European and Asian Automakers to Build More Cars than Detroit's Big Three in N. America by 2012

According to a new study from financial advisory firm Grant Thornton LLP, European and Asian automakers will churn out more cars in North America than Detroit's 'Big Three' by 2012. The study expects that after the completion of the restructuring of the domestic auto industry, the combined capacity of General Motors, Chrysler Group LLC and Ford in North America will fall by more than 4 million units or a 35 percent reduction compared to 2008, for a total of 7.5 million units in 2012.

At the same time, all other foreign automakers combined are expected to increase their North American production by around 1.5 million a year or 20 percent, to more than 8 million units.

"A new order is emerging where the Detroit companies may no longer be the volume leaders in their home market," said Grant Thornton LLP Principal Kimberly Rodriguez, co-leader of the firm's global automotive practice.

Grant Thornton LLP reports that Volkswagen and BMW will nearly double their combined production, increasing their output capability to around 1 million units a year while Toyota, Honda, Nissan and Hyundai are projected to expand their combined production by 20 percent, or nearly 1 million units.

The study finds that the dramatic shift in production will have a large impact on North American parts suppliers that will need to secure more business from European and Asian makers.

"Suppliers largely dependent on Detroit OEMs will have to present a new value equation to potential customers from Europe and Asia if they want to participate in the accelerated shift that is coming," said Kimberly Rodriguez.

NISMO Nissan 370Z with 350HP Debuts in Japan

Shortly after the release of the NISMO 370Z in the USA, Nissan proceeded to the domestic launch of its factory-tuned Z car. The JDM NISMO 370Z features the same upgrades as its American counterpart including a modified version of the 3.7-liter V6 engine that churns out 350 horsepower compared to the standard car's 332HP. Only difference is that while the US-spec model is offered exclusively with a 6-speed manual gearbox, Japanese buyers may also opt for the 7-speed automatic transmission.

The NISMO package also ads 19-inch alloy wheels shod in 245/40 R19 tires up front and 275/35 R19 at the rear, stiffer suspension and a high-performance brake system.

The coupe's exterior styling is modified with a functional aero kit that includes an extended nose, unique rear fascia, large wing and specific side sills, while the interior is upgraded with a set of sport seats, special door trims and NISMO gauges plus contrasting red stitching on the seats, steering wheel, gearbox knob and handbrake lever.

In Japan, Nissan has priced the NISMO 370Z at 4,935,00 Yen (about $51,400 US) for the 6-speed manual gearbox model and at 5,040,000 Yen (approx $52,500 US) for the automatic version.

Abflug Launches New Aero Kit for Nissan GT-R R35

Adding to the huge variety of performance and styling packages on offer for the Nissan GT-R, Japan's gracelessly named Abflug (unless there's a different meaning in the Japanese language) released a new aero kit for the R35 sports car. The complete package consists of a front lip spoiler, new side skirts, a rear apron housing the diffuser, all finished in black. There's also a carbon fiber rear wing and if we translated correctly, an optional set of new alloy wheels. Full gallery after the jump.

Tokyo Auto Salon 2011: Nissan 350Z Poses as a Porsche Drag Queen with a Panamera Face...

The Tokyo Auto Salon is always a blast featuring all sorts of unique tuning proposals, like this here Porsche wannabe. When our Tokyo show man Phil sent us the above photo, we assumed it pictured a Porsche -possibly a Boxster- wearing some kind of extreme bodykit. We were quickly proved wrong, however, when he sent over an image of the interior as well as short video, and revealed that the Porsche Panamera-faced tune was actually a Nissan 350Z Roadster!

America's Top 10 Selling Vehicles in 2010

The U.S. auto sales numbers for 2010 are out and once again, Ford's F-Series pickup truck has been crowned the best-selling vehicle of the year, a title which it has held for 34 years in a row. According to Autodata Corp., the Dearborn-based brand moved 528,349 units of its F-150 light-duty and F-250, F-350 and F-450 heavy-duty trucks in 2010, recording an impressive increase of 27,7 per cent over 2009.

The Chevrolet Silverado took second place with 370,135 units, or some 158,000 less than the F-Series. Sales of GM's pickup truck were up 16,9 per cent from the previous year. Despite Toyota's recall debacle, the Camry finished third overall earning the title of the best-selling passenger car in the States with 327,804 units, posting an 8.1 per cent drop from 2009. The Honda Accord and Toyota Corolla followed in fourth and fifth positions respectively.

Overall, U.S. automakers had four vehicles on the Top 10 list, while Japanese carmakers took six spots. For more details check out the complete list below that includes percentage changes from 2009.

1. Ford F-Series------------- 528,349 (+27.7%)
2. Chevrolet Silverado ------370,135 (+16.9 %
3. Toyota Camry ------------327,804 (-8.1 %)
4. Honda Accord-------------282,530 (-1.7 %)
5. Toyota Corolla------------ 266,082 (-10.4 %)
6. Honda Civic---------------260,218 (+0.2 %)
7. Nissan Altima-------------229,263 (+12.6 %)
8. Ford Fusion---------------219,219 (+21.3 %)
9. Honda CR-V-------------- 203,714 (+6.5 %)
10. Dodge Ram-------------- 199,652 (+12.6 %)

Nissan Sunny (2012) Details with Pics

On 20th December of last year, just 2 weeks back, Nissan Sunny has been unveiled at the China International Automobile Exhibition, and the restyled global sedan is scheduled to go on sale across the Chinese market starting from this month middle. The car resembles the Maxima, especially at the rear, the 2012 Nissan Sunny comes with refreshed features like new headlamps and taillights, new bumpers, a new interior and new body color choices. The new 2012 Nissan Sunny, small sedan go on sale first in China in the first months 2011 and then gradually, over 170 countries around the world under different names of the vehicle.

A map-class leader in fuel consumption, is the all new Nissan Sunny is expected that young families in the 30s, look for medium sedan, which combines the dynamic high-end space, quality and, with the Sun and appeal of the Nissan brand. The combination of proven 1.5-liter 4-cylinder Nissan Motor HR15DE with two injectors and a new generation Xtronic CVT with additional machines, which are both new to China, Nissan Sunny offers ease of use for city driving, where frequent acceleration and delays, and reduce environmental impact as a leader the projected fuel economy class. MacPherson strut front and torsion beam rear suspension that is used for, if for sporty and agile driving at low speeds and continuous and stable handling at higher speeds. New Nissan Sunny at Huadu plant of Dongfeng Nissan, Guangzhou will be made and will be available from RMB 82.8K 112.8K (€ 1,040,000 – ¥ 1.41million).

Nissan Sunny was introduced in China in 2003 and is significant as a locally-built model of the first of a new partnership Dongfeng Nissan. Nissan Sunny calls it a new global sedan, presumably based on a foundation of the Nisan Micra supermini, something that the striking similarity of the dashboard design could explain, although Nissan’s press release does not mention the Spartan-versa, is one too many styling similarities between the new 2012 Versa sedan. 2012 Nissan Sunny was bullied in the official sketch released car in October 2010.







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Japan’s Economic Future in Doubt: A National Introspective

It’s not been a good year for Japan. China has recently overtaken the Land of the Rising Sun as the world’s second biggest economic power and a recall of over ten million vehicles by one of the nation’s biggest and most respectable companies, Toyota, kicked off a global PR debacle that some analysts predict will take years to recover from.

Add to that Japan’s aging population, its growing national debt and heavy reliance on manufacturing, all of which are effectively killing what was once thought destined to be the world’s leading economic superpower. The departure of its fourth Prime Minister in three years and a nasty diplomatic row with China over the detention of a trawler captain by the Japanese Coast Guard is also hurting.

What’s worse is that Japan’s population is dwindling due to a low fertility rate of just 1.3 children per woman. It is expected that the population will drop from 127 million to just 90 million by 2055, with 40% of that number being over 65s.

As the nation enters its third decade of economic stagnation, university students worry whether they can find steady employment or support their families. A third of Japan’s workforce is temporary workers or “Freeters” that flit from one available job to another. Such workers are unable to qualify for unemployment benefits, and make up more than three-quarters of the nation’s jobless. In these dark times, it’s no wonder -and a sad fact- that more than 30,000 people a year have committed suicides since 1998.

Japan’s Prime Minister, Nato Kan, is aware of the burgeoning crisis. His solution is to open up the country; reducing trade barriers and tariffs and loosening regulations to make the country a more attractive proposition to outside investors. A free trade agreement with the U.S. and other nations, the Trans-Pacific Partnership, is also under consideration. Though it could lead to Japan’s economic revival and cheaper imports, it could also cause significant job losses and social dislocation of the rural classes.

Analysts are convinced that the nation needs to find new growth areas such as green energy, software engineering and health care to help prop up the failing economy. More so, however, Japan needs to change its national mindset. Perceived to be rooted in conformism and census, it is seen by some to be too insular and too slow to change and respond to crisis. Without change, Japan has little hope of a short term recovery.

Of course, this is just one opinion. As always, our readers are encouraged to voice theirs in the comments.

Nissan's Leaf has Game-like Infotainment Screen so you can Beat your Friends at Saving the Environment

Nissan wants drivers of its new Leaf - which didn't seem to take as much time or PR mumbo-jumbo to reach the pavement as Chevy's Volt - to know everything there is to know about their cars and the trips being made in them.

In Nissan's case, trip transparency is provided by a handy-dandy system called CARWING. The program gives drivers a bucket o'information ranging from travel time to electricity consumption and "average energy economy" on daily, weekly, monthly or annual scales.

You can also compete with other owners for best efficiency levels (Bronze, Silver, Gold, and Platinum) thanks to some in-car "gaming". Thanks to MyNissanLeaf member gudy, we've got some screen shots of what the program looks like and some of the info available.

Take a look at the pics below and let us know if this kind of system would be of interest to "normy" car buyers. I'll vote...yes.