Having left Japan just one day before the tsunami-inducing earthquake wreaked havoc, a large shipment of Nissan LEAF Battery Electric Vehicles (BEV) has just arrived in Long Beach, Calif.

Nissan’s Luna Spirit vehicle-carrying transport ship was safely on the open ocean when a 500 MPH wave passed under it, at about 3-inches high.

About a week after the tsunami, Nissan announced more than 1,500 LEAFs were either in transit or in a U.S. port.

With the estimated 1,500 new BEVs now in the U.S., this will be make possible the first substantial delivery of LEAFs to the U.S. which at this juncture have had less than stellar sales.

Short supply has been said to be the primary reason why a waiting list of about 2,000 U.S. pre-orders remains unfilled.

In January, Nissan reported 87 LEAFS delivered, and in the 10-percent shorter month of February, just 67 LEAFS were sold. In all, just 173 LEAFS have been delivered to the U.S. according to the Japan Auto Dealers Association (JADA).

This U.S. allotment plus 3,657 LEAF sales primarily in Japan will mean over 5,000 LEAFs will have been produced. This makes it one of the highest production BEVs yet produced. Nissan CEO Carlos Ghosn has previously stated that plug-in vehicles will account for a quarter of Nissan’s sales by 2020, and the LEAF represents the first step towards that goal.

[Source: Plugincars.com]

Mazda is planning to close down their assembly plants again, while stopping orders from dealers in the United States for their made-in-Japan vehicles.

The Mazda2, Mazda3, Mazda5, MX-5, RX-8, CX-7, CX-9 are all affected. Only the Mazda6 and Tribute will remain in production at their American plants, although the situation could change in light of the parts suppliers affected by the earthquake. As of March 1st, the company had a 94-day supply of vehicles, but the automaker declined to comment on specifics.

In 2010, imported cars accounted for 83 percent of Mazda sales, a much higher number than other Japanese automakers, who build a significant proportion of their cars in North American plants. Mazda’s factories in Japan are located in Hiroshima and Hofu, at the opposite end of the country from where an earthquake, tsunami and nuclear incident are taking place.

[Source: Automotive News]

The latest hiccup deriving from Japan’s earthquake may cause global automotive production to fall by as much as 30 percent, as parts suppliers remain crippled by the quake and subsequent tsunami that devastated Japan.

“We could lose up to 5 million vehicles in a worst-case scenario,” said Michael Robinet of IHS, in an interview with Bloomberg. “This will affect income for the entire year if this continues for an extended period of time.” Robinet said that global production levels are currently off by 13 percent, and a projected disruption of 12 weeks could cause that number to more than double. Companies are currently searching for alternative parts sources, but analysts have highlighted the third week of April as a critical point at which production could drop dramatically.

Currently, Honda and Toyota have extended their plant shut-downs, while domestic automakers like GM have closed plants across the globe due to a shortage of parts.

[Source: Bloomberg]

Honda‘s manufacturing plants will remain closed, while the heart of their company, the research & development facility in Tochigi, Japan, will undergo months of repairs after being severely damaged by the earthquake that devastated Japan earlier in March.

Honda originally planned to keep their plants closed until March 27th but has decided to extend the closures until April 3rd. Workers at Tochigi will be transferred to other locations.  The company released a statement claiming “based on the expectation that it will take several months until the complete recovery of these facilities, Honda decided to temporally transfer some functions such as the automobile product development, development of manufacturing technologies and procurement to Honda operations in other locations such as Sayama, Suzuka, and Wako.”

Supplies of vehicles like the Honda Fit, CR-V and Acura TSX will be affected by the production delays. One person died and 30 were injuried when a wall at a cafeteria at the Tochigi facility collapsed. Honda held meetings at a nearby restaurant after employees were barred from entering the building for safety reasons. Honda’s parts suppliers have also told the company that it will take a week for them to resume normal production schedules.

[Source: Automotive News]

Given the aftermath of the horrendous earthquake and Tsunami in Japan, the Japanese economy, not surprisingly has been struggling to stay on track.

For Japanese automakers, the situation has proved particularly problematic, even for their overseas operations as ongoing problems at home affect the global supply chain. Toyota has warned that production of vehicles in the US and Canada could be affected because  supplies of some parts from Japan are running low.

In fact, the company issued an internal memo to employees declaring “our supply line has reached a point where it is clear we will incur some non-production time.” Though the actual amount of this ‘non-production’ time still remains uncertain.

Having said that, the company is also assuring both its North American employees and retailers that it had reopened parts facilities in Japan and was doing everything it could to make sure vehicles were available to customers.

[Source: Automotive News]

General Motors has halted production at their Tonawanda, New York engine plant, due to a parts shortage that has affected another factory in Louisiana.

The New York plant builds engines for the Chevrolet Colorado and GMC Canyon, which are assembled at the Shreveport, Louisiana plant. While GM has acknowledged that the closure is due to an issue with Japanese parts, GM hasn’t specified what components are affected.

Of the 623 workers at the plant, 59 have been laid off due to the shortage. Some have suspected that GM is diverting the components to more profitable vehicles, as it fears an extreme disruption to its supply chain. GM plants in Spain and Germany have also been closed due to the shortage.

[Source: USA Today]

The March 11 earthquake and tsunami that hit Japan has had a devastating effect on its people. Not only have many people lost their homes and loved ones, many companies are out of work as they struggle to get their businesses up and running.

Japan’s major car companies have also been badly hit due to this disaster. Toyota and Honda have still not started their operations, and will stay shut over the weekend, due to a shortage of parts coming from suppliers, which were situated in areas most badly hit by this recent disaster.

Other Japanese car firms have slowly started production, but mainly to finish the cars on the assembly line and make use of the parts that were already in their inventory. Nissan is hoping for a March 24 restart, which includes the Tochigi assembly plant that makes cars like the 370Z and the GT-R.

Mitsubishi has resumed production, but says it has parts to last them up to Wednesday, and will suspend production until the supplier issue is solved. Mazda, Suzuki and Subaru are in an identical situation.

Let’s all hope the nation of Japan and its people recover from this catastrophe and rebuild their homes and industry as soon as possible.

[Source: Automotive News]

Despite being an ultra-niche vehicle, interest in the Nissan GT-R always remains strong, and car enthusiasts have been fretting about whether Japan’s natural disasters have impacted production of the revised GT-R.

According to an interview with David Reuter, Nissan Americas vice president of communications, supplies of the GT-R are safe, with roughly 70 percent of North America’s allocation on the ground already. “There are no shortages of anything specific at this point,” he told Inside Line. “As we work through the final assessments, we’ll have a better idea if we have any dips to smooth over with individual vehicle lines.”

Reuter also confirmed that the Nissan LEAF is safe, with 1,500 cars either in transit or at the port. Infiniti vehicles, which are all built in Japan, are considered most at risk for production disruption, but Reuter said that a 50-day supply of vehicles exists.

While companies like Nissan have emerged unscathed, General Motors announced major cutbacks at plants in Spain and Germany due to a shortage of Japanese made parts. While Japan’s automakers may be sending a positive message for now, the long-term situation could potentially get much worse due to factors beyond the control of the auto industry.

[Source: Inside Line]

Mazda will resume production of vehicles on March 22nd, an encouraging sign for the Japanese auto industry as it battles a catastrophic series of events that has seen most automakers in the country suspend production.

With Mazda based in Hiroshima, hundreds of miles away from the earthquake, tsunami and on-going nuclear incidents, the company has fared better than other car companies, Mazda said it will resume production on March 22nd, with a focus on spare parts and vehicles using “in process” inventories. Mazda said that it will announced medium and long-term production in the near future, but is unable to decide at this point in time.

[Source: Left Lane News]

General Motors Shreveport, Louisiana factory that builds the Chevrolet Colorado and GMC Canyon will face a production halt until March 21st due to supply chain issues stemming from Japan’s natural disasters.

GM hasn’t specified which part is causing the stoppage, but both trucks feature a manual transmission made by Japanese firm Aisin. GM apparently has a 58 day supply of the small trucks (compared to an industry average of 60 days), but the slow selling vehicles are due to die, along with the plant, in 2012.

[Source: Kicking Tires]

Japan was recently hit with one of the worst natural disasters in recorded history, and the ordeal is far from over.

In light of the current situation, Volkswagen and BMW who have a large operation in Japan, are calling back their foreign employees. 50 or so workers from BMW and a similar number from VW have already returned home, with more expected in the near future.

This catastrophe has already claimed more than 5000 lives and caused nearly a $1 trillion worth of damage.

If you want to help out the people of Japan, contact your local Red Cross office.

[Source: Autoblog]

Japan’s three largest automakers announced that they will donate $3.75 million each for earthquake relief. Honda says it will donate 1,000 power generators (a product made by the company) as well as 5,000 gas canisters, while Nissan is considering the donation of vehicles, provisions and medical supplies. Toyota also said that it is investigating such a move.

The three companies have all announced production stoppages of varying degrees, as have other Japanese automakers like Mazda, Subaru, Suzuki and Mitsubishi.

[Source: Carscoop]

Given the recent events in Japan, it may not be entirely surprising that there are greater priorities than building fast supercars. As such, shipments of the 2012 Nissan GT-R to America have been delayed as the country struggles to rebuild after the devastating earthquake and tsunami.

Nissan North America reports that there is a “sufficient supply” of 2012 GT-Rs that have already been shipped to the US, but would not reveal precisely how many. The 2012 GT-R officially went on sale a few weeks ago.  The Tochigi Plant, where the GT-R is built, has reported some damage to the building and equipment, and has suspended operations until Friday.

Nissan issued a statement on Monday declaring that “some Infiniti models and Nissan GT-R and 370Z may experience delays in shipment to the U.S. and Canada, with full impact still being assessed,” but their plans for the New York Auto Show are still on schedule.

A shipment of 600 Nissan Leafs left Japan just before the earthquake, and are on their way to the US safely, just in time to help fulfill its massive demand.

[Source: Inside Line]

With the recent earthquakes and tsunamis devestating Japan, automakers in the country are announcing a series of plant closures. Toyota, Mazda, Honda and Nissan have all announced plans to close various factories through the middle of March, although the plants could remain shuttered beyond that timeframe.

Toyota led the pack by announcing that their plants would close due to supply chain issues related to the disasters. Production of all Scion models will be halted, while the Toyota 4Runner, FJ Cruiser, Land Cruiser, Prius and Yaris will see production capacities affected. Similarly, the Lexus GS, LS, IS, GX and LX models will face some kind of production decrease. While many of the company’s most successful models are produced in North America, production at Toyota facilities in Texas, Kentucky and Canada would be hit as parts supplies from Japan may be compromised.

Mazda has also suspened production at two plants in Hiroshima and Hofu, which build their entire range of vehicles. Honda announced that their plants, which export the Civic Hybrid, Insight and versions of the Accord, would see a halt until March 20th, while Nissan announced a stop production order at Japanese plants until March 18th.

It would appear that Mazda, which relies almost entirely on exports, will be hardest hit by the disaster, and we can only hope that both Japan and its car industry recovers quickly from this horrific tragedy.

[Source: Left Lane News]