Nissan CEO Makato Uchida: The world car will never exist!

Nissan's CEO Makato Uchida is an unusual and refined person: The tall Japanese man arrives almost incognito at the Nissan pit with little entourage and doesn't make a fuss about himself. Uchida speaks fluent English, is chic but casually dressed, and seems to simply enjoy the Formula-E Sunday in Berlin: He was happy to come to Berlin between his appointments in the UK and France to watch the race and likes motorsport, we are told upon inquiry.

Uchida followed the whole race from the pit – including all the radio messages

Nissan team boss Tomasso Volpe will later tell us that he followed the entire race from the command post and repeatedly discreetly asked how certain radio messages should be interpreted. "Normally, non-insiders always get bored here after a while," Tomasso knows the reality, but Uchida stayed engaged.

He usually does: He has a degree in theology from the prestigious Doshisha University in Japan before he began his career in the industry. Here's a quick overview: Throughout his career, Uchida has held various positions at both Nissan and the alliance with Renault and Mitsubishi. After joining Nissan in 2003, Uchida worked as a manager in the Renault-Nissan Purchasing Organization (RNPO) from 2006 and served as Corporate Vice President of Alliance Purchasing from 2016 to 2018. During his time at Nissan, Uchida worked to improve synergies with the alliance partners, always adhering to the motto that more can be achieved together than alone. Most recently, Uchida led Nissan's China business and was Senior Vice President of Nissan, Chairman of the Management Committee for China (MC China), and President of Dongfeng Motor Co. Ltd, the joint venture between Nissan and the Dongfeng Motor Group in China. During this time, Uchida also expanded Nissan's presence in the Chinese market. Successfully, as the rather modest compact sedan Sylphy remains one of the top sellers in the Chinese market.

Nissan has unique portfolios for each major market – with few overlaps

Which brings us right to the topic, because basically, the Chinese Nissan portfolio is more similar to the North American one but differs in many nuances. Japan is not far from China, but it has a different portfolio again, while in America, it suffices to drive from the USA to Mexico to view yet another Nissan model range in Central and South America. There could be some synergies with Africa, but Europe requires something different again. This is why Uchida clearly rejects the idea of a world car: "The world car will no longer exist," he answers clearly to our question.

"Have you seen the taillights of the Hyper Sport concept? Exactly!"

This is why he immediately explains to us why he had entirely different vehicle concepts developed for China than for Japan. While people in Tokyo appreciate wild visions, in Beijing and Shanghai, they prefer something more tangible and concrete. And not necessarily exclusively fully electric. Which brings China expert Uchida directly to the next topic, as electrification fundamentally enables the adaptation of various vehicle concepts to different requirements. Modifications in terms of package, drive, and performance are much easier here, especially since there is still a lot of potential in terms of digitalization and solid-state batteries.

When asked about the loss of Nissan's sports car icons "Z" and GT-R, he just refers us to the rear of the Hyper-Sport concept, which, by the way, was showcased in both Tokyo and Beijing. Have we looked at the taillights? Yes, the current GT-R and Z had to be taken off the market due to CO2 regulations, but purely electric, he could definitely see one or another characterful model returning to the Nissan lineup, especially since the Hyper concepts, no matter how crazy they may have looked, all have a very real connection to the future.