Nissan is accelerating its transition to electric vehicles, announcing the gradual phasing out of fuel cars and plans to achieve 100% electrification in Europe by 2030. The company revealed last week that it will invest £3 billion in its Sunderland plant to produce three new electric vehicles, including two new models and the next generation of the Nissan Leaf. A source at Nissan told European Car News that the next generation Nissan Leaf will be launched at the end of next year.
In addition, Nissan also plans to transform its two best-selling SUVs, Juke and Qashqai, into pure electric models. It is said that Qashqai was the best-selling car in the UK last year, and Juke’s sales have also exceeded 1 million units. The new electric cars will be based on Nissan concept cars, with Qashqai’s design possibly inspired by the Hyper Urban concept car; and the Hyper Punk concept car seems to also serve as inspiration for Juke.
Dataforce research shows that as of October this year, Nissan Leaf sales in Europe have dropped by 31% to 11,568 units. Meanwhile, Chinese competitors such as BYD and SAIC MG are experiencing rapid growth. Nissan sources revealed that the new generation of Leaf will be closer to the brand’s first electric SUV model, the Nissan Ariya. Nissan stated that the new generation of Leaf will be designed with reference to its Chill-Out concept car. This concept car is based on the CMF-EV platform used by the Nissan Ariya, and it is also equipped with Nissan’s e-4ORCE electric four-wheel drive control system. The new Leaf will undergo a “thorough redesign,” seemingly not intending to inherit the design features of the previous two generations.
The battery will come from Nissan’s upcoming battery factory. The new battery will have 30% higher energy density than the 62 kWh battery used in the current Nissan Leaf, increasing the range to 239 miles, on par with the Volkswagen ID.3.
