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Renault, Nissan limit French government interference

Renault and Nissan are taking action to limit the influence that one can exercise over the other's operations. The measures, announced by both automakers after meetings of their respective boards in Paris and Tokyo, aim to keep each other at arm's length. But more than that, they seek to cap the degree of influence which the French government can bring to bear on either automaker. The steps are being taken in response to investment moves by the French state. While the government's investment arm – known as the Agence des Participations de l'Etat (or state participation agency) – previously controlled 15 percent of Renault's shares, it increased its holdings this April to 19.73 percent. The action sparked concerns at Renault that the French government would attempt to dictate operating procedures to both automakers, potentially to favor production in France over other locations. Given that Renault holds a 43-percent stake in Nissan, the Japanese automaker grew concerned over potential French state interference as well. To assuage those concerns, Renault, Nissan, and the French government came to an agreement with three vital clauses. Most importantly, despite its nearly 20-percent holdings, the French government will be granted only 17.9 percent of voting rights in Renault (to be extended up to 20 percent under certain exceptional circumstances). Renault (and by extension the French government) will also be prevented from interfering in Nissan's governance. With those measures in place, Nissan will not seek more voting rights based on the 15-percent stake which it, in turn, holds in Renault. Having successfully concluded the deal and hedged against the threat of government interference, the Renault board reasserted its confidence in Carlos Ghosn. Through the unique terms of their alliance, Ghosn serves as chairman and CEO of both Renault and Nissan. The two cooperate closely and share resources extending far beyond their chief executive, but remain distinct companies rather than merge, as Fiat and Chrysler have. Renault Board approves alliance stability covenant between Renault and Nissan As early as 16th April 2015, the Renault Board of Directors unanimously reiterated that the sustainability, success and resilience of the Alliance since its very inception in 1999 were based on a balance of shares held by Renault and Nissan.

Semi-autonomous Nissan Leaf certified for road use in Japan [w/video]

In order to meet its goal of having an autonomous car in production by 2020, Nissan is going to have be able to test its technology in real-world driving conditions. For this, the automaker has just received a license plate to legally test its semi-autonomous driver assist systems in Japan, marking the first time such technologies have been tested on that country's roads. Not ironically, the license plate number is 2020.
Though not fully autonomous, this Leaf prototype will test various components of a self-driving car including exiting the highway, the ability to stay in its lane and change lanes when needed, stopping at red lights and overtaking stopped or slow traffic. Nissan is also in the process of building a proving ground in Oppama, Japan dedicated solely to autonomous cars, but the ability to test on public roads will obviously play a crucial role in the development of these cars. Scroll down for a short video and press release Nissan posted to mark the occasion.

Five automakers now being investigated by NHTSA for airbag woes

It appears that Toyota's renotification to owners of recalled vehicles from last year is just the tip of the iceberg for what could potentially be a much larger industry-wide recall. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is opening a preliminary evaluation investigation into roughly 1.1 million vehicles from Chrysler, Honda, Mazda, Nissan, Toyota and parts supplier Takata regarding faulty airbag inflators in several models.
NHTSA has received six reports - three directly, two from Takata and one from Toyota - of vehicles with ruptured airbag inflators from 2002-2006, which resulted in three injuries. So far, all six incidents have occurred in high humidity areas like Florida and Puerto Rico. According to Toyota's latest recall announcement, the inflators may have an improper propellant that could cause it to rupture in a crash and the bag to deploy abnormally.
This new investigation follows a previous recall from April 2013 of about 3.4 million vehicles worldwide for the airbag inflators from Takata. As Autoblog reported, Toyota jumpstarted the new situation when it found that the original list of serial numbers for the faulty part was incomplete and discovered more cars in need of replacement. Honda and Nissan told us that they were investigating whether further models would need called in again as well. Mazda told Autoblog: "Regarding the current Takata situation, we're working closely with NHTSA and investigating the situation, but nothing else to report at this time." Chrysler Group responded to us with the statement: "Chrysler Group engineers are conducting the appropriate analysis. The Company will cooperate fully with the National Highway Traffic Administration."