According to a report from Japan’s Nikkei, Nissan is expected to take an over 30-percent stake in Mitsubishi Motors. The story, also covered by Reuters, comes in the midst of Mitsubishi’s growing fuel economy scandal.
The two automakers are meeting today to discuss the share transfer that’s expected to cost $1.84 billion. The parties are said to be in the final stages of discussions. If all goes as planned, Nissan will become Mitsubishi’s top shareholder, surpassing Mitsubishi Heavy Industries which currently owns 20 percent of the struggling automaker.
Although Mitsubishi has 450 billion yen in cash to get it through rough times, a slew of scandals over the years has tarnished the automaker’s image. More than 15 years ago, Mitsubishi was accused of covering up consumer complaints and safety issues regarding its vehicles. Today, Mitsubishi is involved in an unflattering scandal involving false fuel economy data on its cars in Japan.
A new report today revealed that Mitsubishi’s fuel economy kerfuffle may go further than originally thought. Mitsubishi suspects nine of its current Japanese models have improper fuel economy data, not to mention some models that are no longer in production.
Perhaps the capital-tie up is natural, considering Nissan and Mitsubishi already have a partnership when it comes to building vehicles. Mitsubishi has built minicars for Nissan, which doesn’t have a minicar manufacturing facility of its own. Together, the two automakers hope to build electric cars and battle giants like Toyota and Honda in the green vehicle space. Nissan will also benefit from Mitsubishi’s large influence in Asia, particularly in Thailand and Indonesia.
The post We Hear: Nissan to Buy More than 30% of Mitsubishi Motors appeared first on Motor Trend.
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