Tokyo, 06 June 2008: Nissan Motor Co., Japan's third-largest automaker, introduced a new version of the Teana sedan for the first time since the car's debut in 2003 to help spur domestic sales.

The revamped Teana is priced between 2.47 million yen ($23,400) and 3.95 million yen ($37,400), the Tokyo-based automaker said in a statement today.

The company plans to sell 1,000 units a month.

Nissan, 44% owned by Renault SA, is releasing new models to attract customers in a market that is shrinking because of a sluggish economy. Industrywide demand may fall 0.3% in the same period, according to the Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association.

"We aim to stimulate the sedan market, which accounts for about 20% of overall demand,'' Nissan Chief Operating Officer, Mr.Toshiyuki Shiga said at a press conference in Tokyo.

The company also plans to introduce the model in China and Russia this month, he said.

Overall domestic sales at Nissan may be little changed at 7,20,000 vehicles for the year ending March 31.

The carmaker is paring costs by sharing components with other models and buying parts from China, Thailand and other low-wage countries, Mr.Shiga said.

About 20% of components in the Japan-built Teana are purchased from those countries, according to Mr.Shiga.

"Our cost-reduction efforts are approaching the limit,'' as the company tries to offset rising costs for steel and other raw materials", he said.

When automakers revamp models, they often raise prices to reflect the cost of new features such as safety technology as well as higher raw materials expenses. Nissan improved the fuel economy of the new version of the Teana by 7%, even as it added a more powerful 2.5-litre V6 engine to the most popular model, compared with the 2.3-litre engine in the previous version.