Nissan Still in Minivan Game in 2007

As Chrysler prepares to try to shake up the minivan segment with a new generation of its people-mover coming in September, and with Ford and General Motors exiting the market, Nissan is prepared to ante up for a few more hands.

Nissan will stay a player for now, in what the Japanese automaker sees as a shrinking—but still viable—market, Larry Dominique, Nissan North America vice president in charge of product planning, told Car and Driver in an interview.

The Quest—with a controversial design customers either love or hate—has never sold as well as hoped, even with a fairly comprehensive redesign for 2007. Less than 32,000 units were sold in 2006, down 21 percent from the previous year, and sales are less than 16,000 through June, a one percent dip, according to Ward’s Automotive Reports.

Dominique is a Quest fan. He thinks the minivan just lacked awareness. And while assembly of the next-generation Quest will move to Kyushi, Japan, from Canton, Mississippi, that is at least a couple years out and does not necessarily mean the end of Quest sales in the U.S.

Source : www.caranddriver.com