Sometimes powerful engines and a fresh design just aren’t enough for a vehicle to make sales inroads against well-established competition. Such is the case for the recently introduced Nissan NV full-size van, which has posted sales of just 3,035 units through the first nine months of the year.
Nissan dealers currently have a staggering 205 day supply of NV models, far higher than the popular Chevrolet Express (69 days) and Ford E-Series (73 days), which have sold 42,084 and 69,187 units, respectively, through September.
While its far too early to write off the NV, Nissan surely had more ambitious hopes for the van’s first year given its versatile interior, available tall-roof configuration and competitive pricing.
â€We have very high expectations for [the NV], but realistically Nissan is not the leader in any (vehicle) segment,†Cristi Brown, NV senior marketing manager, told the media at a Detroit event for the van last year.
The NV will soon have more competition in the form of a pair of full-size Ram vans sourced from European-market Fiat trucks, which will likely arrive in 2012. Additionally, an American built-version of the Ford Transit, which also hails from the old country, is set to bow in 2013.
For its part, Nissan will add a passenger variant of the NV next spring and will start implementing its smaller NV200 as a taxicab in New York City and elsewhere beginning in 2013.
References
1.’Nissan’s NV van…’ view
