NISSAN HIGHLIGHTS RECORD-SETTING 2014 AT WASHINGTON AUTO SHOW

January 21, 2015 by Nissan

• Company sets U.S. sales, production and export records for 2014

Washington, D.C. – As the Washington Auto Show kicks off this week, Nissan celebrates its largest U.S. presence since the company sold its first automobile in America in 1958. Fueled by ongoing efforts to grow the company's U.S. manufacturing presence, Nissan marked a number of key U.S. milestones in 2014, including all-time records for total sales (1,386,895), production (947,558), and exports (129,761).

Nissan 2014 calendar year highlights:

◾Nissan division sold more than 1 million North American-produced vehicles in the U.S. for the first time, with total sales up 11.1 percent over the prior year.

◾Exports rose 29 percent for the year to 129,761, as Nissan marked the 1 millionth vehicle exported from its U.S. plants.

◾Nissan's Smyrna, Tenn. Vehicle Assembly Plant was the top-producing automotive assembly plant in North America with more than 648,000 vehicles produced in 2014.

◾Nissan total vehicle production in the U.S. grew 20 percent to more than 947,000 in 2014.

◾The addition of more than 9,000 new jobs since mid-2011 pushed the company's U.S. workforce to a record 22,000 American jobs, including 16,000 manufacturing jobs.

Nissan's investment of more than $10.1 billion in its American operations was a significant factor in its record-setting performance in 2014. More than 31 years after the start of U.S. manufacturing, Nissan has produced 13.7 million vehicles, 7.6 million engines and 57,000 lithium-ion battery packs at its facilities in the U.S. Nissan now has two U.S. vehicle assembly plants capable of producing 1.14 million vehicles, and two powertrain plants with capacity to produce 1.65 million engines, 1.4 million forgings and 456,000 castings annually.

'Nissan Group sells more vehicles in the United States than any other country, and we have a target to grow our U.S. market share from 8.4 percent in 2014 to 10 percent in the near future,' said John Martin, senior vice president, Manufacturing, Purchasing and Supply Chain Management for Nissan. 'The strength of our workforce in Tennessee and Mississippi enhances our ability to expand production in the Americas, driving Nissan's success in the U.S. and around the world.'

In line with the Washington Auto Show theme, 'Made Across America,' employees from Nissan's two vehicle assembly plants are driving the company's two newest U.S.-manufactured vehicles from their plants to the auto show, highlighting Nissan's growing impact on jobs, economies, and communities across America.

A team from Canton, Mississippi will arrive to the nation's capital in an all-new 2015 Nissan Murano. Nissan moved production of the Murano from Japan to Canton in late 2014, and the plant now serves as the global source of Murano production with export opportunities to markets worldwide. The team from Smyrna, Tennessee will arrive in the company's best-selling crossover, a 2015 Nissan Rogue, which was localized to the Smyrna plant in 2013.

Bringing Rogue and Murano production to the United States is part of Nissan's broader strategy to build where it sells, and it moves Nissan closer to achieving its goal of having 85 percent of the vehicles it sells in the United States produced in North America by 2015.

The teams will travel a combined 1,700 miles across eight states, culminating in an industry-wide press event and photo opportunity in front of the U.S. Capitol building with 14 automakers representing 43 U.S. assembly plants.

About Nissan North America

In North America, Nissan's operations include automotive styling, engineering, consumer and corporate financing, sales and marketing, distribution and manufacturing. Nissan is dedicated to improving the environment under the Nissan Green Program and has been recognized as an ENERGY STAR® Partner of the Year in 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013 and 2014 by the U.S Environmental Protection Agency. More information on Nissan in North America and the complete line of Nissan and Infiniti vehicles can be found online at www.NissanUSA.com and www.InfinitiUSA.com, or visit the Americas media sites NissanNews.com and InfinitiNews.com.

About Nissan

Nissan Motor Co., Ltd., Japan's second-largest automotive company, is headquartered in Yokohama, Japan, and is part of the Renault-Nissan Alliance. Operating with more than 244,500 employees globally, Nissan sold almost 5.2 million vehicles and generated revenue of 10.5 trillion yen (USD 105 billion) in fiscal 2013.

Nissan delivers a comprehensive range of more than 60 models under the Nissan, Infiniti and Datsun brands. In 2010, Nissan introduced the Nissan LEAF, and continues to lead in zero-emission mobility. The LEAF, the first mass-market, pure-electric vehicle launched globally, is now the best-selling EV in history with almost 50% share of the zero-emission vehicle segment.

Photo credit: Nissan
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