Expectations are rapidly changing in the affordable-EV market, and Nissan is working to ready its next-generation Leaf that is scheduled to arrive in 2018. Increased driving range will certainly be on the menu, and Autocar is reporting that the Leaf will follow in Tesla?s footsteps with a strategy to offer several battery-pack options, providing higher levels of range for those willing to shell out more money.
The Nissan Leaf is currently offered with two battery packs: a standard 24-kWh unit that provides 84 miles of range, according to the EPA, and a larger 30-kWh battery pack, added for 2016, that offers an EPA-rated 107 miles of range. Those sorts of numbers won?t cut it when the Chevrolet Bolt arrives later this year, with its significantly larger 60-kWh battery that is said to provide at least 200 miles of driving on a full charge. So it’s no coincidence that Nissan?s IDS concept from last year (pictured), essentially a preview for the next Leaf, also used a 60-kWh battery. Although larger batteries weigh more than smaller batteries, the higher-capacity pack, along with a more aerodynamic shape and other efficiency improvements, should bump the next Leaf?s driving range to at least 200 miles. Nissan CEO Carlos Ghosn also said in 2014 that the next Leaf would offer a 249-mile (400 km) driving range, though it is unclear which testing parameters are behind this estimate.
We don’t know at this point if 60 kWh is the upper limit, but price and packaging ...