Lots of media speculation, I notice, about a tie-up, maybe even a merger between Honda and Nissan, two of the smaller Japan-based manufacturers. It sort of makes sense, but also doesn’t. The pair are slightly marooned in a world of rapid mergers and mega-brand groups, such as the sprawling Stellantis (Vauxhall, Jeep, Chrysler, Lancia, Alfa Romeo, Opel, Citroen, Peugeot and more) and where even the biggest players have to cooperate and share technology to keep up, with the Chinese lead in electric cars; VW teaming with Ford, for example. Toyota seems to have gobbled up all or part of minor but innovative outfits, such as Suzuki and Subaru. Many also have Chinese brands or owners as partners – Great Wall Motor and BMW, Volvo and Geely. As in previous decades, but now driven by the costs of retooling for the transition to electrics, every car company needs friends and allies.
Indeed, Nissan had a long-running but not entirely harmonious alliance with Renault called, imaginatively enough, “Alliance”, and both made, albeit largely independently, huge steps forward in electric vehicles. But while Renault is pressing on at pace, Nissan seems to have gone from a market leader when it was making the Nissan Leaf, to a bit of a laggard now. Leaf production is finished for now, and only the seldom-seen upmarket Ariya offers the Nissan customer “proper” electric propulsion.
