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Nissan Xterra's fate hangs in the balance

The Nissan Xterra might not be long for this world, according to a report from Edmunds. The rugged SUV, which has always been a bit more of a hardcore, purpose-built vehicle than the rest of the Nissan SUV range. But it has also suffered from slowing sales, low fuel economy relative to the competition and general neglect, as Nissan has focused on other offerings in its range.
"There are plans to replace it, there are always plans, (but) I am not sure it will happen. I would say in the next six months to a year," Pierre Loing, vice president of product planning for Nissan Americas told Edmunds. Part of the problem, he added, was that the Xterra is a US-only vehicle, which makes it a hard sell in a world where automakers are increasingly depending on global cars.
Besides the economic forces working against the Xterra, it's just a vehicle that hasn't been a huge sales success of late. Customers are more conscious of fuel economy and a body-on-frame SUV that only nets 16 miles per gallon just isn't good enough; arguably why Nissan barely sold 17,000 units last year. We can hold out hope, as the Xterra remains a fun off-roader that we'd hate to see go, but unless Nissan finds a business case or some global partners, this is a vehicle that is on its last leg.

Nissan starts building e-NV200 in Spain [w/video]

It doesn't look all that much like a Nissan Leaf, but the new e-NV200 that started production in Barcelona, Spain today shares its powertrain and lithium-ion battery with the world's most popular electric vehicle. The production version of the electric cargo van was unveiled late last year and today's manufacturing start is right on time with the company's previously announced timeline. The first exports will take place in June. The e-NV200 is Nissan's second all-electric vehicle, and the company says that powertrain line-up is "expanding." The vehicle itself will be available in a number of configurations in Europe: a light commercial van, a passenger vehicle and and electric taxi. Nissan has said in the past it is working on installing a fast-charging network of CHAdeMO stations in Barcelona, where the e-NV200 will be used as a cab. The e-NV200 will also be used as an electric taxi in Amsterdam. The zero-tailpipe-emission van is also being tested in Washington, DC with FedEx, but there is no confirmation that it will ever be commercially available in the US. There are a few more details, and a video, on the e-NV200 production start below. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. NISSAN'S SECOND 100% ELECTRIC VEHICLE, THE e-NV200, STARTS GLOBAL PRODUCTION IN BARCELONA 05/05/14 Nissan e-NV200 is the second model in Nissan's expanding range of electric vehicles Barcelona plant starts production of Nissan's first electric van as part of ˆ431 million investment New electric van provides a zero-emission solution for urban cargo delivery and taxi companies Barcelona is the only Nissan plant to produce the e-NV200, which will be exported globally e-NV200 shares drivetrain technology with the world's best-selling electric vehicle - the Nissan LEAF BARCELONA – Nissan has started the production of its second all-electric vehicle, the e-NV200, which will soon be available in Europe as both a passenger vehicle and light commercial van. The ceremony was attended by Spanish Ministry of Industry, Jose Manuel Soria, Catalan President, Artur Mas; and the Mayor of Barcelona, Xavier Trias, who were welcomed by Nissan's Chief Planning Officer, Andy Palmer. The Nissan plant in Barcelona will be the global production site for this ground breaking zero-emission vehicle, which will be available as a light commercial van, passenger vehicle and electric taxi in the European market.

Nissan: We lose money on each Leaf replacement battery

Nissan has been playing its cards pretty close to its chest when it comes to the production costs for Leaf battery packs. The company recently put a price on replacement batteries for customers at $5,500 plus the requirement to return the old battery. If the decommissioned battery is worth $1,000 to Nissan, as they have stated, that means the battery costs about $6,500 to make, right? Maybe even less if Nissan wants to turn a profit, as automakers are wont to do? Wrong.
Green Car Reports spoke to Nissan about these battery costs, and found that the automaker actually loses money on selling the replacement battery for the Leaf at the current price. Jeff Kuhlman, Nissan's vice president of global communications said, "Nissan makes zero margin on the replacement program. In fact, we subvent every exchange." All you English majors will know that "subvent" is a fancy way to say "subsidize." Kuhlman added, though, "We have yet to sell one battery as part of the program."
The fact that Nissan offers its replacement batteries for less than it costs to manufacture them is telling of a company both cares about what its customer needs and is dedicated to the success of its product. In this case, both of those things encourage people to give up fossil fuels and adopt electric mobility, which is heartening. As more people switch to battery-powered driving, though, battery technology should become better and cheaper, and the scale of production should cause manufacturing costs to decrease. Eventually, Nissan could easily see itself breaking even selling the Leaf battery replacements.