TOKYO (Nikkei)--Nissan Motor Co. , Honda Motor Co. and other Japanese automakers are utilizing information technology to pare down their development processes for new vehicles to roughly one year.

By switching to computer environments for the creation of prototypes and performance tests, the automakers are able to achieve savings in time and cost.

Moreover, by bringing the development period, which lasts from the final decision on a design until the start of mass production, down to about half the time it took three years ago, the automakers can more easily reflect market trends in their lineups.

Nissan as early as 2002 aims to reduce to one year its development time, which takes at least 15 months now. By introducing a high-performance three-dimensional CAD (computer-aided design) system, Nissan will only need to create prototypes twice, instead of three times. Nissan has also begun to implement the system at research centers in the U.S. and the U.K.

In developing the new edition of the Civic, which will debut this fall, Honda networked its R&D centers in Japan, Europe and the U.S. Designers and engineers use the network to share data in developing and testing prototypes. Honda says the network could help reduce time to market by nearly one year, depending on the type of auto.

Mazda Motor Corp. this month will start operating an advanced new-vehicle development system to simulate impact tests and other checks on a personal computer. Thanks to the system, Mazda will be able to develop autos that will be put on the market in and after 2002 in 14 months, instead of the 18 months it now requires.

Toyota Motor Corp. needed only 13 months to develop the bB subcompact hatchback that it debuted this February. Subsidiary Daihatsu Motor Co.in August will concentrate its designers in Ikeda, Osaka Prefecture, and fully implement a CAD system. This will facilitate data exchange with Toyota.

(The Nihon Keizai Shimbun Tuesday morning edition)