Nissan to Offer Connectivity for Older Vehicles

Nissan Motor Co. says it will soon offer its customers in India and Japan an aftermarket device that enables older vehicles to receive maintenance alerts, make automatic service appointments and order needed replacement parts ahead of the service visit.

The company plans to expand the program to other markets by 2020 and hopes to eventually install the devices in 12 million Nissan-brand vehicles currently on the road. The company predicts connectivity modules and services will generate 25% of Nissan’s aftersales volume by 2022.

Nissan notes that the aftermarket device will give Nissan’s current customers a hint of the array of connected-car services to come in future new cars. Such devices plug into a vehicle’s diagnostic port, where they can directly monitor the vehicle’s operation and help predict when maintenance is needed. Nissan’s device reportedly will include a GPS tracker.

Connected-car technology also could streamline Nissan’s supply chain, the company points out. It explains that using real-time data about the condition of customers’ cars to predict demand for maintenance and repair parts could provide more accurate just-in-time manufacturing of those replacement components.