Nissan Eyeing Growth in Sedan Market with New Branding

Nissan is working on letting go of its bargain-brand reputation and eventually regaining significant market share with a couple of upcoming product reboots, executives of the company said in the Los Angeles Auto Show.

Kicking off the automaker’s campaign is the introduction of the redesigned Nissan Sentra scheduled for release in 2020. The reborn model will be joined by 10 other refreshed vehicles by the end of the following year, including an electric crossover.

“New products are going to be critical,” said David Kershaw, Nissan division vice president of sales and regional operations.

The company is also hoping to attract more creditworthy customers by further developing what it calls as “aspirational products.” In doing so, Nissan intends to lessen the need for discounting, which is seen as one of the reasons that have harmed the brand’s image and greatly affected dealer margins.

In the United States, Nissan’s sales through October dropped 6 percent, while its 7.5 percent share of the American market is nowhere near enough to overtake its rivals in Toyota with 12.3 percent market share and Honda with 8.6 percent share. About 30 percent of the automaker’s dealerships in the U.S. are also reportedly losing money, plus another 10 percent merely breaking even.

With the release of the revamped Sentra, along with the other upcoming vehicles, Nissan aims to turn the tide for the brand. The new Sentra compact sedan is reportedly coming with improved power and design in a bid to breathe life to the slowly dying sedan segment. It is powered by a 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine that makes 149 horsepower and is revealed to be riding on a new Nissan platform.

Consumers can expect redesigned crossovers and pickups among the other models set to be released for the upcoming model year that showcase Nissan’s goal to improve its overall market appeal.