Nissan bringing local manufacturing back to Australia
The Australian auto manufacturing scene is beginning to show glimpses of a small re-emergence, with Nissan the latest brand to bring back local production.
The Japanese company have teamed up with Australian automotive engineering firm Premcar to begin production on the new Navara N-Trek Warrior model vehicle at Premcar’s production plant in Melbourne.
The Navara N-Trek Warrior has been designed specifically for Australian conditions, after Nissan discovered the top of the line Navara ST-X model couldn’t compete with the top players in the Australian ute market and needed something bigger.
The vehicle won’t be built from scratch at the Melbourne facility, however. Instead, it will arrive in the country as a standard Navara N-Trek before a team of 40 engineers gets to work upgrading the suspension, bulbar, towbar, replacing the decals, tyres and wheels and adding an additional light bar.
The resulting vehicle reflects the latest breed of large 4×4 utes designed for improved performance and stability on and off-road that’s beginning to dominate Australian roads.
The Navara N-Trek Warrior will be sold exclusively in Australia.
The decision to locally produce the Navara N-Trek Warrior isn’t the only example of local manufacturing returning to Australian shores in recent months, with an increasing number of brands importing left hand drive vehicles they have built before they are converted to right hand drive in local factories.
RAM and Ford are two such examples of brands finding success from local conversions, with RAM celebrating their 5000th conversion at the Walkinshaw production facility in Melbourne late last year, while the limited-edition Ford Mustang R-Spec currently being converted is almost sold out.
While Australia is unlikely to ever see a return to the heights of auto manufacturing witnessed in the past, this new trend of companies bringing cars to Australia to convert or alter, and with-it additional jobs, is welcome news for the local automotive industry.
Source: Caradvice | Inside the factory pumping out the Nissan Navara N-Trek Warrior
3 March 2020
