Carlos Ghosn: Honda Plans 'Disguised Takeover' of Nissan and Mitsubishi

One of the most controversial executives in the car industry is not afraid to call things as he sees them. After saying Nissan is "boring, mediocre" and in a "bad position" while describing the Renault-Nissan alliance as "small and fragile," the 70-year-old fugitive now has something to say about the newly formed Honda-Nissan-Mitsubishi partnership.

In a new interview with Automotive News, Ghosn said Honda is plotting a "disguised takeover" of Nissan and Mitsubishi. He believes that Honda is by far the biggest of the three Japanese automakers, so it puts the company in the "driver's seat" to take control. Complete details about the new agreement haven't been fleshed out, but the former man in charge of Nissan argues that Honda will call the shots.

"I can't imagine for one moment how it's going to work between Honda and Nissan unless it's a takeover, unless it's a disguised takeover by Honda of Nissan and Mitsubishi with Honda in the driver's seat. It's going to be a takeover, a disguised takeover."
Ghosn told Automotive News that a tie-up with Honda was never on the table during his tenure at Nissan. He served as CEO from June 2001 until April 2017 when he stepped down but remained the company's chairman. He initially joined Nissan in June 1999 as COO when the Renault-Nissan alliance was established. That's also when Renault took a 43.4 percent stake in Nissan. In late 2023, Renault decided to sell back five percent to Nissan.

Before joining Nissan, Ghosn played a key role in restructuring Renault while serving as Executive Vice President of the French automaker. During the Renault era, he became known as the "Le Cost Killer" due to his fierce restructuring agenda.

As a refresher, Ghosn was arrested in November 2018 on accusations of misusing company funds and deliberately understating his annual salary for about five years. He subsequently fled house arrest in Japan in December 2019, escaping to Lebanon, a country that does not extradite its citizens. The story is quite wild, considering the former Nissan chairman left the country late at night using a charter jet while hiding inside a box. Speaking with the BBC in 2021, Ghosn said:

"The 30 minutes waiting in the box on the plane, waiting for it to take off, was probably the longest wait I've ever experienced in my life."
In 2024, Ghosn leads a different life in Lebanon, teaching at a local college and helping out startups by offering his business advice. As for the lawsuits he's still facing: "I have my lawyers. They are playing with this."

Regarding the newly formed Honda-Nissan-Mitsubishi alliance announced on August 1, details remain murky. However, Honda and Nissan have separately inked a deal to work on batteries, electric motors, and on software-defined vehicles (SDVs). Additionally, Nissan and Honda will complement each other's lineups with combustion cars and fully electric models. Nissan continues to hold a 34 percent stake in Mitsubishi.