The Nissan Ariya fitted with the brand's third generation ProPilot has 11 cameras, five radar sensors and a next-generation LiDAR.Petrina Gentile/The Globe and Mail
Nissan is on a long, bumpy and winding road to recovery.
After posting massive financial losses, shutting factories worldwide and laying off approximately 20,000 workers, the embattled automaker is in the midst of a sweeping turnaround plan, one focused on affordability, a streamlined product portfolio, models with shared platforms, faster development times and more AI-based technology for in-car and autonomous driving applications.
And while there are signs that the plan is starting to work, Nissan is not out of the woods yet. For the fiscal year that ended in March, the company said it expects a net loss of 550-billion yen ($4.77-billion), an improvement from a previous forecast for a loss of 650-billion yen ($5.64-billion). It will unveil its full-year earnings results on May 13 and said it expects automotive free cash flow to be positive in the second half of fiscal 2025.
Affordability is a top priority, which “we had lost, somewhat,” said Christian Meunier, chairman of Nissan Americas, during a global media event held mid-April at the automaker’s headquarters in Yokohama in which Nissan executives shared their strategies. “It is very important to stay affordable … the bad thing is pricing yourself out of the market and relying on a ton of incentives to compensate.”
However, there’s a fine line between affordability and profitability. “In order to stay affordable, we need to be cost-effective because we need to make money. If our costs are high and we’re affordable, then we don’t make money. And that’s a little bit of what happened in the last few years,” he said.
The LiDAR sensor is mounted on the roof.Petrina Gentile/The Globe and Mail
More cameras and sensors on the front bumper.Petrina Gentile/The Globe and Mail
The view from the inside while using ProPilot.Petrina Gentile/The Globe and Mail
Now, the push is for higher margins. As a result, Nissan is streamlining its lineup, reducing it to 45 vehicles from 56. Executives didn’t specify which models are on the chopping block. Those that remain will have a faster development time and come to market within 30 months, making it easier to adjust to changing consumer demands.
“Every product in the portfolio should contribute something. It could be profit. It could be volume or it could be brand,” said Ivan Espinosa, chief executive officer of Nissan Motor Corporation. “We’re going to gradually start trimming down those products that are low volume, low profit contribution and that don’t have a strategic role in the lineup. We want to be stronger and focus our investment on fewer cars. It’s not a move to cut the investment in product. It’s a move, focusing on fewer cars that are more competitive.”
To improve costs, Nissan is moving toward shared platforms, powertrains and software instead of a model-by-model approach. It’s also reducing trims and unnecessary or complicated technology consumers don’t want.
“Sharing allows us to have that affordability making it possible for us to bring to market products that are exciting,” said Meunier. “We don’t want to be a vanilla brand. We don’t want to do washing machine appliances, but something exciting.”
Those “exciting” products include the return of the Nissan Xterra for 2028, with a starting price of less than $54,000, and an all-new 2027 Nissan Rogue hybrid with e-power technology.
Canada is an important market for Nissan – it’s the company’s fifth largest market worldwide and its largest market without a domestic production facility. In 2025, Nissan sold 109,742 vehicles in Canada – up 6.45 per cent over the prior year.
“Canada has been doing remarkable,” said Meunier. “We’ve grown despite the fact that no U.S. product has been sold in Canada and that was 20 per cent of the volume.”
This year is off to a slower start. In the first quarter, Nissan sold 26,947 vehicles, down 11.29 per cent compared with the first quarter of 2025.
Despite tariff and trade challenges, Nissan is bringing U.S.-made products, such as the Pathfinder and Frontier, back to Canada. For now, its absorbing the added costs from 25-per-cent counter tariffs.
“It’s going to be a pain … It’s going to hurt, but it’s an investment in our future,” said Meunier, who is the former president of Nissan Canada.
The rear of the Ariya prototype shows more of the cameras and sensors.Petrina Gentile/The Globe and Mail
As for Infiniti, Nissan’s luxury arm, four new models will hit the market after the all-new 2027 QX65 SUV: a new mid-size hybrid SUV, a performance-oriented V6 sedan and two large hybrid SUVs. Nissan is also planning a family of models built on a new body-on-frame platform with V6 and new V6 hybrid powertrains.
Nissan is also pushing forward with electrification plans. It is working closely with its joint venture partner, China’s Dongfeng Motor Group, collaborating on electric vehicles such as the NX8 crossover, with massage seats and a panoramic roof, that’s available in China for about US$30,000.
“If there is a way to bring Chinese products at that cost point and at that tech point into Canada, we won’t be left behind,” said Ponz Pandikuthira, senior vice president, chief product and planning officer for Nissan Americas. “China is setting the new standards in the industry on technology, costs and performance.”
Pandikuthira said Nissan has gained valuable insights from Dongfeng regarding the acceleration of technology development, specifically learning how to adopt AI-based in-car innovations, improve cost-cutting measures and autonomous driving. “We are ahead of the wave in terms of autonomous and we are in a good position,” he said.
As for autonomous vehicles, I did a ride-along in an electric Ariya prototype fitted with Nissan’s third-generation ProPilot system, an advanced driver assistant system which is basically a full self-driving vehicle. Technically it can’t be labelled that in North America because of regulatory and liability issues.
We tested the system on the bustling streets of Tokyo where vehicles, pedestrians and bicyclists were all vying for space. With a safety driver behind the wheel and ProPilot engaged, the Ariya prototype set off on a 10-kilometre trek. Fitted with 11 cameras, five radar sensors and a next-generation LiDAR (light detection and ranging) sensor, the cameras provided a 360-degree view of the vehicle’s surroundings, detecting objects and traffic signals, while LiDAR detected objects at greater distances.
The system was incredible – on par with Tesla’s autopilot system, one of the most advanced in the world. The driver never touched the steering wheel or pedal during our 20-minute drive. It was so advanced it could identify cyclists coming toward the vehicle, slow down and navigate around them. There was, however, one minor hiccup. As the vehicle approached an intersection, the traffic light turned red, causing the Ariya to stop in the middle of the light. It then determined there was no oncoming risk of pedestrians and finished proceeding through the intersection. The decision took seconds and I never felt unsafe in the passenger seat.
The ProPilot system will launch on select vehicles in Japan in 2027 before expanding to North America.
The interior of the right-hand drive Ariya in Japan.Petrina Gentile/The Globe and Mail
– with a file from Reuters
The writer was a guest of the automaker. Content was not subject to approval.