Carlos Ghosn, CEO of Japan’s second biggest automaker, wants Nissan’s luxury brand, Infiniti, to have a 10 percent share in the premium segment, which amounts to 500,000 units.
The “Power 88” plan that Ghosn revealed last June calls for the rapid expansion of Infiniti, which is an established player in the U.S. market but almost non-existent in Europe: in 2010 it sold 4,500 units, a tenth of BMW’s January 45,000 sales…
Back in August, we revealed that Infiniti was preparing a small, entry-level premium model to compete with the likes of Audi’s A3 and BMW’s 1-Series, and that it would use another premium carmaker’s help: Mercedes Benz and its newly developed MFA platform employed by the 2012 A-Class.
Now, Autonews reports that the Infiniti’s C-segment model, which was previewed by the Etherea concept at the Geneva Motor Show this past March, will be manufactured in Austria by Magna Steyr.
The Austrian company has a huge experience in manufacturing vehicles for other carmakers. It’s most well-known models are the first-generation BMW X3, the European Jeep Grand Cherokee, the Peugeot RCZ and the Mini Countryman, and of course, Mercedes’ no-frills 4×4, the G-Wagen, which it has built since 1979.
Sources report that the deal, which is expected to be signed next month, stipulates that Magna Steyr will receive many preassembled “complete parts” from Mercedes-Benz .The new model’s annual production will be around 50,000-60,000 units, significantly boosting Infiniti’s global sales.
The entry-level Infiniti will be launched in 2013 and will be based on Mercedes’ MFA new front-wheel drive platform. Tying up with Daimler on April 2010 was Nissan’s first move towards its target, cutting development and production costs for both groups.
Using a sub-contractor and a rather experienced one at that to build a mainstream model means that you can save even more, since you don’t have to retool your existing plants or set up a new one, either of which are much more expensive solutions.
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