Nissan Motor Corp. has launched its first clean-running diesel vehicle in Japan in a bid to open up a new market by rebranding the fuel as eco-friendly.The X-Trail 20 GT sports-utility vehicle with an M9R engine offers powerful acceleration while complying with some of the world's strictest emissions standards that will come into effect across Japan in October 2009.The car increases fuel economy by 30 percent over a 2.5-litre gasoline engine and cuts carbon-dioxide emissions by 20 percent, Japan's third largest automaker .It is the first diesel car in Japan in years for Nissan, which has been less enthusiastic than its domestic rivals in developing eco-friendly hybrid cars.Japanese consumers have long snubbed diesel-powered vehicles due to the perception that they are smelly, noisy and sooty.
While diesel accounts for approximately 60 percent of vehicle sales in Europe, the figure is in the single digits in the United States and Japan.The launch is a test-case for the company, which targets annual sales of 1,200 units .With a price tag of nearly three million yen (27,700 dollars) including consumption tax, it costs nearly 20 percent more than a comparable vehicle with a traditional engine.But the price gap can be offset in fuel savings by driving an average of 10,000 kilometres (6,200 miles) annually for three years.
If a hit among the public, Nissan will start developing a line-up using the technology. It also plans to introduce the technology in its models in North America and China by 2010.
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