In the long-established midsummer’s endurance race, Round 6 of SUPER GT the “International POKKA 1000km” event took place on August 24th at Suzuka Circuit (1 lap: 5.807km). Starting from fourth on the grid, the CALSONIC IMPUL GT-R (#12 Tsugio Matsuda/Sebastien Philippe) withstood the severe long-distance and about six hours’ racing to take the win. The NISSAN GT-R has now taken a total of four victories from six races in this season’s SUPER GT.

Setting the 2ND-quickest time in qualifying, the MOTUL AUTECH GT-R (#22 Michael Krumm/Masataka Yanagida/Dominik Schwager) inherited pole position when the #100 NSX had to start from the back, ahead of the 173-lap, 1,000-kilometre event. From the opening lap, veteran driver Michael Krumm led beautifully, handing over to Yanagida from the front as scheduled. Though he temporarily lost the lead due to being blocked by a GT300 car ahead, the team’s deft pit work ensured they soon returned to the head of the field. Krumm and Yanagida alternated driving duties, safeguarding their position until the halfway point of the race. On lap 118, third driver Dominik Schwager got behind the wheel. Soon after, the rear cowl suddenly started to come off the car, making for a very delicate situation. An unscheduled visit to the pits meant that regrettably, the machine fell out of contention for the win. However, the team fought relentlessly to the very end, and with Michael Krumm driving the final stint, reached fourth place at the flag.

Meanwhile, having started from fourth on the grid, the #12 GT-R experienced difficulty with the rear hub in the opening stages of the race, forcing an out-of-sequence pit stop on lap 25. Driver Matsuda went back out on track, returning to hand over to Philippe on lap 62 after having piloted the car since the start of the event. From that point on, the car continued to steadily bring down to the gap to its rivals in front. By lap 87, it was up to 2nd place. As the laps continued, the car strengthened its position in 2nd as Matsuda shortened the gap to the #100 NSX in front. At the car’s final stop on lap 138, Philippe once again took the wheel as the margin to the rival in the lead was reversed. Philippe never gave an inch, rising from 2nd place to the lead position with a calculated drive in front of 37,000 fans, to end his run on the centre step of the podium.

Source: Nissan Motor Co. Ltd.

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Nissan today officially announced the start of production for its first passenger cars - Nissan Livina and Nissan Grand Livina - in Brazil.

Known here as a domestic manufacturer of 4×4 vehicles, including the Frontier, Xterra and New Frontier, Nissan Brazil will now add passenger cars to its manufacturing roster, with sales beginning in 2009. Carlos Ghosn, Nissan’s president and global CEO, made the announcement during his visit to Brazil, together with Thomas Besson, president of Nissan Brazil. The Nissan Livina and Grand Livina currently are marketed worldwide in growing markets such as China, Indonesia and South Africa.

In order to respond to local market needs, the Livina family will be offered for the first time with a dual-fueled engine. This technology allows the customer to use gasoline, ethanol or any combination of both in the Livina.

Successful members of the Nissan global car family, the five-seat Nissan Livina and seven-seat Nissan Grand Livina are ideal for young families, offering versatility and excellent value. The two-row MPV Livina will be available with a 1.6-liter, 16-valve engine or a 1.8-liter, 16-valve engine and automatic or manual transmission. The three-row MPV Grand Livina will have a 1.8-liter, 16-valve engine, with a manual or automatic transmission. Both cars have a bold and modern look inside and out, and provide ample interior space to meet a variety of consumer needs.

Nissan Brazil now competes in segments that represent 17 percent of the total domestic market. With the introduction of the dual-fueled Livina family, Nissan will compete in segments totaling 30 percent of the Brazilian automotive market.

The Nissan Grand Livina and Nissan Livina will be produced in the Renault-Nissan Alliance Plant in the city of São José dos Pinhais, 15 kilometers south of Curitiba, State of Parana. The plant has production capacity to manufacture 50,000 vehicles a year.

Source: Nissan Motor Co. Ltd.

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Suzuki Motor Corporation has established a distributor for Suzuki cars in Brazil. The Brazilian company, SVB Automotores Do Brasil Ltda., will import Suzuki cars from Japan and begin marketing them in October 2008.

Economic stability in Brazil has supported growth in the car market there since 2004; new car registration in Brazil exceeded 2.46 million units in 2007, and continued steady growth is expected.

Brazil is the only BRIC* nation where Suzuki has not had a presence thus far. Through its new partnership with SVB Automotores Do Brasil Ltda., Suzuki looks forward to expanding its business in the years ahead.

Source: Suzuki Motor Corporation

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Nissan Motor Co., Ltd. and PT. Nissan Motor Indonesia will present the “NISSAN TECHNOLOGY SQUARE” event at the Kelapa Gading Mall in Jakarta, Indonesia. The public automotive technologies showcase opens today and runs through August 25.

Indonesia is the second market where we hold this event. After completing its run in Indonesia, the Nissan Technology Square will visit several cities in multiple markets, including Singapore, Malaysia and India, etc.

At the Nissan Technology Square, Nissan will showcase how the company’s automotive technologies address the environment, safety and innovation. Visitors can experience examples of Nissan’s innovation and the future of automobiles through the exhibition, interactive displays and demonstrations.

Nissan chose PIVO2, an environmentally focused, electric urban commuter, as a key communications character for the event. First presented as one of the key concept vehicles at the 2007 Tokyo Motor Show, the vehicle embodies “friendly innovation” to create a new car-driver relationship. As such, PIVO2 serves as an ideal focal point for the Nissan Technology Square, where a quarter scale model of the vehicle will be displayed.

“All of our technologies promise consumers the pleasure of driving based on trust in our environmental, safety and quality technologies — what we call “Trusted Driving Pleasure,” said Mitsuhiko Yamashita, Nissan Executive Vice President. “We hope to deliver our passion for products through the real-world technologies and innovations we build into every Nissan vehicle.”

As part of Nissan’s commitment to supporting education, the event will be held in collaboration with local schools. Hideyuki Sakamoto, Nissan Corporate Vice President, will visit and talk with students about automotive technology, Nissan’s technical development activities and the latest technologies.

The Nissan Technology Square is part of the company’s ongoing communications outreach across Asia, which started with the successful Design Forum in 2007.

Source: Nissan Motor Co. Ltd.

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Mitsubishi Motors Corporation (MMC) announced today that it has signed a letter of intent with Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) covering the use of MMC’s zero-emissions i MiEV electric vehicle for research and demonstration purposes.

According to Tohru Hashimoto, Corporate General Manager of the i MiEV Business Promotion Office of Mitsubishi Motors Corporation, “We are hoping for the opportunity to introduce the small, four-passenger Mitsubishi i MiEV to PG&E’s fleet in the fourth quarter of this year so that we can begin real-world U.S. testing. The joint partnership will yield valuable data and a greater appreciation of the practicality of an all-electric vehicle in California.”

Extensive testing with the i MiEV has taken place over the past two years with seven major utility companies in Japan. The success of these programs quickened the pace and prompted Mitsubishi Motors to begin selling the electric vehicle in the Japan market in summer of 2009.

Through daily use, PG&E will gauge the viability of utilizing all-electric vehicles in its operations and further understand the impact of charging electric vehicles on the electric grid. The testing will provide PG&E and Mitsubishi Motors with vehicle usage data, which will be used to publicly demonstrate and validate the many benefits of dedicated electric vehicles within the California market.

“PG&E has been researching the benefits of electric vehicles since the nineties. Partnering with automakers like Mitsubishi is vital to developing compatible infrastructures to support electric vehicles in the marketplace and ensure responsible integration with the grid,” said Andrew Tang, senior director of smart energy web for PG&E. “By working with Mitsubishi, we will both benefit from a free exchange of electric vehicle information that includes charging infrastructure availability, vehicle data, vehicle commercialization expectations and public feedback.”

The i MiEV electric vehicle, which is based on Mitsubishi’s “i” gasoline-powered mini car on sale in Japan, adapts a zero-emissions state-of-the-art electric drivetrain. A durable 330-volt lithium-ion battery system is located under the floor deck and powers a permanent magnet electric motor. With this packaging, the vehicle offers the same level of interior utility and space as the gasoline version while lowering the center of gravity for more stable handling. The 47 kW electric motor offers improved performance and quicker acceleration over the 64-hp gasoline version.

The advanced lithium-ion battery is developed by Mitsubishi Motors Corporation / Mitsubishi Corporation / GS Yuasa joint venture company, Lithium Energy Japan. LEJ represents the leading edge in battery technology and promises up to 100 miles^*1 of zero emissions, economical driving on a single charge when packaged in the i MiEV. Source: Mitsubishi Motors Corporation

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