Along with the Titan pickup that will start production later this summer, the Canton facility will also build the upcoming Nissan Pathfinder Armada, a full-sized sport utility vehicle to take on the likes of Ford's Expedition, GM's Tahoe/Yukon and the Toyota Sequoia.
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| The new Canton plant will be able to produce 400,000 Altimas a year. (Photo: Trevor Hofmann, Canadian Auto Press) |
An Infiniti version of the full-size SUV is expected to debut next year, and will possibly be dubbed the QX56 to follow the engine displacement derived numerical designation the brand uses - the truck will also sport the 5.6-L V8. The current QX4, which uses a 3.5-L V6, is to be dropped at the end of this model year.
The new Canton assembly plant has the capacity to produce up to 400,000 vehicles annually, and therefore will be used to build Nissan's popular Altima sedan, that is currently only built at the Smyrna, Tenn. facility, Nissan's first U.S. manufacturing plant.
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| This summer, Nissan's Pathfinder Armada will go head to head with the Ford Expedition, GM Tahoe/Yukon and Toyota Sequoia. (Photo: Nissan) |
It's a positive sign to see such growth by an automaker in what most consider a down market, but obviously one company's gain is another's loss. The Big 3 will without a doubt not only be watching Nissan's progress closely, but will be countering the Japanese offensive with greater diversity in product, creative marketing and aggressive sales incentive programs.
At least for the time being the domestic manufacurers can breathe a sigh of relief that Nissan and Toyota haven't entered into the lucrative heavy-duty 3/4 and 1-ton pickup truck market. But for the former it wouldn't take much to do so, and therefore, most likely will be forthcoming.