By IANS,
Geneva/Chennai : Japanese car major Nissan Motor Company Tuesday confirmed what has been an open secret – its new global compact car Micra will be rolled out from a plant near Chennai for the world market.
“I am pleased to introduce the first of Nissan’s global V-platform vehicles – the all-new Nissan Micra,” Nissan CEO Carlos Ghosn said, launching three new Nissan models at the Geneva International Motor Show.
He said Micra’s new engine will emit 115 grams of CO2. And in six months, a high-tech derivative will emit 95 grams per km.
Company officials have been saying that the car to be rolled out from Nissan’s Indian plant will be a global compact car built on V-platform without sharing the model name.
Besides Micra (March in Japanese), the other models launched by Ghosn were Juke, a crossover in the small car segment, and Leaf, an electric car.
India is one of the four locations from where Nissan will roll out Micra for the global market.
Ghosn said “Nissan is stretching the boundaries with the launch of a vehicle lineup that represents forward-thinking planning… breakthrough engineering… and a strategic investment for Nissan’s future growth.”
The plant at Oragadam near Chennai is owned by Reault Nissan Automotive India Pvt Ltd, a joint venture between Nissan and Renault of France. It will be inaugurated on March 17.
“We are on track to start production of this car in May 2010 and the sales would commence in July 2010. We will also be exporting the Micra to more than 100 countries including 35 countries in Europe from Sept 2010,” said Kiminobu Tokuyama, managing director of Nissan Motor India Private Ltd.
Initially, Nissan will be rolling out three variants of its hatchback and sedan models, as well as a multipurpose vehicle (MPV) from its Indian plant.
It plans to have four imported models and five locally rolled ones, taking the total product portfolio to nine in the Indian market.
Sales of the new Micra will start in Thailand in March and in India in July. European sales will begin in November.