest if not for their ‘mother trucker’. But it could be because of a lack of support from Nissan.

© 2010 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 21 Mar 10 06:56:43 +0000.

We already know that the Nissan GT-R has been updated for next year but previously details have been scarce. We only know the suspension had been updated, a diffuser with cooling ducts had been added (previously only on the SpecV) and some reduction in airflow resistance to better engine response at low to mid-range engine speeds.

Nissan Europe’s press release has the changes in better detail:

• Front spring and damper rates have been changed to improve ride comfort, and for more accurate control of suspension movement for better responsiveness.
• The rear suspension radius rod bushings have been made stiffer to give improved feel and responsiveness during cornering.
• Computer logic that controls torque distribution between the front and rear axles have been changed to reduce rear axle binding that occurs when differential fluids are cold.
• Transmission logic has been altered to give a later downshift from 6th gear to 5th gear when being driven in automatic mode. A more aggressive downshift has been applied for changing from 4 to 3 and 3 to 2.
• NACA cooling ducts added to the rear diffuser which provides better airflow to cool the exhaust and transmission (mounted at rear).
• Front transmission mount has been stiffened and this reduces vibration through the driveline under high-load conditions.
• EBD logic has been moved to apply more brake power rearwards to improve braking stability under dry conditions.
• Rear brake cross spring design has been improved to reduce noise.
• An improved air deflector design increases cooling to the rear brakes, which is probably needed now that the EBD has increased rear brake bias.
• CO2 emissions have dropped by 3g/km – now at 295g/km.
• Better insulation for the rear seats, improving cabin NVH.
• Double layer clearcoat for the bumpers.
• Gun metallic finish surrounds for the speedometer and RPM meter.
• New audio-navi system with 40GB HDD storage (9.3GB for music), 3D navigation with Point of Interest supplied by Michelin (restaurants, etc), A2DP bluetooth audio streaming, voice-controlled menu operation and higher resolution 7 inch screen (4 times better resolution).

© 2010 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 21 Mar 10 06:56:43 +0000.

Here’s an example of automotive technology doing more than just working on cars and benefiting our every lives instead. Nissan’s Scratch Shield paint which it developed together with the University of Tokyo and Advanced Softmaterials Inc will be licensed to NTT DoCoMo Inc to be used on mobile phones in Japan. The Scratch Shield paint has self-healing capabilities (for fine scratches) and can restore itself overnight or up to a week’s time with more severe cases. The paint is also more scratch-resistant than normal paint in the first place. It should do its job on a mobile phone very very well, considering alot of us just lump phones together in the same pocket as our car keys, and the result can be quite a mess of scratches.

© 2010 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 21 Mar 10 06:56:43 +0000.

Renault-Nissan has announced that it will work with an Indian company called Bajaj Auto to produce the world’s cheapest car, even cheaper than the Tata Nano. An agreement was signed and the partnership is set to introduce the new low-cost vehicle in 2012.

Under the agreement, Bajaj will handle the design, engineering as well as the manufacturing while Renault-Nissan will focus on marketing, branding and the sale of parts. CEO Carlos Ghosn revealed that the cost of the car will be lower any car made in India today, pointing to a price tag that would be cheaper than the Rs 1 lakh carried by the Nano.

With India to become the primary market and exports to emerging markets to be made later, the new vehicle is expected to feature a mileage that is better than 20 kilometers per liter. The car will be built in India and will target India’s emerging middle class. Both companies actually announced a partnership last year but apparently there were some disagreements, which have now been resolved. Pictured above is the Bajaj Lite concept that was shown in 2008.

Source

© 2010 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 21 Mar 10 06:56:43 +0000.

What’s happened here is actually quite common in the auto industry – a decent looking sketch ends up translated into a not very appealing production model.

These leaked set of next generation Nissan Micra/March photos were leaked from Dongfeng Nissan production lines as the Chinese JV prepares to assemble it in China. It’s expected to run a HR16DE and a 4-speed auto/5-speed manual combo in China, but there’s probably also the HR15DE and a CVT transmission to choose from for other market needs.

© 2010 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 21 Mar 10 06:56:43 +0000.

400Nm of torque and a 6-speed manual transmission. I could be referring to the new BMW M3. Or the new manual Nissan Navara which has just been introduced in Malaysia, joining its 5-speed auto ‘Mother Trucker’ sibling which was launched first. The new cars are CBU imports from Nissan in Thailand.

Two versions of the 6-speeder is on sale. One is the basic Navara 2.5L 6M/T and another is the Navara 2.5L 6M/T SE. Nissan’s press release refers to the SE as the Safety Edition (what, is the non-SE unsafe? heh just kidding). This new “Safety Edition” also gets the necessary airbag software updates that resolves the bad crash test results in early 2008. The base 6M/T does not have the dual SRS front airbags, ABS brakes and EBD and the 6M/T SE model has.

The engine is the same powerful YD25DDTi 2.5 liter engine producing 174 PS and 403Nm of torque to be exact. So that’s actually 3Nm of rated peak torque more than the M3. Of course you can’t expect the same kind of shove as the powerband is narrow in a diesel and super wide in a high revving petrol BMW V8. The Navara M/T also gets the Shift-on-the-Fly 4WD system as the 5A/T, which allows 2WD/4WD shifting using a dial at speeds of less than 100km/h.

The list of equipment is a downgrade from the 5A/T LE. The xenon headlamps are replaced by halogens, the seats are fabric, the rearview mirrors lose their auto-dimming function, the CD changer is replaced with a single-CD, and the 6 speaker system has been downgraded to 4 speakers (they probably removed the 2 tweeters).

Some plastic bits in the interior which used to have a silver finish have been replaced by the same beige interior colour. On the outside, the door mirrors have their chrome finish replaced by body colour.

Nissan Navara 2.5L 6M/T – RM89,800.00
Nissan Navara 2.5L 6M/T SE – RM94,800.00
Nissan Navara 2.5L 5A/T LE – RM105,800.00

© 2010 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 21 Mar 10 06:56:43 +0000.

Nissan will be adding two more variants to its Nissan Navara line-up soon, and both of them will be manual. The two manual models will be called the Standard and the SE.

Instead of the 5-speed auto, you’ll get a 6-speed manual gearbox, which is a first in the pick-up segment in Malaysia. The engine is the same 2.5 liter YD25DDTi engine which is the most powerful engine in its segment, producing 174 PS and 403Nm of torque. The engine is intercooled and has VGT.

The list of equipment will also be a downgrade from the current LE Automatic. The xenon headlamps will be replaced by halogens, the seats will be fabric, the rearview mirrors will lose its auto-dimming function, the CD changer will be replaced with a single CD, and the 6 speaker system will be downgraded to 4 speakers.

Some plastic bits in the interior which used to have a silver finish will also be replaced by the beige interior colour. On the outside, the door mirrors will have their chrome finish replaced by body colour paint.

What the SE has over the Standard are ABS brakes and the dual front SRS airbags, which the Standard version lacks. So far no prices of the new manual Standard and SE have been released yet, but expect them to of course be lower than the RM105,800 that you have to pay for the automatic Navara LE in Peninsular Malaysia. With the equipment deleted off the Standard compared to the top of the range LE, it’d better be significantly lower!

© 2010 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 21 Mar 10 06:56:43 +0000.

Nissan has unveiled the ROOX which is a “super space” compact car at the 41st Tokyo Motor Show. The vehicle that will make its debut in Japan in December measures 3,395 mm long, 1,475 mm wide, 1,735 mm high and has a wheelbase that is figured at 2,400 mm. The 4-seater ROOX has an interior width measuring 1365 mm and an interior length that is 2085 mm long.

According to Nissan, “No matter where you sit, the ROOX’s design gives each passenger a sense of the great outdoors”. The seating arrangement in the vehicle can be altered to suit the number of occupants. The rear seat back can be flattened as well to create a large luggage space.

Along with rear sliding doors, it also features a remote-control door opening keyfob, a drink cooler inside the upper glove box, a storage box under the passenger seat, dual airbags and more. Nissan is still being tight-lipped about what is under to hood and has only released a single image. However we now have two live images of ROOX being presented at the motor show.

Look for more images after the jump.

© 2010 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 21 Mar 10 06:56:43 +0000.

Nissan has unveiled the new Fuga sedan at the motor event in Tokyo. The Fuga will be available in Japan with two engine options including a VQ25HR 2.5 liter V6 and the VQ37VHR 3.7 liter V6 that can crank out 325hp. The Fuga that is also sold in the US as the Infiniti M comes with features like Double Piston Shock Absorbers, a Lane Departure Prevention system, Intelligent Cruise Control, Cornering Stability Assist and more. It also features a four-wheel steering mechanism.

The Fuga also has an Intelligent Transport System that is integrated into the navigation system. The system supports safe driving by providing information to alert the driver at blind intersections for example, based on information on nearby vehicles and traffic environment which is transmitted to the Fuga from optical beacons installed all across the country.

Along with an eco-driving indicator integrated into the instrument panel, there is also something called an ECO-pedal. Basically, each time the driver steps on the accelerator (when the system is activated), a counter push-back control mechanism is activated if the system detects overly zealous throttle work, helping to inform the driver that they could be using more fuel than required.

The new Fuga will hit showrooms in Japan later this year. The automaker also announced the hybrid variant of the Fuga will hit the Japanese market by autumn 2010. It will feature a 3.5-liter V6, high-power Li-ion batteries and a highly efficient one-motor-two-clutch parallel hybrid. Look for more images of the Fuga after the jump.

© 2010 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 21 Mar 10 06:56:43 +0000.

Infiniti will have its own all-electric, zero emissions vehicle. That is what CEO of Nissan Carlos Ghosn announced at the Tokyo Motor Show. According to the short statement, the brand which is under Nissan is developing a “stylish, compact, high performance, four-seat luxury Infiniti with zero emissions” concept. Unfortunately no other information was released but there is a possibility that Ghosn is talking about the Nissan LEAF electric vehicle that may be given a more luxurious treatment and sold with the Infiniti badge. Same old formula that Lexus used with turning the Auris into the LF-Ch.

© 2010 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 21 Mar 10 06:56:43 +0000.

Nissan has refreshed the GT-R yet again. It was first unveiled back in 2007 and was revised at the end 2008. This new version is offered with a new HDD CARWINGS navigation system with enhanced entertainment features and USB port with iPod connectivity. The auto maker also did some work underneath the car with changes made to suspension.

The car’s front shock absorbers and springs have been tuned with increased accuracy while the rear suspension has been stiffened up as well. Furthermore the GT-R now comes with a rear diffuser fitted with cooling ducts. This system was previously offered only with the SpecV variant. The 485 PS GT-R also comes with new hexagonal meshed catalyst cells that can reduce ventilation or airflow resistance resulting in improved engine response at low and mid-range.

Speaking about the SpecV, the range topping version now features revised rear shock absorber settings and Dunlop-sourced tires that replace Bridgestone ones. However buyers can still opt for the Bridgestone rubber. Continue reading to view more images.

© 2010 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 21 Mar 10 06:56:43 +0000.