Why did Nissan Philippines bring in the Juke Nismo?

Anton Andres / Brent Co | October 26, 2018 17:13

Nissan PH boss explains why they brought in more Nismo models

Nissan put on quite the show at this year’s Philippine International Motor Show. Not only did they show concepts of the Terra and Navara, they unveiled the future Nismo range in the Philippines. Aside from the GT-R Nismo, which was sold in limited quantities here, the local Nismo range also includes two new models. 

These models are the Juke Nismo and the 370Z Nismo. With that, Nissan Philippines Inc. (NPI) not only has a range of pickups, SUVs, crossovers, and sedans, they also have quite the portfolio when it comes to performance cars. So why then did NPI bring their performance division, particularly the Juke Nismo, into the country? 

It all started with the GT-R Nismo and, according to NPI president Ramesh Narasimhan, it took off from there. The goal for Nismo in the Philippines is simple on paper, but challenging in application, and that’s expanding the appeal of the performance division to a bigger audience. As Narasimhan put it, “We want to have Nismo models that are affordable, and make the Nismo brand’s appeal (be) wider”.

Hence, the decision to introduce the Juke Nismo in the Philippines. “The Juke is a strong product for us, and offering a Nismo version will broaden its appeal,” said Narasimhan, adding that the Juke Nismo will help drive the in-house tuning division’s name in the minds of the Filipino consumers.

With that in mind, one could expect more Nismo models to come into the country. For now, it isn’t certain which cars will arrive here, but given that Nissan Philippines is keen on expanding the brand, they may trickle in slowly. There is currently no announcement as to when the Juke Nismo and 370Z Nismo, but it could be sooner, rather than later. What is sure is the arrival of the next batch of GT-R Nismo, which will be towards the end of 2019.