Larry Dominique is a vice-president at Nissan North America with a big responsibility — advanced product planning for all the Americas. That means North, Central and South America, a somewhat large piece of real estate with many disparate consumer tastes, demands, and circumstances.
But in a roundtable discussion with a small group of journalists during the recent New York auto show, he exuded confidence and passion for his considerable and ongoing task. While he was tight lipped about specific timing for many upcoming products, he did offer us a great look into Nissan’s upcoming product direction. Here are his thoughts “on” several of the issues and opportunities…
On Brazil…
“Nissan is very different depending on where you stand in the Americas. In Mexico we have a 23 percent share. In the U.S., it’s 8 percent. In Canada, 5 percent. The needs are very different. Brazil has rapidly become the fourth largest market in the world. We’re a 1.3-percent (share) player there now. The largest segment there is a 1.6-litre hatchback… 1.4 million cars. Nissan doesn’t even have a car there yet (but will soon launch the Nissan March into Brazil).”
On Mexico…
“In Mexico, we’re very strong. But our highest-volume vehicles are the lowest price truck, and the lowest price sedan. Our job in Mexico is to build transaction price and brand strength.”
On Canada…
“Canada is not just a clone of the U.S. market. The C segment sedan is a very large segment for you guys. We’re hoping the next-generation Sentra will be a great car for Canada. It’s part of the next 8 launches we said we would do over the next 18 months, starting with the Juke.”
On the next Sentra…
“The original hard points of the current Sentra were not idealized for the Canadian and U.S. markets. It was idealized for Europe, then Europe backed out of the car. The next generation will be wider and not so tall… Sexier… A lot nicer. We’re very excited about it. The vehicle ‘clinic-ed’ very well.”
On separating Sentra and Versa…
“The positioning between Versa sedan and Sentra sedan will be very clear. These segments are very important for Canada, and Nissan has historically under-performed in these segments. The new V platform, which Versa is built on, is an entry-level, low-cost platform. The Sentra will come out on an established platform… NVH and vehicle dynamics are stronger, as they should be…”
On derivatives vs. core models…
“If you have more volume, then you can expand further derivatives, be it coupe or hatchback. The idea is to get that core model in that core segment where we need it to be and put the energy there first. In the U.S. we went from 7 models 10 years ago, to 21 models this year… Three times as many models, less than 50-percent share growth. So we’ve added a lot of diversity, a lot of complexity. I’m trying to clean it up a little bit, so some of the low-volume vehicles may not be replaced. The idea is to focus on those high-volume segments, get those right.”
On the Versa hatchback…
“The new V platform will have three vehicles off it globally. Nissan March (aka Micra in other markets), the new Versa sedan and the replacement for the current Versa hatchback. We made no announcement (i.e. timing), but with the momentum of the platform, you have to think it's not a half a decade away…”
But in a roundtable discussion with a small group of journalists during the recent New York auto show, he exuded confidence and passion for his considerable and ongoing task. While he was tight lipped about specific timing for many upcoming products, he did offer us a great look into Nissan’s upcoming product direction. Here are his thoughts “on” several of the issues and opportunities…
On Brazil…
“Nissan is very different depending on where you stand in the Americas. In Mexico we have a 23 percent share. In the U.S., it’s 8 percent. In Canada, 5 percent. The needs are very different. Brazil has rapidly become the fourth largest market in the world. We’re a 1.3-percent (share) player there now. The largest segment there is a 1.6-litre hatchback… 1.4 million cars. Nissan doesn’t even have a car there yet (but will soon launch the Nissan March into Brazil).”
On Mexico…
“In Mexico, we’re very strong. But our highest-volume vehicles are the lowest price truck, and the lowest price sedan. Our job in Mexico is to build transaction price and brand strength.”
On Canada…
“Canada is not just a clone of the U.S. market. The C segment sedan is a very large segment for you guys. We’re hoping the next-generation Sentra will be a great car for Canada. It’s part of the next 8 launches we said we would do over the next 18 months, starting with the Juke.”
On the next Sentra…
“The original hard points of the current Sentra were not idealized for the Canadian and U.S. markets. It was idealized for Europe, then Europe backed out of the car. The next generation will be wider and not so tall… Sexier… A lot nicer. We’re very excited about it. The vehicle ‘clinic-ed’ very well.”
On separating Sentra and Versa…
“The positioning between Versa sedan and Sentra sedan will be very clear. These segments are very important for Canada, and Nissan has historically under-performed in these segments. The new V platform, which Versa is built on, is an entry-level, low-cost platform. The Sentra will come out on an established platform… NVH and vehicle dynamics are stronger, as they should be…”
On derivatives vs. core models…
“If you have more volume, then you can expand further derivatives, be it coupe or hatchback. The idea is to get that core model in that core segment where we need it to be and put the energy there first. In the U.S. we went from 7 models 10 years ago, to 21 models this year… Three times as many models, less than 50-percent share growth. So we’ve added a lot of diversity, a lot of complexity. I’m trying to clean it up a little bit, so some of the low-volume vehicles may not be replaced. The idea is to focus on those high-volume segments, get those right.”
On the Versa hatchback…
“The new V platform will have three vehicles off it globally. Nissan March (aka Micra in other markets), the new Versa sedan and the replacement for the current Versa hatchback. We made no announcement (i.e. timing), but with the momentum of the platform, you have to think it's not a half a decade away…”