Infiniti to shift from Sunderland to Japan
Nissan has announced it plans to end the production of two models at its Sunderland plant. The move to end production of its Q30 car and QX30 sports-utility Infiniti cars is part of a wide-scale plan to pull Infiniti out of western Europe.
Infiniti has had little impact in western Europe, with sales halving last year to just 5,800.
About 70,000 Infiniti cars have been made in Sunderland since production began in 2015, but this move is part of Nissan’s recent decision to build its new X-Trail model in Japan. It’s understood that about 250 staff could be affected.
Trevor Hale, Infiniti spokesperson, said, ‘Western Europe remains the most challenging and competitive region for premium cars.’
Nissan plans to promote the Infiniti brand in the US and Chinese markets. The Infiniti line-up of cars will be electric from 2021 and diesel versions will be discontinued.
