The drama surrounding the potential collaboration between Nissan and Honda was one of the biggest news stories to take the global automotive industry by storm in 2025. In the latest updates of the entire situation, it looks like the two Japanese carmakers, along with Mitsubishi, are hinting at a formal partnership, Nikkei Asia reports.
Honda Chief Executive Officer and President Toshihiro Mibe told Nikkei Asia that negotiations between the companies are in advanced stages, with some aspects close to being revealed in an announcement soon. He added that both Honda and Nissan will enter this partnership on win-win terms, with each company proceeding with their respective projects.
Renault is also likely to have a say in any final deal, as it still holds a 15% voting stake in Nissan, down from 43% in 2023. These fresh negotiations arrive as Nissan carries out an aggressive cost-cutting programme under its Re:Nissan restructuring plan. To combat severe financial pressure, the company is slashing global production capacity from five million to 2.5 million units, a survival strategy that includes closing seven factories, shutting two design studios and laying off around 20,000 employees.
As for what the carmakers are collaborating on in the upcoming deal, it is reported that Honda, Nissan and Mitsubishi will be working closely to develop an electronic control unit (ECU) to be used across models from all three marques. The first vehicles equipped with the shared technology are reportedly arriving by 2029.
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This stands in stark contrast to the initial discussions where Honda wanted Nissan to be its subsidiary. That power struggle led to the eventual fallout of merger talks between the two carmakers, a move that would have created the third-largest carmaker in the world and Japan’s second-largest automotive conglomerate behind Toyota.
The pivot to a close partnership comes after both companies refused to compromise over terms of the merger. Initially, Honda conditioned the talks on Nissan buying out Renault’s 35.7 per cent stake in the Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi Alliance, a move valued at USD3.6 billion that Nissan obviously could not afford.
Furthermore, Honda demanded that Makoto Uchida, predecessor to current Nissan CEO Ivan Espinosa, step down as a core prerequisite for resuming talks. While that executive clean-out ultimately cleared the path forward, the sudden shift in tone was heavily driven by Honda’s own escalating crises.
As fate would have it, Honda has recorded its first annual loss in over 70 years. This deficit forced Honda to cancel its 0 Series electric vehicles during their late development stages, racking up a massive write-down of USD15.7 billion. This financial haemorrhage would have multiplied significantly had Honda proceeded with the commercial launch.
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