DETROIT, Feb 4 (Reuters) - Fresh off its success with the Xterra sport
utility vehicle, Nissan Motor Co. Ltd. Is counting on a fresh look for its
compact pickup to continue the Japanese automaker's hot streak in the U.S.
market.
To boost Frontier's appeal for the 2001 model year, Nissan added a
supercharger to the V6 engine to increase horsepower to at least 210 from
170, and overhauled the exterior with a rugged new front and
industrial-looking bolts on the fenders.
Nissan executives acknowledge the current Frontier design was not the
knockout demanded by consumers.
"A truck has to project a tough and rugged image," said Jack Collins,
Nissan North America's director of product strategy. "That's certainly the
heritage of the truck in the North American market."
The Frontier will be one of many new vehicles, including several new
compact pickups, introduced next Wednesday and Thursday during media
previews to the 2000 Chicago Auto Show, one of the biggest auto shows in the
United States. The truck's debut, along with other fresh models from General
Motors Corp. , Ford Motor Co. and Toyota Motor Corp. , comes in a segment
losing sales to sport utility vehicles and bigger pickups.
GM will unveil four-door versions of its Chevrolet S-10 and GMC Sonoma
compact pickups, Ford a refreshened model of its segment-leading Ranger and
Toyota a four-door version of Tacoma.
Others with vehicle debuts scheduled include DaimlerChrysler AG's Dodge
and Mercedes brands, Korea's Hyundai Motor Co and its Kia unit, Japan's
Mazda Motor Corp. and Saab.
Nissan believes the new Frontier, when it goes on sale in August, will
correct mistakes made with the current design, much like Toyota's new Tundra
full-size pickup turned the Japanese automaker into a threat in that segment
last year. (that will be the day)
"Everything we do to sharpen the styling appeal of any of our products
has a cumulative effect for the brand," Collins said.
Nissan entered the compact pickup market under the Datsun name in 1959.
It began building Nissan-branded models at its Smyrna, Tenn., plant in 1983,
and peaked under the Hardbody name in the late 1980s, averaging more than
100,000 sales a year.
The Frontier, which starts at $12,115 including delivery charges, was
introduced in 1997. Last year, Nissan sold 96,301 Frontiers, up 5 percent
from the previous year.
Nissan officials believe the new model may add another 15,000 sales a
year in a shrinking segment. Last year, more than 1.08 million compact
pickups were sold in the United States, generating $2,500 to $6,000 in
profits per truck.
However, the segment's sales are down from the late 1980s, when compact
pickups accounted for more than 1.4 million units, outselling full-size
models. And Nextrend analyst Wesley Brown expects sales to slip further this
year to 1.02 million and below 1 million each of the five years after that.
Full-size pickups and compact SUVs are now growing faster, and sales of
small hybrid vehicles, like Nissan's expected Sport Utility Truck, and SUVs
coming off lease will only further erode the small pickup segment, he said.
The segment has historically appealed to lower-income consumers, but
recent growth has been largely in the four-door and more luxurious models,
with such vehicles as the four-door Dodge Dakota Quad Cab, analysts said.
The new Frontier's front, with its raised hood, is meant to evoke the
image of a "boxing glove," while the fender bolts are meant to make the
consumer think of a power tool, said Diane Allen, a chief designer at
Nissan's U.S. design studio. (more like a tin can)
Analysts said the design will score with younger buyers much like
Xterra. "It's going to make Frontier hip again for younger people,"
Nextrend's Brown said.
Dealers also are excited about the vehicle's potential.
"They've got it right on this truck," said Matt Seamark, general
manager of Mossy Nissan near San Diego. "Bottom line, it looks like a truck
should. It's not a mundane copy of everybody else's."
(no need to race against this one-waste of fuel)
=================================
Steve St.Laurent
2000 DC Dakota 4.7, CC, 4x2, 3:55 (soon 330HP)
2000 Roush Mustang Stage I (awaiting the new SC)
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