Nissan Motor Company’s best-selling minicar, the Micra/March hit a milestone in sales not too long ago. Since its debut nearly 30 years ago in 1982, the little global wonder has been carting around drivers in more than 70 countries and has now reached a total output of 6 million units. The current fourth generation, which debuted in 2010 may be light years ahead of the original 1982 model but it still holds strong the values that made the Micra/March so successful.
“Six million units sold tell us the Micra/March has a track record of success. With over 28 years’ experience producing compact cars, we want our customers to enjoy the maximum value of the new Nissan Micra/March together with its new technologies,” said Tsuyoshi Kobayashi, the Micra/March’s chief vehicle engineer. Riding on Nissan’s new V-Platform, the Micra/March is sold all around Europe as well as Japan, India and Thailand. Its largest market is inside Europe where its small size and nimble chassis makes it the perfect car for the tight european city streets. And for the 2011 model year, the Micra can be offered with Nissan’s new supercharged 1.2 liter inline four.
Sales of the Micra/March should increase even further now that Nissan has teamed up with Mitsubishi to form a joint venture for the sole purpose of building minicars. This should allow for an even larger market and more new technologies that could find their way into the Micra/March. It may even offer the opportunity for Nissan’s wonderful little car to make into the market that could use the car the most: the United States.
