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Nissan Motor Co. plans to introduce a new passenger-car brand exclusively for the Chinese market with its local partner to help meet demand for cheaper models, and the Chinese company may borrow the Japanese automaker's battery in its own cars, Bloomberg News reported today.

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Right, the 2011 Nissan Leaf battery pack.
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The Japanese company and Wuhan, Hubei-based Dongfeng Motor Group Co. will jointly produce and sell cars under the new brand Qi Chen from early 2012, said Hideki Kimata, senior general manager of the companies' joint venture unit.


Qi Chen vehicles may be priced from 50,000 yuan ($7,356) to 100,000 yuan ($14,712), Endo said. Nissan's cheapest current model in China, the March compact, is priced from 69,900 yuan ($10,284).


The Chinese automaker may consider using Nissan's battery technology in its own-brand cars, Kimata said in an interview with a Bloomberg News reporter in  Beijing today.


The Chinese company plans to introduce hybrid and electric vehicles within two years and may invest 3 billion yuan ($441 million) in new-energy vehicle projects, President Zhu Fushou said in Hong Kong late last month.


Dongfeng hopes hybrids and electric cars will account for 20 percent of its production within four to five years, Zhu said.


Separately, Nissan's Chinese joint venture unit will begin pilot tests of its Leaf battery-electric vehicle in Wuhan next year, Kimata said.

Tags: Batteries, China, Dongfeng, Emissions, Hybrid, Nissan, Plug-ins and Electric, Qi Chen, Battery-Electric Vehicle, China, Dongfeng Motor Group, Electric Car, EV, Hybrids, Nissan Motor Co., Qi Chen

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Nissan to Create New Car Brand With Chinese Partner, Possibly Share Battery Tech was originally published by Green Car Advisor. Read the full story by clicking here.