Jalopnik: carlos ghosn

Carlos Ghosn Auditions For Third Base Coach Job

Matt Hardigree — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 14:30:00 EDT

Nissan CEO Carlos Ghosn is always visually entertaining. He's also made a huge gamble on electric cars but, if it doesn't work out, he can always be a third base coach.

Photo Credit: FREDERIC J. BROWN/AFP/Getty Images

Carlos Ghosn —

Ray Wert — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 16:45:00 EDT

Answering the question from two-time Israeli Prime Minister Shimon Peres of what the Nissan-Renault CEO thought about hybrids. [Mediaite]

Nissan To Sell Pure Electric Cars In Oregon

Matt Hardigree — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 17:45:00 EST

Nissan will begin selling electric cars in Oregon state as early as 2010, according to a statement by Nissan-Renault CEO Carlos Ghosn at the LA Auto Show. There's been a lot buzz surrounding Nissan electric cars, especially with the debut of the Nissan Denki Cube concept at the New York Auto Show earlier this year. Oregon's governor Ted Kulongoski is recommending the state replace the $1,500 hybrid tax credit with a $5,000 electric vehicle credit, essentially subsidizing part of the cost of the vehicle. Nissan also plans a larger scale production of electric cars by 2012. Details in the statement from Nissan below.

LOS ANGELES (Nov. 19, 2008) – Carlos Ghosn, president and CEO, Nissan Motor Co., Ltd., today announced a new electric-vehicle partnership with the state of Oregon, in line with Nissan’s commitment to begin offering pure electric cars in 2010 in the United States and Japan. The announcement came in a keynote address at the opening of the 2008 Los Angeles Auto Show.

“We see in Oregon the vision that is evident in all the places that are eager for sustainable mobility,” said Mr. Ghosn. “Demonstrating their care for the environment, the state and its partners are creating the conditions that will promote zero-emission vehicles as an attractive choice for consumers.”

Nissan will launch its first electric vehicle in Oregon in late 2010. Oregon Gov. Ted Kulongoski is proposing replacing the current $1,500 tax credit on hybrid vehicles with a $5,000 credit on all-electric cars.

[Source: Nissan]

2009 Nissan Maxima Pricing Announced

Andrew Stoy — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 08:30:00 EDT

The restyled 2009 Nissan Maxima S is arriving in showrooms bearing a marketing-friendly "under $30k" MSRP of $29,950, including destination. That's up from $28,790 for the base 2008 Maxima, money well spent if the 2009 Maxima's sporting intentions prove genuine. If the S is too basic for you, upgrade to a 2009 Maxima SV for $32,650.
[Automotive News (sub. req.)]

Nissan Developing Electric Car For 2010

Ben Wojdyla — Tue, 13 May 2008 14:40:00 EDT

The Nissan G37 Convertible wasn't the only news to come out of the Nissan GT 2012 strategic plan. Apparently, Carlos the destroyer has gone on record committing Nissan to an all-electric vehicle available by the end of calender year 2010 which will compete directly with cars in its segment. This of course significantly raises the bar for green-tastic PR bragging rights and will leave the Chevy Volt and the plug-in Toyota Prius looking dirtier than a Flint River trout. Although Ghosn wouldn't commit to a price, segment, or volumes, he did say they were planning on having a regular lineup of EVs in place by 2012. Maybe that Denki Cube we saw in New York was more than just a concept car. [NYTimes]

LA Auto Show: US-Spec Nissan GT-R Revealed Live

Ray Wert — Wed, 14 Nov 2007 15:29:30 EST

Nissan CEO Carlos Ghosn just revealed the US-Spec version of Godzilla — the all-new Nissan GT-R here at the LA Auto Show. Ghosn claims that "this car could only be built with both our heads and our hearts." Apparently he forgot to add they needed their balls as the speedy super car's supposedly rated at 480 horses under the hood from the 3.8-liter twin turboed V6 engine. Also, Brian Lam says the seats are made for skinny Asian kids like him. He also says I'm a fit Midwestern boy and should leave any vehicle reviews of Godzirra to him and his Gizmodo nerdry. What say you fair Jalopnik readers?

LA Auto Show: Go, Go, Go Ghosn!

Ray Wert — Wed, 14 Nov 2007 15:25:17 EST

Nissan CEO Carlos "The Jackal" Ghosn is in the process of revealing the new Nissan GT-R in a tourgasm of force. Or is it a tour of forcegasm? Whatever it is — it's friggin' epic. Actually, I think Brian Lam sitting right here next to me just had a GTRgasm. Wait, yes, he's soaking wet. The US-Spec GT-R shots will be up momentarily — please stand by.

Carlos Ghosn Wild: Renault-Nissan CEO Still Considering US Partnership

tingwall — Fri, 26 Oct 2007 08:30:00 EDT

After his dressing like a superhero last week, we wouldn't be surprised if Renault-Nissan's Carlos Ghosn picked up a pimp cane and snapped in a set of diamond teeth to announce he still wants to get it on with a beleaguered US automaker. Perhaps it's Ghosn's experience with a struggling company that has him willing to bet on an American horse. Nissan, on the verge of collapse in 1999, was on the gold-digging end of the relationship when the company partnered with Renault. But since then, both companies have grown while cutting costs. Ghosn says it makes sense to add a large American automaker to his French-Japanese venture to realize additional economies of scale. But don't count on anything in the near term; Ghosn says Nissan must consolidate before any such union will be made. What's more, after talks of an alliance between GM and Nissan fell apart last year, it's now likely down to Ford or Chrysler. [The Detroit Free Press]

Carlos Ghosn Gets Ready To Fight Super-Villains With The 2009 Nissan GT-R

Ray Wert — Thu, 18 Oct 2007 09:30:00 EDT

If for some reason you don't believe the Line on the Inside over at Edmunds got the inside scoop on the new 2009 Nissan GT-R, you need but one glance at the picture above to correct that fallacy. That's Nissan main man and CEO Carlos Ghosn doing his best impression of a comic book hero in front of the new 2009 Godzilla. All we know is he's not called the Stig, but he is called one ham and a half. This shot has now become our favorite picture of any automaker CEO — at least until Rick Wagoner dons a fire suit himself and starts to hump the back of a 2009 Corvette ZR1. But for serious, Inside Line got the full scoop on the new Nissan sports car when they took a trip out to Germany to take a lap of the Nurburgring in the 2009 Nissan GT-R. Jeez, some guys get all the fun. We're still struggling to get a Sentra press car. For a higher-res shot of Super-Carlos, go here. [Inside Line]

Nissan reporting a 16% drop in quarterly...

Ray Wert — Tue, 24 Jul 2007 08:45:00 EDT

Nissan reporting a 16% drop in quarterly profit. That's no good thing especially considering they sold more vehicles this past quarter than the same quarter last year. Damn you rising material costs, incentives and new models! [Detroit News]

Nissan's Ghosn Green

Davey G. Johnson — Thu, 28 Jun 2007 18:45:00 EDT

Carlos "Guitarlos" Ghosn is pushing his company's dedication to lighter, more compact battery units. While Nissan's current hybrid system is based on NiMH batteries with powertrain tech licensed from Toyota, Renault's Japanese brothers are hammering on lithium ion cells in hopes of gaining a competitive advantage in electrical propulsion; in fact, Ghosn says he'd love to see Nissan in the ring with a viable electric vehicle. With GM having offered up a full-boat commitment to the Volt project and Toyota continuing to be well, Toyota, the melee in the hybrid market's only going to get more interesting before it gets codified. – Davey G. Johnson

Nissan developing smaller, lighter car batteries for hybrids and electric cars, CEO says [IHT]

Related:
Nissan Rolls Out First Fuel Cell Car-For-Hire [Internal]

Hump Day Special: Caption This!

Jonny Lieberman — Wed, 06 Jun 2007 12:45:00 EDT

If we were God, the Jackal here and Dr. Z would be cast in a remake of Bosom Buddies. Get to work. – Jonny Lieberman

Related:
Caption This Photo: Ghosn Time [Internal]

Caption This Photo: Ghosn Time

Jonny Lieberman — Wed, 02 May 2007 19:04:17 EDT

The other night over dinner some of us Jalops were cracking each other up musing about how oddly photogenic Sir Carlos is. And while the regular photo we use can never be topped (click here), the image above is, well, worthy of your best work. 10 extra points will be awarded if you work in "The Jackal." – Jonny Lieberman

And That's The Nissan Way...Where Are My Shoes?

Ray Wert — Fri, 16 Mar 2007 11:30:16 EDT

Here's the following note Carlos Ghosn, the CEO of the cross-global alliance, sent to his North American staff today to explain why he wouldn't be coming to this year's Christmas party. I feel like I'm reading a speech by Imelda Marcos or something. – Ray Wert

Sent on behalf of Carlos Ghosn, president & chief executive officer, Nissan Motor Company, Ltd.
Today we are announcing the new global leadership team for 2007. These changes are a natural part of our management process in order to ensure that Nissan continues on its path of sustainable growth and profitability. Our financial results for 2006 have been for the first time in eight years below our forecast, and management needs to respond to this challenge.

Through the Nissan Way, we have put people at the center of our competitive advantage. Now, more than ever, it will be the power coming from inside the company that will make the difference between Nissan declining or renewing with healthy, profitable growth for the long term. The need to rebuild the integrity of our culture of commitments and rediscover the urgency and transparency that drove our revival is more important than ever.
Regarding my own role, I have decided that it is the right time to hand responsibility for MC-A to Hiroto Saikawa now that in the U.S. we have completed the transition of the HQ, the product offensive has started and a new team is in place. This will allow me to focus on the total Nissan business and on the Alliance.

We have also decided to expand the size of the executive committee, recognizing the importance and number of breakthroughs we need to deliver under Nissan Value-Up and beyond. This change will enable us to act with a deeper and broader insight into all the factors that drive our performance.

We have proved in the past that Nissan is capable of fast and decisive actions that deliver remarkable results. I am confident that these changes provide the leadership and focus needed to boost our short-term performance in 2007 and put the company back on track for delivering our true potential in the long term.

# # #

Nissan Chief Gives Up North American Duties [NYT]

It's Official, Carlos Ghosn's An Official Honorary Knight

Ray Wert — Tue, 20 Feb 2007 17:31:00 EST

Good timing on those voluntary buyouts from earlier today, Carlos. While you're being feted at Buckingham Palace over your honorary knighthood today, your folks in Tennessee are deciding whether they'd like to take a couple thousand bucks or continue working with a scythe hanging over their necks. Good job with helping "improve Anglo-Japanese relations," now maybe you should try your "public relations." – Ray Wert

Ghosn is made a knight [Freep]

Carlos Ghosn Addresses His "Performance Crisis" While HQ Staff Go Bonus Bonkers

Ray Wert — Fri, 02 Feb 2007 16:53:49 EST

The Japanese side of the cross-global partnership announced today their profits took a bit of a hit during the fourth quarter. Ok, that's an understatement, in reality it was a 22.6% slide. In response, CEO Carlos Ghosn told reporters in Tokyo on a conference call from Paris, "We have today a performance crisis and we need to fix it as soon as possible." We've only got to ask the normally virile doubled-up CEO superhero one question — Levitra, Cialis or Viagra?

But unfortunately for the superhero CEO, we're not the only ones with a question. Apparently the folks at the still bright, shiny and new Nashville HQ (yes, that's the same one that experienced some network "performance issues" yesterday) have some questions of their own regarding bonuses. We'll let our anonymous source detail the issue for you:

"Here's a good one. We all got called in to confidential lunch meetings today to be told that after 6 straight years of record profits, and a $4 billion profit this year, there will be no employee bonuses for FY2006. The bonuses, based on hitting ever-escalating profit objectives, comprised a substantial part of our income..."

"...for those past 6 years in this sweatshop. Granted, we should still be happy we have jobs, I know. But really. Did anyone really believe that by not making salary cuts in the move to Tennessee from California, Carlos was not going to get his pound of flesh elsewhere? We're told that executives will not be getting bonuses either, but that's probably about as true as the time monkies flew out my ass."

Uh-oh, Carlos. – Ray Wert

Nissan has a 'performance crisis': Ghosn [globeandmail.com]

Go Figure: Carlos Ghosn Has A Hot Daughter

Ray Wert — Tue, 28 Nov 2006 17:30:00 EST

In case you're wondering why you're seeing the link below re-directing you over to a post about "debutards" over on Gawker, fear not — we're ready to explain. You see, the post references a young lady named Caroline Ghosn, a first-year student at Stanford. Yes, as I'm sure you've figured out, it's the daughter of Carlos Ghosn, CEO of Renault-Nissan, who we're sure was standing proudly by with wife watching as Caroline was busy being quoted by WWD while simultaneously getting ready for the 16th annual Paris Crillon Ball (Le Bal Des Debutantes) — well, ok, she's not doing a whole lot — in reality, her ~~lesbian lover~~ boyfriend is helping her into her shoes. Her quote though, was probably pretty tough for daddy-dearest to take:

"Isn't this the best? Just like Cinderella..."

And in the corner, behind young Caroline, her father cocks his head slightly towards Detroit, his eyes glistening with tears as he thinks about what could have been between he and Rick Wagoner, his very own Prince Charming. Oh, and in case you're wondering — yes, Caroline is hot. – Ray Wert

Introducing the Next Generation of Debutards [Gawker]

Ghosn Don't Need No More Stinking Alliances! Nissan Quarterly Profit Up 31%

Ray Wert — Thu, 26 Oct 2006 10:50:17 EDT

~~Sir~~ Carlos Ghosn, the man normally all about makin' friends and influencin' people, just dropped some pretty impressive numbers out of the Tokyo HQ of his globe-spanning alliance, Renault-Nissan. Net income popped up like a champagne cork to 164 billion yen ($1.38 billion) during the third quarter of 2006, that's up from 125 billion yen a year earlier. This came despite a sales slide of 0.9% to 2.324 trillion yen ($19.5 billion) — off of sales which dropped 7.6% to 883,000 vehicles. But, we can guess that first number must have buoyed the Napoleonic nanny of the Japanese-French alliance into his comments this morning:

"We have no need to find more partners. We are in no hurry to find more partners. And we are not taking any initiatives"

Man, Chrysler better totally hope the folks in Germany don't get sick of them anytime in the near future, because I've no idea where they're going to turn to for a dance partner. But, Ghosn did add that...

...if the alliance were to be looking for a threesome, the logical choice would be NorAm — but they were under "no obligation or need." Tom, calm down and wait patiently — jumping up and down in your seat is only going to make your corsage fall off and plus you'll end up making Chrysler look desperate — and remember, you're not a whore if you do it for free. – Ray Wert

Nissan quarterly profit surges 31% [Freep]

Well Played, Sir! Carlos Ghosn To Receive Honorary Knighthood, No Title

Ray Wert — Tue, 24 Oct 2006 15:23:16 EDT

Everyone's favorite automakin' CEO in charge of the global-spanning alliance that is GM-Renault-Nissan just received word he's the next "Honorary Knight Commander of the British Empire." The ceremony will be occurring at the British embassy sometime in early 2007. Unfortunately, because Ghosn is the very model of a modern non-english auto-man, the Napoleonic sized chief exec won't be getting the ability to be called Sir Carlos — despite our fervent wishes for it to be so.– Ray Wert

Carlos Ghosn To Get The Chainmail And Sword Treatment [Winding Road]

Breaking! Nissan Has No Comment, But Joint GM-Renault-Nissan Statement To Be Released Soon

Ray Wert — Wed, 04 Oct 2006 14:55:26 EDT

In what will likely be the last thing these three companies ever do together, Nissan's told Reuters to expect a joint statement shortly on the WSJ report that the best laid plans of Carlos Ghosn and men have gone all screwy and he and the General's Rick Wagoner have said to hell with everything. We're going to start drinking early in anticipation of a fun afternoon. – Ray Wert

Nissan says no comment on GM report, statement soon [Reuters]