Nissan to recall 1.38 million cars in U.S., Europe, Japan

Nissan Motor Co. is issuing a recall of about 1.38 million cars globally of models including Note, Kicks, Serena and Leaf, a company spokeswoman said Friday.

The recall will affect vehicles in U.S., Europe and Japan over several issues, including cars suddenly accelerating after exiting cruise control or a short circuit that would cause motors to stop while driving.

No accidents resulting from the issues have been reported, the spokeswoman told Bloomberg News.

Nissan said it will also recall 6,434 Note Aura vehicles in Japan due to an issue with the right headlamp.

The automaker’s shares slipped 2.1 percent in Tokyo trading Friday, trimming their year-to-date gain to 33 percent. Japan's markets are closed Monday for a public holiday.  

The Yomiuri newspaper reported earlier that Nissan has agreed to invest about ¥100 billion ($720 million) in Renault SA’s electric-vehicle unit Ampere, as the two automakers rebalance their alliance.

Nissan’s retail unit sales climbed 19 percent in Japan in April-June from a year earlier and 33 percent in the U.S. but fell 20 percent in China due to a scaling-down of government incentives and the company’s aging products, Bloomberg Intelligence analyst Tatsuo Yoshida wrote in a note Monday.

Earlier in July, Honda Motor Co. recalled more than 124,000 vehicles in the U.S. due to a possible brake issue, while Toyota Motor Corp. recalled about 96,000 Corolla Cross vehicles in the U.S. last month.