Nissan Has A Clever Way Of Fighting The Used Car Shortage

New-vehicle inventory has been a major hurdle facing automakers across the globe. The continuing chip shortage and general supply chain issues have created frustrating delays for thousands of customers. The new Nissan Z is one of the most recent victims, with the sports car's arrival being delayed. With new vehicles being harder to get hold of, this has had an impact on the used car market too; record used car prices following the pandemic were seen. With many consumers still opting to buy a used car, Nissan - the maker of models like the popular Rogue - has joined other automakers in making pre-owned vehicles more appealing with an expanded certified pre-owned program, but for brands other than Nissan.

This fall, Nissan's new certified pre-owned program will launch for non-Nissan models. The vehicles in question will benefit from an 84-point inspection and a six-month/6,000-mile limited warranty. By comparison, Nissan-certified pre-owned models receive a 167-point inspection and a seven-year/100,000-mile warranty. Still, Nissan's new program for non-Nissan used cars gives buyers additional peace of mind and can help to lure them into Nissan dealerships. The Japanese marque hopes that when the time comes for the customer to upgrade, the chances are higher of convincing them to buy a new or used Nissan.

"We want to build connections with customers about the Nissan brand and the Nissan experience," said Dan Mohnke, Nissan US vice president of eCommerce, when speaking to Automotive News. "The biggest benefit for the dealer is new customers that they wouldn't have normally seen."

The new program will not only broaden the brand's exposure but generate revenue for it through certification fees. Last year, dealerships sold around 2.75 million CPO vehicles, a 5% increase over 2020's numbers. Ford already offers certification and a limited warranty for non-Ford models, and General Motors plans to do the same later this year.

"I don't think Nissan would be going down this path if new-car inventory was healthy," said Ryan Hall, executive manager at HGreg Nissan Kendall outside Miami. "This is about keeping people coming to the store because our new-car supply is cut in half."

The launch of Nissan's most exciting EV yet, the new Ariya crossover, was regrettably pushed back earlier this year, once again related to global supply chain issues. It's little wonder that Nissan has introduced its new CPO program as a means of enticing new customers in the interim. Honda is another automaker that has made purchasing a CPO vehicle more appealing, and we expect other manufacturers to follow suit as long as the supply chain crisis persists.