Quality Means Japanese (Not)

[1sttruck]

I've suggested that model is more important than brand. Below is in part a perfect storm of new plant, new emloyees, and new design.


http://www.mlive.com/newsflash/busi...s-31/1136583550323470.xml&storylist=autonews2

Experts cite Mississippi plant as problem with Nissan reliability
1/6/2006, 4:32 p.m. ET
By HOLBROOK MOHR
The Associated Press

JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — Nissan Motor Co. officials are on the defensive after four of five vehicles produced at a key plant in the automaker's expansion plans topped the annual Consumer Reports list of unreliable vehicles.

Nissan officials acknowledge there were some initial problems with the vehicles produced at its sprawling Canton plant, which opened in 2003, but they point to other surveys showing the reliability of vehicles made there is improving.

Among the Canton-made vehicles that landed in the unreliable category of Consumer Reports' study — which was based on surveys of 1 million consumers — were Nissan's Armada sport utility vehicle, Quest minivan and Titan pickup, and the Infiniti QX56 SUV.

 

[Ray H]

So how does this relate to Japanese quality? These are American-made vehicles produced by a French-owned (Renault, which, itself, is partialy French government-owned at that!) division that was once an independent Japanese company.

 

[LarryL]

It might be that Nissan is doing business as usual and others are getting better. Nissan is trying to grow and may just be having trouble keeping up. They had to grow while recovering from financial failures and a new management and owners. Toyota is setting a tough pace in expansion while still doing a good job building their vehicles, but they have the same management and lots of cash. Big difference. The future for Nissan might just get tougher, too many things to do at the same time.

 

[Pablo]

I need to know more about the problems before we assign a root cause

 

[1sttruck]

"So how does this relate to Japanese quality?"

Pretty much the whole world considers Nissan a Japanese automotive maker. HQ is always responsible for it's operations, domestic or overseas, which includes reliability. I'll guess that instead of slowly ramping production and taking time to debugging training, designs, processes, tools, etc., they ramped quickly in order increase revenue, effectively using customers to debug.

http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/afp_asiapacific_business/view/91712/1/.html

TOKYO : Major Japanese automaker Nissan Motor Co. Ltd. said it would move its headquarters from the upscale Ginza shopping district in downtown Tokyo to Yokohama, a port city south of the capital.

The move should boost the efficiency of Nissan's operations and Yokohama offers tax incentives for companies moving into its key business development areas, a company spokeswoman said.

Nissan, controlled by Renault of France, will transfer at least 2,000 of the 3,000 workers based at Ginza to the new headquarters in Yokohama.

"Our current facilities in Tokyo have served us well over the years, but the management of our global business will require a more advanced, flexible environment that will allow us to work more efficiently and cross-functionally," Nissan president and chief executive Carlos Ghosn said in a statement.


http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/afp_world_business/view/87121/1/.html


TOKYO : Japan's big three carmakers said they continued to boost their overseas output in April on the back of a global economic recovery while crisis-hit Mitsubishi Motors slumped.

Top-ranked Toyota Motor said higher output was supported by strong demand worldwide while Nissan Motor pointed to brisk US sales and Honda Motor saw healthy demand in Asia and Europe.

Overseas output at Toyota jumped 20.3 percent year on year to 253,765 units in April, up for the 28th consecutive month.

"Our production in all regions was good. In particular, production in India and Thailand rose as well as that in England, France and Turkey," said a spokeswoman for Toyota.

Nissan's overseas output also jumped 20.4 percent to 138,534 in April, mainly due to strong demand in the US market.

"Production in the United States lifted our overall output, offsetting a fall in output in Europe and Mexico," said a spokeswoman for Nissan.

Nissan's output in the United States surged 61.6 percent on strong sales of the sedan Altima, pick-up truck Titan and sports utility vehicle Armada.

Overseas output at Honda -- Nissan's close rival -- grew a slower 4.9 percent to 161,614, supported by steady demand in Asia and Europe.

 

[mcrn]

Just the fact that it is French owned has been enough for me to not consider Nissan.

 

[1sttruck]

"Just the fact that it is French owned has been enough for me to not consider Nissan. "

http://www.davidstuff.com/france-boycott.htm is a list of French companies to boycott. Should we give back the Statue of Liberty ? How about we dissolve the US and become a British colony again ?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Revolutionary_War

The American Revolutionary War (1775–1783), also known as the American War of Independence, was the military side of the American Revolution. It was a war fought primarily between Great Britain and the United States of America. The war began largely as a colonial revolt against the economic policies of the British Empire, but eventually widened far beyond British North America, with France, Spain, and the Netherlands entering the war against Great Britain. Additionally, many American Indians fought on both sides of the conflict.

Throughout the war, the British were able to use their naval superiority to capture and occupy coastal cities, but control of the countryside (where 90% of the population lived) largely eluded them. French involvement proved decisive, with a naval victory in the Chesapeake leading to the surrender of a British army at the Battle of Yorktown in 1781.

 

[Quattro Pete]

quote:

---

Pretty much the whole world considers Nissan a Japanese automotive maker.

---

They may consider it a Japanese company, but I doubt most people are ignorant enough in this day and age of globalization to think that all Nissans are made in Japan.

Quality is instilled in some cultures, it's ingrown, IMO. People grow up soaked in it. That's why it has been so difficult (if not impossible) for the Japanese to get the same kind of quality from their plants outside of Japan. Just having Japanese HQ responsible for their worldwide operations doesn't make them "Japanese" - they still employ non-Japanese workers and use non-Japanese components which may or may not be up the same quality standards either.

 

[brianl703]

"Pattern failures"--where a certain part repeatedly breaks down in a certain way over a certain time/mileage--are evidence that the quality control of the product is good enough that they are mostly failing in the same way, at the same time.

Many problems with cars are pattern failures. Just about any problem for which a recall or a TSB exists is (you guessed it) a pattern failure.

 

[1sttruck]

""Pattern failures"--where a certain part repeatedly breaks down in a certain way over a certain time/mileage--are evidence that the quality control of the product is good enough that they are mostly failing in the same way, at the same time."

In a number of cases I've seen people proudly show off their control charts, their data collection and ability to run in control for long periods. Looking closer I ask 'why are the control limits for these critical tolerances outside of the spec range ? You've not only been making bad parts for a long time, your data proves that you have, and predicts that you will continue to do so.' :^)

 

[sprintman]

I've got a Japanese built Subaru Outback which is so much better than the 25 previous vehicles I've owned it's not funny. They treat you like a realperson. Free fixes well outside the warranty period. They are different.

 

[Bror Jace]

I've never thought it was national culture that determined quality between the car brands/countries. It's corporate culture.

I'm not surprised Nissan is having some quality problesm with new models from a new plant. I feel they've been cutting corners in some of their newest cars, mine included ('03 SpecV).

--- Bror Jace