The Nissan head office is bringing in the big guns as the Philippines serves as the venue for the regional launch of their latest SUV scheduled for the end of the month. Ashwani Gupta, Senior Vice President, Light Commercial Vehicles Business, as well as other top regional executives shall serve as the host for the regional media flying in for the launch and drive activity.
Nissan is highly invested in their latest all-new 7-seater since it’s the first vehicle from their frame and LCV division to launch under the company’s mid-term plan called Nissan M.O.V.E. to 2022. Part of their mid-term plan’s objectives includes increasing sales by more than 40% by 2022 and becoming a global leader in pickups and frame-based SUVs. Ambitious as the goal may sound, it’s really not that far-fetched since one of every six Nissan Vehicles sold globally is a frame-based vehicle or an LCV, and the company is focused on capturing this division’s full potential.
While the China-specs are out, we’re still not sure which package Nissan Philippines is bringing in for our market. WIll it come with the entire Nissan Intelligent Mobility suite? Will it have the 360-degree around-view monitor like the Navara it shares its platform with? (We think so.) We’re thinking that the 2WD / 4WD option is a throw-in, given our market and the venue they chose to do the initial drive. Pricing will also be crucial since the 7-seater category is one of the most competitive classes in our market.
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Keeping Busy
Since its surprise participation at the 2018 Manila International Auto Show last month ahead of the global reveal in China last month, albeit, under wraps, NPI has been keeping their local unit busy. We’ve seen photos of the Terra doing real-world testing north and south of Luzon, on- and off-road earlier this month making sure their new baby is ready for our roads. It also made a cameo of sorts in all its urban-camo glory at the 2018 Trans Sport Show at the SMX in Pasay City. With one more week before its official launch, who knows where the Terra will show up next?