Japanese auto major Nissan on Wednesday said it is discontinuing Datsun brand in India, nine years after the company kicked off the marque's global relaunch in the country. Having failed in its ambitious global relaunch of Datsun, Nissan had in 2020 discontinued the brand in Russia and Indonesia, the other two countries along with South Africa and India which were marked as key markets targeting the entry level car segment. Confirming the move to discontinue the Datsun brand, Nissan India in a statement said, "Production of Datsun redi-GO has ceased at the Chennai plant (Renault Nissan Automotive India Private Ltd). "Sales of the model still continue (till the stock lasts)."
The company's Datsun Go and Go+ ply in the same category.
The automaker said that production at the Renault Nissan Alliance Plant, where Nissan, Renault and Datsun brands are manufactured, had gone up by 15 per cent and was expected to increase further on the back of increasing export orders.
CEO Carlos Ghosn hopes the Go, which has been primed for the middle class, will help Nissan achieve the goal of capturing 10 per cent of the Indian market by 2016.
Irrespective of the recent performance of Datsun, Nissan is ready to put more resources behind it.
Datsun vehicles will start sales in India, Indonesia, Russia and South Africa from 2014.
Manufacturer Nissan plans to get aggressive with brand communication and increase the number of customer touchpoints through showrooms, experience zones and other initiatives.
Nissan will launch Datsun brand in Indonesia, Russia and South Africa following the India launch.
Datsun GO NXT Limited Festive Edition offers add-ons worth Rs 20,000 at a minimal price increase of just Rs 5,000
The company has a joint manufacturing facility at Oragadam set up with an investment of Rs 4,500 crore (Rs 45 billion).
Nissan Motor India on Friday launched compact multipurpose vehicle Datsun Go+ in New Delhi, with prices starting at Rs 3.79 lakh (ex-showroom Delhi).
Nissan had relaunched the Datsun brand, its third global brand, along side Nissan and Infiniti, in March 2012.
The company has also launched range of accessories starting at Rs 484 and going up to Rs 7,920.
Nissan's affordable hatchback, especially made for India, also has a good drive quality.
They just don't have similar colours, Datsun's marketing campaign too seems be inspired from Maruti Alto 800.
The entry-level car, under the popular Datsun brand, is aimed at tapping the first-time car buyers.
The compact segment makes up for nearly 25 per cent of car sales in India.
The 800cc five-speed manual transmission comes with a fuel economy of 25.17 kmpl
For Nissan, Datsun is something of a legacy brand and the current launch marks its return to the market after nearly three decades.
The four-wheeler appears costlier than it is.
Does the French automaker's insignia help the cleverly packed Kwid to be on the premium side compared to Datsun's humble redi-GO? Both the vehicles underpin the same platform which is pulled by a similar 0.8-litre petrol motor and are made by the same alliance. Read on to find out more!
If you really enjoy driving, then you wouldn't enjoy it; but if you are more practical and want a decently priced car to carry you in relative comfort, you could certainly consider it, says Cyrus Dhabhar.
Customers can also book the Datsun redi-GO online through Snapdeal.com
These risks would be significantly reduced if the cars had to comply with the UN test regulation for frontal and side impact.
The redi-GO will take on Maruti Suzuki's best-seller Alto, Hyundai's Eon, and Renault's Kwid
The car will be available from early next year.
GO is the first Datsun car for the 21st century.
The factory is likely to come up beside the current Renault-Nissan factory at Oragadam, near Chennai, according to reports.
The hatch competes with cars such as Maruti Alto and Hyundai i10.
The Datsun Go+ is an extended Datsun Go with a third row of seats
Datsun Go will be the five door hatchback and is called 'K2' inside Nissan's facility.
Renault Kwid is also the longest of the lot and at 3680mm length, the vehicle may turn out to be the most spacious in its segment.
The company wants to corner 10 per cent market share with both the brands, Nissan and Datsun, contributing half of sales by then.
The hatchback model is christened as K2 and will take inspiration from Micra.
The car holds promise of premium experience at affordable price.
Datsun go + is a great car, offers superb mileage but lacks few features.
The company had started bookings for the hatch for Rs 11,000.
The 1.0-litre Hyundai Eon takes on the Japanese rivals in its segment, the Datsun GO and the Maruti Alto K10.
Japanese auto major Nissan unveiled its compact car redi-GO under the Datsun brand that will hit markets in June.
The new Tata Tigor, Datsun Go and Hero Xtreme 200R are hoping to use celebrity endorsers and gain a foothold in a segment that has been the stronghold of market leaders for several decades. But will it work?