Nissan Car Talk

Among the vehicles that are set to hit the floors of the auto show in Geneva this year, one of the most fascinating ride is the Invader N40.

Unlike other tweaks that are often revealed during major auto shows like the one being held yearly in Geneva, the Invader N40 is not the usual ride these designers and engineers will beef up. It is not a luxury car and it is not a sports car. It is a Nissan Patrol which by its nature is not the favorite of most tuners.

The Invader N40 gives you a beast different from what you are used too. Invader Technologies tag the Invader N40 as the ultimate program of customization for the Nissan Patrol. The new setup gives the Patrol a ride a good those of aerodynamic elements which is comparable to other programs.

The Invader N40 gives buyers a bigger body kit. The front end of the Patrol was also restyled to highlight the LED that goes well with the black headlamps. You will also notice carbon fiber is used a lot for the details of the ride. Aside from these, the Invader N40 gets 22-inch multi-piece forged alloy rims which contribute to the more aggressive stance and total look of the Invader N40.

Inside, the Invader N40 is dominated by carbon fiber, alcantara, and high quality leather. You might say these are normal changes if you are tweaking a car, but it is not for the Nissan Patrol.

Invader Technologies has not yet disclosed what they did to the engine of the Invader N40. Some are saying that the output will not come close to 600 horsepower similar to the L60. We are pretty sure we are in for a surprise and that Invader Technologies really put in the man hours to come up with a good ride.

You might think that a subcompact car that has tag price of under $20,000 and is known for fuel efficiency can easily leave behind a $35,000 vehicle that has only 100 mile range on the sales chart, you have guessed wrong. The Nissan LEAF outperformed the Kizashi by Suzuki in terms of sales by as much as 1754 units. It also went ahead of Chevy Volt and other heavy hitters in the car industry.

What do the sales figure suggest of consumers in the United States who usually commute more compared to those in Europe on a daily basis? There are other brands outclassed by the LEAF and the Volt in terms of sold units, and a lot of people are wondering how this occurred amid the current economic slump. Before going into that, you need to look into the sales of the two Nissan vehicles compared with that of the Smart ForTwo as they all have high price tags and limited function. Last year Nissan was able to sold 3,895 units of Volt and 7,199 units of LEAF while the Smart ForTwo delivered 3,757 units to consumers.

Some answers are easy to find. One obvious reason for the soaring number of sales for the LEAF is the US government tapping the vehicle for some initial electric vehicle programs. Fleet purchases are also responsible for the numbers like GE infusing funds to buy electric cars to replace their fleet of 30,000 thru 2015. The New York Police Department also bought 50 units of Nissan LEAF.

Although fleet purchases partly explain the success of the Leaf, you cannot deny the fact that it also outsold brands that are considered heavy hitters. The Nissan LEAF outclassed in terms of sales cars like the XC-70 by Volvo, A3 and A6 from Audi, 1-Series of the BMW, Veracruz of Hyundai, and the Miata by Mazda. You can also add to this list the Grand Vitara of Suzuki, Azera of Hyundai C30 of Volvo, and most of the models of Saab.

The plan of GE to upgrade their fleet of service vehicles will play a crucial role in determining the sales of Nissan Leaf. We are not yet sure how the government will affect the sales figures since this wil depend on the congress, the next administration, and the state of the economy.

On September 1, 2011, the first batch of deliveries of the brand new Nissan Micra DIG-S will arrive in the United Kingdom. DIG-S means Direct Injection Gasoline-Supercharged. This new Nissan model has an initial tag price of £11,500.

Last March, the redesigned Nissan Micra DIG-S was debuted at the Geneva Motor Show. The model boasts of a supercharged 1.2-liter three-cylinder gasoline engine with 95 horsepower. Based on the carmaker’s statement, the new engine can duplicate the engine performance of bigger petrol engines while maintaining a fuel efficiency of a diesel unit. This claim was held by the 68.9 mpgUK and 95 g/km CO2 emission figures of the Visia model. For the Acenta and Tekna models, which are relatively heavier and more sophisticated, the figures are 65.7 mpg UK and 99 g/km.

The new Direct Injection Gasoline-Supercharged engine runs on the Miller Cycle. Here, the inlet valve remains open for a longer period of time. The Micra DIG-S models have this kind of direct injection mechanism along with a high compression ratio, uniquely shaped pistons, variable timing control that comes with eco mode, and an automatic stop-start system. The Micra DIGS-s car gives an immunity to congestion and road tax charges in the UK along with a high fuel efficiency rate.

The non-supercharged base model of the Micra is£1,000 lower compared to the DIG-S model. The Visia has an initial tag price of £11,150. The Tekna costs £13,650 while the Acenta costs £12,150. There’s an optional CVT auto transmission feature that adds £1,000 to the cars’ basic price.

The first mass-produced battery-electric car is produced by economy car giant Nissan and is aptly called Leaf and the Japanese carmaker has sold over 4,000 Leaf models in the U.S. with a total of 3, 894 this June 2011. The automobile giant made announcements that it will keep up with its sales demands in the initial 7 sales areas where the Leaf was first introduced and will soon announce sales regions in the East Coast. Nissan gives us confirmed updates on the models for 2012 and 2013.

2012 Leaf Updates

The 2012 Leaf models will roll out in dealer sites before the end of November according to the topman for sales and marketing strategy, Brendan Jones. All 2012 models will get the so-called package for Cold Weather where the steering wheel, front seats, external rear- mirrors and battery packs are all heated plus a heater feature for the rear.

2013 Leaf Updates

From the standard 240-Volt Level 2 charger, the 2013 models will be equipped with the 6.6 kilowatts version. This will reduce the recharging time needed by the lithium-ion battery. According to product planning director, Mark Perry, upgrading of the charger would take a year or so. This was confirmed by corporate communication’s senior manager, Katherine Zachary, and indeed, the 2013 models will get an upgraded charger.

The 2013 Leaf models would also be released in showrooms in Smyrna in the state of Tennessee. While these are the only updates the car giant has released, it wouldn’t come as a surprise when the future Leaf models would get further equipment upgrades.

The luxury division of Nissan, Infiniti is showing its class as a premier carmaker by giving importantce to the customer experience as much as producing great vehicles. One may argue that it is doing even better in Europe compared to its rivals with the brand just being a newcomer to boot.

Infiniti gives the European market the Black Premium EX which is based on the premium trim EX30d GT that runs on diesel. It is called Black edition primarily because it is finished with metallic Malbec (simply put that is Infiniti’s black paint). The Black Premium EX also features graphite leather clad interiors, a sunroof, a sound system by bose, and alloy rims.

The Black Premium depends on V6 238 PS diesel powerplant. The luxury vehicle by Infiniti was rolled out simultaneoulsy in all their market areas in Europe. The coupe crossover is among the first of its class in the world with a good combo of luxury, refinement, and brute torque of 550 Nm.

The Infiniti Black Premium also comes with a wide array of technologies to boost safety, comfort, and fun while driving.

Now that we have covered about the vehicle, let us talk about the customer experience. Get the Black Premium and you will get an overnight stay in any of the luxury hotels listed with the group of Relais and Chateau. You also get an exclusive membership to the elite Club 5C.

There will only be 500 units of the Black Premium rolling out of the European market. If you are interested, prepare a check for £45,671.

Nissan announced the official prices for the sedan model and hatchback version of the 2011 Versa which have already rolled out to their dealers in the United States. The base model of the Nissan Versa remains at $9,990 but consumers need to shoulder a shipping cost of $750 or $10 higher than last year which makes the list price of the base model $10,740.

The styling and engine of the 2011 Versa is practically unchanged except for the addition and adjustment of certain requirements. The 1.6 Sedan et an ABS or Anti-lock Braking System while the 1.8 S sedan gets an in-dash CD player.

The other models of the 2011 Versa increased: 1.6 sedan Versa goes for $11,240 (up by $160); 1.8 S Versa sedan sells for $13,570 (up by $230); 1.8 S hatchback Versa at $13,520 (up by $130); 1.8 SL Versa Sedan goes for $16,470(up by $130); and 1.8 SL Versa hatchback o $16,900 (up by $130). All of the prices include the shipping charge of $750.

Despite the slight jump in prices, the Nissan Versa still remains as one of the most affordable cars in the US.

The pricing for the 2011 GT-R was officially released by Japanese carmaker recently as they roll out of selected dealerships in the United States. Nissan also announced that they will only be releasing the GT-R Premium and will be eliminating the base model of their sports car as the 2011 model.

The suggested retail price for the Nissan GT-R starts at $84,060 which does not include any license fees and taxes. The current model is just $1,000 more expensive the the GT-R Premium 2010 model.

The second update of the GT-R since it was launched before the end of 2007 features reconfigured suspension and toughened rear bushes to improve the ride comfort.

The designers also installed improved cooling ducts to improve the overall cooling performance of the rear floor portion. The center caps of the wheels were also made slightly darker while the fascias for both ends of the car received a double clear coating.

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The biggest car rental company in the globe, Hertz, has announced that it will be renting out Nissan Leaf models at selected points in Europe and the United States starting 2011.

The Leaf will be an ideal car for driving around the city with its 100-mile range. It will also be good for car pooling programs. It seems that Hertz has a very good idea of the range capabilities of each member of their fleet and it might implement a fast charge system to the Leaf so it will be 80% ready to go in just 30 minutes.

A 24 kilowatt hour battery pack for an electric vehicle usually takes 8 hours of being plugged into a 220-volt outlet to be fully charged. It will take longer if you will be using 110-volt outlets.

The hatchback electric Leaf will initially be rolled out by the Japanese car maker by the end of 2010 and expected to go on full swing by 2012. Buyers will be given a fast charge equipment and a 220-volt charger. Nissan is set to monitor the usage of the Leaf owners.

At present, Nissan is among the most aggressive leaders in producing pure electric vehicles and other environmentally-friendly cars. The Leaf is just one of the four electric vehicles on the drawing board of Nissan. Most car producers will be using gas engines to address the range anxiety factor of pure electric vehicles like how the 2011 Chevrolet is designed.

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Nowadays, small cars do not come cheap as the market has higher demands for well equipped compacts and smaller subcompacts. Small also doesn’t always mean green but there will most likely be a correlation.

Japanese carmaker Nissan reveals plans to bring to the U.S. shore two small cars priced under $10,000. These cars will derive its DNA from the Micra, a mini car sold in parts of Europe and Asia that is smaller than their current Versa.

At the moment Kia’s cheapest in the U.S. is a base version of the 2010 Versa. It has a sticker price kicking off at $9,990 and does well with a 1.6L engine coupled with a 5-speed manual transmission. The car also does not have electric windows and a standard radio.

The base price is just a very good headliner. A car below $10K.

In the U.S., a starting price point of $10K is next to impossible and Nissan might just get a slice of the market which is still trying to recover from an economic meltdown.

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Keeping prices affordable while satisfying the need for speed has never mixed better than the glory days of sports cars from Japanese manufacturers like the Toyota, Mazda, and Nissan. Turbocharging was the name of the game to give consumers great rides like the Supra, the RX-7, and the 300ZX.

Mazda and Toyota are not very keen on making turbocharged speed monsters at the moment but Nissan is considering to resurrect the turbo Z mean machines.

Engineers and designers from Nissan are toying with the idea of using turbocharged powerplants in their next gen vehicles. Leading garages from Europe like that of the VW and BMW, and Ford in North America which have been making waves with their turbocharged vehicles have made Nissan think about the issue.

Nissan’s turbocharged units in the market today are primarily using diesel engines and are relatively focused on their low volume segment like the GT-R. Their series of VQ with 4-cylinder or 6-cylinder engines have variants that are turbocharged.

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