Nissan taps green fuel to lift sales

THE PRICE for the CNG variant of the Nissan Tiida has yet to be fixed.

With more people switching to cars run on compressed natural gas (CNG), Nissan will start offering a CNG model to counter high petrol prices.

At present, Chevrolet and Hyundai are the only two auto-makers offering CNG models, while Toyota, the leader in the passenger-car market, plans to launch its Corolla Altis CNG this year.

A source from Siam Nissan Automobiles (SNA), Nissan's distributor in Thailand, said the company was preparing to equip its Tiida compact passenger car with CNG kits and possibly install them on the larger Teana model later.

A supplier will equip the cars with CNG   kits, while SNA will offer warranties similar to those of Nissan's regular petrol models, which would be valid for three years or 100,000 kilometres.

However, the price has not been finalised, the source said.

Meanwhile, the company is also studying the possibilities of offering a petrol version of the Navara pickup, which is already exported from Thailand to certain markets.

"A lot of Thai pickup-owners have already replaced their diesel engines with used petrol engines from Japan, in order to be able to use CNG or LPG [liquefied petroleum gas]. So the petrol version of the Navara will also be able to run on natural gas," the source said.

Due to sharp increases in the diesel price, sales of diesel-powered pickups in Thailand have been falling. In the first half of the year alone, sales dipped 0.7 per cent year on year to 181,888 units.

Last month, sales plunged 23.2 per cent after only 25,265 units were sold despite heavy sales promotions by carmakers.

Nissan sold 13,856 units in the first half, down 15.8 per cent year on year.

Last month, sales reached 1,130 units, plunging 55.1 per cent year on year.

"Nissan customers have been requesting that the company offer a petrol version of the Navara that could be converted for use with CNG, since we already produce such vehicles for export," the source said. "Today, we must look at the possibility of whether we can start offering this model in Thailand successfully."

      At a glance

Pickup sales in thailand:

n Pickup sales dropped 0.7 per cent year on year to 181,888 units in the first half.

n Last month, sales plunged 23.2 per cent to 25,265 units.

n In the first six months, Nissan sold 13,856 units, down 15.8 per cent year on year.

n Last month, Nissan sales fell 55.1 per cent to 1,130 units.

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