A decade ago, there were basically two names in the electric vehicle game: Tesla and Nissan.
Sure, several other car companies were dabbling in hybrids too, some of which would backtrack in later years. But it looked like a Silicon Valley upstart and a Japanese pioneer would be leading the way to a future that depended less on gasoline and more on electricity. Now, as Nissan enters 2025, its future feels less certain than ever. How did it go from leader in the EV and hybrid space to being so behind technologically that it's no longer offering the cars American buyers even want?
That kicks off this Friday edition of Critical Materials, our morning roundup of tech and auto industry news. Make sure to also tune in to today's episode of the Plugged-In Podcast from InsideEVs as well. Also on deck today: Tesla wants the new White House to get rid of a crucial autonomous car safety metric, and Mercedes-Benz gives its vans an electric reset. Let's dig in.
30%: Nissan's Hybrid Woes, Financial Challenges, Possible Chinese Takeover Target
The future is electric. Or at least, electrified. Sales of purely internal combustion vehicles have been in freefall globally since 2017, EV sales are the fastest-growing new car segment, and even if American buyers aren't ready to give up gasoline completely they are flocking to hybrids in droves. And here in the U.S., an automaker that was once a leader in both has nothing to offer those buyers.
Automotive News' Hans Griemel in Japan, one of the best reporters doing it, has a deep dive into Nissan's biggest crisis since its last one. Sales are way down, cash flow is "dwindling," the stock price is tanking, the bond rating is almost junk and nothing looks to relieve pressure next year. According to that story, the appointment of a U.S. executive as the global Chief Financial Officer was not received well internally, due to the company's troubles in its most important market.
And then there's the electrified powertrain issue. Why not deploy the system used in cars like the E-Power Note, which sells well in other markets? Well:
All of it is far later than Nissan had indicated when it declared that hybrid technology would spread to America in high-end vehicles and that e-Power would form the backbone of electrification for a reborn Infiniti premium brand. The company even developed a more powerful system for overseas, including a version that bolts a high-tech turbocharged engine onto the series hybrid.
To hear headquarters tell it, North American executives dropped the ball.
“The U.S. team was not completely convinced that the electrification system was good for their business,” said one former executive involved with the decision-making. “They said U.S. consumers are not ready. It was a conservative approach.”
American product planners begged to differ. The setup didn’t provide enough charge for high-speed, long-distance highways, they said. Moreover, U.S. drivers were vexed by the decoupled feeling between the all-electric acceleration and the on-again, off-again engine generator.
Meanwhile, house-proud engineers in Japan resisted using a better-fit strong hybrid solution, such as the E-Tech setup developed by partner Renault that it could have borrowed.
So the answer instead was to do nothing, and now the Nissan Murano's big technical achievement is that it's getting rid of the V6 for a turbocharged four-cylinder engine. Much like just about every other car company was doing a decade ago. It's not great.
Now, the question becomes this: could a thriving Chinese automaker acquire Nissan and use that as a sideways entry point into the U.S.? Possibly.
Nissan’s U.S. assembly plants and expansive dealer network make it a valuable prize for any Chinese automaker wanting instant access to the world’s most coveted market. The company’s manufacturing know-how is another handy asset.
“A Chinese OEM could be very interested in Nissan,” said Sanshiro Fukao, executive fellow at the Itochu Research Institute’s Center for Industry Research. EV makers such as Nio, Xpeng or BYD could see Nissan as a good partner, as might Taiwan’s Foxconn, the iPhone maker trying to break into the auto business, Fukao said.
Griemel's story is worth a read in full. He reports that a plug-in hybrid Rogue is supposedly coming to the U.S. in late 2025 as well as an extended-range variant. But even those future offerings are years behind schedule.
It's important to note that the lack of electrification isn't the sole reason Nissan is in trouble here. But it's leading to a bigger problem of an uncompelling lineup of cars with a lacking strategy for how to urgently fix it.
60%: Trump Could Kneecap Autonomous Safety Reporting, Doing Tesla A Favor
Tesla is betting the farm on fully autonomous cars and robotaxis. But its autonomous efforts so far have had more issues than just about any other company out there. When you look at the incidents involving Autopilot and Full Self-Driving over the years, it makes General Motors' Cruise (RIP) look like the very model of safety.
Now that CEO Elon Musk has a considerable amount of sway with the incoming Trump administration, the government may "cripple the ability to [...] investigate and regulate the safety of vehicles with automated-driving systems." Here's a scoop from Reuters:
Musk, the world's richest person, spent more than a quarter of a billion dollars helping Trump get elected president in November. Removing the crash-disclosure provision would particularly benefit Tesla, which has reported most of the crashes – more than 1,500 – to federal safety regulators under the program. Tesla has been targeted in National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) investigations, including three stemming from the data.
The recommendation to kill the crash-reporting rule came from a transition team tasked with producing a 100-day strategy for automotive policy. The group called the measure a mandate for "excessive" data collection, the document seen by Reuters shows.
[...] In recent years, Tesla executives discussed with Musk the need to push for scrapping the crash-reporting requirement, according to one of the sources.
But because Biden officials expressed enthusiasm for the program, Tesla executives ultimately concluded that they would need a change in administration to get rid of the requirements, according to the source.
Tesla finds the rules unfair because it believes it reports better data than other automakers, which makes it look like Tesla is responsible for an outsized number of crashes involving advanced driver-assistance systems, one of the sources said.
As I've said before, this is what Musk really wants. While the U.S. is long overdue for a federal framework to govern autonomous cars, one that involves less crash reporting overall seems less than ideal.
90%: A 'New Era' For Mercedes Vans
On a more pleasant note: who doesn't love a good Mercedes-Benz Sprinter van? Those are some of the best out there. Now, as part of this EV 2.0 push (my term, not theirs) Mercedes is taking its van platform electric, the company announced today:
Starting in 2026, Mercedes-Benz Vans will introduce its newly developed, modular and scalable Van Electric Architecture (VAN.EA). With VAN.EA, Mercedes-Benz is shaping a completely new era of vans.
VAN.EA enables a clear distinction between privately positioned vans in the luxury segment and commercial vans in the premium segment. The future model portfolio of privately positioned vans will range from high-end family vehicles and exclusive VIP shuttles to spacious limousines tailored to the most discerning customers. By extending the top-tier of its product portfolio, Mercedes-Benz Vans is defining its unique own segment.
Cool. Looking forward to seeing it.
100%: Should A Chinese Car Company Acquire Nissan?
I try not to leave these with "yes or no" questions because the discussion is more lively when things are nuanced. But is acquiring Nissan's U.S. apparatus, branding and dealer network a good way in for BYD, Xpeng, Nio or the others?
I was at a Nissan-Kia dealer the other day getting some warranty work done on my EV6. The Nissan side, I'm sorry to say, has a kind of funereal vibe these days. That brand needs any help it can get. What if China saves the day?
Contact the author: patrick.george@insideevs.com
