Hans Greimel - Collision Course - Carlos Ghosn and the Culture Wars That Upended an Auto Empire

Like many of lifes most interesting partnerships, ours was something of a chance event. Even as we individually covered the events surrounding Carlos Ghosn and Nissan through its many dramatic moments and implausible twists, neither of us was thinking of writing a book.

Helping drive us forward was the good fortune of being ringside witnesses for many of the story strands weaving this saga together. Based in Tokyo, we have a combined forty years of journalism experience in Japan.

Hans is a veteran automotive reporter, Detroit-bred and deeply immersed in the Japanese car business for nearly fifteen years. He had direct access to Carlos Ghosn during the writing of this book. Many of the quotes from Ghosn in the book come from those conversations and from interviews and other interactions Hans had with Ghosn for more than a decade as part of his reporting for Automotive News, the news source of record for the global car industry. William has spent two-plus decades reporting and writing about Japan Inc., its economy and financial markets, while also integrating a deep understanding of Japans complex, two-century history of opening up to the West and how it impacts the country even today.

From the machinations of the corporate executives to the behind-the-scenes intrigue of government officials who can, in reality, ill-afford to see their national brands wither away, we have talked with the key players involved in the Nissan-Renault story, at every level. We spoke to more than fifty auto executives, business leaders, policy makers, legal experts, academics, and other sources, both foreign and Japanese. This came on top of the daily reporting we did for spot news of the scandal since the night it erupted, November 19, 2018. Some of these people have requested to be quoted on background to protect themselves and we have honored that. To everyone who took the time to speak with us, we are most grateful.

Through those conversations, it became clear that there is one truth most agree on: Carlos Ghosn didnt just leave an indelible mark on the Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi Alliance that he helped create and then ruled over for nearly two decades. He left a lasting impact on the industry and on Japan. He is arguably one of the most influential foreigners ever to set foot in this country.

His transformation of Nissan remade the auto industry and ripples throughout global economies to this day. He pioneered a new kind of globalized business for an era in which companies from different nations and radically different business cultures might dare to work as a team toward a shared vision, while somehow preserving their own identities, even as they scale to massive sizein the Alliances case into the largest auto group in the world.

Yet, Ghosns scandal cast a harsh spotlight on Japanese corporate governance, the judicial system, and even its jails. From this may come change, as often happens in a country always concerned about its international image. It also raised questions about the role of government as a shareholder and string-puller in the world of private industry. In the end, the upheaval upended Ghosns once-sterling legacy as an innovative business leader and left observers asking if his vision for a truly transnational Franco-Japanese auto alliance was a model for future industry consolidation, or if it was just a fleeting mirage.

And then there was the bombshell question the world was left asking: Did the man long lauded as a global management guru improperly hide his own compensation and siphon funds from the company he was lionized for saving? Ghosn (like his co-defendant, former Nissan director Greg Kelly) denies any wrongdoing. But Ghosns legacy will always bear the stain of that suspicionafter being indicted four times in Japan and drummed out of the industry.

In tackling this subject, the challenge for us was not what to include, but what could be left out. The various stories span two decades, three continents, several countries, and dozens of key players. Many aspects were complex, convoluted, and sometimes unimaginable, if not outright bizarre. One of the worlds most celebrated and esteemed auto executives is arrested with no prior signs to the world that any potential misconduct had been afoot. He is thrown in jail for 130 days and at first denied access to lawyers and family in a justice system that in many ways is antithetical to Western norms. Then, after pledging to clear his name in court, the famed executive packs himself into a trunk and is smuggled out of the country by a team of operatives led by a former Green Beret. He then resumes his life in Lebanon as an international fugitive. Even today, we find the entire odyssey almost impossible to believe.