China Speed
The Germans take at least seven years to roll out a new car, while the Japanese typically need five to six years for the same task, depending on what kind of model. The Chinese, on the other hand, target a development period of just 24 months. By all means, that’s as rapid as it gets, and it’s not going to be easy to match that.
Legacy automakers have called it China Speed, and the pressure is on for other carmakers. Led by software-first designs, lower costs, and healthy subsidization from the government, it allows Chinese automakers to easily undercut the competition, nipping away at their once seemingly impenetrable market share.
Nissan May Have Cracked It
You may have heard that Nissan was able to develop the new-generation Skyline in record time. That’s mainly thanks to the assistance of AI, halving it to just 26 months. With that, the Japanese automaker isn’t that far off from China Speed. But it’s not just AI that’s helping the company cut development times, as reported by Automotive News.
Kazuyuki Yamaguchi, one of Nissan’s corporate executives for product development, told the press that the automaker needed an extensive overhaul and mindset shift when it came to building cars. “We have totally changed the process. Chinese players are intensifying the competition, so we need to be competitive enough. We need to introduce attractive products into the market more quickly. Otherwise, we won’t survive. It’s a very simple message,” said Yamaguchi.
The all-new Skyline/Infiniti Q50 is just the start, as Nissan will start applying the lessons learned from the sport sedan’s development to other future models. So, how did the automaker get close to China Speed?
Nissan/Youtube
Four Guiding Principles
Nissan’s sudden burst of speed can be attributed to four guiding principles. These are prioritizing specifications, maximizing vehicle platforms, simplifying development teams and project management, and, of course, more AI assistance.
For prioritizing specifications, Nissan is focusing on enhancing a vehicle’s value by focusing on its best attributes and target market. “We polish what the car excels at and focus our investment in the strongest aspects. We set the target by trying to look at the balance, rather than doing everything perfectly,” said Yamaguchi. As for platform sharing, there will be more of that with more models under a common umbrella in terms of chassis, powertrain, and even design.
Nissan used to have three leaders for a single project, namely the program director, product planning manager, and chief vehicle engineer. Now, the program director will also be responsible for product planning and will be working closely with the chief engineer. It streamlines operations and reduces the odds of clashing opinions – something Nissan can’t afford as it doesn’t have the luxury of time. For AI integration, it’ll assist development and lessen the need to build a very raw prototype. This will allow the team to build a test mule that’s closer to production and requires less fine-tuning.
Nissan
The Risk of Speed
Speed is a good thing, but it may come at the expense of accuracy. Like it or not, there will always be an inevitable trade-off between the two. What Nissan needs to do now is balance the fine line between the two. Get it wrong, and you end up with something like the W220 Mercedes-Benz S-Class, a brilliant product marred by teething issues that stained the reputation of the flagship sedan. Nissan cannot afford to make any blunders, now more than ever.
The Chinese auto industry isn’t immune to mistakes due to speed, either. For those who have experienced a few of these, some technologies feel half-baked, and the same goes for other aspects such as chassis tuning. Updates rectify it, be it through over-the-air or rolling changes, but it’s a stark contrast to ‘do it once, and do it right.’
But this is where Nissan’s experience as a legacy automaker steps in. While it’s had to change its mindset, lessons learned from the past still apply, and it already knows what pitfalls to avoid in the first place. The Chinese auto industry is still young, and it will still go through more growing pains before it can truly compete on merit and not just price. Legacy carmakers can still fight back, but they have to be more agile than ever.
Nissan
