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Nissan's London Black Cab postponed because it can't meet emissions targets

Emissions concerns in London are causing headaches for Nissan, as the company continues its efforts to bring its Black Cab to the city's streets. A proposed ultra-low emissions zone could lead to standards in the city center that are so strict the gas-powered taxi can't meet them, AutoExpress reports. It's unclear just how low the new emissions standards may be, although AE references London's mayor, Boris Johnson, and his drive to make every London taxi emissions-free by 2018 as a particular thorn for the Japanese automaker. It's worth noting that the NV200 taxi is both cleaner and more fuel efficient than London's current fleet of iconic black cabs. That alone makes it seem like reason enough to get the new cabs on the streets. But it's the strictness of the proposed standards and the apparently set-in-stone nature of the NV200's current engineering that is holding up the cab's future. While Nissan offers an emissions-free e-NV200, it would reportedly need to completely reengineer the NV200-based cab to meet the future standards if they're approved. Whether that will happen, though, remains an open question.

Carlos Ghosn, a year after arrest, still seeks trial date and access to evidence

TOKYO — A year after his arrest, Nissan ex-Chairman Carlos Ghosn remains stuck in Tokyo under stringent bail conditions and without a trial date as he seeks access to a trove of Nissan emails and other evidence to fight charges of financial misconduct. His lawyers have asked a court to grant access to 6,000 pieces of evidence collected from Nissan such as electronic communications, which they say is crucial for a fair trial, showed an Oct. 4 court filing seen by Reuters. The once-feted executive has spent 129 days in detention since his arrest shortly after his private jet touched down at a Tokyo airport on Nov. 19, 2018. He faces four charges — which he denies — including hiding income and enriching himself through payments to dealerships in the Middle East. Nissan sacked Ghosn, saying its internal investigations revealed misconduct ranging from understating his salary while he was its chief executive, and transferring $5 million of Nissan funds to an account in which he had an interest. An earlier court ruling allowed prosecutors to hand back evidence to Nissan during pretrial wrangling over witnesses and evidence similar to the U. S. discovery process. If prosecutors are "given the freedom to unilaterally delete the collected evidence and return it to relevant parties, this is equivalent to granting the investigative agencies the right to destroy evidence," showed the filing to the Tokyo District Court. The lawyers also asked the court to rescind the earlier ruling, saying some evidence could be erased by Nissan to protect confidential business information. They argued the "ruling deprives Mr. Ghosn of his right to receive a fair public trial by an impartial court," as it enabled prosecutors to view and use the evidence and withhold it from the defense. Prosecutors are not required to hand over all evidence they or the police gather during investigations unless ordered by the court, unlike in the U.S. discovery process where prosecutors and defense lawyers disclose the evidence they intend to present in court. A spokeswoman for the Tokyo prosecutors' office said the office could not comment on individual cases. A Nissan spokeswoman declined to comment. Ghosn's lawyers have also asked the court to dismiss all charges against him, accusing prosecutors of colluding with government officials and Nissan executives to oust him to block any takeover of the automaker by French alliance partner Renault SA, of which Ghosn was also chairman.

Mercedes, Nissan and VW slammed by China's CCTV

Several automakers in China, including joint ventures with Nissan, Volkswagen and Mercedes-Benz, are in hot water because their dealers are allegedly overcharging customers for repairs. China Central Television, the country's state broadcaster, leveled the claims during its annual Consumer Day expose. CCTV runs these reports each year on March 15 and often takes aim at foreign companies operating within China. This year the focus fell on automakers, according to the Financial Times, and no domestic car companies were targeted. The network also accused dealers of overselling parts, and it took aim at Jaguar Land Rover specifically for problems surrounding transmission repairs, according to Reuters. The yearly stories are often criticized for focusing on outside businesses. "It panders to a certain type of nationalism as it tends to target foreign companies and rarely touches large state groups or monopolies," Qiao Mu, a journalism professor at Beijing Foreign Studies University, said to the Financial Times. Foreign automakers seem to face tighter scrutiny when doing business in China than their domestic counterparts, in general. The government there investigated several luxury brands, including Audi and BMW, last year for how they supplied spare parts and whether the components were overpriced. Some incurred fines, and Lexus decided to lower its prices. Volkswagen also experienced protests when owners felt the company wasn't handling a recall properly. The CCTV report also comes as many auto dealers in China are feeling a pinch due to high mandated sales targets from automakers. The situation was so dire in early 2015 several brands cut back sales targets and in some cases even paid the sellers to offset poor profits. News Source: Financial Times - sub. req., ReutersImage Credit: Andy Wong / AP Photo Government/Legal Mercedes-Benz Nissan Volkswagen Car Dealers Auto Repair Maintenance jaguar land rover