Nissan thinking about bringing the Micra to the U.S.

[MetroMPG]

Canadian 2015 Micra ("K13" platform)



Next gen Euro Micra 2016 or 17 ("K14" platform)

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Looks like Nissan is considering bringing the Micra to the U.S.:

Micra: Nissan continues to study bringing the Micra minicar to the United States. The Micra now sells in Canada, and its platform is in production in Mexico, yielding other Nissan nameplates. A U.S. entry likely would fall after 2018.

Source: http://www.autonews.com/article/2016...r-of-the-truck

Given the year mentioned, I bet that means they won't do it before the next-gen (K14) Micra platform is in production in Mexico (where the Canadian car is produced alongside the U.S. market Versa sedan and Note).

The next gen Micra is nearly ready for sale for Europe & Japan.


Pro for Nissan: the Micra is kicking Mirage's butt in Canada

Canadian sales, Micra vs. Mirage:

- 2014: 7815 vs. 4048
- 2015: 11,909 vs. 3361
- 2016 (YTD): 5374 vs. 1737

Why is it selling so much better?

- Better & more aggressive marketing: Nissan stole the show and got tons of free media with their $9998 base MSRP bombshell announcement. Mitsubishi instantly offered a $2500 discount on the base Mirage to match the price. GM priced the base 2016 Spark at $9995. But their marketing is weak by comparison to Nissan's

- Nissan has way more dealerships (197 Nissan vs. 74 Mitsubishi in Canada) source (However, when you look at the number of sales per dealership, the cars are essentially even.)

- "Fun" is easier to sell than "responsible": Mirage's main advantages are cerebral (better fuel economy, longer warranty). But the Micra has way more power (109 hp) and much better handling. Nissan Canada even has a dedicated Micra spec race series called the Micra Cup. There will never be a Mirage Cup. Related: (The Mirage is a "buy with your head, not with your heart" type of car. Too bad.)

- Nissan has better brand awareness/image. I bet more regular people know the Nissan name. And people don't constantly wonder if Nissan is going to be pulling out of the market.

- Gas is cheap. If gas were more expensive, and the media/blogs were running frequent stories about "cars with the best MPG" like they usually do when gas is expensive, the Mirage would be getting a lot more exposure than it has been.


Cons for Nissan: why Micra doesn't make sense for the U.S.:

The big thing that doesn't make sense about bringing the Micra to the States is ... the success of the Versa sedan.

It's the best-selling subcompact car in the U.S. and has the lowest MSRP in the country. AND despite falling sales in the car segment (vs. SUV's/crossovers), the Versa has actually been increasing sales for 7 years straight.

Thread: Nissan Versa sedan vs. Note and Mirage G4 sedan. Can Mirage G4 sell like Versa?


The Micra would cannibalize sales of the sedan/Note. The $64,000 question is whether it would raise net sales.

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Related Micra threads:

- Comparison: Mitsubishi Mirage vs. Nissan Micra

- 2015 Nissan Micra vs. 2014 Mitsubishi Mirage - kyleregan.net

- Mirage getting a new competitor in Canada: 2015 Nissan Micra

- Jalopnik Nissan Micra vs Mitsubishi Mirage

- I've got a 2015 Nissan Micra 1.6 for a week. Anything you want to know about it?

- Mitsubishi Mirage vs Nissan Micra (AU)

[inuvik]

Hmmm, maybe they will but I agree that why would Nissan want to screw up their Versa sales? Now I could see Nissan jamming the Micra down Mitsubishi's throat and forcing them to rebadge it as a Mirage. That would be sad, Micra handles better for sure but Mitsubishi makes a far superior engine.

[MetroMPG]

I was trying to figure out the Nissan+Mitsu partnership angle, and I hadn't considered that.

Considering the next gen Mirage is probably due around 2018 (calendar year), that may be a possibility.

Honestly, after driving the Canadian Micra, I'd be happy if Nissan did the platform (handling) and Mitsu did the drivetrain. But I'm afraid Nissan would just want to drop the triple. They have a 1.2L triple in the Micra/March in most other countries, but don't offer it at all on this side of the pond. The only engine here is the 1.6L -- same as what's in the Versa.

[Basic]

That K14 unit is really sharp. If they brought that here with an attractive price tag, and it drives as well as you say it does, I could see myself in that.

[MightyMirageMpg]

Considering the next gen Mirage is probably due around 2018 (calendar year), that may be a possibility.

Why do you expect another generation so quickly?

[MetroMPG]

Well, the current Mirage platform went on sale in 2012 in southeast Asia. 6 years is a typical model duration for many cars, which would put it at 2018. Just a guess though. Mitsu has been stretching some models past 6 years.

[Eggman]

I wonder what the prototypes look liike? They need to sort out any problems with a new platform, so I would expect to see signs of it soon.