what nissangirl said needs to be heard. we need to buy a billboard in front of the nissan design team's building. i got $5 to start the donation fund lolnissangirl74 wrote:...said the rep for the company that built the Altima, the Maxima, the Murano, the Cross Cabriolet, the Juke, the Cube, and THE FREAKING PATHFINDER with a continuously variable transmission.It was a car designed for a 50-year-old. It’s for a midlife crisis. That’s not what we do.”
Every car you build with four doors and a CVT transmission is built for a 50 year old.
While you might not have built the Z for the over 50 crowd, that's the demographic that's buying. You've completely out-priced the younger segment of the population. They'll buy what they can afford, which is the BR-Z and the FR-S, and they'll love it because both are kick-a** cars and a ton of fun to drive. They'll build relationships with Scion / Toyota and Subaru because they will build cars that people like to drive. When those drivers reach 50, guess what's not gonna happen? They're NOT going to stop at the Nissan dealership and buy a Z. Why not? Because in the first 20 years of their driving experience, Nissan has never built something that was either exciting / affordable to them. They're going to stick with who has given what they've want.
In case you've forgotten, building bland low performance family cars wasn't what made Nissan famous. It was the 510, the Z, and the racing victories of the 1970s. Mr. K. knew what people wanted and he fought to give that to them. You should review your history books because what you built in the past is what made you great. As enthusiasts, we appreciate the cars of the past and that's why we stick around. We're just waiting for you and corporate to build us something to get excited about again. You'd better hurry though. Brand loyalty only lasts so long.
Sounds like MINIBubba1 wrote: - Does it last long enough to make it thru the warranty
I don't fault them for this at all. Both of the cars are exceptional engineering wonders and are amazing to drive. They just happen to be out of reach for much of the population, especially the GT-R. Same reason why they didn't mass produce the Juke-R.skydragoness wrote: I was shocked the Z and GTR were even made/brought back.
I agree 100%, Sky. Given Nissan's disappointing change of focus toward boring CVT-only transportation devices, it does makes one question how sports cars like the Z or GT-R got through their fun prevention department.skydragoness wrote: I was shocked the Z and GTR were even made/brought back.
This. Nissan did a great job of capitalizing on technology disbursement on its lines decades ago. Take the multi-link rear. It was used on every single RWD/AWD Nissan platform. Nissan seems to really compartmentalize the idea of parts-bin development. It was a great, effective cost saver, but I remember reading mismanagement of the strategy lead to Nissan's financial woes in the 90s. Obviously it wasn't the over-pricing of its cars to push them out of reach of their target demographs ($45k Z32 anyone? 25k S13?). So I have a feeling that the push against parts-bin has been a decree from Renault overlords in reaction to misconceptions of why Nissan was on the rocks.krash wrote:And there is absolutely no trickle down into any other cars.
Pansy-a** manumatics! Mine will shift when you tell it to regardless of whether it's a good idea or not--up OR down. I've locked up the rears by dropping a gear too many a little too soon on a few occasions. No harm done...street tires will break traction long before the engine will over-rev.
Nissan President and Chief Executive Carlos Ghosn attributed the weaker than expected performance to a variety of troubles, chief among them weakness in many emerging markets and painfully expensive recalls.
Not mentioned: crappy cars, old designs, a horrible full size pick-up, and no real reason to visit a Nissan dealership.
#not even the GTR- go look how expensive they are now. Now look at what else you can buy for that money. The people with that sort of money probably don't want a GTR. They want a 911, or Audi R series car.
I agree, I can't remember the last Nissan that was interesting enough for me to even consider buying, and I've had 3 new cars in the past 5 years. Their mass market cars just don't have any appeal, the trucks are long forgotten about, and the poor 370Z has been neglected for what seems like decades (I know it hasn't been that long but the interior feels more 90's than current day). They really need to get off of autopilot and figure something out. These days they look more like a second rate Toyota.
Which is sad. The very thing that brought Nissan back from the edge of bankruptcy is what is killing them now. In the late 90s, they needed a beige wave, and they got it. Now all of their cars are faceless and they need to go back to making the unique stuff they did in the early/mid 90s. Take some of the beige profits and breath some life into their appliances.
Amen to this. Well-said.MinisterofDOOM wrote:I do take issue with people bashing Nissan's truck lineup. Nissans CAR lineups (both brands) are increasingly hopeless, but that fact is in stark contrast to the brands' strong, focused truck lineups. Pathfinder rebadge notwithstanding, the Titan, Armada, QX, Xterra, and Frontier are strong contenders despite their age. Titan is still a better truck than the Ram because the Hemi is a big iron hunk of fail. And long-time standout Tacoma is really nowhere near as good as the Frontier anymore. And while Nissan deserves negative marks for going crossover with the Pathfinder, Toyota's hardly doing anything more useful with the 4Runner despite its continued BOF construction. At least Nissan still MAKES a midsize truck and related real-truck SUVs...something only Toyota can also claim these days (FJ Cruiser)
And the QX, once an Escalade-alike in terms of "Wait...you paid $70k for an interior from a Suburban?!?!?!?" is now a genuine luxury truck, if a very ugly one.
AZhitman wrote:Amen to this. Well-said.MinisterofDOOM wrote:I do take issue with people bashing Nissan's truck lineup. Nissans CAR lineups (both brands) are increasingly hopeless, but that fact is in stark contrast to the brands' strong, focused truck lineups. Pathfinder rebadge notwithstanding, the Titan, Armada, QX, Xterra, and Frontier are strong contenders despite their age. Titan is still a better truck than the Ram because the Hemi is a big iron hunk of fail. And long-time standout Tacoma is really nowhere near as good as the Frontier anymore. And while Nissan deserves negative marks for going crossover with the Pathfinder, Toyota's hardly doing anything more useful with the 4Runner despite its continued BOF construction. At least Nissan still MAKES a midsize truck and related real-truck SUVs...something only Toyota can also claim these days (FJ Cruiser)
And the QX, once an Escalade-alike in terms of "Wait...you paid $70k for an interior from a Suburban?!?!?!?" is now a genuine luxury truck, if a very ugly one.
I'm going to assume you're quoting your beloved Consumer Reports, where yet again their conclusions fail to match the reality of actual owners. So, no, I haven't forgotten. I just know better.Bubba1 wrote: Perhaps you guys have forgotten that Nissan's full sized truck line's reliability track record for many years, how can I say this nicely.... was well below it's 4 competitors
MinisterofDOOM wrote:I'm going to assume you're quoting your beloved Consumer Reports, where yet again their conclusions fail to match the reality of actual owners. So, no, I haven't forgotten. I just know better.Bubba1 wrote: Perhaps you guys have forgotten that Nissan's full sized truck line's reliability track record for many years, how can I say this nicely.... was well below it's 4 competitors
Seeing this confirmed a couple things:AZhitman wrote:I wonder if this was what Mr. Palmer was referring to...
(This will be unveiled at the Tokyo Motor Show):
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AjPaNiwmOEQ[/youtube]
I can sum up the design....AZhitman wrote:I wonder if this was what Mr. Palmer was referring to...
(This will be unveiled at the Tokyo Motor Show):
Agreed on all counts. I don't think it'll make production as a topless car, but think o this - if the door (not doors) is traditional, front hinged, 80-degree-opening, then they could cut into the roofline at the top to improve entry / egress. It actually makes a lot of sense.MinisterofDOOM wrote:Is it weird that I like it? It's out there enough that it works. It's not just bad boomerang lights glued on a generic Franco-Japanese bodystyle. It's more like a streetable body on top of the deltawing's wheelbase. The moving center driver seat is pointless without a roof (and likely to crush your passenger's legs as soon as the door is opened).
The wheels are pretty horrible, though.