Nissan backflips on Oz van plans

The Toyota HiAce and Hyundai iLoad will continue to dominate the van market in Australia for the foreseeable future.

Nissan Australia has abandoned plans by previous managing director Dan Thompson to import commercial vans like the NV200 and NV350, despite earlier admissions that a lack of representation in the segment was “business that we’re giving away”.

The news marks a backflip on Nissan Australia’s interest in both cargo and seven-seat people-mover versions of the NV200 van as early as 2010.

Speaking at the Nissan 360 event in the US this week, a spokesperson for the brand said that the smaller NV200 would not be sold in Australia, where it would be a direct rival for the Volkswagen Caddy, Renault Kangoo, Peugeot Partner, Fiat Scudo, Citroen Berlino and the superseded Holden Combo.

Nissan says that although the larger NV350 – which competes with the HiAce, iLoad, Renault Trafic, Peugeot Expert, Mercedes-Benz Vito, Volkswagen Transporter and Ford Transit -- would be a strong representative in its segment here, it too is unlikely to ever reach local showrooms.

 “Nissan’s current commercial vehicle range is very impressive and caters to a multitude of market needs,” said a Nissan Australia representative.

However, Nissan Australia has not had a van in its light commercial vehicle range since the Urvan in the early 1990s, instead offering two versions (D22 and D40) of its Navara utility and a cab-chassis version of its (Y61-series) Patrol.

Yet Nissan’s LCV Global Chief Marketing Manager, Keitaro Suga, reiterated the manufacturer’s intention to become one of the world’s leading LCV manufacturers by the company’s 2016 financial year, adding that LCVs account for around 20 per cent of Nissan’s total global sales.

This year to date, light commercial utility sales have tallied 122,481 units while light commercial vans have managed 12,746 registrations.

With a quarter of this volume, a Nissan van would outsell many of its mainstream passenger and commercial siblings, including the Micra (3020 units YTD), Navara 4x2 (1890), Almera (1610), Murano (972), Pathfinder (740) and Patrol (1717).

Since the Urvan’s departure, the HiAce has become the best selling van in its class. So far this year the HiAce has found 4332 buyers, comfortably out-selling the iLoad (2701) and Transporter (1392).

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