Nissan aims for top 10 return

Buoyed by increased vehicle supplies, Nissan says it can be a top 10 auto brand in Australia every month for the rest of the year.

But only the final sales figures will determine if the Japanese car-maker returns to the top 10 on annual basis in 2023 after a shocking sales slump in 2022.

To the end of September 2023, Nissan sits 12th on the sales ladder with 28,694 sales (up 36.7 per cent year-on-year), 3647 behind Isuzu Ute in 10th place. It was the ninth best-selling brand in September.

“To do that [finish the year in the top 10] I’d need to know what everyone else’s volume is going to be for the next four months so I am not going to forecast it,” Nissan Australia managing director Adam Paterson told carsales at the recent Patrol Warrior launch.

“But on an individual months on a go-forward basis, yes it’s [top 10 sales] achievable.”

Nissan was ranked number 12 for sales in Australia last year, when its volume plunged by 35.8 per cent from 41,263 to 26,491 units.

It was the brand’s worst sales result since the mid-1990s.

In August 2023 Nissan was the fastest growing brand in the market and made the largest annual market share gain, Paterson said.

“We are also on track for three successive quarters of growth,” he said.

While some of that reflects just how far Nissan had slipped, the green shoots for the brand include 1784 X-TRAIL sales according to VFACTS in September – the best number since March 2021.

In September, Nissan also sold 1208 Patrols, the best month for the badge since June 2004 and the best ever for the current Y62, which was introduced in 2012.

Sales of the Warrior off-road sub-brand are also expected to hit a record in 2023.

“It’s [overall sales numbers] not where we want to be yet but as supply improves we are moving back as far as volume and market share is expected,” said Paterson.

While happy to point out improved performance, Paterson played down the importance of finishing the year in the overall top 10.

“I wouldn’t say that’s necessarily the absolute target. The goal of Nissan is not to say we need to be this or that on a total brand rank,” he said.

“That’s not what perhaps motivates us or we are specifically targeting… it is to be successful in the segments we are playing in and to deliver strong volume and share in those.”

While the upswing in X-TRAIL and Patrol sales is good news for Nissan, Paterson conceded there were still supply issues hurting the brand and forcing customers to wait.

“You would have a challenge walking into a Nissan dealership today and talking delivery next week of a Patrol, of a Z, of a top-grade X-TRAIL e-POWER, which all have factory wait times.

Nissan’s critical Navara ute remains supply-challenged, although there was an uptick in sales in August.

“You’ll see a better number than that in September as well,” Paterson predicted.

“Right now we are in a much better position with Navara. A customer could go into their local Nissan dealer in many parts of the country and take delivery of a Navara within a few days.

“But do we have free supply at every dealer? No.”

Sales of the British-built JUKE small SUV are off 20 per cent year-on-year because of a supply shortfall.

And wait times for the X-TRAIL e-POWER range-extender hybrid are under 12 months “in most circumstances”, said Paterson.

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