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For years, Nissan has trailed Toyota and Honda in sales and failed to achieve the same level of regard in overall consumer awareness. But more recently, Nissan has retooled its marketing, honed its engineering strengths, and pushed design boundaries to reestablished itself in the U.S.
The automaker is now preparing its most effective weapon yet to dethrone Toyota and its top-selling Camry. That weapon is the fifth-generation Altima, which just went into production in Tennessee.
Although the Altima has been a formidable contender in the midsize sedan segment, it hasn’t achieved the same level of success as the Camry or the Honda Accord. “[The] Altima has relied heavily on sales to fleets, rather than retail,” says Michelle Krebs, an analyst for Edmunds.com. “It’s been hard for companies like Nissan and Mazda to break through.”
Nissan is confident that the 2013 Altima will be a game-changer, and expects the car to outsell Toyota’s beloved Camry within a year. While at first glance that may sound like a ridiculous goal, it’s important to remember that even against incredible odds, Nissan is a truly incredible company. In 1999, the company was on the verge of bankruptcy, but has since retooled its manufacturing system and reorganized the company. Bill Krueger, vice chairman of Nissan operations in the Americas, promises that such improvements weren’t made just so that the company can settle for being No. 2.
Moreover, the Altima itself has gained momentum since it debuted back in 1992. In the first four months of 2012, Nissan sold 112,599 Altimas–almost 30-percent more than the same period last year. By comparison, Honda sold 96,517 Accords, Toyota sold 142,225 Camrys, Chevrolet sold 80,456 Malibus and Ford sold 85,559 Fusions during the same period.
“The Nissan Altima ranks among the country’s top-selling cars and best-known nameplates,” said Krueger. “This generation is not only the most innovative Altima ever, it also becomes the benchmark for quality in the midsize car segment. And there’s no better plant to rise to the challenge than our top-quality manufacturing operations in Smyrna.”
The all-new 2013 Nissan Altima will continue to offer many of the same qualities that made the outgoing model such a hit. With a base price of just $21,500, the 2013 model, however, will offer a slew of new technologies such as lane departure warning, blind-spot warning, NASA-inspired seats, and even a new infotainment system to excite consumers.
Amid high gas prices, Nissan believes consumers will appreciate the new Altima’s impressive fuel economy. The model equipped with a 2.5-liter four cylinder engine boasts 38 miles per gallon. By shedding weight compared to the 2012 model, improving the old model’s four-cylinder engine, and adding a new continuously variable transmission, the 2013 Nissan Altima features improved fuel economy as well as performance. If these qualities aren’t enough to lure a few would-be Camry buyers, nothing much will.
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