Motor Authority - blog Category: Armada

Large SUVs and minivans have fallen on the hardest of times in the industry's late downturn, and casualties of the recession mount daily. Today's trio in triage are the Infiniti QX56, Nissan Quest and Nissan Armada.

Nissan today confirmed in an email to Motor Trend that it would be bringing U.S. production of the three large vehicles to an end by 2010. The vehicles are currently built in the U.S. at the Canton, Mississippi plant. Future models of the QX56 and Quest will be built in Japan, but the Armada's future remains in doubt. Similar news regarding the QX56 and Armada had been circulating as early as December of last year.

The missive... Large SUVs and minivans have fallen on the hardest of times in the industry's late downturn, and casualties of the recession mount daily. Today's trio in triage are the Infiniti QX56, Nissan Quest and Nissan Armada. Nissan today confirmed in an email to Motor Trend that it would be bringing U.S. production of the three large vehicles to an end by 2010. The vehicles are currently built in the U.S. at the Canton, Mississippi plant. Future models of the QX56 and Quest will be built in Japan, but the Armada's future remains in doubt. Similar news regarding the QX56 and Armada had been circulating as early as December of last year. The missive from Nissan did not rule out a future for the Armada, but its conspicuous absence from the 'future production' list hints strongly at its cancellation or replacement come the end of this generation. The reason behind the move is no doubt its calumnious fall from favor in 2008, losing 50.4% against 2007 sales. In their place, the new NV-series of commercial vehicles will occupy the Canton plant's capacity. On the brighter side at Nissan/Infiniti, however, new versions of the M, QX and an all-new petrol-electric hybrid model have all been confirmed for production. Just a week ago John Capps, chairman of Infiniti’s National Dealer Advisory Board revealed that the cars had been green-lighted. The hybrid model in particular will be of interest. Branded as an Infiniti vehicle, it will likely do battle with Lexus' recently-released HS 250h dedicated hybrid. Based around a G35 or G37 platform, the car is expected to feature a unique double-clutch system among other innovations. For more on the hybrid, check out the prototype spotted here.Nissan next-generation electric and hybrid prototypesInfiniti launches the 2008 QX56 SUV Read More

Though 2008 started out fairly strong, riding the wave of 2007, it soon became clear that things weren't going to hold up. Few anticipated how sharply the market would drop, however, and that combination of events has led to some interesting best-and-worst results.

Leading the charge as the best-selling vehicle in America, despite the fuel crunch and down economy is the 27-year champ, the Ford F-150, reports Forbes. With 473,933 vehicles sold this year, it's over 40,000 vehicles ahead of the second-place Chevrolet Silverado. The total pickup-truck sales of nearly a million units - for just two models - prove that there's an ongoing need for... Though 2008 started out fairly strong, riding the wave of 2007, it soon became clear that things weren't going to hold up. Few anticipated how sharply the market would drop, however, and that combination of events has led to some interesting best-and-worst results. Leading the charge as the best-selling vehicle in America, despite the fuel crunch and down economy is the 27-year champ, the Ford F-150, reports Forbes. With 473,933 vehicles sold this year, it's over 40,000 vehicles ahead of the second-place Chevrolet Silverado. The total pickup-truck sales of nearly a million units - for just two models - prove that there's an ongoing need for the vehicles despite their somewhat anachronistic casting. Honda's Civic and Accord and the Toyota Camry rounded out the top five spots, however, proving that relatively fuel-efficient vehicles that focus on moving people are also equally necessary, selling a combined 946 million vehicles. The poor-sellers were largely composed of vehicles that haven't found a niche in terms of utility, affordability and style. Crossovers count significantly among the list, as the nascent segment founders in the face of its first real challenge. Working down the list, the fifth worst-selling vehicle in the U.S. in 2008 was the Hummer H2, its blocky obloquy a self-fulfilling prophecy. Chrysler's Pacifica was the fourth-worst selling, preceded by the Mitsubishi Endeavor. Nissan's enormous and fuel-thirsty Armada SUV took second-worst-selling honors, and the least-purchased of all the mass-market vehicles of 2008 was the Hyundai Entourage minivan. What this portends for sales in 2009 is anybody's guess. If 2008 has taught the automotive industry anything, it's that even the best laid plans may often go awry. Read More

Nissan is reportedly phasing out production of a number of its large vehicles at its Mississippi plant, including the Nissan Quest people mover, Nissan Armada SUV and the Armada-based Infiniti QX56. Production in the Mississippi plant will instead focus on a new large vehicle inspired by the NV2500 Concept unveiled just last month.

While Nissan is yet to confirm the demise of its fullsize SUVs, vehicles like the Armada and the Infiniti QX56 have all performed poorly in terms of sales this year, making it more and more likely that they will be dropped soon – plus the fact that strict CAFE regulations are just around the corner.... Nissan is reportedly phasing out production of a number of its large vehicles at its Mississippi plant, including the Nissan Quest people mover, Nissan Armada SUV and the Armada-based Infiniti QX56. Production in the Mississippi plant will instead focus on a new large vehicle inspired by the NV2500 Concept unveiled just last month. While Nissan is yet to confirm the demise of its fullsize SUVs, vehicles like the Armada and the Infiniti QX56 have all performed poorly in terms of sales this year, making it more and more likely that they will be dropped soon – plus the fact that strict CAFE regulations are just around the corner. Currently, the Nissan Armada is selling around half the units it did compared to last year, while the Infiniti QX56's sales are down by over a third for the year to date, reports MotorTrend. Nevertheless, the news could just mean that Nissan will be shifting production of these models to other plants, and that the NV2500 will be joining this lineup. When Nissan unveiled the NV2500 last month, it was described as a preview of the company's entry into the North American Commercial Vehicle (CV) market. Nissan's entrance into the commercial vehicle market may see the Japanese company sacrifice production of its poorly performing consumer SUVs and minivans, however there is still no official word from Nissan regarding this yet.Infiniti launches the 2008 QX56 SUV Read More