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Nissan expands, shrinks Leaf recall for missing weld points

Chalk this one up to the quirks of the English language. The other day, we had a post on the recall of a small number of 2014 Nissan Leaf EVs that were missing weld spots. The official bulletin from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said that "any vehicle missing welds will be replaced, free of charge." We read that as saying that the welds would be replaced, but in fact it's the cars themselves that will be swapped out. NHTSA said that 211 Leafs were potentially involved in this recall, but we heard from Brian Brockman, Nissan's senior manager of corporate communications, that Nissan is actually looking at, "approximately 276" vehicles. More importantly, Brockman clarified that, "If a vehicle is found to be missing the welds, the entire vehicle will be replaced." NHTSA documents on Inside EVs show that Nissan expects just 0.65 percent of those Leafs will need to be replaced. Brockman wouldn't say exactly how many cars Nissan thinks are affected, but 0.65 percent of 276 is just 1.8 vehicles. Brockman did say that, "you'd be correct to say that we expect the number to be very low." Read Nissan's full statement below. Nissan is conducting a Voluntary Recall Campaign on approximately 276 MY2014 LEAF vehicles to inspect the front member assembly welds. Due to an isolated supplier process error that has been corrected, a small number of vehicles within a subset of MY2014 LEAF vehicles manufactured during a two-week period may have front frame member assembly components that were not welded to proper specification. This can affect crash performance. Within the next few weeks, affected LEAF owners will be asked to bring their vehicle to a certified Nissan LEAF dealer for an inspection. If the vehicle is determined to be affected, Nissan will provide owners with a brand new replacement vehicle at no additional cost. A loaner vehicle will be provided during the vehicle exchange process. It is anticipated that only a handful of retailed vehicles are affected by the weld issue and require vehicle replacement. Nissan is committed to a high level of customer service and satisfaction and is working with its dealers to provide an outstanding ownership experience to Nissan LEAF owners.

Nissan to pursue FWD Nurburgring lap record with Pulsar Nismo

Europeans get very serious about their hot hatches. So do the Japanese. In fact there's been a whole back-and-forth lately over who makes the fastest one, and now Nissan looks set to throw its racing hat into the 'Ring.
That would be the Nürburgring, of course, where automakers trade bragging rights like baseball cards - only they don't give them up willingly. Renault set the front-drive lap record in 2008 with the previous Mégane R26.R then set the bar even higher with the Mégane RS 265 Trophy. That was before Seat stole the honors with its Leon Cupra 280, only for Renault to take them back again with the Mégane RS 275 Trophy-R. Seat is rumored to be considering a renewed assault, but it won't be the only one nipping at Renaultsport's heels in the coming years.
Honda, for its part, has made no secret of its ambition to set the record with the upcoming Civic Type R, and now word has it that Nissan is planning an assault of its own. Its weapon of choice would be an upcoming Nismo version of the new Pulsar hatchback which is just hitting the European market now as a rival to the Ford Focus, Volkswagen Golf, et al. There's no word on what its specs would be, but if it's going to challenge these players, it's going to need between 270 and 300 horsepower, a stiff suspension, big brakes and probably some sort of trick differential.

Automakers' sound systems: Crank it, don't yank it

Years ago, one of the first things most music lovers did after buying a new vehicle was drive to an aftermarket stereo shop to get the crappy stock components swapped for better gear. And you'd typically get not only better sound but also more bang (and boom) for your buck. But in the past decade or so, the overall quality of OEM audio has dramatically increased, while car electronics became more complex, removing the incentive for most new vehicle owners — and all but the most hardcore DIYer — to start from scratch. In 2010, I did a comparison of the average costs for OEM electronics vs. similar offerings from the aftermarket, and back then automakers' stock premium systems were by far the best bargain — and are probably an even better value now. The premium 14-speaker, 1,200-watt JBL system in the all-new 2019 Toyota Avalon is a prime example of this trend. It's standard on the top two Limited and Touring trims and is available as a $680 audio upgrade on the XLE and XSE. I doubt you can even buy 14 speakers and 1,200 watts of amplification from the aftermarket for 700 bucks, much less have it all installed. And because the system is bundled with Toyota's Entune infotainment system, Apple CarPlay and a surround-view camera, removing the head unit means you would likely lose these features. Another advantage of OEMs and their audio partners is they can design the car around the audio system. In the past, automakers would typically place speakers where convenient for packaging, not for optimal sound reproduction, and audio engineers were forced to compromise. But as with the Avalon's premium JBL audio system, this is starting to change. At a recent behind-the-scenes peek for media into the process of developing the system, Toyota and Harman engineers delved into the minutia of sealing the inner panel of the front doors to create an enclosure for 6x8-inch woofers, making space in the pillars for JBL horn tweeters and extensively measuring the acoustic properties of the interior to tune the sound to the space. I'm met some creative and skilled car stereo installers, but none with a degree in psychoacoustics. The system is also the first to feature Quantum Logic Surround that creates a multi-channel listening experience from two-channel sources. And it includes Harman's Clari-Fi processing that "rebuilds key details lost" in compressed audio formats used by streaming music services and MP3s.