Honda and Nissan Aim to Merge as Global Competition Bears Down NYT | Top Stories River Akira Davis 23 December 2024 at 18:30 Japan’s second- and third-largest automakers hope the $50 billion deal would help them catch up with Tesla and China’s BYD in electric vehicles and advanced software. © Franck Robichon/EPA, via ShutterstockMakoto Uchida, left, Nissan Motor’s president, and Toshihiro Mibe, the top executive at Honda Motor, at a news conference on Monday.