Automotive News - May 19, 2008 - (Page N27)

MAY 19, 2008 • N27 NISSAN’S In the mid-1950s, Nissan adamantly opposed selling cars in America. “Crazy Nobe” tricked Nissan to bring cars here. 50 Years in America Woolverton Motors in Glendale, Calif., curiously pitched Datsun as an “imported American car.” “T hey said I was crazy.” So reads the brief historical footnote assigned to an otherwise forgotten young Japanese man living in Los Angeles: Nobushige Wakatsuki, known to Americans as Nobe. The official history is sketchy. But Wakatsuki is the agent provocateur who first pushed a reluctant Nissan Motor Co. into selling cars in the United States — an idea many older Japanese believed to be ridiculous. In 1955, Wakatsuki worked in the newly opened Los Angeles office of Marubeni Corp., an aggressively growing Japanese trading company. Japanese government and industry officials were looking for anything they could find to export out of Japan — cloth, leather, rubber, toys, transistor radios. The enterprising Wakatsuki proposed throwing Nissan cars into Marubeni’s mix. known to Nissan aficionados as the influential “Mr. K” — would take control and open a U.S. office. “Those were the most miserable three years of my life,” Wakatsuki said. “People were laughing at me.” But what about now, he is asked, 50 years later? With Nissan North America selling more than 1 million vehicles a year and delivering twothirds of the global corporation’s profits, doesn’t Wakatsuki feel as if he proved them all wrong? He let go of a hearty laugh that temporarily drowned out the TV. “You’ll never hear anyone say so!” he said, laughing. “They probably still despise me!” — Lindsay Chappell NOBE WAKATSUKI Earliest Nissan involvement: 1957 Role: Trader for Marubeni Corp. in Los Angeles Key influence: Brought first Nissan vehicles to the United States, despite resistance from the automaker No room for Nissan The notion was greeted dismissively, to put it mildly, Wakatsuki, now 84, said from his home in the fashionable Shibuya neighborhood of Tokyo. “They thought I was crazy,” Wakatsuki said in perfect English while Japanese TV played in the background. “They told me I didn’t know what I was talking about. It was very humiliating to me. When I would try to talk to people at Nissan about selling cars in the United States, they would look at each other and then get up and leave the room.” In the automaker’s defense, Wakatsuki’s proposal was a bit of a stretch. Japan knew nothing about the U.S. car market. In the end, Wakatsuki resorted to trickery. He purchased three cars outright and had them shipped to the United States. When Nissan asked what he planned to do with them, Wakatsuki lied and told the company they would be his personal vehicles. “When they found out I had tricked them, they were very mad,” he recalled. “Marubeni was mad at me, too. They wanted to fire me.” BRAKE ENGINEERING THAT STOPS A SPEEDING BULLET Japan’s Shinkansen 300 km/h N700 Series “Bullet Trains” depend on Akebono brakes. Akebono ultra quality manufacturing standards result in unprecedented braking performance. If we can stop a speeding bullet, what’s stopping you from choosing Akebono? Signing up distributors Approaching U.S. retailers with his ill-gotten samples wasn’t much easier. Dealers also thought Wakatsuki’s claim that the Japanese would export cars was crazy. One retailer, E.G. Woolverton, of Woolverton Motors in Glendale, Calif., believed the story and signed up to distribute the Datsun vehicles to other retailers on the West Coast. But Wakatsuki was no car salesman and Marubeni no auto company. The plans to sell 500 to 1,000 Datsuns in 1958 fizzled, and the brand sold a paltry 83 in its first year, according to John B. Rae’s 1982 book, Nissan/Datsun, A History of Nissan Motor Corporation in U.S.A., 19601980. By year end, Rae wrote, Woolverton had 100 Datsuns sitting in an open lot, unsold. Wakatsuki urged Nissan to come set up its own sales company in America. But even that idea got a cool reception. It would be three years before Nissan’s advertising manager, Yutaka Katayama — later www.akebonobrakes.com World Leader of Advanced Brake Friction Technology http://www.akebonobrakes.com http://www.akebonobrakes.com

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Automotive News - May 19, 2008 Ford eyes smaller F-150 cousin Sonic: Mercedes tries to 'extort' store upgrades Chrysler seeks 25% slash in parts prices Dealership managers pushed Chrysler's latest incentive Crain names 4 new VPs Automotive News staffers win Wheel Awards GM will keep cutting sales to fleets GM studies the future of full-sized trucks American Axle plans to expand in Asia At Lexus, the sales laggards are cars VW positions Tiguan as 'GTI' of small SUVs Tata enters race for 100-mpg car Harley Earl was the daddy of auto design Focus will follow Fiesta as a global vehicle Lexus shows how it sweats details Industry slows tide of state CO2 rules Chevy tweaks Cobalt to add fuel economy Be careful; don't do anything dumb Looking ahead to different industry They thought they knew everything Cerberus doesn't belong in autos Dealers as scapegoats Smart, steady growth works best for suppliers Farley's smart to value Ford's heritage Absurd logic in the U.S., cowardice in Germany BMW, Daimler keep a wary eye on U.S. economy James Franey Dealers' approach can lessen pain of staff cuts GM plans to distinguish Opel with image makeover Make or buy? Software can estimate costs for company Honda, Toyota see robots in their futures Bosch aims to lead in hybrids technology King of hearts Clarke aims to get GM back on track in N.A. Fields navigates Ford through 'white water' LaSorda steers Chrysler's global ventures Toyota's Lentz: A crash course in hard times Truck sales fall 13% in April Modine sells Thermacore unit Alcoa to close Mexico plant Toyoda Gosei expands in Mexico Hayes Lemmerz plans to close Georgia factory Japan's sales slide 2% in 1st quarter; output climbs Dealers Hyundai let U.S. direct Sonata freshening After .com and .edu, is it time for .car? Panoramic sunroof of Lincoln MKS boosts Inalfa sales Chrysler hedged gas price bet Smart phones help dealerships retain customers CAW completes pacts with GM, Chrysler early GM, UAW resolve 2 disputes New media buyer for Chrysler Visteon names Stebbins CEO Convertible registrations drop Ferrari: From denial to debut Buildings Porsches in U.S.? Depends whom you ask Toyota will go slow in Tupelo Ghosn is glum on prices, U.S. sales prospects Pischetsrieder has earned a celebratory cigar NHTSA spins VINs, averts meltdown F_RD GU_S WI_ BUI-_KS 50 PEOPLE FOR 50 YEARS Yutaka Katayama Clarence Talley Jim Morton Pete Brock Marvin Runyon Yoshikazu Hanawa Bill Bruce Shin Maki Jack Collins Mitsuya "Scape" Goto Bob Link Soichi Kawazoe Jerry Hirshberg Takashi Ishihara Roy Rogers John Parker Bob Thomas Teruo Uchino Morrie Sage Bob Thomas Nobe Wakatsuki Earl Hesterberg Carlos Ghosn Lee Clow Jerry Benefield Yutaka Kume Doug Betts Tim McCarthy Jed Connelly Atsushi Nakatsuji Dave Hubbard Joe Opre Patrick Pelata Yoshiyuki Kimura Diane Allen Mad Mike Taylor Chuck King Larry Dominique Mark Igo Mitsuhiko Yamashita Shiro Nakamura Tom Mignanelli Dick Roberts William Cushing Emil Hassan Chester Luby Jane Nakagawa Louis Schweitzer MR. K Ray Lemke Richard McCutcheon

Automotive News - May 19, 2008

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