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Nissan will not rely on Toyota Hybrid Technology (http://www.autonews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060425/REG/60425009/1003).

James B. Treece - Automotive News – April 25, 2006

http://www.cleanmpg.com/photos/data/501/Nissan_Altima_Hybrid.jpg

TOKYO - Nissan Motor Co.'s purchases of hybrid technology from Toyota Motor Corp. is only a stopgap measure, says CEO Carlos Ghosn.

"I don't think this agreement will go for a very long time," he said Tuesday. "We have other projects and are developing our own technology."

Ghosn made the comments at a press conference to announce Nissan's earnings for the fiscal year that ended March 31.

The company plans to buy components from Toyota to use in a hybrid Altima. Nissan plans to build that car at its plant in Smyrna, Tenn., to go on sale in late 2006 or early 2007.

The hybrid Altima is expected to be sold in only eight states: California, New York, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Rhode Island, Connecticut, Vermont and Maine. The states have adopted California's stringent emissions regulations.

Nissan will have capacity to build 50,000 hybrid Altimas a year but has indicated it does not expect to sell that many. Although the Toyota Prius and the Honda Civic Hybrid have sold well, Toyota and Honda Motor Co. have scaled back their hybrid production plans. Ford Motor Co. is offering 0 percent financing on its hybrid Ford Escape SUV.

"You have to be prudent when all competitors are cutting production or offering incentives" on their hybrid vehicles, Ghosn said.

"Developing a technology and mass-marketing a technology is something very different," said Ghosn, who has criticized hybrids because they are sold at a loss.

In September 2002, Nissan said it would use Toyota's hybrid components to build up to 100,000 vehicles over five years starting in 2006.

Quote from above: {Although the Toyota Prius and the Honda Civic Hybrid have sold well, Toyota and Honda Motor Co. have scaled back their hybrid production plans. Ford Motor Co. is offering 0 percent financing on its hybrid Ford Escape SUV.}

I would not have thought that these manufactures would be doing that. Cutting back on Production.

Gas going up, well honestly way up and they are cutting back on Hybrids. Who would have thought that?

Hi Terry:

___I think some of the non-hybrid manufacturers are doing everything within there sphere of influence to smear the news with the idea that hybrid’s don’t make sense since in actuality; they don’t have anything in the pipeline. Toyota will have more hybrid models then Nissan has total models by 2010. Toyota may be playing games with the supply of Prius II’s for example but they haven’t appeared to cut back other then to control that 8 days supply … With both Toyota and Honda saying they will be cutting the hybrid premium in half (< $1,500 for Honda and < $2,100 for Toyota in the near future), I don’t see how other manufacturers stand a chance of laying back and waiting to see how it all turns out? Most of the PHEV tech comes directly from hybrids themselves and if you don’t own the patents, you either pay for them or you don’t use them. I would not want to be in Ghosn’s shoes 5 + years out.

___Good Luck

___Wayne