When Nissan first unveiled its premium brand, Infiniti, in the late 1980s, it stayed in the United States for the first few years. Slowly and rather recently, Nissan began expanding Infiniti’s market share to a global level which meant more vehicles being exported to more countries. This trend can be rather costly and thus is looking to change to a more concentrated production plan. The next production Infiniti, the JX crossover, will be built-in the United States instead of Japan and more vehicles will follow the SUV’s move. One reason is to lower costs due to the strong and “profit-eating” Japanese yen, according to an Automotive News article.
“As cars come up for renewal, generally they’re being relocated in a function of where the majority of sales are,” said Andy Palmer, Infiniti’s executive vice president. Currently, all Infiniti’s are being manufactured at Nissan’s Tochigi plant north of Tokyo. Despite that, one of the brand’s largest and most important markets is the United States. So when production of the JX35 begins in February 2012, the crossover will be built at Nissan’s Smyrna, Tennessee assembly plant. The Q7-fighting seven seater will find its biggest market in the United States, so that is where it will be made. Following suit, the Etherea-based compact will more than likely be built in Europe, where it will compete with the likes of BMW’s 1-Series and Audi’s A3.
Source: AutomotiveNews.com
