THE legendary Japanese car firm facing collapse has revealed its talks for a “mega-merger” with its rival.
Popular amongst Brits since the sixties, the brand has been the world’s largest motorcycle manufacturer for decades.
Makoto Uchida (left) and Toshihiro Mibe appear to have been in discussion for some time over a potential merger[/caption]
Honda could be re-entering talks with Nissan to create the world’s fourth-biggest car producer but there’s a catch.
According to those close to the chief executive of Nissan, it may require Makoto Uchida to step down before progress can be made between the companies.
Despite the 58-year-old being an advocate for the relationship, his Honda counterpart has reportedly been frustrated by Nissan’s money problems and lack of speed.
It is thought Uchida plans to stay on until 2026 but recent pressure from board members could lead to an earlier exit.
A source told the Financial Times how Honda could be prepared to re-enter discussions of a future with Nissan if the talks were with a different boss.
Nissan remains an attractive business partner due to its capital ties with Mitsubishi Motors and foothold in south-east Asia.
Toshihiro Mibe original opened up about the break-down, describing “regret”.
Although a spokesperson for Honda has revealed business discussions have not been fully ruled out.
The two Japanese car giants have both been framed for their reliability and quality.
Merger talks were originally thought to have been cancelled earlier this month after one senior Nissan official strongly objected to the “rude things” his company had been told.
Nissan has been struggling with sales in recent years, brought about by poor management decisions and a failure to adapt to the growing electric vehicle (EV) market.
Worries have been further exacerbated by the Zero-Emission Vehicle, or ZEV, mandate, requiring 28 per cent of car sales to be electric in 2025 — or face fines of £15,000 for every car they fall short on.
A merger with Honda could cut costs for both companies, but there has been two key reasons behind the collapse in talks.
Firstly, discomfort came from Honda’s demand that Nissan would become its subsidiary, something the latter felt went against previous agreements, reports The Japan News.
Secondly, Honda also told Nissan to restructure its business and abandon its original hybrid vehicle (HV) system, e-Power, in order to adopt Honda’s HV system.
Nissan was previously a top contender for its EV production but recently has struggled to keep up with Toyota and Honda.
The company published its financial outlook for the year ending in March and a net loss of hundreds of millions of pounds has been predicted.
Industry insiders have revealed that Nissan is now open to mergers with other automotive or technology firms.
One of the potential companies is Foxconn, also known as Hon Hai Technology Group.
This follows the 9,000 job losses that were witnessed at Nissan.
Without much-needed support, a Nissan official has claimed that the firm only has “12 to 14 months to survive”.
The brand also runs the UK’s largest car factory in Sunderland but pressure from the Government’s EV sales targets has played a part in Nissan’s woes.
It was previously reported that Uchida spoke to the Prime Minister to raise his concerns about the impact of government rules on the business.
He was also thought to have warned ministers, including Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds, that current rules could pose a direct risk to the Sunderland plans.
Nissan was previously a top contender for its EV production but recently has struggled to keep up with Toyota and Honda[/caption]
