Nissan Reshuffles Lineup, Axes Altima

Nissan is preparing a major overhaul of its U.S. product lineup, and the long-running Altima sedan is among the vehicles headed for the exit.

Ponz Pandikuthira, Nissan Americas senior vice president and chief product and planning officer, told WardsAuto that the midsize Altima “will soon depart.” Nissan has not announced an exact end-of-production date, so the safest conclusion is that the Altima’s days are numbered rather than that the final car has already rolled off the assembly line.

The 2026 Altima remains part of Nissan’s current lineup, but its expected departure would leave the recently redesigned Sentra as the company’s only conventional four-door sedan in the United States. The entry-level Versa and larger Maxima are already gone. Nissan will continue offering the Z sports car and the all-electric Leaf. In other words, the Sentra is about to become Nissan’s sedan department of one.

Pandikuthira said Nissan believes the more mature and better-equipped Sentra can satisfy most of the company’s remaining sedan demand. He also said Nissan’s crossover lineup — beginning with the Kicks and extending through the Rogue, Murano and Pathfinder — can capture many customers who previously might have purchased a traditional car. Price-sensitive shoppers are the group Nissan risks losing as its least-expensive sedans disappear.

The retreat from sedans is part of a much broader restructuring. Nissan announced in April that it intends to reduce its global product portfolio from 56 models to 45, eliminating weaker products and concentrating investment on vehicles with stronger growth and profit potential. Nissan is also reorganizing future vehicles around shared platforms, powertrains and software rather than developing each model largely on its own.

Nissan had planned two electric sedans that would have occupied roughly the same market space as the Altima and Maxima, but those programs are no longer moving forward. Pandikuthira told WardsAuto that electric-sedan demand has not developed as Nissan expected and may not revive meaningfully until 2029 or 2030, when battery and vehicle costs could be lower.

The Ariya electric crossover is also in limbo in the United States. Nissan has stopped importing the Ariya for the U.S. market, although it remains available in Canada. Pandikuthira told WardsAuto that future U.S. plans for the Ariya are still being discussed.

While Nissan is reducing its sedan presence, it is preparing a much stronger push into hybrids. An all-new Rogue equipped with Nissan’s e-Power series-hybrid system is expected to be introduced around November. Nissan is targeting approximately 40 mpg, according to Pandikuthira.

Unlike a conventional hybrid, the e-Power Rogue’s gasoline engine will not drive the wheels directly. Instead, it will operate as a generator, supplying electricity to the battery and electric drive motor. Nissan says this arrangement provides an EV-like driving experience without requiring the owner to plug in. Pandikuthira described the current Rogue Plug-In Hybrid as a way to place a hybrid in showrooms quickly while Nissan prepared its own e-Power model.

The company is also reviving the Xterra name. Nissan has confirmed that the new Xterra will be a body-on-frame SUV built as part of a new family of truck-based vehicles, with a launch targeted for late 2028. Pandikuthira said it will use a V-6 engine, while Nissan is evaluating a parallel-hybrid system designed to provide additional power and torque along with improved fuel economy. The underlying architecture could eventually support pickups, two- and three-row Nissan SUVs and additional Infiniti models.

Tariffs remain a concern, particularly for the Mexico-built Kicks and Sentra, which compete in price-sensitive segments with narrow profit margins. Pandikuthira said Nissan can offset some of that pressure by increasing the amount of U.S.-sourced content in those vehicles. He added that favorable currency exchange rates help soften the effect of tariffs on vehicles imported from Japan. Nissan’s longer-term goal is to build more vehicles where they are sold, using its major U.S. manufacturing operations in Tennessee and Mississippi.

Technology is another major piece of the reshuffle. Pandikuthira said Nissan is developing a next-generation ProPILOT driver-assistance system using artificial intelligence from British technology company Wayve. The system is expected around 2028 and is intended to handle more urban and suburban driving situations. Nissan has emphasized that the technology will remain a driver-assistance system, not a replacement for an attentive driver.

The message is clear: Nissan is shrinking its lineup, moving away from slower-selling sedans, expanding hybrids and truck-based SUVs, and concentrating its resources where it believes American buyers are headed. For the Altima, the road is finally nearing its end.

Read the published transcript of WardsAuto's interview with Nissan's Ponz Pandikuthira here →