Nissan plans to re-launch Datsun brand after a break of 26 long years

Nissan Motor Company, one of the leading automotive companies in the world, took a bold step in 1986 to scrap the name of their compact sport line of vehicles, Datsun for some reason unknown. The decision opened up a Pandora’s Box in the US and Europe as the car enjoyed a great success in those regions. However, recently Nissan CEO Carlos Ghosn announced to revive the brand in the developing countries like India, Indonesia and Russia.

The main reason why Nissan took the step of phasing out Datsun was to revamp the brand recognition of Nissan’s line of vehicle. Many brands that dwelled under the hood of Datsun with the likes Z-Sport were inherited by Nissan. The infamous Fairlady line of compact sports cars is a part of Nissan family.

Although there is no chance of Fairlady to invest back in the resuscitated Datsun brand but according to Ghosn, the new line will undoubtedly boast a host of compact sports cars for the developing regions. Ghosn plans for Datsun to become Nissan’s third global brand, along with Nissan and Infiniti.

By sticking to new models for emerging markets, Nissan most likely can avoid the headaches that it encountered in the United States when Datsun was shown the door in 1981.

Nissan’s decision to rename Datsun as Nissan is considered one of the most memorable brand moves in auto industry history. By then, Datsun had been on the market in the U.S. since 1958, when Nissan sent a pair of executives over to help build sales and brand recognition.

So it was a shock to many owners when the company began the task of converting its American dealerships and badges to Nissan. It was a name well-known in Japan, where its parent company was an industrial powerhouse.

Nissan had little resonance in the U.S., however, and the switch caused tons of confusion among American car buyers, and it took years for people to become accustomed to saying Nissan. Some analysts believe the move probably cost Nissan valuable time in competing with Toyota and Honda.

Depending on how well the new Datsuns do, they could be sold in European and UK markets, but there are no plans for now to put them on sale in the U.S.

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Posted by Usman Khalid on Mar 27 2012. Filed under Automobiles. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.