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Dongfeng Nissan: The electric pioneer nearly became a martyr, now 'crossing the river by feeling the stones of ideals'

Intelligent electric vehicles: do joint venture brands still have a chance?

On April 8, Dongfeng Nissan held the NX8 launch event in Guangzhou, providing an observation sample. $DONGFENG MOTOR GRO (Delisted) (DNFGY.US)$

The NX8 comes in two powertrain options with six versions.The extended-range version offers three choices: 310 Max, 150 Max, and 150 Pro, with official recommended prices of 1.799 million yuan, 1.699 million yuan, and 1.599 million yuan, respectively; the all-electric version offers three choices: 650 Max, 580 Max, and 580 Pro, with official recommended prices of 1.849 million yuan, 1.699 million yuan, and 1.599 million yuan, respectively. With a direct discount of 10,000 yuan if ordered before April 30, the final starting price is 1.499 million yuan.

This price is very uncharacteristic of 'joint ventures' and is directly comparable to domestic brands and new forces.

In addition to the price,All functions of the Dongfeng Nissan NX8 can be benchmarked against Chinese brands. The longest range for the extended-range and all-electric versions reaches 310 kilometers, and the assisted driving system uses Momenta. It surpasses even the so-called 'refrigerator, TV, big sofa' features... Previously, the Dongfeng Nissan N7 and N6 also exhibited similar traits.

Nissan and Dongfeng Nissan were once among the earliest electric vehicle manufacturers globally and in China, but the 'pioneer' nearly became a 'martyr.' Now, Dongfeng Nissan has adjusted its strategy, with more localized decision-making and products developed by 'feeling their way across the river while holding on to ideals,' creating products that better match the Chinese market. Opportunities for joint venture brands in the Chinese market still exist.

Ultra-short launch event, explosive pricing

The launch event of the Nissan Motor NX8 broke with convention.

First, the duration was only 30 minutes; second, instead of delaying the price announcement until the end, the most crucial model details and pricing were released within just 16 minutes.

This model, positioned as a family-oriented large five-seater SUV, boasts an all-around product offering.

In terms of its core three-electric system, the Nissan Motor NX8 is equipped with Cloud Shield Battery 2.0, which uses CATL cells.The pure electric version offers a maximum range of 650km, supports 800V 5C ultra-fast charging, replenishing 300km in just six minutes. The extended-range version has a pure electric range of up to 310km, a combined range of 1,450km, and a fuel consumption of just 4.51L/100km when running on fuel alone.

In terms of intelligence, the NX8 employs Momenta’s assisted driving system for one-touch automatic parking, covering parallel, angled, and extremely narrow parking spaces. The cockpit features the AI voice assistant 'Little Ni' and offers an optional 63-inch AR-HUD display system, along with dual 15.6-inch screens for central control and entertainment.

Aesthetically, the NX8 adopts a flawless body design with six highly textured color options, complemented by the longest贯穿-style light strip in its class and tail lights with the world's highest number of OLED lighting units.

For comfort, the NX8 includes a co-pilot AI zero-gravity cloud cushion seat with 25 built-in massage and support airbags that conform closely to the body. The rear seats feature 133-degree electric reclining chairs, complete with electric adjustment, ventilation, heating, and massage functions. Additionally, there is a dual-opening AI smart fridge capable of making ice at -6°C and heating milk to 55°C.

In terms of space, the NX8 has a wheelbase of 2,917mm and a rear aisle width of 450mm. The pure electric version offers a trunk capacity of 773 liters, while the extended-range version provides 746 liters.

Regarding configurations, Nissan Motor explicitly stated this time that it is adopting Li Auto’s “fully loaded from entry-level” product strategy, with 71 high-value configurations included as standard across the entire lineup.

General Manager of Dongfeng Nissan Motor Sales Co., Ltd., Xin Yu (right), and General Manager of the New Energy Brand of Dongfeng Nissan Motor Sales Co., Ltd., Wang Qian (left)

"For all joint venture brands over the past years, this is the first time they are not offering high, medium, or low-end trims but focusing solely on high-end configurations." Wang Qian, General Manager of the New Energy Brand of Dongfeng Nissan Motor Sales Co., Ltd., revealed during an interview, "There are two goals. The first goal is to provide consumers with an overwhelming choice, so they don't have to worry about different configurations. Secondly, after optimizing configuration efficiency, it also helps reduce costs."

With such configurations, can this price hold up?

"You're actually asking about our pricing strategy and whether we're making a profit." Xin Yu, General Manager of Dongfeng Nissan Motor Sales Co., Ltd., responded in an interview after the press conference, "Prices are determined by the market, while costs are decided by us. Cost reduction through technology, economies of scale, finding top-tier suppliers, and then delivering real value to customers.”

The market feedback for Dongfeng Nissan's recent N series releases has been positive, but the N7 has encountered delivery challenges.

This time, Wang Qian stated that deliveries for the all-electric models would begin on the day of the April 8 launch; the extended-range models will be delivered successively in mid-to-late May."This month, we've already prepared several thousand vehicles for delivery. So delivery, for us, is already a hurdle we've overcome."Wang Qian said.

About an hour after the press conference ended, Wang Qian checked the real-time order data on his mobile phone during a media communication session: "8,423 new orders."

Groping for ideals while crossing the river

The slogan for this NX8 launch is 'The most ideal SUV for the whole family,' clearly aligning with the purpose of Li Auto.

NX8's product strategy is highly similar to Li Auto: positioned as 'the most ideal SUV for the whole family,' it focuses on 'full configuration right from the entry-level' without high or low trims, and emphasizes a 'C-position for every seat' riding experience. These labels have been successfully embedded in consumers’ minds by Li Auto over the past year.

Shang Shunshi, Chief Product Officer of Dongfeng Nissan, said, 'The label for Li Auto is a mobile home, a dad-mobile. For Nissan, our label is comfort; we represent the harmony between car and life.''We are learning from Li Auto, but not blindly copying them. You could say we are well-matched.'

Xin Yu added, 'Back when Li Auto developed the series-parallel extended-range system, we had our e-Power... They learned from us to cross the river, so today I’m learning from them again. If they touch us, we’ll touch them back.'

However, NX8 and Li Auto’s similarly positioned L6 models do not share the same price range.

'We are still on different tracks. Li Auto currently dominates the above 200,000-yuan market, but we are first focusing on the 150,000-to-200,000-yuan range.''We want to become the most ideal SUV within the 150,000-to-200,000-yuan range, targeting mainstream family users on the main track.'Shang Shunshi said.

The RMB 150,000-200,000 family SUV market had hardly any product with monthly sales exceeding 10,000 units before the NX8. This is a middle ground squeezed by BYD and Li Auto – too expensive to compete with Li Auto L6/7/8, but unable to beat BYD in terms of cost performance. The NX8 is trying to find its place in this gap.

Joint venture brands fight for survival

After a press conference, some media asked Xin Yu: Among Volkswagen, Toyota, Honda, and Nissan, who will survive and who will fail in two or three years?

The context of this question is that joint venture brands are generally under pressure due to the strong rise of Chinese brands. By 2025, the market share of joint venture brands such as Volkswagen, Toyota, and Honda in China continues to shrink. It is widely expected in the industry that a number of joint venture brands will exit the Chinese market within two to three years.

Dongfeng Nissan, of course, also feels the chill.

“Last year, our channel lost around a hundred outlets in total.” Xin Yu admitted during a group interview. However, he also mentioned that the cohesion of the dealer team is currently very strong, “Everyone’s morale is good. Q1 was terrible, but the dealer team didn’t complain.”

Unlike other joint venture brands,Dongfeng Nissan's current predicament is particularly lamentable because domestic brands and new forces have risen by riding the wave of new energy vehicles, while Nissan and Dongfeng Nissan were among the earliest companies to launch electric cars.

In 2010, Nissan launched the world’s first mass-produced electric vehicle, the Leaf, establishing itself as a pioneer in electrification. In 2014, Dongfeng Nissan, using the Leaf as a blueprint, introduced the Venucia e30, becoming one of the earliest joint venture pure electric models in the Chinese market. However, limited by a range of only 175 km and a high price of over RMB 240,000 at that time, the market response was lukewarm.

In 2018, Dongfeng Nissan launched the Sylphy・Pure Electric, which was criticized as an “oil-to-electric” adaptation based on a fuel car platform. With no advantages in space or range and a relatively high price, it similarly failed to win the market.

In 2022, Nissan Motor launched ARIYA, its all-new pure electric vehicle built on a native EV platform. However, the model was priced at 272,800 yuan, which was considered too high. Additionally, it lacked sufficient intelligence and localization adaptation, resulting in poor sales amidst fierce competition, eventually leading to clearance and withdrawal from the market.

At this point, global automakers finally realized that the rules of competition in the Chinese market are completely different from those in the global market. A strategy based on decisions made by global headquarters and synchronized globally simply doesn’t work. Localization, relying on resources from Chinese suppliers, is the only viable option.

After 2025, Dongfeng Nissan changed its strategy and introduced the N series: In April 2025, the all-electric sedan N7 was launched, starting at 119,900 yuan, with monthly sales exceeding 10,000 units at one point. In December, the plug-in hybrid sedan N6 was released, achieving nearly 7,000 units in monthly sales at its peak. Now, they have also introduced the mid-to-large-sized SUV NX8, which features a range-extended powertrain unique to the Chinese market.

Additionally,Dongfeng Nissan incorporated Harmony OS into the Teana model’s cockpit system, while the N series is equipped with Momenta’s assisted driving technology — showing that Dongfeng Nissan has caught up with the leading group in terms of intelligent capabilities.

At this point, compared with domestic brands and new forces in China, Dongfeng Nissan's products can now compete head-to-head with rivals across various functionalities. Coupled with aggressive pricing strategies, rising sales volumes were an expected outcome.

Returning to the question of “who can survive,” Xin Yu did not provide a direct answer but proposed what he believes are the criteria for survival: “Move faster, truly understand the market, and act quickly when making decisions.”

By these three standards,Although it cannot yet be said that Dongfeng Nissan will definitely survive, it has indeed demonstrated a stronger survival instinct compared to other joint ventures.

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