Nissan compact car Micra to roll out from Chennai plant

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Presently, Micra is rolling out from Nissan's plant in Sunderland, UK. However, Nissan plans to begin production of a new compact fuel-efficient car from 2010 while Micra, which will be redesigned, will begin rolling out from Nissan's stable in Chennai.

Earlier, Nissan said it would stop producing Micra at its plant in Sunderland, putting at least 1200 jobs at risk. However, the UK government managed to convince Nissan to manufacture a new car and granted the automaker tax incentives valued at £6.2 million ($12.2 million).

The British government's grant covers just under half of the £13.2 million required for the changes at the Sunderland factory, Nissan said.

The plant which employs 4700 workers and rolls out over 350,000 vehicles every year, catering to the demand of Europe and the UK, will also continue producing hatchback Note as well as popular SUV Qashqai.

The Chennai plant will manufacture Micra as well as two other models, a Nissan official said.

According to Nissan design director Shiro Nakamura, the new Nissan Micra, which is already in the design stage, will adopt a more conventional and aggressive or sporty look that will appeal to the male buyers.

"There will still be a strong family look, but we do need to attract more male buyers," Nakamura said.

Micra will be sold in five leading competitive countries (LCCs) including India and Thailand.

The Renault-Nissan alliance will invest Rs.4000 crore ($1 billion) on the Chennai plant where 400,000 vehicles would be manufactured annually under both the brand names.

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