Nissan Micra : Next-generation city car confirmed for 2016

The alliance confirmed timing for the release of the fifth-generation Micra today, revealing that Renault’s Flins plant near Paris will begin production of the new model in about two years’ time at an estimated annual rate of 132,000 vehicles.

Flins will be supplied with chassis components by Renault’s Le Mans facility, meaning that the French brand will build the chassis and assemble the entire 2016 Nissan Micra in France.

The fourth-generation Micra has been in production since 2010. It is currently built in five cities: Chennai, India; Samut Prakan, Thailand; Guangzhou, China; Aguascalientes, Mexico; and Purwakarta, Indonesia.

A facelifted version (pictured) was revealed in March 2013 but is still yet to reach our shores.

Nissan Australia corporate communications supervisor Chris Jordan told CarAdvice the updated Micra is still headed our way, but will not make it to local showrooms until sometime in 2015.

He said the long delay in bringing the facelifted Micra was a side effect of Nissan Australia’s decision to shift its Micra production source from Indonesia to India at the start of last year.

The Le Mans plant is Renault’s primary chassis design and manufacturing centre, employing 2200 workers. It currently makes chassis components for the Renault Captur, Clio, Trafic and Zoe, Nissan Qashqai and Note, and the Dacia Duster, Lodgy and Sandero.