Nissan Motor and Mitsubishi Motors announced the model names and showed the exterior designs of their jointly-developed new minicars for the Japanese market. Sales of the new minicars will begin in June 2013 under the Nissan DAYZ and DAYZ Highway STAR, and the Mitsubishi eK Wagon and eK Custom, model names.
The product planning and development of the new models was conducted by NMKV, a joint venture formed by Nissan and Mitsubishi Motors to develop minicars for the Japanese market. Uniting the strengths of Nissan and Mitsubishi Motors in functional areas such as product planning, development, design and purchasing, the new models offer highly competitive attributes such as good fuel economy and a comfortable, roomy cabin. Collaboration in NMKV from the product planning phase onward enabled Nissan and Mitsubishi Motors to retain their separate brand identities, yet create innovative and quite different designs for their respective minicar models. This has never been achieved before in mini-vehicles that have been produced under previous OEM vehicle supply agreements, the two makers maintain.
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Mitsubishi’s new models, eK Wagon and eK Custom, strike the balance among features that are necessary to achieve an “ee kei” (meaning “good minicar”), including a “comfortable cabin space and easy handling”, a “high-quality feel that surpasses that of traditional minicars,” and “excellent fuel economy.”
NMKV’s joint project to develop minicars for the Japanese market is part of an agreement to expand the scope of cooperation between Nissan and Mitsubishi Motors that the two companies announced in December 2010. Both companies will continue to maximize the synergies generated through NMKV to strengthen the competitiveness of their respective minicar business. Following this first wave of minicar models, Nissan and Mitsubishi Motors are working on the planning and development of a second new minicar, a “super height” (tall) wagon, which is slated for launch in early 2014.
Through NMKV, Nissan and Mitsubishi Motors will continuously strengthen their highly-competitive minicar line-ups, reflecting the strengths of both companies in the areas of product planning, development, design and purchasing.
