Nissan claims it is ‘here to stay’

Nissan Australia claims it is “here to stay”, but it has some industry experts raising their eyebrows.

Nissan Australia claims it is “here to stay”, but can the brand really live up to that promise?

The planned merger between Nissan and Honda is reportedly off, with Honda wanting a controlling stake and Nissan not willing to play second fiddle.

Reports suggest a buyout from Taiwanese tech business Foxconn – the one that makes iPhones – is now on the cards.

MORE: Nissan, Honda reportedly end merger talks

Nissan and Honda’s proposed merger is reportedly on shaky ground. Photo: Richard A. Brooks / AFP

Those big questions around the future of the beleaguered Japanese brand are clearly concerning, but the brand’s Oceania boss, Andrew Humberstone, was on the front foot at a recent media event in Australia, starting proceedings with the exact words: “We are here to stay.”

“I wanted to start today on Nissan at a global level and dare I say at a local level,” Mr Humberstone said.

“There has been lots of media speculation around Nissan of late … so I wanted to set the record straight.

“Number one, we are here to stay. Nissan as a brand is here to stay there is no question of that,” he said.

“We’re working with incredible speed to really implement a turnaround action plan and really focus on recovery.”

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Nissan Oceania managing director Andrew Humberstone. Picture: Supplied

However, we should consider that phrase in a bit more contextual depth.

Holden had a marketing campaign with “here to stay” as the main message back in 2013. That brand is dead, closing up shop in late 2020.

Nissan’s luxury arm, Infiniti, exclaimed the same thing in 2014, before getting out of the market in 2020.

Ford has said it is “here to stay”, too, despite axing local production and clouds looming over the future of its engineering works in Australia.

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Infiniti quit Australia following poor sales.

Citroen said it was here to stay.

It signed off in our market in 2024, after 102 years represented here.

The reality is, as much as car brands work to reassure their local operations and stakeholders that they’re in control of things, big businesses make big decisions, and they don’t make them based on Australian sales operations.

Nissan Australia ran ninth in the sales race in 2024, with 45,284 units sold.

That was an increase of 15.0 per cent compared to the year prior.

But for context, Isuzu Ute – with just the D-Max ute and MU-X SUV – outsold Nissan with 48,172 units.

A little further context: Nissan, globally, posted a solid tally of 3,348,687 units in 2024, down just a smidge on 2023’s total (3,374,374).

Just scraping into the Australian top 10 for sales by brand is one thing, but Nissan has some potentially bigger headaches.

Nissan’s staff levels do not reflect its sales performance.

By its own claims, the brand is the third-biggest employer in the automotive manufacturer space in Australia, and it has the fifth-largest dealer network.

Glass-half-full thinking suggests it could send a message that it needs to improve sales; half-empty means it needs to downsize its operations significantly.

“Our approach is around right-sizing the business,” said Mr Humberstone, “and great revenues through strong product offensives. I don’t believe you can save your way out of a crisis.”

Part of that product offensive are four new models, which the brand promises will be in market by the end of the 2026 Japanese financial year (March 31, 2027).

Those products include an all-new Nissan Leaf electric crossover hatch, the already-five-year-old Ariya electric family SUV, the new-generation Patrol 4x4 SUV, and the next-generation Navara ute range.

Mr Humberstone was visibly excited to talk about the new-generation product in the pipeline, but he couldn’t say anything other than those models are planned to launch in Australia in the coming years.

Further to that, the brand has just bumped its warranty cover to offer what it calls an “industry leading” program – 10 years and 300,000km of warranty cover, but you must service your Nissan with the brand’s official network of workshops to get that maximum warranty plan. If not, you get the existing five-year, unlimited kilometre plan.

“In tough times and in a period where the new car market is full of mixed messages, Nissan

Australia is putting our customers first,” said Michael Hill, director of aftersales for Nissan Oceania.

“It’s designed to deliver peace of mind to our customers. Peace of mind that Nissan has your back. Peace of mind that Nissan is with you for the long term.”