I doubt the Japanese government will let Nissan fold and will instead invest directly, allow Foxconn to take over or some combination thereof. Losing the formerly mighty Nissan would be a big black eye for the government.
I don't understand what went wrong here, for a while the Nissan Leaf was _the_ economical all electric sedan. Toyota was and still is dragging their feet on it and Nissan had a lead for years just to blow it?
For starters, the Leaf wasn't a sedan, it was a hatchback. In the US market, hatchbacks have always significantly lagged sedans in sales despite being more practical. The regular Prius has evolved to look sleeker and sportier with each generation, but the boxy hatchback Prius V variant was quickly discontinued after introduction due to poor sales.
US consumer preference seems to weigh aesthetic appeal much more than other markets, even at the cost of function. Some other examples are the rugged boxy SUVs that have an aerodynamic/fuel economy penalty compared to their sleek blob counterparts, or the the coupe SUVs that sacrifice both rear headroom and storage capacity for a "sportier" look.
Several things: hatchbacks do great if you size the up and call them "crossover SUVs" - see Mach-E, Ioniq 5, EV6, Ariya, etc.
Also sedans do have a feature - less road noise than a hatchback.
The Leaf failed because a) fast charger support was poor (Chademo vs DC fast or NACS) and slow. b) battery thermal management STILL isn't acceptable and results in degradation.
We got one as a rental and it was really comfortable but I wouldn't buy it because of the above.
Nissan probably has already quit making parts for your car anyways. None of the automakers make parts a priority anymore. The aftermarket will keep your car afloat for a while.
