Nissan made a daring move a decade ago when it decided to make the Leaf electric car a global mass-production effort rather than a small-scale one that would just satisfy regulators. While it had hoped to sell millions of Leafs by now and have 10 percent of its global sales be EVs by 2015?neither of which it came close to achieving?Nissan remains focused on going big and on increasing economies of scale for its electric-vehicle technology.
With a more appealing 2018 Leaf (above) reaching dealerships this month and an all-electric crossover based on Nissan?s IMx concept (below) from last year?s Tokyo auto show on the way in less than two years, the automaker is finding a second wind. According to Michael Bunce, vice president for product planning of Nissan North America, it?s also aiming to take an all-electric powertrain to the mass market in a whole new way by making at least one of its mainstream models electric only, within the 2023?2025 time frame?effectively one model cycle from now.
That would mean bringing an existing nameplate?like Maxima or Murano, for instance?into the all-electric fold and designing it without an engine, a fuel tank, and all the other associated components. It would be a daring move in a market in which internal-combustion engines are expected to be used in the majority of vehicles.
?At some point you have to say: Okay, my technology?s mature enough, I?ve learned enough, it?s ready enough, consumer acceptance is there, and we?re willing to ...