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'Zero' chance of Renault taking over Nissan, Mitsubishi, says Ghosn

TOKYO — Renault SA absorbing Nissan Motor Co. and Mitsubishi Motors Corp is not an option as the carmakers look to strengthen their partnership while retaining their autonomy, alliance chairman Carlos Ghosn said on Friday. "Anybody who will ask Nissan and Mitsubishi to become wholly owned subsidiaries of Renault has zero chance of getting a result," Ghosn told shareholders of Mitsubishi Motors at a meeting. He also serves as chief executive of France's Renault. The alliance was the world's top-selling passenger vehicle maker in 2017, but as the global auto industry consolidates, it is looking to strengthen its position before the 64-year-old Ghosn, its main architect, retires in the coming years after overseeing the partnership for nearly 20 years. We reported in March that the carmakers were discussing a deeper tie-up, which could see the French government, a major shareholder in Renault, give up influence at Renault and the French carmaker relinquish control over Nissan. The three automakers have a unique partnership designed to leverage their combined scale to save on costs including R&D, parts procurement and production to better compete with rivals Volkswagen AG and Toyota Motor Corp. They are also interlinked by their shareholding structure. Renault holds 43.4 percent of shares in Nissan, while Nissan owns 15 percent of Renault, with no voting rights in a partnership that began in 1999. Mitsubishi Motors joined the alliance in 2016 after Nissan took a 34 percent controlling stake in the smaller automaker. Nissan CEO Hiroto Saikawa has said the alliance is not discussing a "full merger." Ghosn said that while the focus of the alliance was to sell more cars and increase profitability by reducing unnecessary duplication of processes, he wanted each of the three automakers to maintain their independence, which differentiated the group from Toyota and Volkswagen. "We need to work together ... to find a system by which what we have today, which is working very well, can continue in the future no matter who is leading the alliance," he said. "We need to prove that this is sustainable five years down the road, 10 years down the road, 15 years down the road." In a Figaro interview published last week, Ghosn was upbeat about the prospect of securing a new deal for the alliance despite its extreme political sensitivity in France and Japan, saying a plan would need to be announced "well before" the end of his four-year term at the helm of Renault in 2022.

Nissan's Carlos Ghosn offers to wear electronic ankle tag if released

TOKYO — Ousted Nissan Chairman Carlos Ghosn has offered to wear an electronic ankle tag and hire guards to monitor him in an unusual bid to secure his release on bail after two months of harsh detention in Japan for alleged financial crimes. Ghosn is also willing to remain in Tokyo, where he has leased an apartment, and post stock he owns in Nissan as collateral, his spokeswoman said. A new bail hearing is set for Monday after an earlier request was denied due partly to concerns the French executive was a flight risk. His release would allow Ghosn to meet more frequently with his lawyers and defend himself before the board of Renault, where he remains chairman and CEO, amid calls for his removal and potential moves to restructure the Nissan tie-up. Ghosn denies any wrongdoing as he awaits trial on charges of financial misconduct. "I will attend my trial not only because I am legally obligated to do so, but because I am eager to finally have the opportunity to defend myself," Ghosn said in a statement on Sunday. "I am not guilty of the charges against me, and I look forward to defending my reputation in the courtroom." Meanwhile, Ghosn's wife, Carole Ghosn, has written to French President Emmanuel Macron to discuss her husband's situation, her public relations representative said. The representative, Devon Spurgeon, confirmed a report in French paper Journal du Dimanche that a letter had been sent to Macron this month, but declined to provide details. France wants a full merger As Ghosn's arrest on Nov. 19 continued to cloud the outlook for Nissan's three-way alliance with France's Renault and Mitsubishi Motors, Nissan said it was not the time to discuss revising the partners' capital ties. Ghosn, who spearheaded Nissan's turnaround two decades ago, had pushed for a deeper tie-up between Nissan and Renault, including possibly a full merger by 2020, despite strong reservations at the Japanese firm. "We are not at the stage for such discussions," Nissan CEO Hiroto Saikawa told reporters on Monday. Saikawa said he had not heard directly about a reported proposal by the French government to integrate the Japanese carmaker's management with Renault. The Nikkei newspaper reported on Sunday that a French government delegation had informed Tokyo that it would seek an integration of Renault and Nissan, most likely under the umbrella of a single holding company. "Since I have not heard this directly, I cannot comment," Saikawa told reporters.

Mitsubishi Mirage fuel economy challenge winner duct tapes his way to 74.1 MPG

There's a lesson to be learned from the Mitsubishi Motors' Extreme MPG Hypermiling Challenge: if you want to get your 2014 Mirage to get over 74 miles per gallon, apply duct tape. During the recent event, which ran from Las Vegas, NV to Cypress, CA (where Mitsubishi has its North American HQ), a number of journalists were "allowed to make very minor modifications to their cars from production form." Their solution was to put some colored duct tape over some of the gaps in the front fascia sheetmetal as a way to try and reduce aerodynamic drag. A combination of expertly applied sky blue tape on a Kiwi Green Mirage and careful driving allowed About.com's Aaron Gold to reach 74.1 mpg in the contest. That beat out Popular Mechanics' Mike Austin (driving a Plasma Purple Mirage) and Autobytel's Joni Gray (Sapphire Blue) who tied for second with an average mpg rating of 68.5. The $12,995 car's official EPA fuel economy ratings are 37 city/44 highway/40 combined (continuously-variable transmission model). You can read the Autoblog review of the '14 Mirage here, check out the press release below and keep an eye out for a 30-minute video version of the event on Cars.TV soon. About.com's Aaron Gold Crowned the Winner in Mitsubishi Motors' Extreme MPG Hypermiling Challenge by Achieving an Amazing 74.1 MPG in his 2014 Mitsubishi Mirage Cypress, California, March 13, 2014 – Aaron Gold of About.com, with an astounding fuel efficiency of 74.1 mpg driving his Kiwi Green 2014 Mitsubishi Mirage, finished today with the highest MPG in the Mitsubishi Motors Extreme MPG Hypermiling Challenge. Following Aaron in the 275-mile trek from Las Vegas, Nevada to the Mitsubishi Motors North America, Inc. (MMNA) headquarters in Cypress, California was Mike Austin from Popular Mechanics in his Plasma Purple Mirage and Joni Gray of Autobytel in her Sapphire Blue Mirage. Amazingly, both Mike and Joni tied with an average fuel economy rating of 68.5 mpg. "This was such an exciting event, to have such knowledgeable colleagues in our industry to push the limit to see how high of an MPG can be achieved in our 2014 Mirage," stated Don Swearingen, Executive Vice President of MMNA. "I never figured I'd come in over 70 MPG!" said winner Aaron Gold of About.com. "All three of us kept our speeds down; I think keeping my eyes way down the road, planning ahead and avoiding sudden changes of speed was what gave me the edge.