Autocar UK – 31 July 2019

NEWS

3 1 JULY 2019 AUTOCAR.CO.UK 19

Ailing Nissan to reduce line-up

and cut 12,500 jobs worldwide

NISSAN HAS ANNOUNCED

plans to reduce both its

production capacity and

product line-up – resulting in

th e l o s s of a r o u n d 1 2 , 5 0 0 j o b s

worldwide – in a bid to turn

around its fortunes.

The major restructure

follows a tumultuous period

for the firm, during which

time former boss Carlos

Ghosn was arrested and

charged with financial

misconduct while Nissan’s

sales and profits have fallen.

In the first three months of

the 2019/2020 financial year,

Nissan’s income declined by

94.5% year on year.

The 12,500 job losses,

which include 6400 the firm

has already made, account

for around 9% of the firm’s

global workforce and are the

result of moves by Nissan

to reduce its production

capacity by around 10% by

the end of 2022.

Although Nissan has not

confirmed where the job

losses will be, it is believed

that the firm’s Sunderland

plant will be spared further

redundancies. Earlier this

year Nissan scrapped plans

to build the next X-Trail at the

factory, and it will also stop

building Infiniti models there

as a result of the decision to

withdraw that brand from the

European market.

Nissan boss Hiroto

Saikawa said the firm would

trim its global model line-up

by around 10%. While he said

no decision had been made on

which models would be axed,

he suggested they would

include compact cars and

those from the Datsun range,

which survives as a budget

brand in limited markets.

Nissan says it will use the

cost savings to invest heavily

in “global core models and

strategic regional models”

and in future technology

including its ProPilot semi-

autonomous systems and

electrified powertrains.

Nissan’s Sunderland

p l a nt i s ex p e c te d to b e

spared further job cuts

W SERIES, THE all-female

single-seater series,

concludes its six-race fi rst

s e a s on at Br a nd s Hat c h

on 11 August, with British

pre-season favourite Jamie

Chadwick in pole position

to claim the title and the

impressive US$500,000 fi rst

pr i z e. But it ’s c lo s e r t h a n it

might have been.

There was a suspicion that

Chadwick, a former race

winner in British F3, could

dominate. “I wouldn’t say

I’m pleasantly surprised,

but yes, it’s been tough,”

she says. “Normally you’ve

got your team, your data

and your own set-ups, but

here we switch cars each

weekend and share all data.

To give yourself a buffer

is much harder and the

competition has got closer.”

S o f a r, C h a d w ic k h a s

won twice, at Hockenheim

and Misano, to hold a

13-point lead over title

rival and Zolder winner

Beitske Visser. Spaniard

Marta Garcia, who won at

the Norisring, lies third

ahead of Briton Alice Powell

and Assen victor Emma

Kimilainen, who missed two

rounds through injury. A

non-points reverse-grid race

was also run at Assen, with

17-year-old Megan Gilkes

winning from pole.

“As a championship, it has

exceeded my expectations,”

says Chadwick. “Going

in, I had no idea how it

would be perceived.” The

concept received a barrage

of criticism at its launch for

segregating women drivers.

Chadwick herself admitted

doubts, but was won over

`

As a championship, W Series

has exceeded my expectations

a

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by the opportunity: drives

are fully funded and then

there’s that bulging purse,

totalling US$1.5m (£1.2m).

Live TV coverage on

Channel 4 has broadened

the audience, and with

women’s sport in general

enjoying a long-overdue

boost in popularity W Series

has caught the zeitgeist.

“I’ve been surprised by how

many have changed their

opinion,” says Chadwick.

So what else has she

gained from the extra

exposure W Series has

offered? Since the season

began she’s signed a deal

with Aston Martin that took

her to the Nürburgring 24

Hours in June, but she’s also

now a Williams Formula 1

development driver. “The

Aston Martin relationship

was brewing for a while,

but the Williams thing was

out of the blue,” she says. “I

w ou ld n’t w a nt t o t a k e a loa d

of money to an F1 team, so

for them to have approached

us was the main thing.”

Such deals don’t

guarantee F1 seat time –

at least in the real world.

“But it means I can test

myself against the likes

of George Russell,” says

Chadwick. “I’m getting a lot

of simulator time and that’s

invaluable experience.”

So what’s next? Possibly

more W Series, but surely

she’d be a great asset for

Aston’s future Valkyrie

Le Mans programme...

Whatever, Chadwick is

certain that W Series has

helped, and not hindered,

her career ambitions.

Which is entirely its point.

Jamie Chadwick won

her second W Series

race at Misano, Italy

MERCEDES’ EQ S ALL-ELECTRIC SALOON TAKES SHAPE

The Mercedes-Benz EQ S electric saloon has been spied testing in near-production form. The

flagship electric model is designed to offer luxury and comfort to match the S-Class, although it

appears to feature a heavily raked windscreen and curved roofline similar to those on the CLS.

The EQ S is expected to be powered by two electric motors providing permanent four-wheel

drive and more than 400bhp, with a range of around 300 miles. The Tesla Model S rival will be

the first model based on the firm’s dedicated MEA electric platform when it goes on sale in 2021.

SPY SHOT

MERCEDES-BENZ EQ S