Nissan's long-anticipated electric crossover is finally headed to production. While Nissan beat the market with the launch of the Leaf EV a decade ago, it has lagged other automakers in introducing new, more practical EVs to meet customer demands for more versatile cars.
According to Automotive News, Nissan has told its dealers that the new crossover will arrive Stateside in the second half of 2021, presumably as a 2022 model. That's nearly a full year later than Nissan had previously suggested.
Dealers who saw a preview of the vehicle told the outlet to expect a compact footprint (a la Nissan Rogue) paired with the interior space of the midsize Murano. Nissan said it will be able to do 0-60 in under 5.0 seconds and go 300 miles on a single charge.
These specs match up nicely with the capability floated for the IMx concept vehicle originally shown way back in 2017. Nissan claimed it would be built on all-new, electric-focused architecture and employ a dual-motor setup to enable all-wheel drive. The interior space advantage, Nissan VP Ivan Espinosa previously told us, comes from the optimizations afforded by a dedicated platform.
“It’s giving us a lot more freedom in terms of the packaging and how you can play with interior space,” he said. “When you look at other brands coming out with EVs, they are adapted platforms, from combustion engines to electric vehicles,” and even in a fully electric model there’s still space for the engine and drive tunnel.
This would represent a massive leap forward for Nissan's EV portfolio, which currently comprises only the compact Leaf hatchback, which is currently offered in two flavors. The base Leaf offers 151 miles of range; the Leaf Plus bumps that up to 226 miles. Not only would Nissan's proposed crossover offer double the range of a base Leaf, but it go toe-to-toe with Tesla's forthcoming Model Y crossover.
Now, if only it could arrive just a little bit sooner than that.
