Report: Nissan-Honda Tie-up Didn't Makes It to the First Date

Steph Willems
by Steph Willems

Romance was not in the air when Japanese officials attempted to spark a merger between troubled automaker Nissan and its far healthier rival, Honda, a report in the Financial Times claims.

According to three sources, the effort to bring both automakers to the table — a high-level decision apparently originating in the Japanese Prime Minister’s office — went nowhere. Can anyone imagine a reason why Honda would turn up its nose at such an idea?

The attempt to bring both sides to the table for merger talks reportedly occurred at the end of last year, as Nissan floundered amid financial distress born of falling global sales and brash past decisions. The pandemic that came along early this year didn’t help things and effectively buried the idea. The thinking in Shinzo Abe’s office was that the bad blood between Nissan and alliance partner Renault could lead to a split — a danger that risked leaving “the Japanese company exposed.”

Who better to partner with than unencumbered auto giant Honda? Toyota, it seemed, had too many smaller tie-ups on the go already.

Indeed, FT claims the close relationship between Nissan and Renault and the capital structure they both share was a factor in the idea not getting off the ground. Renault owns a 43.4-percent stake in Nissan, with Nissan holding a 15-percent stake in the former company. As well, the French government holds a 15-percent stake in Renault.

It’s reported that the effort to merge didn’t even make it to the boards of either automaker, with Honda rejecting the idea outright. Nissan preferred to move forward with its own attempts to right the ship and repair the alliance.

In May, the automaker released a four-year plan aimed at solidifying Nissan’s fiscal foundation. The plan would see the automaker shrink in global reach and output; alliance partners Renault and Mitsubishi would also tame their ambitions, focusing instead on the markets and products that show the most promise.

As for the kiboshed merger talks, parts and platform compatibility between Honda and Nissan products would have proven another sticking point.

One former Nissan executive told FT, “A Nissan-Honda merger would only make sense to people who do not understand the car industry.”

[Image: Nissan]

Steph Willems
Steph Willems

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  • Schmitt trigger Schmitt trigger on Aug 17, 2020

    The way things are going with Nissan, the only suitors could well be Gaijin companies. Hyundai would symbolize how far ahead a former Japanese imperial colony has leaped forward.

    • Aquaticko Aquaticko on Aug 17, 2020

      Would make some sense, as the Japanese market remains large and Hyundai has no presence of any kind in it, but it is a shrinking market, and other than that, I don't know what Nissan has to offer Hyundai. Same thing with Mitsubishi.

  • FreedMike FreedMike on Aug 17, 2020

    My first thought is that a Chinese company would be the ideal candidate to link up with Nissan, but I don't think the Japanese government would ever let that happen.

  • MaintenanceCosts It's going to have to go downmarket a bit not to step on the Land Cruiser's toes.
  • Lorenzo Since EVs don't come in for oil changes, their owners don't have their tires rotated regularly, something the dealers would have done. That's the biggest reason they need to buy a new set of tires sooner, not that EVs wear out tires appreciably faster.
  • THX1136 Always liked the Mustang though I've never owned one. I remember my 13 yo self grabbing some Ford literature that Oct which included the brochure for the Mustang. Using my youthful imagination I traced the 'centerfold' photo of the car AND extending the roof line back to turn it into a small wagon version. At the time I thought it would be a cool variant to offer. What was I thinking?!
  • GregLocock That's a bodge, not a solution. Your diff now has bits of broken off metal floating around in it.
  • The Oracle Well, we’re 3-4 years in with the Telluride and right around the time the long term durability issues start to really take hold. This is sad.
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