Nissan says "oui"

NISSAN Australia is in the somewhat invidious position of having to relaunch the Renault brand, five years after Volvo Car Australia gave up on the French nationally-owned icon.

Renault ducked out of Australia in the wake of the furore caused by French nuclear weapons testing in the South Pacific in 1995.

Nissan is expected to announce today it has signed a deal to import a limited number of cars for sale in Australia through a select group of capital city Nissan dealers.

It is understood that the dealers will have to provide stand-alone showroom facilities for the 5000 or so cars expected to be imported each year. Nissan sells about 48,000 cars and trucks in Australia each year.

Among the Renault vehicles expected are the Clio small hatch, priced from about $20,000 in three and five-door form, powered by a 1.4-litre or 1.6-litre, 16-valve engine.

Further up the scale comes the $35,000 Megane Scenic 4x4 people-mover, the first of the true crossover vehicles.

The Scenic has been a huge success in the small people- mover market in Europe selling over one million units in about four years.

The four-wheel drive version is relatively new with a jacked-up body and macho plastic cladding to match. It seats five and has reasonable luggage space and importantly, no direct rivals in Australia, though the Subaru Forester shares similar seating and drivetrain abilities.

Nissan is also believed to be considering the Megane cabrio, a stylish four-seater drop head in the mould of the Peugeot 306 Cabrio. It is expected that the convertible would cost about $40,000.

Nissan could also be considering the Espace full size people-mover with seats for seven. It is likely to compete in the upper end of the people-mover market because only the V6 3.0-litre would really be suitable for Australia.

European buyers are also offered a 2.0-litre, four- cylinder version but this would probably be viewed as underpowered by Australian buyers, especially if they tow. A diesel version sold in Europe is unlikely at this stage.

A V6 Espace would cost about $60,000.