Tuesday 18th June 2013

NISMO: PH Blog

Is NISMO an accessories range or a true factory tuner? Nobody seems quite sure, even at Nissan

---

The conversation at the dinner table was on the verge of becoming heated. My colleagues and I were grilling a NISMO marketing man about the sub-brand and its core values. ‘NISMO is the ultimate expression of the Nissan brand,’ we’d been told. Its relaunch in the UK draws on decades of motorsport heritage and the more recent video game fame with advanced technology, dynamic design and an exciting driving experience at its core.

Is this the NISMO the Gran Turismo gen dreamed of?

It all sounds rather promising, but when we consider that Nissan launched the brand first with a lightly breathed upon Juke variant and now with a pricier 370Z that struggles to justify its £10,000 premium, we can only conclude that the new look NISMO isn’t everything we hoped it would be.

When product men get bogged down in inconsequential details during flashy PowerPoint presentations you fear that they don’t have anything really substantial to discuss. The Juke NISMO, we now know, has contrasting stitching and a red band atop the steering wheel.

While some within Nissan seem determined to tout the NISMO brand as the full performance package, the reality is that feels more like a marketing exercise than an engineering-led sub-brand with origins in maverick engineers and skunk works projects.

370Z lives the NISMO dream, at a cost

“NISMO isn’t necessarily for petrolheads,” says marketing manager Edgard Rodriguez, “but for people who want sportier styling and performance without compromising on fuel economy. Nissan’s strategy is to make it accessible to a wider audience.”

It’s a business case, then, and given that Nissan is a commercial concern that’s entirely reasonable. “It’s not intended to be Audi RS or BMW M,” continues Rodriguez. “It’s for a mass audience. You have to look at it from a business perspective.”

It’s a shame that NISMO – a brand I associate, owing to many happy hours spent playing Gran Turismo, with no-compromise performance – is being watered down to little more than a trim line. There’s no doubting, however, that a great many buyers will be drawn in by the body styling, kit levels and sportier dynamics.

NISMO: 'not for petrolheads' says Nissan

How will NISMO maintain any credibility as a performance division, though? Given that Nissan chose not to produce a run of focused, uncompromising performance cars alongside a winning international motorsport campaign over a period of, say, five years before filtering the body styling cues down to the rest of the range in an Audi S Line or BMW M-Sport manner you’d expect that a halo product is needed.

In the coming months we’ll see an R.S. badged Juke NISMO, but soon after that will come a GT-R NISMO, which might be just the ticket. Until that model arrives NISMO is at risk of being diluted.

Dan P

[B10]

So it is Nissan's "S-Line" then.

[Charlie Michael]

That's a shame. I fondly remember playing the GT series and getting excited to drive the 400R.

It was up there with the T.M Evo VI.

[Carl_Docklands]

This will be a repeat of the 'Gordini' farce.

Expect a back-pedal from Nissan in the coming months as the realise what they have done.

Let Nismo deliver the road car we all want to see.

[will261058]

NISMO always used to perk up the interest levels until that Juke thing was thought up, so now its always the one I think of first which kind of spoils it a bit anyway!

[liner33]

Its been little more than the "sports" option at point of sale for quite a while really. My R34 came with a nismo bodykit, few trim bits and exhaust

But the Nismo Z tune 34 GTR has to be one of the sexiest factory specials ever

[toppstuff]

Nissan make some very fine cars indeed, but some of the marketing and strategic decisions seem to be controlled by complete idiots.

I am a potential GT-R buyer. I am personally very attracted to the whole "Japanese tech" thing and I "get" the GT-R in a way that many do not. This car is not the obvious choice - most people would get a fast Audi or a 911.

Go to the UK Nissan site, and the GT-R page is still promoting the 2012 Model Year car, even though the 2013 model ( with some useful enhancements ) has been tested ( and much praised ) by EVO and Autocar. So people read the EVO test, want to know more, go to the Nissan website and all it does it tell you about last years model. Pathetic.

Next rant - the car itself. You have essentially a handful of colour options ( little changed since launch ) and only two effective trim options - Premium or recaro. Frankly, they are so similar there is no point in having both. The "track pack" is just a half hearted attempt at a GT3 and it is frankly a waste of time - just a stiffer suspension, different ( worse looking ) wheels and some truly ghastly coloured seats that still weigh as much as a DFS sofa.

There are few extras. You can't have the massive choice when you look at an Audi , or BMW or Jaguar, for example.

You can't pick different interior trims, you can't pick a "carbon pack" with lots of shiny extras, you simply do not have the choices available compared to buying a Porsche, for example.

This is really, really stupid of Nissan. We all know that people love to tick the options boxes, people love to select different colours, different leathers etc, to personalise the car a little.

Nissan offer NOTHING. You just buy the car, choose from 6 colours or so and that's it.

Nissan launched a GT-R called the Egoist , with the idea that it offered a much improved interior and a lot more colour options. The Egoist ( stupid name by the way ) is on the Nissan website but there is nothing showing any price and, to my knowledge, none have ever made it to the UK. I suspect it was stupidly priced as well. Again, PATHETIC.

The lack of options is PATHETIC ! And a massive missed opportunity in terms of increasing profits.

The GT-R is an epic car. Nissans engineers have achieved miracles. But some of the marketing strategy is hilariously inept.

The NISMO article above tells me that they are not learning ANYTHING.

NISMO should be a up-market personalisation program for sporty Nissan cars. You should be able to select NISMO option such as sports exhausts, special paint options ( bring back some of the iconic Skyline colours like Bayside Blue or Millenium Jade ). NISMO carbon pack would be cool. Lots of NISMO wheel options, some specialist gear for track days so you can make the car more hardcore if you want, etc etc etc..

If Nissan are reading this, let me give you a message:

I love the GT-R, but the marketing of the car is a joke and the lack of options and personalisation available is non-existant compared to your rivals. It is pathetic. Pull your finger out and sort things out.

Rant over.

[M@1975]

Agree with the asbove really. I've owned a huge number of Nissans over the years from an S12 through many versions of the 200sx, 300zx (TT and NA) & had both an R32 (GTS) and an R33 GTR, albeit quite briefly for the latter. I admit I was very into modding and the lure of rare Nismo kit imported from the land of the rising sun was strong, I went out of my way to get relationships with independent Jap garages and with people who ran auction sites to get authentic kit sent over and loved every minute of it. They made great kit, it all fitted and just worked, yes, I paid a premium for factory Nismo stuff for the bragging rights.

Offering some sporty trim and a badge is such a disservice to the brand it is unreal. as mentioned above where is the Nismo option list for the GTR? There simply isnt one, yet get boggo or nothing. How do Nissan miss out on such an obvious opportunity in their flagship petrolhead car?

Now I'm older and a little wiser I'd consider buying something new off the forecourt with a Nismo badge and an appropriate level of tune and hardcore edge but I would not pay the extra for a frankly poor attempt with the 370Z or some trim on the Nismo Joke, the wife would kill me if I bought a GTR, that said she is still very unhappy about the 911 so it's not like I don't have form.

It is also CRIMINAL that you can't get a Bayside Blue GTR these days!

[blackiepaul]

I had a NISMO factory build 350, it was the only one in the UK. A totally stunning car over and above standard - Seam welded, yamaha dampers, proper aero etc it went down lanes in a way neither of my previous Z's could.

[VladD]

So it's more NISMEH than NISMO then.

If the MO stands for Motorsport, then that's what they should deliver. It's seems brand is more important than substance these days. Such a shame.

[AntiguaBill]

toppstuff said:

some whinging

What option do you want? Lots of options surely cost a lot of money to implement in manufacturing, isn't the GTR known for being a bit of a performance bargain? Could that be one way they have used to maximise profits/keep purchase price down, by minimising production cost? I know nothing of the specifics in fairness, I am not defending it as such, but it did sound like you have options, you just don't like them.

I used to LOVE the NISMO 400R, that was the stuff of dreams. Adore the split rim white 5 spokes B)

[havoc]

AntiguaBill said:

toppstuff said:

some whinging

What option do you want? Lots of options surely cost a lot of money to implement in manufacturing, isn't the GTR known for being a bit of a performance bargain? Could that be one way they have used to maximise profits/keep purchase price down, by minimising production cost? I know nothing of the specifics in fairness, I am not defending it as such, but it did sound like you have options, you just don't like them.

Agreed. The D&D/Testing bill (and often worse, the supply chain complexity bill) has to be paid for somehow.

Look at the most successful / respected Japanese performance cars - none of them have majored on the Germanic "option them to death" ethos, usually quite the opposite - "here's the car, you can choose from 6 colours, 2 interior trims and, erm...yeah, well, we saved the trinket D&D budget to help develop that superb suspension, so there is nothing else to choose from!":-

- NSX
- R3x GT-Rs
- Evo VI
- Integra Type R
- RX7


...so I think ToppWhinger isn't the Jap-fan / GT-R fan he claims to be...

[Ruaraidh_Gamma]

Who cares about contrasting stitching??!

Bring back Midnight Purple!!

[El Shafto]

Ruaraidh_Gamma said:

Who cares about contrasting stitching??!

Bring back Midnight Purple!!

Massively +1 to this!

[toppstuff]

havoc said:

...so I think ToppWhinger isn't the Jap-fan / GT-R fan he claims to be...

So, let me get this straight, the idea that customers don't have more choice in specification, colour, the ability to pay more money to Nissan for extras with a healthy profit margin, is somehow spun by you guys to be a good thing?

And let me try and understand the logic that says that making more money per car is somehow going to reduce the engineering integrity of the car? Are you seriously suggesting that denying me the ability to have a Bayside blue R35 if I want one, is somehow because they "saved the trinket D&D budget" for other things?

Presumably the fact that the German cars that compete with Nissan in this sector also sell considerably more, suggests that it is a good job you are'nt running a car company.

I want to buy a GT-R. I can afford one too. But the colour choice and options available are grim.

If I could choose some options from the Nismo catalogue, that would help. But I cannot.

Interesting that all these people buying R8's and 911's (choosing them in volume over the GT-R, which sells poorly in comparison ) are spending a fortune adding 10-20% to the purchase price because they can and they want to, are somehow wrong and you guys are right. Run the logic of that past me again, please....

[britsportscars]

I think this seems to be the way a lot of brands are going. Look at BMW M, and it applies to all kinds of 4x4 type cars as they try to stretch the M brand further. Audi slaps S-line on everything these days and as far as I can tell, this just means a worse ride and "sporty" seats. Also Honda Type R's look like they'll be turbocharged from now on, so basically, all the "driver focussed" brands are being spread thinly and diluted in all kinds of ways to make the company more money at the expense of credibility that has probably taken years to build up. I blogged about it ages ago:

http://www.greatbritishsportscars.net/2010/what-ha...

Nismo is no longer a faster nissan, just a little fashion tag attached to the back. Thats a bit sad in my eyes :'(

[CrisW]

There was a time when the Nismo version of a car was the equivalent of the Evolution version of a homologation car.

For example you had the R32 GTR built to race in touring cars. After a while Nissan wanted to homolagate an aero package and lighter weight parts (e.g. no rear wiper, lighter headlights). This was the Nismo version.

You could also buy Nismo intercoolers, turbos, oil separators etc. As best I have seen the focus of the stuff was motorsport rather than trim panels with a red line on them.

Given the amount of modification of GTRs (R35s) alone a decent range of factory go fast bits. Could be fitted by the HPCs and be covered by the warranty which would be a great inducement to many.

[Carl_Docklands]

I think topstuff was referring to the cherry on top (car options) rather than the cake (Nismo GT-R).

We all know the engineering magic Nismo will be delivering with the GT-R GT3 road-car, it is a given.

It is however, puzzling as to why Nismo cannot be allowed to offer extra bits and bobs in the interim, just like Porsche Exclusive but cheaper.

[Level 7 Boss]

I would imagine that Nissan have concluded that the Nismo brand doesn't add value, potentially the added complexity of adding a manual with various other sports settings impact R&D in a manner that means costs will have to be passed onto the consumer.

I'm disappointed that the Neezmo brand is being diluted, but it's never really been seen in the same vein as The M, RS or even Renault Sports of this world. Are people willing to pay a premium for a factory tuned Nissan?

The fact that their website is hideously outdated is unforgivable

[toppstuff]

AntiguaBill said:

toppstuff said:

some whinging

What option do you want? Lots of options surely cost a lot of money to implement in manufacturing, isn't the GTR known for being a bit of a performance bargain? Could that be one way they have used to maximise profits/keep purchase price down, by minimising production cost? I know nothing of the specifics in fairness, I am not defending it as such, but it did sound like you have options, you just don't like them.

You don't have any options that matter ..

Choice of colour: Red/White/Black/Grey/Silver/Blue. Other than the blue which came it on 2011, the colours have not changed since 2008.

Interior: Black with black trim or black with red trim. There was talk of an all red premium option with diamond stitching but I have only ever seen it on the internet. The dealer looked at me with a blank expression when I asked about the red, because he had no idea at all if it was available or if he could order it. Not a clue. I had to show him the pictures on my ipad.

Wheel options? None

Carbon bits, different trim possibilities? None.

Sports Exhaust? None

Stereo upgrades? None

And if you want one from stock, it had better be white or black. It's all they seem to have.

Sometimes I really don't think Nissan want my business.

I can see why there is such a thriving aftermarket scene for the GT-R. There are artisans everywhere offering the things that Nissan should be offering from new. NISMO could have been a way of doing this. The dealers would have liked it too, because a lot of the work they could have for themselves. Instead , it all goes out to the independents.

[M@1975]

If you look back at the 200SX the Nismo option list was huge, different final drive, oil collers, different diffs, exhaust options, wheels, aero the list goes on. There were Nismo small production runs like the 270R, the 400R etc, The N1 version of the RB26 was legendary and made avaailble to commercial as well as racing buyers in the form of the Z-Tune GTR etc etc, they even made their own kit sold not as Nismo but under the Omori brand (that was and maybe is their factory's home) and Omori stuff is/was cool as hell. I still have a set of Omori guages I can't bring myself to part with just in case I build something that warrants them in the future.

In short Nismo was a proper racing division and can't be allowed to tunr into the sline equivalent.