Canada Car Sales, with Commentary

[WOM]

Ghosn, Ghosn, Gone.

Carlos, ex-Nissan head awaiting trial in Japan, has fled to Lebanon without his passport.

https://www.bbc.com/news/business-50952335

[ursus arctos]

Still unclear as to whether he skipped bail or was deported as part of some kind of deal with the Lebanese.

Either way, he wouldn't have been able to get to the airport and off the tarmac without multiple elements of the Japanese legal apparatus being aware.

I wonder if we will ever get a full accounting of what happened there. So far it has been Rashomon at Renault.

[WOM]

Would love to know the details. What's Lebanon's angle? Doesn't seem like this looks good on anyone.

[WOM]

Aha...he holds Lebanese citizenship and was fleeing a 'rigged justice system'. Sounds like something you might do if you could do and were facing a long stretch behind bars.

[Nefertiti2]

[URL]https://twitter.com/albinszakola/status/1211988832075362305?s=21[/URL]

[ursus arctos]

Interesting

He has close ties to Lebanon, including a luxurious compound where he has frequently spent time. His wife is also of Lebanese heritage, and I believe that she also speaks both Arabic and French.

The Turkish angle is fascinating if true.

[WOM]

One article I read said that Japan has a 99% conviction rate, and Ghosn was staring down 15 years. In his position, I might have been inclined to do the same thing. And obviously, he had the means.

[ursus arctos]

It is actually over 99 percent, but rounds to that.

Ghosn's Japanese lawyer (who we have yet to hear from) is renowned for having secured a couple of high profile acquittals (i.e., a couple more than virtually everyone else).

I don't think it is coincidental that Japan is embarking on more than a week of holidays. Though Ghosh seems intent on not letting the authorities enjoy theirs.

[WOM]

Based on their statements, his lawyers seem to have been caught off guard. But, of course, who knows.

[ursus arctos]

I have no clue about Japan, but in the US a client telling his lawyer of his plans to skip bail would create a material ethical issue for the lawyer.

[ursus arctos]

I wonder if they have pre-sold the film rights

[URL="https://twitter.com/businessdesk/status/1212023114621521921?s=21"]https://twitter.com/businessdesk/status/1212023114621521921[/URL]

[Eggchaser]

It was a well orchestrated plan.




Also - Ghosn In 60 Seconds.

[caja-dglh]

This story is just great.

[Kevin S]

Might as well add the UK 2019 figures then.

1. FORD Fiesta 69702
2. VOLKSWAGEN Golf 50468
3. FORD Focus 49517
4. VAUXHALL Corsa 49341
5. MERCEDES-BENZ A Class 46923
6. NISSAN Qashqai 46568
7. MINI Hatch 34387
8. FORD Kuga 33738
9. VOLKSWAGEN Polo 32257
10. KIA Sportage 30815

[WOM]

Month of October only. Multiply by @16 to get the annual number.

Funny country, this. We either want really expensive, gas-swilling trucks or inexpensive, frugal 4-door sedans. There are no big sedans - which used to be, like, 90% of the market - to be seen. The first one on the list is the Toyota Camry at #34, selling 770 units per month.

1. Ford F-Series (pickup) 11,068
2. Ram Pickup (duh...) 5,727
3. Toyota RAV4 (SUV) 5,634
4. Honda Civic (compact sedan) 3,312
5. Honda CR-V (SUV) 4,044
6. Toyota Corolla (compact sedan) 3,571
7. GMC Sierra (pickup) 3,601
8. Chevy Silverado (pickup) 3,766
9. Hyundai Elantra (compact sedan) 3,643
10. Ford Escape (SUV) 2,778

[Sits]

Qashqai is a really annoying name for a car.

[WOM]

It's called the Rogue Sport in the U.S.

The Rogue is Nissan's mass market SUV there.

[ursus arctos]

From my incredibly limited understanding of the market, there were basically two kinds of buyers for full size sedans: people who associated size with safety (and to a lesser extent comfort) and people who wanted to demonstrate their ability to afford such a car to the world. There were also significant fleet sales back in the day when company cars were a thing, but that is now something for the history books.

The first group have long ago switched to trucks or SUVs; the second (which used to be the core of Cadillac and Lincoln here) long ago switched to Mercs and BMWs. As a result, 700 a month for a market like Canada sounds about right.

[ursus arctos]

Adelstein is always worth reading when it comes to the seedy side of Japan Inc.

[URL="https://twitter.com/jakeadelstein/status/1212236650178211841?s=21"]https://twitter.com/jakeadelstein/status/1212236650178211841[/URL]

[ursus arctos]

Some new Ghosn news from behind the FT paywall, as Turkey arrests seven airport personnel

The Turkish authorities are investigating whether the detainees, including four pilots, helped Mr Ghosn escape, according to Anadolu agency. Turkish media also reported that the detentions were part of an investigation by the interior ministry into Mr Ghosn’s transit, given neither his entry nor exit were registered. Turkish media said investigators were focusing on the pilots and a brief period of just under an hour during which a private jet carrying Mr Ghosn from Japan landed at Istanbul’s Ataturk airport. Two airport staff and the trade and operations manager of a cargo company were also detained by Turkish police, according to local media. A Turkish aviation official confirmed reports that Mr Ghosn had transited via Ataturk airport. The airport was closed to commercial passengers last year and now only deals with cargo planes and private jets.

Mr Ghosn’s escape had been planned with the help of private security operatives since October, according to people familiar with the situation. It has exposed loopholes: although three of his passports — Lebanese, Brazilian and French — remain under lock and key with his Japanese lawyers, he has carried another French passport with him in Tokyo since his release on bail, to fulfill Japanese requirements that foreigners carry formal identification. It is not unusual for executives who travel a lot to hold two passports from the same country.

I can personally testify to the truth of the last sentence, though I find it curious that the Japanese authorities didn't require him to surrender all of his passports. I continue to think that there is a good chance that they decided that his "escape" was preferable to them getting hammered in the international press for their heavy-handed tactics for the duration of any trial.

[WOM]

A couple of articles speculated that they didn't need the PR hassle during an Olympic hosting year, and that there had already been a significant number of defections of Western business people once they fully understood what Japanese 'justice' could look like.

[ursus arctos]

Yes, those are both significant factors

It is difficult to underestimate just how focused the government and corporates are on the Olympics. It comes up all the time.

[WOM]

This is a pointless but interesting piece about the Dodge Challenger. It is a dinosaur of a muscle car that has been in the market, virtually unchanged for 12 years. And it bizarrely continues to sell well - or even more - each year.

https://jalopnik.com/the-ancient-dod...ice-1840793270

[ursus arctos]

the average buyer age for the car was 51.

Would be interesting to plot sales vs divorce rates

[WOM]

Would be interesting to plot sales vs divorce rates

Indeed. And whether the divorce was the cause or the effect of the purchase.

Mrs WOM and my daughter have, for some reason, made an amateur study of who drives brand new Ford Mustangs.

Both will stop talking, crane their necks and go "Yup...old gray haired guy."

They're not often wrong.