SINGAPORE: More than 30 years ago, Loh Mah Keong and his then-fiancee bought their first car together just before their wedding: A Nissan Sunny.

At the time, it was a popular model in Singapore. The couple bought theirs secondhand, and it served them well for seven to eight years.

Now 66, Mr Loh has gone on to own six cars, three of which were Nissans.

His favourite was a Sylphy, for its ergonomic features which the research director described as "normally available only in luxury cars”.

His son used the Sylphy to go on weekend dates with his girlfriend, now his wife - and when he bought his first car, it was a Nissan Note.

Even Mr Loh's in-laws have trusted Nissans. They used to own a Teana and now drive an X-Trail.

“Nissan brought the two families closer,” he said.

Mr Loh's current car is a Nissan Qashqai.

But his next is unlikely to be from the Japanese automaker.

He plans to buy an electric vehicle, and finds that Nissan’s options cannot compare with those from Chinese EV companies.

“Nissan is no longer a popular brand here, and I don't see how it can recapture the market in near future,” he said.

In November 2024, Nissan said it was facing a “severe situation” and that it would take “urgent measures” to turn the business around.

Earlier this month, it announced another drop in net revenue for the third quarter of fiscal year 2024, and cut its full-year outlook.

It plans to lower costs by letting go of 2,500 indirect employees, consolidating production lines that will affect manufacturing plants in the United States and Thailand and reducing its global production capacity.

A CENTURY OF HISTORY

If Nissan were a human being, it would be described as old and jaded, said Associate Professor Nitin Pangarkar from the National University of Singapore’s business school.

“They have been doing so much similar stuff over a long period of time without much results."

This wasn’t always the case. In the 1970s, Nissan may even have been considered the cool kid on the block. 

But the start of the Nissan story goes further back to 1910, when one of its three co-founders - Yoshisuke Aikawa - started Tobata Casting, a company that went on to manufacture automobile parts.

Another co-founder, Masujiro Hashimoto, started the Kwaishinsha factory in 1911. Three years later, it produced a car called DAT.

The last co-founder was American engineer William Gorham, whose development of a three-wheeled vehicle attracted the attention of a Japanese businessman who then started the Jitsuyo Jidosha car manufacturer.

The three companies eventually came together through a mix of merger, acquisition and rebranding to officially become Nissan in 1933.

Within the decade, Nissan started to export cars to Asia and Central and South America, while its locally produced automobiles replaced imported counterparts on Japanese roads.

It then partnered United Kingdom automaker Austin Motor after World War II, and began exporting cars to the US under the Datsun brand.

Car ownership was becoming more commonplace at the time, and Nissan benefited.

The company has touted its Datsun Sunny, launched in 1966, as playing a “significant role” in starting the age of private cars in Japan.

“The strategic sticker price with the average income of salaried workers in mind was successful,” Nissan said on its website.

The firm sold 30,000 cars within five months of the Datsun Sunny's launch.

Nissan’s reputation on the auto race track was also on the rise in the 1960s.

In the same year the Datsun Sunny was launched, a race car developed by Japan's Prince Motor won the Japanese Grand Prix, beating out a German Porsche car.

Prince Motor merged with Nissan later in 1966, and under the Nissan brand, took first position in the Japanese Grand Prix of 1968. Porsche came in second, while other Nissan drivers placed third to sixth in that race.

“Nissan’s sporty cars were probably the pioneers among the Japanese (automakers),” said Assoc Prof Nitin of NUS. “They started it, and then everybody jumped on it, so Toyota had its own; Honda had its own.”

FIRST STRUGGLES BY DESIGN

Yet after a decade or so of flourish, Nissan appeared to lose its way.

It was offering vehicles that were viewed as boring and unexciting, especially in the 1980s and 1990s. Reports pointed to uninterested customers and disappointed fans.

In Singapore, Nissan lost its lustre and fell to a mid-tier position, said Assoc Prof Nitin, describing the models then as “very plain”, ordinary and “nothing to sort of get a second look”.

“The customer’s first glance at an automobile of course is heavily reliant on design,” Nissan's senior vice president for global design Alfonso Albaisa said in a 2024 documentary.

Good design leads to customers having the impression of a cutting-edge company and car, including in terms of its engineering, he added.

“Generally, design - I think - is a reflection of the health of the company.”

But back in those times, Nissan's management was cutting out designers from the process while failing to decide on any long-term strategy, a former employee told Time Magazine in 1999.

The ex-Nissan designer went to the US on a work trip in the 1980s but couldn't explain to colleagues there what kinds of cars the company planned to make.

For the fiscal year 1993, Nissan posted its first net loss in decades due to weak demand and unfavourable exchange rates.

Losses widened in 1995 to nearly US$2 billion at the time, but narrowed in 1996.

The company returned to profit in the fiscal year that ended on Mar 31, 1997; then slipped back into losses the next year.

ENTER "LE COST KILLER"

That’s when drastic action was taken. Nissan sold a significant holding to Renault in 1999, and formed an alliance between the two companies.

The French automaker invested 643 billion yen (US$4 billion) in Nissan and took a 36.8 per cent equity stake in the company.

Lebanese-French-Brazilian executive Carlos Ghosn, known as "le cost killer", was appointed chief operating officer of Nissan.

He eventually rose to become chief executive officer and chairman, and led the company for around 20 years before a dramatic arrest that made global headlines.

But before that came his revival plan for Nissan.

Announced in 1999, it would combine initiatives to grow the business with slashing costs and debt by reducing headcount and closing assembly plants.

“While cost-cutting will be the most dramatic and visible part of the plan, we cannot save our way to success,” said Mr Ghosn.

He also outlined moves to invest in new products and expand its range of vehicles.

The goal was to be profitable in the fiscal year 2000, and reach a profit margin of 4.5 per cent two years later.

The plan was successful, and achieved its goal one year ahead of schedule.

Mr Ghosn became an admired figure in Japan and the auto industry, and achieved celebrity status.

In Singapore, the results were noticeable.

According to data from the Land Transport Authority, there were 34,600 Nissan cars in Singapore at the end of 1998. In two years, that figure soared by 38 per cent.

By comparison, the number of Toyota cars grew 10 per cent, even if the Japanese rival remained more popular in terms of absolute figures. 

Another competitor, Honda, saw its car numbers increase by 5 per cent over the same period.

In 2001, Nissan overtook Honda in terms of market share in Singapore, and held that position until 2007.

The company reported record operating profits and an operating profit margin in 2004.

Mr Ghosn continued to introduce other initiatives, but none were as successful as his initial revival plan.

Mitsubishi joined the Nissan-Renault alliance in 2016, and Mr Ghosn stepped down as CEO the following year, keeping his position as chairman.

A POWER VACUUM

In November 2018, Mr Ghosn’s time at Nissan came to an abrupt end. 

He was arriving in Japan on a private jet when prosecutors arrested him on the tarmac on charges of underreporting his compensation.

Days later, the board discharged him as chairman and authorities brought breach of trust charges against him.

Mr Ghosn has repeatedly denied the charges, claiming instead that Nissan executives were worried about the company getting too close to Renault and had plotted to get rid of him. 

He was granted bail in March 2019, but rearrested in April - a move he said was in part because he spoke to the media in the intervening period.

He was released on bail again later in April, but banned from leaving Japan. He also needed permission from the court to see his wife, and was put under strict surveillance.

In late December that year, however, Mr Ghosn pulled off a daring escape.

According to media reports, he left his home in Tokyo and took the train to Osaka. He then hid in a box that would normally contain musical instruments, and was transported to an airport where a private jet awaited.

Mr Ghosn flew to Turkey before taking another plane to Lebanon, where he has remained since. Lebanon doesn't have an extradition treaty with Japan.

Away from the drama and sensational headlines, Nissan has suffered the consequences of Mr Ghosn's downfall.

Some observers have said his strategy for growth was unsustainable anyway, and that it was what led to current problems in the business.

Others said the company hasn't been able to reinvent itself since, but what's certain is that a period of volatility followed.

Mr Hiroto Saikawa, who was CEO when Mr Ghosn was arrested, resigned in September 2019 after accusations of receiving improper payments.

Nissan’s management team was shaken up, with chief performance officer Jose Munoz leaving as well. He's now the president and CEO of Korean carmaker Hyundai.

Profits and sales volumes have dropped, with the COVID-19 pandemic and chip shortage piling on and hammering the auto industry as a whole.

ELECTRIC DISRUPTION

A far greater and longer term challenge lies ahead for Nissan and for that matter, all its traditional counterparts.

The company was once ahead of the pack in the area of electrification. It launched the world’s first mass-produced electric vehicle in 2010 - the Nissan Leaf.

But was it too far ahead of its time?

“Actually, the rise of (electric vehicles) should have been a factor that supports Nissan,” said Mr Vivek Vaidya, a partner at the Frost & Sullivan consultancy.

“Perhaps, by the time the boom in EV came, their product didn’t look fresh enough, didn’t look modern enough.”

Assoc Prof Nitin said Nissan lost steam and didn't capitalise on its advantage. “They had a pretty early model, and of course early models tend to have problems.”

In the meantime, carmakers from China have caught up - and surged ahead - with trendy models, reliable batteries and billions of dollars of government support. 

Both advanced and affordable, Chinese EVs have gobbled up market share and benefited as countries push towards net-zero emissions targets.

Chinese company BYD is one of the world’s largest EV makers, and overtook Tesla by a whisker in 2024.

“The Chinese are a threat to almost everybody, not just Nissan,” said Assoc Prof Nitin. 

SINGAPORE PERCEPTIONS

To be clear, Nissan is still Japan’s No 3 carmaker, and has a market capitalisation of 1.57 trillion yen.

But it has substantial ground to make up on its rivals.

There were 32,000 Nissan cars on Singapore's roads at the end of last year, versus 141,000 Toyotas and 103,000 Hondas.

Mr Benjamin Loo, chief operating officer of the Cartimes Automobile dealer, pointed to perceptions of Toyota cars being reliable and fuel-efficient, and Hondas performing well in general.

He said Nissan owners, meanwhile, have complained of poor fuel consumption and expensive parts.

“From my understanding, a lot of customers started fearing Nissan when it came to their next purchase,” he added. “I believe that Nissan's product planning and designs didn't keep up with competitors in Singapore.”

Korean carmarkers such as Hyundai and Kia have pulled ahead with their lower prices and sleek designs.

Mr Neo Tiam Ting, director of car dealership ThinkOne, said his firm no longer brings in parallel imports of Nissan vehicles.

Their private cars are not as popular as similar options offered by other brands, while their commercial vehicles would be penalised under Singapore’s emissions bandings, he said. 

Mr Kyran Wong, vice-president of international operations at online car marketplace Carro, said Nissans have been priced out of the market. That may be a result of falling volumes and rising costs per vehicle, he added.

“Unfortunately, they’re just more expensive than their peers ... At this point, customers who are looking to buy brand new cars have a lot more options that have more features - including EVs - at a better price point.”

But Mr Wong said buyers can still be interested, when the price is right. “Their e-POWER cars like the Serena and Kicks remain popular family-friendly choices among our customers.”

REVERSING FORTUNES

The EV shift may have accelerated Nissan’s woes, but the company has been on a slow decline, said NUS’ Assoc Prof Nitin.

“They’ve been losing their edge for years,” he said, adding that the brand lacks a distinctive image.

Nissan is also not a clear leader in any market or segment, said Mr Vaidya of Frost & Sullivan.

“They’re always in a 'challenger' position, everywhere they operate,” he said, noting this might explain why it has no clear product strategy.

When the going gets difficult, a firm can double down on a certain market or product and cut off the non-profit making operations to survive.

Mr Vaidya pointed to Suzuki, which is much smaller than Nissan but has a “razor-sharp focus” on smaller cars and is a leader in India. “They have their own turf, which they can defend, which they can use (or) leverage to grow further.”

But for Nissan, it’s not clear what it can focus on, he said. 

Earlier in February, Nissan terminated an agreement to consider integrating its business with Honda, after the latter proposed a structure where Nissan would be a subsidiary. The deal was also criticised over how the two companies were too similar to be complementary.

Honda treated Nissan like a “junior partner” and Nissan didn’t like that, said Assoc Prof Nitin, who researches and has authored books on strategic management and international business.

But he said that would have to be Nissan's role in any decent partnership, and if the company can accept that, "they might find somebody".

Otherwise, Nissan could be one of several legacy automakers to go bust in the next 10 to 15 years.

“The future doesn’t look good, but they might get a white knight, somebody who needs their technological skills. At the right price, maybe somebody will buy them out or partner with them.”

Last week, the Financial Times reported that a Japanese group - including a former prime minister - had drawn up plans for Tesla to invest in Nissan. The group reportedly hopes Tesla will become a strategic investor and potentially take over Nissan's plants in the US.

Taiwanese technology company Foxconn has also been floated as a possible partner. Its chairman has said the aim was to cooperate with Nissan rather than acquire it.

Foxconn has ambitions in the EV sector, and Mr Vaidya noted that it has been trying to get into the carmaking business for a long time.

Securing a foothold in a traditional automaker may give Foxconn access to qualified manpower and a supply chain that's ready to be used, he said.

Nissan declined to comment on a possible partnership with Foxconn. When asked other questions on the company's struggles, the carmaker pointed CNA to previous press releases.

Apart from foreign partnerships, Mr Vaidya said Nissan could seek a financial ally to solely infuse cash – or it could come up with a strategy on its own, after assessing its market position, product line and target customers. 

Nissan is reportedly adopting China's DeepSeek artificial intelligence technology for a new EV model to be launched in the country this year, a step that BYD has taken.

In any case, EV and tech factors mean that Nissan’s current crisis is markedly different from its struggles in the late 1990s, said Mr Vaidya.

It’s like losing your job when you’re 25 years old versus when you’re 55, he said.

The company is forecasting a net loss of 80 billion yen for the fiscal year 2024 - which would mean entering the red for the first time in four years.

Still, don't be too quick to bet against Nissan turning things around, said Mr Vaidya.

"Yes, you are making losses, but that doesn't mean it's the end of the world," the management consultant added. 

"Nissan (is) a company that (has) fighting spirit ... They know how to get out of a difficult situation – because they have done it in the past."