Celebrations for Nissan as Sunderland plant builds its 10 millionth car

Production at the factory has hit eight figures, with completion of its ten millionth vehicle.

It has taken the plant 33 years to reach the ten million mark – making it the fastest car factory in the UK to the landmark figure.

It also means that, on average, a new car has been built in Sunderland every two minutes since production started in 1986.

If all ten million cars were parked nose to tail they would stretch for more than 42,000km – enough to go all the way around the equator, with a few to spare.

Steve Marsh, Nissan Sunderland Plant Vice President, Manufacturing, said: “Building ten million vehicles is a tremendous achievement for everyone associated with the plant.

“Reaching this huge figure has called on all the ingenuity, commitment and spirit of our highly skilled workforce, many of who hail from the North East of England.

“Together we are determined to continue to drive up the high quality standards our customers have come to expect over the last three decades.”

The ten millionth car to roll off the production line was a Vivid Blue Nissan Qashqai Tekna. The pioneering crossover is the most produced model at the plant, contributing more than 3.4million to the overall figure.

Nissan produces three models at Sunderland – the Qashqai, the Juke and the all-elecric Leaf.

Staff on the production line were delighted to reach the 10million milestone.

Laura Ridley, 28 of Hetton, works in the apprenticeship team: “I love coming to work every day. We recruit around 100 apprentices every year, and having started as an apprentice myself, it is brilliant to see them serve their time and progress into senior roles across the plant.”

Dad Geoff Lee, 54, who has worked at the plant for 31 years said: “Laura wasn’t even born when I started working at Nissan but the company’s given me and my family security over the past three decades. It’s amazing to think how many cars have gone out the door since I first started here.”