Nissan Motor Co. launched a fully remodeled version of the Moco minivehicle Wednesday that is being supplied by Suzuki Motor Corp. on an original equipment manufacturing basis.
The new Moco features headlights that resemble the front of the March compact -- a touch intended to underline its link to the Nissan brand, company officials said.
It also comes in eight colors, including pink and turquoise, and has been designed to look different from Suzuki's new MR Wagon.
Nissan hopes the new Moco, which will be priced between 1.06 million yen and 1.37 million yen, will attract women in their late 20s and early 30s as the minivehicle market continues to grow.
Domestic sales of minivehicles -- defined as cars with engines no larger than 660cc -- hit a record 1.924 million units in 2005.
Nissan hopes to sell 4,400 Mocos a month.
Nissan, which does not make minivehicles on its own, entered the minicar market with the Moco in April 2002.
Nissan has been selling Mitsubishi Motors Corp.'s Minicab commercial vehicle as the Clipper since October 2003. It has also been buying MMC's eK Wagon on an OEM basis and selling it as the Otti since June.
The popularity of minivehicles has prompted speculation that Nissan will expand its minicar lineup. But Chief Operating Officer Toshiyuki Shiga said the nation's No. 2 automaker must be careful when making that decision.
"Adding another minicar to the lineup may hurt the sales of (other bigger and more profitable) cars," Shiga said.
Shiga acknowledged that Nissan is missing out on 7,000 sales a month because drivers are shifting to minivehicles.
Thanks to the Moco and the Otti, however, Nissan has managed to keep 60 percent of its customers from defecting to other brands, Shiga said.
"But that does not mean expanding our minicar lineup will do our business good," he said.
