The second generation of the Nissan Leaf is less than four years under us, so it can go on for a while. Behind the scenes, however, work is already underway on the successor. A little more is now known about that.
The current Nissan Leaf is already a huge improvement over its predecessor. Not only in appearance, but also in technology. The Leaf has become a lot more usable due to the larger range and it screams a lot less that it is a car with an ‘alternative powertrain’. This is also reflected in the sales figures. Undoubtedly, financial incentives play a role, but the current Leaf sells roughly five times as well in the Netherlands as the previous one. In peak year 2018, 3,817 units were sold, while the previous Leaf reached its peak at 666 units in one year.
Nissan naturally hopes to continue this upward trend with the next Leaf. To do that, Nissan is doing with the Leaf what is nowadays more or less synonymous with more sales: it raises the car higher above the ground. Yes, the next Leaf will be a compact SUV, says Nissan Europe boss Guillaume Cartier in conversation with the British coach. Now the term SUV is subject to inflation, so count on cautiously on a crossover-like like the Renault Mégane E-Tech Electric. Not a thoroughbred SUV, but a ‘high model’.
The reason we take the Renault as an example is relatively simple: the next Nissan Leaf will of course be related to the Mégane E-Tech Electric. Cartier says the new Leaf sits on the modular CMF-EV base of the Renault-Nissan alliance, a platform that debuted with the Mégane E-Tech Electric. That promises a lot of good for the Leaf in terms of possibilities. The Mégane E-Tech Electric has a driving range of 470 km (WLTP) with its largest battery pack (70 kWh). That is almost 100 km further than the current Leaf reaches maximum. In addition, you can top up much faster, with 130 kW of charging power. Charging from 2o to 80 percent in an hour on a fast charger is therefore a thing of the past.
It’s still a while to wait. According to Cartier, the next Leaf will come around 2025. It will be built in the British Sunderland. After all, that will be Nissan’s ‘centre for EVs’.
– Thanks for information from Autoweek.nl