New car sales ranking in the Japanese market for the first half of 2018. In the common cars category, Nissan took the top with "NOTE".

New car sales figures for January to June 2018 were presented and it shows that mini-cars and eco-cars still have an overwhelming growth. Let's take a look at the top 5 of each common cars and mini vehicles. The numbers in brackets represent the fluctuation rate of previous year from January to June.

Common Car

1. NOTE (Nissan) 73,380 units (-12.9)
   
2. AQUA (Toyota) 66,144 units (+3.1)
   
3. PRIUS (Toyota) 64,019 units (-29.8)
   
4. SERENA (Nissan) 56,095 units (+3.2)
   
5. FIT (Honda) 47,962 units (+3.9)
   

Mini Car

1. N BOX (Honda) 127,548 units (+20.1)
   
2. SPACIA (Suzuki) 79,718 units (+38.0)
   
3. MOVE (Daihatsu) 74,109 units (+2.7)
   
4. TANTO (Daihatsu) 71,809 units (-10.9)
   
5. DAYZ (Nissan) 71,778 units (-16.4)

It is the first time in 48 years Nissan has reached the top common car ranking.

Among the sales scores, Nissan Motor Company made outstanding progress. The compact car "NOTE" took first place in common car category, and it is the first time in 48 years that Nissan's model came to the top even though it was only half a year. Nissan employees are highly excited that they were able to make top models for the first time after such a long time.

Not only that, the 4th place "Serena", which can ride seven to eight people, is a minivan that is popular in Japan and it has topped the number one in minivan class, beating its rivals. This Serena is the only one which is in Best 5 that is not a small eco car.

The driving force behind the breakthrough of these two models is Nissan's proprietary hybrid system 'e-POWER' and advanced driving support system 'Pro-Pilot'.

e-POWER is a type of hybrid system called ‘Series Hybrid.’ Using the engine only for power generation, the power to run the wheels is done with an electric motor. In other words, it is same as normal car where a gasoline engine is installed, but the mechanism for propulsion is same as electric car.

Both NOTE and Serena have a unique driving feeling. Vehicles equipped with the e-POWER system feel almost same as electric cars. Usually, there is a big difference in output power depending on whether the engine speed is high or low. However, the electric motor has little power difference due to rotation speed. In addition, for the electric motor, there is almost no time difference between stepping on the accelerator pedal and actual power output. The feeling of the Note and Serena, which can accelerate as you wish, are the selling point where other hybrid cars cannot easily imitate.

Imagine a future drive with semi-automatic operation, “Pro Pilot”

A selling point of "Pro Pilot" is its limited use of automatic driving technology, which attracted more attention in the world than e-POWER. Although it is restricted to conditions such as highway and bypass, the system automatically controls the accelerator, brake, steering and wheel, and runs the car autonomously.

For example, assume you cruise on a highway at a constant speed. If you turn on the professional pilot, if there is a car with a slower speed in front, it will slow down accordingly. When change of lane is made or the previous car is gone, it automatically returns to the cruising speed which is initially set up.

How about when you accidentally run out of the lane when you are driving? Not to worry! The professional pilot automatically controls the steering wheel and corrects the direction of the car so as not to deviate from the lane.

The increase of accident involving elderly people is one of the social problems in Japan. A professional pilot that covers driving mistakes and poor attention of elderly people with advanced technology has gathered users' hope beyond e-POWER, paving the way for safer roads.

In the future it is thought that electromotive technology and driving support systems will increase rapidly, but Nissan will as soon as possible develop functions that users can actually use today. By installing it in a wide range of cars, the image of advanced technology will become a reality. 

 Oh, I forgot to mention that "DAYZ" which ranked in the fifth place of mini vehicles is an old model which receives a full model change for a long time, but it seems to fit the quasi-automatic driving professional pilot of that “DAYZ” too!!