Nissan hasn't been making a whole lot of noise lately. Sure, they make good cars, trucks and SUVs, but most of the news about Nissan has really been about GM. Well, after a protracted series of discussions with GM, Nissan/Renault released the following statement on their website:

General Motors, Renault and Nissan said today that they had agreed to terminate discussions regarding a proposed alliance among the three companies.

The parties mutually recognized that significant aggregate synergies might result from the alliance. However the parties did not agree on either the total amount of aggregate synergies or the distribution of those benefits.

Based on its conclusions, GM had proposed that Renault-Nissan provide compensation as part of a potential alliance and for potentially precluding GM from entering other alliance opportunities if Renault-Nissan had made a significant investment in GM.

Renault and Nissan consider that the principle of compensation is contrary to the spirit of any successful alliance.

The GM negotiation has overshadowed what I consider to be the real news of the day for Nissan: The premiere of the 2007 Nissan Altima Hybrid at the Orange County Auto Show on October 4, 2006. According to The Los Angeles Times, Nissan licensed Toyota's hybrid technology for the Altima, which will hit showroom floors in early 2007.

It appears that hybrid cars are moving closer to center on the automotive radar screen. Read more about hybrids and other alternative fuel vehicles on Guide Eric Powers' informative About Hybrid Cars pages.

Photo © Jason Fogelson