Nissan’s New Boss Candidly Admits What Went Wrong

The first order of business for Nissan’s new CEO is to put the struggling company into recovery mode. Drastic decisions were made from day one: slashing 20,000 jobs, closing seven factories, eliminating six platforms, reducing parts complexity by 70 percent, and halting the development of certain models. These are the main bullet points of a long list of cost-cutting measures. But how did the Japanese automaker end up here?

Speaking at the Financial Times’ Future of the Car Summit, Ivan Espinosa said the first issues emerged about a decade ago when Nissan set an optimistic goal of selling eight million vehicles annually. That’s a far cry from the latest figures published earlier this week. Deliveries stood at just 3.3 million in Japan’s fiscal year 2024, which started on April 1, 2024, and ended on March 31, 2025.

Motor Trend cites Espinosa, saying that Nissan spent heavily on ramping up production capacity and expanding its workforce to pursue what turned out to be an overly ambitious sales target. Those plans were made under Carlos Ghosn, the same man who recently described Nissan as being in a “desperate situation,” blaming the management team for being slow to act.

Nissan’s new boss claims the “fundamental problem” deepened over the years because “nobody did anything to fix that until now.” The new measures announced this week are part of the “Re:Nissan plan” to cut expenses after the company posted a staggering $4.5 billion loss in the last fiscal year.

“Let me start by explaining why we are here. This is not something that happened in the last couple of years. It’s more of a fundamental problem that probably started back in 2015, when management thought this company could reach [annual global vehicle sales] of around eight million. There were heavy investments both in terms of planned capacity as well as in human resources, but the reality today is we are running at around half that volume. And nobody did anything to fix that until now.”

When asked if Nissan has what it takes to bounce back, he responded: “We are very confident with the plan and we’re going to push it forward.” The cost-cutting strategy also includes strengthening ties with Renault and Mitsubishi. Nissan is also working more closely with its Chinese ally Dongfeng, and is not ruling out allowing Dongfeng to build cars at Nissan’s Sunderland factory. The underutilized UK plant is not among the seven sites facing closure.

Photo by: Robin Trajano | Motor1

Still, cutting costs and forming alliances won’t be enough to save Nissan. It needs fresh products, and thankfully, they’re on the way. More than 10 new models are slated for North America in the coming years, starting with the Leaf crossover, a next-gen Sentra, and a plug-in hybrid Rogue based on the Mitsubishi Outlander. The next-gen Rogue will offer gas, PHEV powertrains, and E-Power range-extending technology. An electric, rugged SUV inspired by the Xterra is also in the pipeline.

In Europe, the next-gen Micra will be a badge-engineered Renault 5, joined by an electric Juke and Qashqai equipped with the next-gen E-Power system. In Japan, Nissan will introduce an updated kei car, a next-gen large van with E-Power, and an all-new Skyline. Multiple new products are also planned for India, Oceania, Africa, and Latin America.

Ok, but what about fun cars? Described by his predecessor, Makoto Uchida, as a “real car guy,” Espinosa drives his Z to work every day. The 46-year-old Mexican has already stated that the “GT-R name will exist into the future” and has expressed interest in reviving the Silvia. However, the harsh reality is that sports cars are niche products that don’t move the needle. Nissan has bigger priorities in recovering after years of financial losses. Focusing on SUVs and the occasional sedan and minivan makes more sense to improve the balance sheet.