"One of the most significant announcements in the history of the sport..."

[St00ge]

Originally Posted by formerf1champ

The model Nissan will be using, will be a new car, released in America later this year. Has anyone heard if the car wll be available in Australia?

would be silly if the model wasn't available here if you believe the answers in the Q&A that GTR posted just above where it says that Nissan Australia is responsible for the funding of the effort

[on_to_it]

Originally Posted by GTRMagic

You reckon Todd & Rick may appear in an ad like This

Farmer George

Weren't the ads of the '80s dreadful! The company, the cars and the advertising have come a long way since then.

[porsche91722]

Originally Posted by on_to_it

Weren't the ads of the '80s dreadful! ...........and the advertising have come a long way since then.

Do ya think?

[on_to_it]

Well, they aren't fantastic but they are better than the '80s rubbish. How boring was that?

You're across the ditch though, so I don't know what you see.

[anthony81901]

Originally Posted by GTRMagic

Despite the haters.. Here the Kelly Racing crew have already been to their new partners to show off their V8Supercar hardware

Just like when 888 signed with Holden, the neanderthals who sent hate mail and calls to KR fail to understand that it was that Holden withdrew its support from KR, hence they sought a partnership with another manufacturer. Its one thing to be passionate about supporting a manufacturer, but commercially the decision was a no brainer.

Would be like if you worked for the Westpac and they terminated your employment. If you were then offered a job by ANZ, your not going to turn it down saying 'Sorry I am a Westpac man through and through'.

[AussieTimmeh]

Originally Posted by GTRMagic

Jack Daniels to Stay At Nissan Motorsport Australia

I guess that answers that...

Originally Posted by Article

The Japanese company previously pulled out of a V8 Supercars’ Safety Car program in 2009 after the category signed a deal to place XXXX beer branding on its cars.
...snip...
“Some people might refer back to the fact of alcohol and motor racing … but Jack Daniel’s is a very responsible company. They display a very responsible message across their advertising, including on the cars, about drinking responsibly. That fits well.
“Jack Daniel’s is not an organisation that places the message out there about drinking in a poor manner. it is very responsible, very deliberate, and that is OK with us.”

Boy, does that article say "We think XXXX is an irresponsible alcohol company" or what!

[madman16]

Originally Posted by formerf1champ

The model Nissan will be using, will be a new car, released in America later this year. Has anyone heard if the car wll be available in Australia?

Word has the Altima (if they still call it that in aus) will be released here late 12 or early 13, replacing the current Maxima (not even sure if they still sell it)

In the announcement they said "yet to be released 4 door sedan" which would explain no mock up either

As for the Kelly's "hate mail"....who cares if you lose a couple hundred holden supporters if you gain a thousand nissan ones

[peckstar]

im reading that it will not be the altima.

Nissan are to release a new large car late in 2012 in the USA, to be followed by release in Aust

they consider the Altima to be a medium car

[GTRMagic]

Originally Posted by AussieTimmeh

Boy, does that article say "We think XXXX is an irresponsible alcohol company" or what!

Perhaps.. but lets not forget the last time Nissan provided a Safety Car, the car was in a 'Nissan' brand livery for the first few rounds.. then the car got stuck with the yellow XXXX branding.. deaccentuating the Nissan branding, and highlighting the XXXX branding. Not sure its about responsibility of use of alcohol, or education in reality.

The original design...


Its replacement

[GTRMagic]

Its a Nissan... That's My Car.

[b195]

Originally Posted by peckstar

im reading that it will not be the altima.

Nissan are to release a new large car late in 2012 in the USA, to be followed by release in Aust

they consider the Altima to be a medium car

They would also consider the Maxima a mid-size/medium car too, which I wouldn't. Interestingly here they talk about how the next Altima will come to Australia, and that it might (almost certainly will) kill off the Maxima. They also say how it will be a better fit as it is more 'mid-size/medium' than the current Maxima, which is interesting as the current Maxima is exactly the same size (length, wheelbase) as the current Altima... (and you might expect that the upcoming Altima would get a little larger, as it fights with the Camry in the US to become the US's top selling car - 270 000 vs 310 000 sales last year - definitely meeting the "high volume production" criteria as well!)

It might not be the Altima, I'm just not aware of any "all-new" medium/large cars Nissan is about to release in the near future (the Altima is based on an all-new platform, btw)

On the subject of which car it will or won't be, in a radio interview yesterday on FIVEaa with Leith Forrest and Mike Drewer (Clipsal 500 PR manager), head of Nissan PR Jeff Fisher confirmed it will NOT be the Maxima (and IIRC suggested we'd know what it would be within a month or so), so there's one car we can definitely cross off the list (though there's a good chance Maximas won't be sold here by the start of the 2013 season anyway)

(However, his other comments also suggested the car was or needed to be RWD, which AFAIK doesn't have to be the case and was one of the benefits of CotF - maybe he got himself confused between the road and race car)

[peckstar]

source for what i said, although it is speculation

[thunderbolt]

http://www.nissan.co.jp/EN/lineup.html
cars that could take a v8 engine
teana 3.5L
fuga (3.5L) infiniti
skyline

[b195]

Originally Posted by peckstar

source for what i said, although it is speculation

Thanks. Dan Moreillon's quote "exactly the same sort of thing" tends to suggest it will be a FWD car. And there does seem to be a lot of speculation in that report about this 'new' car, with no sources listed to back it up (and no rumours that I am aware of such a car either, despite me being a daily follower of car news as well as motorsport)

Originally Posted by Dan Thompson, Nissan Australia managing director and CEO, GoAuto, November 2011

“The current Maxima … is a great car but it just hasn’t hit the sweet spot – and it’s about finding that sweet spot. We will be there with the next-gen Altima,” he said.

“Our intent is to have a proper medium-sized car. It’s no secret that the large-car segment is in severe decline, and it makes more sense to try and be more competitive in the medium segment.

“At this stage we’re there with the entry-level Maxima, and it’s nearly at the spot but not quite.

“So we will be there with something with the next-gen car that smacks us down right in the heart of the medium segment. I think that’s where the future success lies."

So with the Altima confirmed to be coming to Australia (and still roughly Maxima-sized, at least based on the size of the current Altima), I'm unsure where this car is supposed to fit in. C/D means it should be between the Tiida/Pulsar and Altima, which is odd because they've just said they're moving smaller with the Altima (though that doesn't necessarily seem to be the case). Now, where they reckon they had no cars before they now will have two (though the size of the current Altima suggests there is room to squeeze another car in).

That Nissan Australia is the one coughing up the $$$ also lends weight to Altima IMO - "I think that’s where the future success lies." But they could quite easily have changed their mind in two months as well :-)

It seems unlikely that it would be RWD though, the only Nissan sedan I can think of that is currently is the Skyline and that's already the same size as the Altima/Maxima.

I can't see a RWD car competing as well as a FWD in the C/D segment on packaging and pricing. The only way it might work is if it shares a platform with a new Silvia, though there is equally little info about a new Silvia as this hypothetical C/D car.

Certainly, it seems implausible the car would be anything bigger than the Altima/Maxima - having said "it’s no secret that the large-car segment is in severe decline", why would you introduce a large car and then why would you spend millions of dollars promoting this vehicle in a segment you have publicly stated was in decline?

I'd like to be right, but I'm quite happy to be wrong. At the moment though, I need more reasons to believe I'm not right before I change my mind

[b195]

Originally Posted by thunderbolt

http://www.nissan.co.jp/EN/lineup.html
cars that could take a v8 engine
teana 3.5L
fuga (3.5L)
skyline

The Teana is our current Maxima. Unfortunately, Nissan's own price guide on that site suggests why it's unlikely to be either the Skyline or the Fuga (the Skyline is possible, but is more expensive than the Teana/Maxima, and the Fuga's pricing starts where the Teana/Maxima ends). I suspect the price gap
would be bigger here because I suspect the Teana sold in Japan is built in Japan (and more expensive as a consequence), whereas our Maximas are from Thailand (and cheaper as a result).

It makes little sense for Nissan Australia to spend money to race a car which you either don't sell here or will sell in insignificant numbers (which the Fuga definitely would, and the Skyline possibly would as well - the likely pricing would probably see to that) unless those insignificant sales are for a 'halo' car like the GT-R (which isn't eligible).

I am assuming that Nissan Australia wants to promote a car as well as a brand - it's not impossible it's just the brand, but why waste an opportunity to give a (hopefully) popular car a kick along at the same time as the brand?

[b195]

BTW, can someone point me to a page where it lists what specifications a car eligible to race under CotF rules must meet? As I understand it must be a four-door sedan (not two-doors, not a coupe, not a hatchback, not a wagon).

I have variously read it can or can't be small (being smaller would be an issue to fit the engine and to get aero parity), that it can be FWD or RWD (or not, though the only real half-opponent was that interview yesterday who may simply have misspoke), whether the car is sold here, how many sales the car must have etc etc.

So if anyone can point me to such requirements that would be appreciated :-)

[thunderbolt]

the infiniti looks close to the same shape as a holden cotf

[bluesport]

Originally Posted by thunderbolt

the infiniti looks close to the same shape as a holden cotf

Just a question.......are hatchbacks allowed? Could be an aero advantage with cleaner air flow to the rear wing.

[Senna05]

What is interesting is the variance in engines they can use - does this now allow Holden and Ford to go hunting for engines that perform better, provide differing characteristics, or even closer match their road cars??

[b195]

Originally Posted by bluesport

Just a question.......are hatchbacks allowed? Could be an aero advantage with cleaner air flow to the rear wing.

As I understand, it has to be a four-door sedan, which was why I was asking for a link to the specs of the CotF to confirm that actually is the case

[b195]

Originally Posted by Senna05

What is interesting is the variance in engines they can use - does this now allow Holden and Ford to go hunting for engines that perform better, provide differing characteristics, or even closer match their road cars??

Possibly, though I assume they would be regulated back to perform equivalent to their current motors, somewhat negating the point (especially as such alternative motors could potentially be even more expensive than what they run now) - this is assuming a) that they could change and b) that the governing body doesn't refuse the alternative engine outright or due to cost/performance reasons.

So unless it was cheaper and regulated to perform the same as the existing powerplants, I don't think they'd get the go ahead (and that's assuming they are allowed to change)

[b195]

I notice that GoAuto the other day said...

"Nissan will use its entry into Australia’s V8 Supercar Championship to launch an all-new American-built large sedan on the local market in 2013"

"using a new unnamed Nissan sedan that is set to be announced globally within months"

"Nissan Australia managing director and CEO Dan Thompson said the new car would be launched in Australia in 2013, with the company’s new V8 Supercar involvement playing a major role in generating excitement about the new product."

"The car that will form the basis of the race car is most likely the Nissan Maxima replacement that Mr Thompson disclosed to GoAuto at the recent North American International Motor Show in Detroit."

This all-new model is expected to use the Nissan-Renault Alliance’s large car platform, that will underpin the next Altima – Nissan’s best-selling car in the United States.

(I notice the first Dan Thompson section doesn't include a direct quote, nor specifically confirm which car they are talking about, so that part is open to interpretation)

So if it's Altima-based, it's FWD (or at least, 99% not RWD). If it's a large car, it's bigger than the Maxima/Altima. The reason they are introducing the Altima here is because it is medium-sized and the Maxima was large (though I beg to differ) and they had no medium-size car and the large-car market is declining.

So then they want to introduce this all-new car to replace a car (Maxima) that is selling not as well as they hoped in a segment they are already in and have stated is in decline? Replacing the Maxima makes some sense, but considering the current car sells 150-200 cars per month and will face competition from the to-be-introduced Altima as well, it doesn't make sense to me for it to be the car you'd use as your basis for your racer... the four NASCAR Sprint Cup racers are each car companies' top selling cars... I suspect you'd find similar correlations with DTM/WTCC/BTCC, even possibly WRC. Only problem is, by this argument, that would mean they should probably be racing Tiidas/Pulsars...

That they call it a large car means it is definitely not C/D segment as CarPoint said - for comparison, IMO, the Mondeo is a D segment car, the Falcon an E (hence the original Mondeo CDW27 and 1988 Falcon's EA26 codenames - both cars have grown a little since) and the Altima/Maxima fall in this size range and is classed as mid-size. A large car would have to be no smaller than the Altima/Maxima, hence a D/E segment car.

[GTRMagic]

American built. Awesome

[on_to_it]

Originally Posted by thunderbolt

the infiniti looks close to the same shape as a holden cotf

Clever eh, you've got Photoshop!

[bluesport]

Originally Posted by b195

As I understand, it has to be a four-door sedan, which was why I was asking for a link to the specs of the CotF to confirm that actually is the case

That infinity is a four door sedan (four door sedan hatch).