Nissan has been officially present on the Russian market for 30 years. In 2014, a record year for itself, the brand sold 162.3 thousand cars, accounting for 6.9% of the market. Now 117 dealers have to find new work areas.
As it will be
All of the Nissan group’s Russian assets will pass into state ownership in the person of FSUE NAMI, which has already owned a majority stake in AvtoVAZ since Renault gave up its share. Nissan’s Russian assets are the plant itself in St. Petersburg (it has been operating since 2009, Qashqai, X-Trail and Murano were produced there), a research complex at the plant and the headquarters in Moscow.
Everything will be done in the same way as at Renault. The only difference is that Renault does not have the right to buy back its Moscow factory, which was renamed Moskvich – this factory became the property of the Moscow government forever. Renault has the right to buy back its stake in AVTOVAZ. But Nissan has the right to buy back the St. Petersburg plant within six years.
Will production be maintained?
Under the agreement on the transfer of assets to state ownership, Nissan is ceasing all activities in Russia. This means that the Japanese will not supply any components to the factory either. And without the participation of Nissan, it is impossible to produce Nissans in St. Petersburg.
According to the agreements, NAMI must maintain the production profile and personnel. And the profile is passenger car production.
But what to release? Nissans are not possible. Under Arus, a factory was created in Yelabuga. For Lada cars, even the capacity of the Izhevsk plant turned out to be superfluous – so much is simply not needed.
Which options?
There are several options.
- Freeze production.
But even a closed plant must be protected, illuminated, heated. People have to pay salaries – now from the state budget.
- Start by releasing something of yourself.
Sounds like the best, but it’s not a very fast prospect. Because this something doesn’t exist. There are no developed, reserved, or frozen projects that you can take out of the fridge like a frozen chicken and cook quickly in delicious broth.
It takes at least five years to make a fundamentally new car. If we take an already existing platform (for example, Vesta, if AVTOVAZ receives a command from above), then in this case it will take at least three years to create a new car. And again, the most difficult problem with components – even if AVTOVAZ is in a state of constant stress due to their shortage.
- Look for partners on the side who will take on the production of cars in this factory.
An agreement with Nissan makes this possible. Obviously, among the partners there could be either the Chinese (of those who are not afraid of secondary sanctions) or the Iranians. And even this is quite a process: investments are needed, equipment reconfiguration, building supply chains.
Parts & Warranty
AVTOVAZ provides warranty and after-sales service, as well as the supply of spare parts. In Tolyatti they have already got their hands on a similar situation with Renault.
There are about 2.2 million Nissan cars in our country. Of these, about 500 thousand – spent in St. Petersburg.
For many it seems sufficient to put a few signatures on documents for this. But this is a very difficult logistics task – picking up databases and inventory, updating or remaking software, etc. The task is made easier by the fact that Renault and Nissan are part of the same concern, they have a lot in common.
But first, the state must sign an agreement with Nissan – Deputy Prime Minister Denis Manturov said it would happen in November. Then Nissan has to sign an agreement with AVTOVAZ that our auto giant will become the official distributor of spare parts in Russia. And only then do all Nissan dealers, about 120 of them, have to sign a service contract with AVTOVAZ. So it was with the Renault dealers. It takes time. During this transition period, as Renault’s experience has shown, some dealers will behave indecently.
– Do you have a problem with a warranty car? Do you know that Nissan is leaving? So far we can’t help. There are no spare parts, no one reimburses us for this work. But for the money we can fix…
So know: the consumer protection law is on your side. The dealer is obliged to repair your warranty machine. Where he will take spare parts, how he will solve the compensation problems with the manufacturer (Nissan) or with AVTOVAZ – these are his internal problems. Its job is to take delivery of goods of insufficient quality from you (broken during the warranty period) and return you goods of good quality, i.e. repaired. Without any imposition of diagnostics and other noodles on the ears.
If the dealer kicks you out, feel free to file a pre-trial claim – it’s easy, a sample can be downloaded on the Internet. I assure you: in every second case it helps. And if it doesn’t help, go to court. The law is on your side.
According to my information, dealers still have several thousand unsold Nissans. If you’ve been dreaming of Qashqai or Ixtrail, feel free to buy it until it’s taken apart. We have parts, but we do the maintenance.
Who’s next?
Toyota also announced the closure of its own factory in the northern capital. After six months of inactivity, “the company could not come up with an approach that would allow it to return to full-fledged activity.”
Nothing was said about the further fate of the company. Maybe they will try to find a buyer for it, but in the current situation, those who want to can only be found in Chinese companies.
The representative office staff will be significantly reduced, the main task will be to support the dealer network.
Salons for the sale and maintenance of Toyota and Lexus cars will remain open as usual. The decision on their reorganization has not yet been made, but some have already started selling cars imported under gray schemes. In particular, you can buy Toyotas that have never been officially delivered and the latest generation of Lexus LX SUVs that have not had time to get through official channels.
- It became known what novelties AVTOVAZ is preparing.
- “Driving” can be read in viber.