Edaran Tan Chong Motor (ETCM) has confirmed that there will be five new Nissan models launching this year in Malaysia, along with one new Infiniti model. This was announced by ETCM’s executive director Datuk David Chen at a Chinese New Year dinner with the media yesterday.
To identify the five, let’s start with the cars we know are coming. We predict that the new Teana and new Sylphy sedans will be part of lineup, and the facelifted Livina X-Gear should join its Grand Livina sibling this year, too.
That leaves two blanks, and one of it should be filled by the Nissan Note, which was previewed at KLIMS13. According to a report by Maybank Research, the Note will be launched by the end of 2014. We leave the final ‘coming soon’ model for you to guess.
In the premium corner, Inspired Motor is set to debut the Infiniti Q50, a sleek, tech-laden entry into the compact premium exec class dominated by stalwarts BMW 3 Series and Mercedes-Benz C-Class.
ETCM achieved its highest ever annual sales in 2013 with 51,875 Nissans sold. The figure is 48% higher compared to 2012, helping Nissan maintain its No.2 position in the non-national segment behind Toyota and ahead of Honda. The Nissan Almera accounted for 57% of total sales, or 29,647 units.
Chen said that the roomy B-segment sedan is still top of its class in January 2014, ahead of the new Toyota Vios. A new rival will appear this year, though.
