Nissan Australia says it's here to stay amid global struggles
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Amid financial concerns overseas, the Japanese car giant says a longer, up-to-10-year warranty and new models show it does not plan to depart Australian showrooms.
Nissan says it is committed to the Australian market for the long haul amid financial woes overseas – and overnight reports claiming talks with Honda on a proposed global merger may be called off.
Sales of the Japanese brand’s new vehicles grew by 15 per cent last year to 45,284, returning it to the Top 10 sellers list, but it is well down on its record of 79,747 deliveries in 2012.
Nissan has declared it is in ’emergency mode’ overseas as it cuts jobs and delays new models amid slowing sales and profit margins, particularly in its key markets of China and the US.
Insiders have reportedly claimed – prior to news of Nissan’s proposed merger with Honda – the brand has “12 to 14 months” to survive.
MORE: Nissan to reject offer to become a Honda subsidiary as merger talks slow – report
But the boss of Nissan in Australia and New Zealand, Andrew Humberstone, assured local media the brand is not going anywhere in Australia.
“We are here to stay. Nissan as a brand is here to stay. There’s no question of that,” he said at the local media launch for the updated Qashqai SUV.
He acknowledged past management of Nissan in Australia “haven’t got it right”, and the brand “should be in a much better position”, but said a longer warranty, updated models and more competitive prices are planned to turn it around.
“We are launching exceptionally good new products like the Qashqai that you’ve been here today to see and drive, and we’re putting our words into action in terms of … really focusing on customers.
MORE: Nissan Patrol V8 breaks sales record in 2024
“Customer satisfaction, customer experience, and putting our Australian customers first with Australia’s only 10-year warranty, 300,000km programme which is best in class.”
Similar to a 10-year/200,000km program offered by Mitsubishi – but unlike MG’s 10-year/250,000km guarantee – the Nissan warranty requires owners to service at the brand’s dealers.
Should a vehicle be taken outside of the Nissan dealer network, coverage reverts to the previous five-year/unlimited-kilometre assurance – while customers who cover more than 300,000km in the first five years cannot access the warranty extension, no matter where they service.
MORE: Nissan Australia introduces 10-year warranty, applicable even on older cars
Humberstone said four new models are on their way – the next-generation Navara ute, Patrol 4WD, and Leaf electric car, plus the long-delayed Ariya mid-size electric SUV.
Arrival timing for all models except the Patrol is yet to be disclosed, but they are all planned to be “launched” by the end of the 2026 Japanese fiscal year, which concludes March 31, 2027.
Nissan declined to state whether “launched” refers to a global unveiling, or an arrival in Australian showrooms.
“We’ve been here for 91 years,” Humberstone said, referring to the first Nissan imported to Australia in 1934, though the company did not formally sell cars here until some decades later.
MORE: 2025 Nissan Patrol Y63 detailed with GT-R-derived V6 engine
“I think [that] gives us and our customers hopefully a lot of peace. I want to reiterate our commitment to the market. I think it goes without saying that Australia is a really important market for us. We continue to invest in the right products for local customers.”
He said only two other car companies employ more people in Australia than Nissan, which still operates a casting plant in Victoria producing components shipped to factories around the world.
The Japanese car giant claims it has the fifth-largest dealer network of any new-car brand, at about 180 sites – but it is only 10th on the sales charts.
Nissan sales in 2024 grew by 15 per cent, helped by record Patrol Y62 sales – the nameplate’s highest in 20 years, irrespective of generation – and strong demand for the X-Trail SUV.
Humberstone told Drive the company is aiming to hold a 6 per cent share of the market, which would require it to return to about 75,000 annual deliveries – or fifth place on the charts.
Globally, Nissan’s position is less rosy, but it has announced measures to boost profits to better match with possible merger partner Honda.
The Australian executive said new-model development times will be cut from 55 to 30 months, and leadership teams are being restructured.
It includes the appointment of Guillame Cartier, the boss of Nissan’s AMIEO region – which includes Australia, Europe, the Middle East, and more – to a global Chief Performance Officer, which Humberstone said is “effectively number two in the company”.
Nissan Australia sales
- 2024: 45,284
- 2023: 39,376
- 2022: 26,491
- 2021: 41,263
- 2020: 38,323
- 2019: 50,575
- 2018: 40,861
- 2017: 39,167
- 2016: 66,826
- 2015: 66,062
- 2014: 66,025
- 2013: 76,733
- 2012: 79,747 (record)
- 2011: 67,926
- 2010: 62,676
- 2009: 52,901
- 2008: 59,214
- 2007: 60,015
- 2006: 53,392
- 2005: 56,032
- 2004: 63,654
- 2003: 58,568
- 2002: 50,628
- 2001: 43,633
- 2000: 45,867
- 1999: 48,408
- 1998: 45,719
- 1997: 32,322
- 1996: 25,048
Source: Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries.
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