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Nissan recalls nearly 20,000 NV vans over gearshift issue

Nissan is recalling 18,800 NV vans built between December 20, 2010 and January 4, 2013. Certain 2012 and 2013 models equipped with a steering-column-mounted transmission shift levers may have been built with improperly installed shift mechanisms.
If the NV's gear selector plate lock clip wasn't installed correctly, normal road vibration could result in a gear position indicator that does not match the actual gear selection. As a result, when the driver selects 'park,' the transmission could still be in gear or in neutral, and roll away. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says this condition greatly increased the risk of accident and injury.
Nissan will inspect the gear selector lock clip and replace the part if necessary free of charge. Owners can expect to be notified once the recall campaign begins on April 8, 2013. Read the full recall notice below for more information.

Nissan Juke facelift teased before Geneva

Nissan's funky Juke mini-CUV is set to get a refresh at next week's Geneva Motor Show. If you're thinking that the Japanese automaker will take the opportunity to scale-back some of the crossover's polarizing exterior, think again: Nissan claims the new vehicle will feature an "even more striking design." And with stronger-than-expected sales worldwide for the model, we don't see the company's designers capitulating with a meek-faced mid-life update.
For now, the only look we have of this "striking design" is the teaser image shown up top (go ahead and click on it for a closer look). Nissan is also promising improvements in efficiency and refinement, although what that means for the Juke's fun-to-drive character is unclear.
Because we live in an age dominated by social media, the new Juke will perform a slow striptease on a variety of social networks, according to Nissan. It won't be a full reveal, but there should be some clues as to what the CUV's overall look will evolve into, before it's shown in all its glory in Geneva.

Nissan: We lose money on each Leaf replacement battery

Nissan has been playing its cards pretty close to its chest when it comes to the production costs for Leaf battery packs. The company recently put a price on replacement batteries for customers at $5,500 plus the requirement to return the old battery. If the decommissioned battery is worth $1,000 to Nissan, as they have stated, that means the battery costs about $6,500 to make, right? Maybe even less if Nissan wants to turn a profit, as automakers are wont to do? Wrong.
Green Car Reports spoke to Nissan about these battery costs, and found that the automaker actually loses money on selling the replacement battery for the Leaf at the current price. Jeff Kuhlman, Nissan's vice president of global communications said, "Nissan makes zero margin on the replacement program. In fact, we subvent every exchange." All you English majors will know that "subvent" is a fancy way to say "subsidize." Kuhlman added, though, "We have yet to sell one battery as part of the program."
The fact that Nissan offers its replacement batteries for less than it costs to manufacture them is telling of a company both cares about what its customer needs and is dedicated to the success of its product. In this case, both of those things encourage people to give up fossil fuels and adopt electric mobility, which is heartening. As more people switch to battery-powered driving, though, battery technology should become better and cheaper, and the scale of production should cause manufacturing costs to decrease. Eventually, Nissan could easily see itself breaking even selling the Leaf battery replacements.