- Feb 6, 2007
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Nissan’s lawyers have been quite busy the past few days sending letters to several businesses in Europe regarding their vehicle importation activities and in particular, the Nissan GT-R which went on sale in Japan in December but is expected in Europe in March 2009. Nissan says that these businesses (mainly in the UK) are suspected of importing and/or offering in the European Economic Area (EEA) Nissan vehicles originating from Japan and which are intended only for sale in Japan. According to the Japanese carmaker, these activities infringe Nissan’s trademark rights and if the warning is ignored, it will seek the support of the English courts in enforcing its legitimate rights against those businesses.
The most obvious target for import of Japanese-spec GT-Rs would be the U.K. (and Malaysia ?), which, like Japan, is right-hand-drive. Nissan is quick to point out that although it might be physically possible to purchase and operate a GT-R in Great Britain, the dealer network is not prepared to service it, the parts are not available and the warranty will not cover Japanese-spec vehicles sold in Europe in any case, even after the GT-R is officially available in Europe - so even if the mechanics knew how to fix it and had the parts, it would all be out-of-pocket. That’s hardly what someone who’s just paid a hefty premium on top of the $69,850 MSRP would expect for service. And that’s precisely why Nissan is moving to stop the sales from occurring in the first place.
Gary Frigo, Nissan Motor (GB) Limited’s Managing Director, said: “We have been made aware of a significant increase in activity in the import trade of certain vehicles, particularly the Nissan GT-R, which warrants immediate action.”
On the subject of the new Nissan GT-R Frigo explained further: “Nissan’s number one priority is to ensure that the GT-R and its dealer network are in optimal condition to facilitate and support our customers. It will take until start of sales in March 2009 to do this. Until that time the UK will have no GT-R trained technicians, no established GT-R parts supply and, most crucial of all, the GT-R will not be covered by a manufacturer’s warranty.”
With only 1,500 examples making it to the U.S. this year, the price gouging and profiteering is only going to get worse. Here’s hoping Nissan manages to keep a reign on it.
Source:
[url=http://carscoop.blogspot.com/2007/12/nissan-to-take-legal-action-on-gt-r.html]Nissan To Take Legal Action On GT-R Grey-Imports In Europe[/URL]
