Nissan To Take Legal Action On GT-R Grey-Imports In Europe

Nissan’s lawyers have been quite busy the past few days sending letters to several businesses in Europe regarding their vehicle importation activities and in particular, the Nissan GT-R which went on sale in Japan in December but is expected in Europe in March 2009. Nissan says that these businesses (mainly in the UK) are suspected of importing and/or offering in the European Economic Area (EEA) Nissan vehicles originating from Japan and which are intended only for sale in Japan. According to the Japanese carmaker, these activities infringe Nissan’s trademark rights and if the warning is ignored, it will seek the support of the English courts in enforcing its legitimate rights against those businesses.

Gary Frigo, Nissan Motor (GB) Limited’s Managing Director, said: “We have been made aware of a significant increase in activity in the import trade of certain vehicles, particularly the Nissan GT-R, which warrants immediate action.” -Continued

On the subject of the new Nissan GT-R Frigo explained further: “Nissan’s number one priority is to ensure that the GT-R and its dealer network are in optimal condition to facilitate and support our customers. It will take until start of sales in March 2009 to do this. Until that time the UK will have no GT-R trained technicians, no established GT-R parts supply and, most crucial of all, the GT-R will not be covered by a manufacturer’s warranty.”

4 comments

Anonymous // December 20, 2007

Miserable lot. What happens if you live in Japan and then migrate? Are you not allowed to take your car with you?

Of course people want to import the GT-R when there's a £20k ($40k) premium over the Japanese version in the UK.
Anonymous // December 20, 2007

So what Nissan is saying is 'your not allowed freedom of choice in this world unless we approve it'!! ??

I know some really good lawyers who would love to challenge that one in court, especially in the UK.

You cannot buy a hat to wear in Japan then put it in your suit case and take it back to the UK because it might take away sales of hats in the UK.

Of course the Nissan dealers in Japan are probably selling every GT R they get, and so what if they are to overseas buyers. But Im sure given its technology, speed and power, the first bunch of buyers were all OTHER manufacturers.
Anonymous // December 22, 2007

Erm Nissan probably wants to prevent parallel imports into UK marring the brand's goodwill if a bunch of UK owners import them and no Nissan dealer is able to fix and repair them. They just don't want more suits against them. There is a sound legal basis obviously, but obviously Nissan also wants to set up its dealer network on the GTR and sell it at a nice premium,
Aaron X // December 22, 2007

No surprise that Europeans are trying to acquire these cars, by hook or crook, because everyone who understands what this new Nissan is, the state-of-the-art in automobile design and performance, that you can buy for $70,000, which in stock trim will eat cars that cost three times as much for breakfast, and once modified will be embarrassing million-dollar supercars on the streets and racetracks.

I don't know how many Nissan is importing to Europe, apparently the US is only getting 1500, but at that price it should be 15,000, because once people get a whiff of how these cars perform, they'll be flying off the car lots like pancakes at a truck drivers breakfast buffet.

I understand the Nissan wants to maintain the exclusivity of GT-R, but I'm sure they and their stockholders would rather watch their stock values double, by selling 50,000 of these vehicles a year.

I'm a gearhead whose driven an 820 hp Skyline, and I'd rather have one of these new Nissans more than any other vehicle on the road today.