Renault-Daimler Tie-Up? Nissan Wants a Threesome
Time to break out the (tasteful) shibari pictures. “Nissan would seriously consider joining a comprehensive tie-up between Renault S.A. and Daimler AG if the alliance they are discussing happens,” says The Nikkei [sub]. With Renault and Nissan tied-up both at the hips and on top, such a move would make more than just sense.
Yesterday saw refreshed rumors of a tête-à-tête between Renault and Daimler. It appears as if plans of joint production of small cars have expanded into discussions of stock swaps.
“If Renault concludes a comprehensive tie-up with Daimler, I suppose Nissan will join the alliance,” said Nissan executive to the Nikkei, while pointing out that Renault has a 44.3 percent stake in Nissan, which procures all its parts with the French automaker. Nissan is also strong in small and electric cars.
The Nikkei is already rearranging the list of the world’s biggest automakers: “Nissan and Renault sold a combined 5.67 million vehicles worldwide last year. Had Daimler’s sales been added, the number would have risen to 7.22 million. This would have made the three-way alliance the world’s third largest last year, behind the Suzuki Motor Corp. Volkswagen combination at 8.59 million, and Toyota Motor Corp. at 7.81 million.”
Cyotto matte, kudasai, (“wait a minute, please”) this is not the way it works. Minority partnerships don’t count, certainly not partnerships of less than 10 percent, as it could be the case here. OICA, the official keeper of worldwide production numbers, doesn’t even count Nissan and Renault as one. On their last published list (for 2008, 2009 isn’t out yet,) they have Nissan at #6 and Renault at
Bertel Schmitt comes back to journalism after taking a 35 year break in advertising and marketing. He ran and owned advertising agencies in Duesseldorf, Germany, and New York City. Volkswagen A.G. was Bertel's most important corporate account. Schmitt's advertising and marketing career touched many corners of the industry with a special focus on automotive products and services. Since 2004, he lives in Japan and China with his wife <a href="http://www.tomokoandbertel.com"> Tomoko </a>. Bertel Schmitt is a founding board member of the <a href="http://www.offshoresuperseries.com"> Offshore Super Series </a>, an American offshore powerboat racing organization. He is co-owner of the racing team Typhoon.
More by Bertel Schmitt
Comments
Join the conversation
All right Steve, thanks for your profound dissertation about German cars, I agree your points are well taken, I had Mercedes in the eighties, and they were fabulous; Now what would you feel would be a good compromise? I had Asian products, they are nice, reliable, but they take most of the fun out of driving, you also know my feel about French machinery, any thoughts of what I should be focusing on, if I want fun to drive and decent reliability?
It's funny... I'm actually in the market right now and I'm trying to figure this out myself. The Mazda3 and the Honda Civic Si are considered the enthusiast's default vehicles in the compact segment. Either can be had for about 20K. Unless you opt for the trubocharged MazdaSpeed 3 for about 25K. Incredible fun. If you need bigger than that, the Mazda6 seems worth trying out on a test drive. Many say it's the most fun to drive among the mid-sized family sedans. Reliability, while acceptable, doesn't seem in the same league with Honda. I have some interest in the Honda Accord Coupe but I haven't driven one yet. The sedan is just too ugly for me. My 2001 Subaru Impreza was fun to drive and I was pleased with the Legacy I rented for a week a couple of years ago. But if you need an automatic in the 2010 Legacy, it's a CVT which saps some of the fun out of it. Subarus with manual trannys can be a lot of fun - especially the turbocharged ones. But know that Subarus, while pretty reliable, still include a few occasional sqeaks and rattles. Many swear by Nissan Altimas - offered in both coupe and sedan form. Manual trannys are offered in both - but the automatics are CVTs. I am also interested in some of Hyundai's newer products, like the Genesis Coupe and even possibly the new 2011 Sonata. I'll have to drive them before judging them. My wife has a 2002 Hyundai Santa Fe that has been 100% reliable. It's not for everyone, but the Ford Mustang - particularly with the new engines coming out for 2011 - gets good reviews. And Ford's reliability has been very good lately. It all depends on whether the Mustang is for you. Speaking of Ford and if you want a sedan, I have to wonder what the Fusion Sport with the 3.5-liter V6 is like to drive. 6-speed automatic only - but it has manual mode. If I could afford it - which I can't - I must admit I'd buy a Cadillac CTS Coupe.
Steve, at the risk of being out of sync, what I would most enjoy is to be able to lease a current model year or a year old car from a dealer and be able to get the feel of it, so I could tell whether it is for me or not. the reason you can't do that, besides the horrendous paperwork and additional costs, is that all cars have nice features, as well as horrible features. And what you like one day may not be what you will like tomorrow, depending on the road, the weather and drivers around you. Cars are getting too complex, if we still drove stick shifts, the Toyota mishap would be a non-event, all you would have had to do would be to step on the clutch. The thing I miss most about my Mercedes was that I knew within an inch where the periphery of my car was, front, back and sides, I could pull up to a car close enough so our rearview mirrors would touch, the Mercedes rear wiew conveniently snapped back and did not get damaged, chrome facing instead of plastic.
What you say is very true.