Nissan Europe product plan 2025-2028: the Sunderland plant concentrates the production of the best-selling Nissan models in Europe
- Details
Nissan Europe product plan 2025-2028: the Sunderland plant concentrates the production of the best-selling Nissan models in Europe
- The Japanese carmaker Nissan has only one remaining assembly plant in Europe, in Sunderland (England), since the Spanish plants in Barcelona and Avila, as well as the Russian one Saint Petersburg, were closed a few years ago. It is therefore on the Sunderland site that the best-selling Nissan models in Europe are produced, namely the Juke (B-segment SUV) and Qashqai (C-segment SUV) which last year achieved 75,000 sales and 140,000 sales respectively. These two models total 300,000 units produced in a factory which has a production capacity of 450,000 vehicles per year, thus representing two thirds of the factory's capacity in 2023. Nissan therefore intends to increase the production volume of this factory by focusing on electric technologies which will be mounted on the future Juke and Qashqai, in addition to the Leaf which was discontinued in March 2024 and will be renewed next year.
- The Juke and Qashqai are currently only available in thermal, mild-hybrid (MHEV) or full-hybrid (HEV) versions, which means that there is no longer a battery electric version produced in Sunderland today.
- AESC is increasing the capacity of its Sunderland factory to delivery battery cells for 250,000 BEVs per year, but the launch of battery electric vehicles in Nissan Sunderland plant will start from 2025 with the arrival of the future Leaf (2025), the future Juke (2026) then the future Qashqai (2027). However, the electric offensive of Nissan will begin next year with the launch of the future battery electric Micra based on the Renault 5 E-Tech and produced at the French Maubeuge site. Nissan therefore wants to sell 40% of battery electric vehicles in Europe in 2026 (compared to less than 10% in 2023). This is a very ambitious objective, practically unachievable. And Europe would thus be very far ahead of the rest of the world, since Nissan plans to sell only 20% of battery electric vehicles in regions outside Europe, including China.
Chinese carmakers sales in China over 12 months 2023 and 4 months 2024
- Details
Chinese carmakers sales in China over 12 months 2023 and 4 months 2024
Sales of passenger cars from Chinese carmakers by groups (20) and by brands (65) over 12 months 2023 and 4 months 2024
(JV and imports not included)
The French automotive industry has set a target of 900,000 BEV sold in 2027
- Details
The French automotive industry has set a target of 900,000 BEV sold in 2027
- The Strategic Automotive Industry Contract (CSF in French) for 2024-2027 was signed on May 6, 2024, in particular by the government and the PFA (organization representing carmakers and their supply chain). This contract sets a sales target of 900,000 battery electric light vehicles in 2027: 800,000 passenger cars (PC) and 100,000 light utility vehicles (LUV). See axis 4 (page 20) of the strategic contract for the automotive sector signed on May 6, 2024, downloadable at the address below (in French only): https://www.conseil-national-industrie.gouv.fr/files_cni /files/csf/Automobile/1835-strategic-contract-of-the-automobile-sector-light-vehicles-and-heavy-vehicles-2024-2027.pdf
- This sales objective is very ambitious. In 2023, 298,127 battery electric passenger cars were sold in France (16.8% of the French PC market at a level of 1,774,772 PCs) and 25,315 battery electric light utility vehicles (5.6% of the French market at a level of 378,040 LUVs). Inovev's forecasts for the French market for 2027 are 2,244,000 PC+LUV. Taking this market level into account, the government's objectives of BEVs for 2027 result in a market share of 40% of the PC+LUV market. Battery electric passenger cars sales would be multiplied by 2.7 in 4 years (annual growth rate: 30%) and battery electric light utility vehicles sales multiplied by 4 in 4 years (annual growth rate of 40%).
- The signed strategic contract does not indicate how to achieve this objective. But we can assume that the arrival on the market of battery electric models at moderate prices is one of the factors which could accelerate the growth of BEV sales, these future launches being made by European carmakers, but also Japanese, Korean and especially Chinese, the latter being renowned for offering electric models at low prices. This objective will be all the more achievable if subsidies for BEVs continue at least until 2027, because we have seen the impact of stopping subsidies in Germany.
- Note that the Inovev reference scenario shows a level of 900,000 sales only in 2030, and not in 2027 (see curve below)
French carmakers were the biggest beneficiaries from the new ecological bonuses in France
- Details
French carmakers were the biggest beneficiaries from the new ecological bonuses in France
- We observed in a previous Auto-Analysis that the end of ecological bonuses in France on cars imported from outside Europe at the end of 2023 had mainly impacted sales of the Dacia Spring which is imported from China, but also at a lower level, the Tesla Model 3 and MG imported from China. The other models suffered relatively less because their sales volume still remains low at the moment, notably BYD and other not yet known Chinese brands, as well as the Volvo EX30 imported from China with a relative success.
- Which brands have benefited from the end of bonuses in France on cars imported from outside Europe at the end of 2023?
- Even if the hypothesis saying that customers of cars imported from China might postponed their purchase for more than six months or shifted to the purchase of a thermal model, full (FHEV) or plug-in (PHEV) hybrids, what seems to be the most likely is that a good part of these customers have decided to purchase a battery electric vehicle (BEV) produced in Europe and therefore eligible for the ecological bonus.
- In this case and in this case only, we can observe that six brands saw their BEV sales increase suddenly and significantly in France from January 2024: five brands of the Stellantis group (Peugeot, Fiat, Opel, Citroën, Jeep) and Renault, these six brands having been able to benefit from delayed purchases, initially planned for Chinese carmakers models, given that the French BEV market as a whole remained stable between January and April 2024.
Inovev forecasts 75,000 sales per year of the new Opel Frontera SUV
- Details
Inovev forecasts 75,000 sales per year of the new Opel Frontera SUV
- The Stellantis group has just presented the new Frontera SUV (code OV24), positioned between the B and the C segments, which replaces the Crossland and shares most of its body with the recent Citroën C3 Aircross, which has the disadvantage of a real lack distinctive Opel style.
- Compared to the old Crossland, the new Frontera (which takes the name of an Opel SUV from the 90s) is 18 centimeters longer (4.39 m instead of 4.21 m), thus standing out in terms of dimensions to the much more compact Opel Mokka SUV (4.16 m).
- The new Frontera takes up the Small Car platform of the recent Citroën C3 and C3 Aircross, a platform that will also be used by the future Fiat Panda (launched in July 2024). This platform is, remember, a version of the STLA-Small platform which makes it possible to design low-cost cars capable of competing with the Dacia of the Renault group.
- Like the recent C3 Aircross, the Frontera will be offered in a five or seven-seater version. By being at the top of the B-segment in terms of dimensions, at the limit of the C-segment, the new Frontera directly competes the Dacia Jogger and Dacia Duster. The Frontera will be powered by a 1.2 petrol engine of 100 hp (74 kW), a 1.2 mild-hybrid (MHEV) 48V petrol engine of 136 hp (100 kW) and a battery electric motor of 113 hp (83 kW) coupled to a 44 kWh battery similar to the e-C3 which allows a range of around 350 km.
- Inovev forecasts a production of 75,000 units per year at the Slovak Trnava site alongside the Citroën C3 and C3 Aircross (while the Opel Crossland was produced at the Spanish Zaragoza site).
Inovev platforms >