Nissan Micra in India Archives

September 4, 2013

Nissan launches entry-level diesel variant of new Micra for Rs. 5.57 lakh ex-showroom Delhi

Nissan had just started the new evolution in industry with the bare-basic Micra Active, now we got to learn that new Micra facelift which was rolled-out alongside it in the chromed ‘V’ stance on front grille is now being launched in base diesel trim i.e. XE badge for a price tag of Rs. 5.57 lakh ex-showroom New Delhi.

However, Nissan is aiming for the best-in-class fuel economy to the aspiring Indian context, hence this diesel variant of new Micra dwells out 23.08 kmpl (as per ARAI) at its best form the bay.

Driver airbags remains standard on it even in the base variant for strongly standing abide the Japanese carmaker’s commitment to safety for Indian drivers, we hope its availability in the six differently painted shades may do the rest of the job to outsell the others in hatchback segment here.

“I am confident that the New Micra diesel variant is a good value proposition and a desirable option for the Indian customers. We are keen to replicate the success of the existing variants with the diesel-powered XE variant of the New Micra,” said Mr. Kenichiro Yomura, President of Nissan India Operations & MD & CEO, Nissan Motor India on the occasion of launch.

July 19, 2013

Nissan to be assisted by Hinduja Group in small car development

Nissan India is working on a small car and it is being assisted on this by the Hinduja Group’s IT arm of Defiance technologies. Why Hinduja Group you say? Well, Hinduja Group is the owner of Ashok Leyland Motors which has an alliance with Nissan in India. It seems like this partnership is not just limited to its subsidiary, Ashok Leyland. Hinduja group is extending its full support to Nissan by allowing its IT arm to assist Nissan in its latest venture. This news has been revealed by the Chairman of Hinduja Group, Dheeraj Hinduja.

This mighty Hinduja Group was established in the year 1914 and is a group of various companies working on global level. Although it is an Indian firm, it is headquartered in London City in UK, since 1979. One of the companies under this group is the Indian automobile manufacturer, Ashok Leyland. It was established in the year 1948 and is currently located in Chennai. This subsidiary of Hinduja Group is dedicated to commercial vehicles like trucks, buses and military vehicles. The company joined hands with Nissan in the year 2007 and the 2 firms share a common manufacturing plant located in Chennai. Nissan works in India through its subsidiary, Nissan Motor India Private Limited, which was started in the year 2005 and has been doing exceptionally well in the country.

Hinduja Group has extended engineering and IT support to its partner in developing a small car as a “contract service”. Hinduja Group chairman has clearly stated that it will not venture in Nissan’s domain (passenger cars) in any way.

Ashok Leyland will continue to focus on the commercial vehicle segment. The recently launched MPV Stile is also planned by the company as a ‘commercial’ passenger car with both export and domestic interests. The company will be open to various acquisition options as well which can help it reach its target of being among the top 10 truck manufacturers in the world and among the top 5 bus dealers in th world.

Hinduja Group said to Times of India that “Our core focus is on commercial vehicles including light commercial vehicles (LCVs). The work that Defiance is doing (on the small car) is purely for Nissan. We have expanded our range into adjacent segments like the construction equipment business with John Deere and the financing company which we have restarted apart from Defiance, which is an IT and engineering company. We will try to grow the defence sector as well where we are a major provider of vehicles but we are not going to get into cars ourselves. We will, however, have more passenger applications on commercial vehicle platforms — Stile upwards — like a micro bus for example.”

Although the group expects that their alliance with Nissan will offer them with many other options to collaborate. The company wishes to export the successful LCV Dost. Commenting on this he said that “We are discussing the option of sharing Dost in certain export markets which are being studied right now but in India Dost will continue to be ‘only’ an Ashok Leyland-badged vehicle.”

It is a global trend where companies seek IT help from other leading firms. This collaboration has presented two possibilities. Since Nissan is working on a small car, it can either be a new Micra variant or it can be a new small car planned by Nissan to join the line up with Micra. We will have to wait and watch.

April 3, 2013

Nissan Micra Active Spied in India

The Nissan Micra Active has been spied testing outside Chennai by IndianAutosBlog. Codenamed G02A, this low cost variant of the Micra hatch is expected to sell alongside the facelifted Nissan Micra which has recently been launched in Thailand. It is expected that the facelifted Micra will hit the Indian markets sometime in June and along with the Micra Active, it will target a wider range of audience for itself.

Since the Micra Active will be somewhat of a budget version of the Micra hatch, it will have no airbags and will see a cheaper locally made power steering system. Along with those, cost cutting will be seen in the interior of the car as well as in the insulation system. Fitted with a 1.2 liter petrol engine producing a peak power of 74 bhp and a peak torque of 104Nm, the Micra Active will come with a 5-speed manual transmission. But this is about it. This will be the only variant of Micra Active on offer to the buyers as of now. Later on, some high-end variant may be offered with ABS.

But since this is India where love for diesel cars knows no bounds, rest assured that the company is planning to bring in something on diesel, which may make its debut after a few months of its petrol cousin. As of now, it cannot be said what kind of engine and features will the diesel variant incorporate, but it is certain that one will see the light of day very soon.

From the pictures, you can see that there is hardly any difference between the Nissan Micra Active and the Micra currently running on the roads in India. The only probable visual distinction is the aqua green exterior color. Since the Micra Active is slated to be priced competitively, watch out for this space as the car could give some of its competitors a run for their money.

March 28, 2013

Nissan Micra to get a 1.2 Litre Supercharged for Shanghai Auto Show

Nissan Micra is just now revealed with a facelift in Thailand, and to make it more lucrative, Japanese had planned to roll it out in the version of 1.2 liter Supercharged for China market.

Micra is also known as March in some of the Asian territories and, which was in a tremendous need of the facelift, being followed by supercharged engine in a small capacity to follow same trend of the other Asia-bound products.

Previously it was tided in the 80 PS powered 1.5 liter four cylinder jag, but now the new supercharged 1.2 liter will spin out a comprehensive 100 PS underneath three-cylinder. The upgraded technical refinement is tagged as “March 1.25” and is slated to launch by the next month at Shanghai Auto Show.

Gaining more to the enhancement, further refinement will be carried with the 5 speed manual or the similarly treaded CVT.

All this information was updated on Chinese website named auto.sohu.com, which we hope may soon land us some more of the inclinations in future. Here, spy pics are relating March 1.25 to pre-facelift model, instead of the newly arrived metal.

Meanwhile, only the time will tell what is going under the skin this beauty, when it will be finally faced on upcoming Shanghai event.

Image Courtesy – auto.sohu.com

October 8, 2012

Nissan launches ‘Micra Primo’ Ranbir Kapoor special edition

The Japanese automaker’s Indian subsidiary, Nissan India, has revealed the Ranbir Kapoor special edition of its hatchback Micra, named as Micra Primo. Nissan Micra Primo has been blessed with additional accessories but it doesn’t come cheap. You will have to pay Rs.22,000 extra over the current price.

Nissan has added a bunch of new features with this new edition of the hatchback like double DIN Kenwood Stereo with USB and Bluetooth support, rear parking sensors and LED lamps on the wings and mirrors. The Nissan Micra Primo edition is available only in a single color – pearl white with options for both petrol and diesel variants. The special trim is available in four different variants XV petrol, XL petrol, XV diesel and XV premium diesel.

Special edition has been brought out in time with the festive season trying to gain full out of the festive mood. This season is considered quite best for buying anything in India with another vehicle (Nissan Evalia MPV) out in the market Nissan is expecting to gain some rise during the coming months. Nissan Micra Primo is already doing great in terms of sales and recorded a hike of about 64.24% in the September.

September 6, 2012

Nissan India Car Sales Surge 185.6% During August: Sunny And Micra Key Contributors

Nissan Motor India Private Ltd (NMIPL) has posted a huge jump of around 185.6 per cent in its sales during August 2012 as against the same month of the previous year.

The auto giant witnessed the sales climbed up to 3953 units from 1384 units during August last year.

The Sunny sedan with diesel choice remained the key contributor to the total monthly figures, accompanied by the Micra hatchback; totaling 3944 vehicles.

NMIPL’s other car models comprising the X-trail, the 370 Z and Teana made up the remaining figures.

While talking about the performance, Takayuki Ishida, MD Nissan Motor India added that it is tremendously hopeful to witness the country (India) made Nissan Sunny has been attaining success on a continuous basis.

The company’s pledge and direction is on presenting more India made models that offer augmented value to the buyers

Takayuki Ishida also said that the company anticipate the Japanese car manufacturers sales facts to climb much higher after the introduction of its Toyota Innova and Mahindra Xylo rival, the Evalia, a model that is already doing well throughout the world as it has been selected to turn out to be the new London and New York taxi cab.

June 3, 2012

Nissan India May Sales Grow By 98%

Nissan Motor India Private Ltd. (NMIPL) today reported 98% increase in year-on-year sales for May, selling 3138 units as against 1,588 units sold in May 2011.

The sales growth continues to be driven by two of the Company’s flagship models – the Sunny sedan and the Micra compact premium hatchback.

The award-winning Nissan Sunny, launched in September 2011 and produced at the Company’s state-of-the-art manufacturing facility in Chennai, has become a major contributor to total sales over the past few months. Since its launch, the SUNNY has sold 18,753 units to date. The popularity of the diesel variant has seen robust growth in recent months.

Mr Ishida Takayuki, Managing Director of Nissan Motor India Pvt. Ltd said: “Despite the fact that the auto industry has been going through some uncertainty in view of the recent fuel price hike and general economic growth, our sales have remained strong. This performance has been supported by the strength and diversity of our model range. It will further expand with the launch of Evalia later in the year, and we are confident that our sales will continue to grow.”

Mr Nitish Tipnis, Director-Marketing & Sales, Hover Automotive India (HAI), Nissan’s sales and marketing partner in India, said: “Despite the current challenging market, India remains of key strategic importance to Nissan and represents a significant opportunity for growth. By placing the customer at the heart of everything we do, Nissan is continuing to develop within the Indian market, increasing sales, growing our retail network and widening our product portfolio.”

The Company recently announced that it will launch the affordable, value-focused Datsun brand in India in 2014. Datsun will play a crucial role in Nissan’s India strategy envisaged in ‘Nissan Power 88’ – a comprehensive, six-year business plan for accelerating the Company’s growth across new markets and segments. Cars bearing the Datsun badge will be modern, generous and designed to suit local customer tastes and will be built locally, incorporating latest technology features.

Nissan also showcased its Urban Utility Vehicle, Evalia at the Delhi Auto Expo in January. Evalia will further expand Nissan’s innovative product range in India when it goes to production at the company’s Chennai plant later this year.

April 29, 2012

Nissan India Export Figure crosses 1 lakh mark for the Fiscal Year of 2012

The Datsun brand of Nissan Motors is set to be launched in the entry level segment of the Indian automobile market very soon. With Datsun brand the firm expects to increase the volume of sales to add profit to the firm. Nissan has come up as one of the major contenders in the automobile market of passenger cars in India. The affordable car of Nissan India, the Datsun, has brought special attention to the firm with the announcement of its launch. In the fiscal year of 2012, for the very first time, the sales figure of the Nissan cars has gone over the mark of 1 lakh units that made the firm preside over the chair of one of the top exporters of the mid-sized sedans from the car market of India.

Nissan India sits on the third position in the chart of car exports of the passenger segment with a 20 per cent of its market share for the fiscal year of 2012. On the top two positions above Nissan are the Hyundai with 48 per cent market share and Maruti with 25 per cent of share in the car exports of passenger segment. With a figure of 33,286 units of cars sold in the domestic market, Nissan India has witnessed a precise increase in its figure of export sales with a rise of 1,00,909 units from the former 46,153 units of car. Nissan Sunny, the mid-sized sedan of the firm has performed very well in both domestic and foreign markets. The export of the Nissan Sunny model that commenced in January 2012 has helped the firm in a big way to cross the sales mark of 1 lakh units. Till the end of March 2012, the total export figure of Nissan Sunny had reached to 46,135 units.

The Micra hatchback of Nissan too has been doing very well when it comes to exports of the Nissan cars. This compact vehicle did not do much sales in the domestic market, but it did achieve a sales figure of 86,675 units in the offshore markets in the fiscal year of 2012 while in the previous year the figure was a mere 46,135 units.

As per Mr.Ishida Takayuki, the Managing Director, Nissan India, “The firm is looking forward to acquire a wider base for exporting its cars which is made in India while it will also be exploring new opportunities for further offshore markets to export cars made in India. The business target of Nissan Motors India will remain the same, to become the number one player in the car market of Indian automobile industry.”

Previously the Hyundai Accent and Hyundai Verna were the competing sedans with the other car manufacturers that used to get in a lot of sales volume through the exports. But since some time now, Nissan Sunny has come up as the top most selling sedan in mid-size segment when it comes to export figures.

March 22, 2012

Renault Scala: Rebadged Nissan Sunny coming to India

Renault-Nissan joint venture has been flourishing in India and the French automaker has had great progress in hatch section from the Japanese partner. It previously made the Pulse from Nissan’s Micra and now in the making is a Sunny based sedan.

Christened, Renault Scala, the French sedan will be positioned above the Sunny, reported Autocar. Borrowing technology from the Japanese counterpart, the Renault Scala will be platformed at Nissan’s Oragadam facility in Chennai. It also sports the same mechanics, interior and powerplant as the Sunny. Powering the Scala will be a 1.5-litre petrol developing 97bhp power and 134 Nm torque and a 1.5-litre dCi diesel motor pumping out 85bhp power and 200 Nm torque. However, Renault may dump the diesel motor like it did with the Pulse. Mated to the engine is a five-speed transmission, and there is news of Nissan testing a CVT for the Sunny, which may be borrowed for the Scala as well.

The rebadged sedan will follow the same design cues as the Sunny with a little French tweak. Similar to the Pulse, the Renault Scala may receive cosmetic uplift to give a stronger brand appeal. Expected to hit the market by third quarter of 2012, the Renault Scala will eat into the sales of Ford Fiesta, Honda City, Toyota Etios, Hyundai Verna and of course, the Nissan Sunny. However, as of now there is no word on how many variants will be offered of the Renault Scala. After the Fluence, this is the second sedan in the Indian portfolio of Renault. With the fair success of hatch Pulse, sedan Fluence and SUV Koleos, the new sedan Scala is expected to shoot up the sales of French automaker in premium segment. However, the question remains, will the customers be ready to accept a rebadged Sunny.

February 28, 2012

Nissan globally recalls its Micra – the Indian variant is not impacted

The Nissan Micra hatchback from Nissan India has more of a demand in overseas market as compared to the Indian domestic market. Most Nissan Micra exports are handled from its Oragadam manufacturing facility in Chennai. However, in recent developments, this leading car manufacturer from Japan has been forced to recall 9600 models of the Nissan Micra that had been manufactured in its Indian plant due to a supposed mechanical problem. As per sources within the company, the car has the possibility of experiencing petrol leakage as the sensor that handles fuel pressure has not been properly fixed in a lot of its models.

The recall process is being undertaken for repairing this petrol leakage by having the fuel sensors tightened. However, this recall process has been restricted to the Micras that have been sold in the global markets that have been provided with a direct system of petrol injection and the Indian variant of the Nissan Micra has not been impacted by this error. Hence, owners of Nissan Micra cars in India do not need to worry. The version of the Nissan Micra that is being exported delivers better torque and power than the Indian variant as this model has been supercharged. This has, however, not been a deterrent for the demand of the Nissan Micra in the Indian domestic market as recent sales figures of this car has been showing an upwardly trend. The version that is being preferred the most by the Indian consumers is the K9K turbocharged 1.5L diesel engine variant, which offers excellent fuel efficiency.

This engine has proved to be highly responsive and does not have any turbo lag. This has made the vehicle an excellent one to drive particularly in the scenario of congested traffic conditions in the Indian cities. As turbo lag is not present, hence regular changing of gears for maintaining turbo zone is not required, thereby simplifying the aspect of driving the car. This aspect has also formed to be the core USP that has been made use of by Nissan India for promoting this vehicle in the Indian market, which has made use of the catch phrase “Drive Simpler – Live Better”. A major lacuna that the diesel version of the Nissan Micra suffers from is the fact that it has not been equipped with ABS in any of its variant. What is most surprising is that even the top-end variant of the Nissan Micra diesel has not been provided with this feature.