Nissan Planning to Sell a New Low-Cost, Micra-Based Model in the USA

Nissan officials confirmed today that the automaker is planning to add a new entry-level model based on the soon-to-be-revealed Micra in its U.S. market lineup. The next generation Micra (think Toyota Yaris and Ford Fiesta competitor), which was teased with a pair of renderings as well as a set of leaked design sketches, is based on Nissan's so-called "V-platform" that is said to give birth to two additional models aside from the hatchback, including a four-door sedan and a multipurpose vehicle.

"V platform" manager Vincent Cobee said that the Nissan's engineers spent four years to find ways to reduce production costs and weight out of a small car.

According to the company, the new platform will see a 50 percent improvement in fuel economy (we know, it sounds a bit too optimistic) over the current Micra while the firm's engineers have reduced the total number of parts in the car by 18 percent. For example, while the current Micra's cockpit has 56 parts, the new model will have 27.

According to Autonews that attended the press event at the Nissan's headquarters today, the U.S. market will play a significant role in the firm's plan to sell a million vehicles a year from all the derivatives of the newly created "V platform".

However, Nissan did not reveal which of the three models will come to the States nor when they go on sale or if the U.S.-market vehicle(s) will be produced in the States.

Nissan said that the new global Micra, which is set to make its debut next year, will be made in five different plants around the world, including India, China, Thailand and two other unidentified locations.

Via: Autonews

2011 Nissan Micra / March: Official Sketches Reveal the Less Exciting Nature of the Actual Production Model

A couple of weeks ago, Nissan published a pair of design sketches of its next generation Micra (sold in Japan as the March) suggesting that the firm's new global supermini would boast more sportier and dramatic looks than the current model. Well, sorry to say, but these official drawings of the actual production version that were leaked onto the net imply that the 2011 Micra's styling will be far less daring and grandiose than Nissan wanted us to believe.

We'll get the chance to see how the new generation Micra looks in the flesh at a major car show in 2010, quite possibly at the Geneva Salon next March with sales set to follow in Europe sometime during the second half of the year.

The new Micra that will compete in the B-segment against cars like the Ford Fiesta and Citroen C3 will be produced in five countries including India, China and Thailand. Unlike the current Micra that is built at the firm's UK Sunderland plant, the European market version of the 2011 Micra will be sourced from Renault-Nissan's new facility in Chennai, India.

Via: Carmagazine

Next Nissan Micra / March Supermini Teased in Official Sketches, Sales Start in 2010

These are the first official sketches of Nissan's replacement for the current generation Micra city car, also known as the March in Japan, that will be first launched in Thailand in March 2010 and will be available in more than 150 countries. The Japanese firm did not release any specific details on the hatchback model, which at least from these renderings, brings to mind the second-generation Opel Corsa B of the mid-1990s.

While the two latest generation models of the car sold in Europe were manufactured at Nissan's UK plant in Sunderland, the European market version of the next Micra will be sourced from Renault-Nissan's new facility in Chennai, India.

In 2008 Nissan revealed that an all-new subcompact crossover that has yet to be shown in production form will take up the manufacturing capacity created when production of the current version of the Micra ends in Sunderland in 2010

Nissan noted that the new Micra will be built in five countries including India, China, Thailand and two more locations that have not been disclosed yet.

2011 Nissan 240SX – Silvia and 2010 Micra Turbo Renderings

We’ve lost track of the number of times we’ve seen renderings from Japanese publications showing what the Nissan 240SX / Silvia might look like when it debuts sometime in 2010/2011. In its forthcoming October issue, Japanese car magazine ‘Best Car’ takes another shot at the forthcoming 240SX / Silvia replacement that is said to be based on a modified version of the 350Z's FM rear-wheel-drive platform. Additionally, along with the new 240SX / Silvia photoshop, Best Car also shows a rendering of the next-generation Micra (March in Japan) and in particular, the range-topping sport version. Speculation is that the sport Micra will be equipped with a 1.6-liter turbocharged engine powering the front wheels. -One more pic after the jump

Source: Best Car

Nissan Micra 25th Anniversary Edition with free iPod for Europe

To celebrate a quarter century of Micra sales in Europe, Nissan has developed a special edition series of the Micra hatchback and C+C Coupe-Cabriolet. The anniversary models will be called Micra 25 and they will be offered exclusively in a unique deep purple colour enhanced with silver effect door mirrors, handles and body mouldings along with new wheel trim designs. All special edition Micras will also get a rear privacy glass fitted as standard and a ‘25’ logo badge on the rear door. -Continued

Inside the anniversary Micras come equipped with a tailor made docking station designed for the iPod nano, as well as audio control via the steering wheel mounted buttons. And if you don’t have a iPod, no need to worry as a unique Micra engraved 4Gb iPod nano loaded with Nissan-specific content is supplied free with the 25th Anniversary Micra. The content of the nano consists of a selection of 10 different songs, a series of Micra photography and a Micra TV advert.

Sales of Micra 25 Anniversary edition will begin across Europe from early August.