2008 Nissan Sentra Se-r Spec V Sedan 4-door 2.5l on 2040-cars

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Formula Drift kicks off 11th season on Streets of Long Beach

The 2014 Formula Drift series kicked off last weekend in Long Beach, and saw Chris Forsberg, who you'll recall went mad and drifted around a warehouse in an Infiniti M, take the title behind the wheel of his Hankook Tire Nissan 370Z (shown above).
Forsberg really ran away with the first round of competition, outscoring his closest opponent, second-place finisher Kenneth Moen and his Bridges Racing Nissan 240SX, by 20 points. Third place was 2013 championship winner Michael Essa and his Yokohama BMW M3, 30.5 points behind Forsberg.
In the manufacturers' title, Nissan took an early lead with 122 points, which isn't a huge surprise considering five of the top ten drifters were piloting either a Z or a product of the brand's S platform. Ford, which had two drivers (Justin Pawlak and Vaughn Gittin, Jr.) in the top ten, took home second place, while BMW is currently third in the manufacturers' standings.

Nissan's dismal 2019: Where does Japan's struggling brand go from here?

Auto sales have gradually slowed from their peak during the boom years that followed the global recession, but Nissan's rapid decline stood out even in a year when few high-volume manufacturers had much to be excited about.  Of the "Japanese 3," Nissan's 2019 performance was by far the most troubling. Through November, when the company last posted its global sales figures, its volumes were down 8 percent compared to 2019. Here in the United States, its full-year numbers were down 9.9% in an industry that slid just a hair more than 2 percent overall.  Meanwhile, Honda managed a slight increase in U.S. sales (0.2%) and Toyota, much like the industry in general, finished the year down approximately 2%. Like Nissan, Honda and Toyota have remained committed to cars — including compact and midsize sedans — and have a comprehensive portfolio of offerings in the key SUV and crossover segments.   On paper, Nissan's lineup checks all the right boxes. From the subcompact Kicks up to the Armada, it has something for sale in virtually every possible nook and cranny of the people-mover segment, but almost all of these trucks (and trucklets) took a beating in 2019. Only the baby Kicks managed to improve on its 2018 sales, which isn't saying a whole lot, considering it was barely sold in 2018 to begin with.  In fact, the bonus volume contributed by Kicks helps obscure just how poorly some of Nissan's key offerings performed last year. Combined Rogue and Rogue Sport sales slid 15%; Murano was down more than 18%; the Pathfinder and Armada managed to pace the general industry, dropping 2.8 and 1.9%, respectively, but the astute reader will note at this point that we've yet to single out any bright spots. The news was even worse on the truck side. Frontier was down 9.1%. Titan? Down 37.5%. Crossovers and SUVs are selling. Trucks, even from import brands, are also selling. Toyota's mid-size Tacoma was up in 2019; both it and the full-size Tundra still more than tripled the volume of their Nissan competitors. Further muddying the waters, Honda managed its year-over-year volume increase without selling a full-sized pickup at all.  What, then, is Nissan's problem? To borrow an oft-used phrase, "It's the product, stupid." The most striking evidence of this issue is the Rogue, which competes in the compact crossover segment — a collection of vehicles that essentially sell themselves.

Nissan returning to top-level US racing with this TUDOR entry

Muscle Milk Pickett Racing, formerly powered by Honda to two consecutive American Le Mans Series championships, is now officially powered by Nissan. The Japanese automaker's return to the top tier of US sports car racing comes with Nismo factory backing of the Muscle Milk entry in the newly created TUDOR United SportsCar Championship. Those with long memories will recall that Nissan walked away from America's then top-flight sports car series, IMSA, more than 20 years ago, having won 33 races, three manufacturer titles and four driver's titles from 1988 to 1991.
The ORECA 3 racecar's reveal also marks the introduction of Nismo Global Exchange drivers to the team. Alex Brundle, who drove for Nissan-powered OAK Racing last year in the FIA World Endurance Championship, will join Lucas Luhr and Klaus Graf at the Rolex 24 Hours of Daytona. It's his first time in a major US event, but having finished second in the WEC and in the LMP2 class at Le Mans last year, he's no novice. Nismo drivers will also contest the 12 Hours of Sebring and Petit Le Mans.
The No. 6 Muscle Milk entry will be hitting the track with the other competitors this weekend during the "Roar before the Rolex 24," with the race itself happening on January 25-26. You can read more about what's coming in the press release below.