Nissan’s e-Power serial hybrid system is, on its own right, an innovation, but could the very same technology be responsible for the company’s current troubles? According to an article in Automotive News, that may be the case.
Although e-Power launched to great promise in 2018 (it helped the Nissan Note topple the Toyota Prius as Japan’s best-selling model), Nissan hasn’t really capitalized on that success.
Per the story, Nissan has yet to launch the e-Power tech in the United States, one of Nissan’s most important markets. The reason? Product planners had no confidence in the tech. To quote:
The setup didn’t provide enough charge for high-speed, long-distance highways, they [American product planners] said. Moreover, U.S. drivers were vexed by the decoupled feeling between the all-electric acceleration and the on-again, off-again engine generator.And while Nissan likes to harp about its synergies with other members of the so-called Alliance (Renault and Mitsubishi), the story says “house-proud Japanese engineers” resisted to borrow a better-fit strong hybrid solution like E-Tech which is developed by Renault.
It also didn’t help that North American executives were just too conservative when it came to electrification. Again, according to the story:
“The U.S. team was not completely convinced that the electrification system was good for their business,” said one former executive involved with the decision-making. “They said U.S. consumers are not ready. It was a conservative approach.”With free cash flow dwindling, Nissan is now forced to make tough choices. There are plans to cut 9,000 jobs globally. It will also cut production by 25 percent.
Their solution? It will now (belatedly) introduce e-Power to the U.S. market but only by 2026. Before then, the Rogue (X-Trail) will get a PHEV variant first with tech it’ll probably share from its twin, the Mitsubishi Outlander. An extended range EV version is also in development which fits the same gas generator with a higher capacity battery. Read our first impressions of the 2025 X-Trail e-Power e-4orce.
In the meantime, Nissan may need to search for an investor to help them out. Natural candidates include Honda or even the Mitsubishi Group. In the most extreme case, a Chinese automaker in the form of Nio, Xpeng, or BYD could help Nissan. Taiwan’s Foxconn may also be another possibility given former Nissan COO Jun Seki currently heads the iPhone maker’s EV strategy division.
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