Japanese automaker Nissan (NSANY) finds itself at a crossroads. Nissan was poised to participate in a megamerger with rival Honda (HMC), and it was a huge development when the talks were revealed late last year.

Nissan's future reportedly became the sticking point in negotiations, with Honda pushing to make its smaller competitor a direct subsidiary.

Two of Japan’s largest automakers have been in talks to combine their operations to form one of the world’s biggest car groups.