NISSAN has revealed a next-generation budget EV to rival Renault 5 with 248 miles of charge.
The financially-stricken carmaker has partnered with Renault to create an “audacious”; spin-off to the R5 while remaining “true to the DNA of its predecessors”;.
AN EV version of the Nissan Micra should be on the market by the end of the year.
The fifth-generation super mini will be one of three new EVs launched by the financially stricken car manufacturer in Europe by 2026.
Nissan’s global design chief, Alfonso Albaisa, said: “What’s limiting EV take-up right now is affordability.
“Transaction price versus household income is going in the wrong direction.
“We need people to be able to afford these cars, and that’s where the Micra comes in.”;
He declined to comment on the car's target price, the 5 is priced from £22,995, but told Autocar that it will “be out price at the entry point.”;
The model, labelled “audacious”; by Top Gear, is manufactured in its London design centre with Alliance partner Renault in Douai, France and will share many technical underpinnings of the R5 and CMF-BEV platform
However, Albaisa characterised the new model as “cuter, with round puppy dog headlines”; compared to the R5, which is a “bit of a bulldog.”;
Its elegant simplicity honours the DNA of Nissan and the K12-generation Micra of 2–2 in its rounded front and rear lights, according to Top Gear
On the Japanese companies' partnership with the French firm, Albaisa told Autocar: “It just happened to work out because we already had studies playing with round headlamps.
“What I love about the Micra is that it has some cute things, but the body, shoulders and tyres are huge.
“The bonnet of the Micra is bigger.”;
Albaisi praised the “spectacular”; engineers who overcame the minefield of safety features to rework the angular hood of the Renault 5.
Nissan has confirmed the Micra will be offered with 40kWh and 52kWh batteries.
It hasn’t confirmed power outputs, but the standard versions of the 5 currently offer 118bhp and 148bhp.
François Bailly, Nissan’s European product boss, said its new EV offers “mobility but also emotion, because Micra is a really strong name in Europe”;.
The Japanese manufacturer has been mired in financial woes since last year when the FT reported that it was asking traders to sell its products at a loss in the US.
Its incoming CEO, Ivan Espinosa, has reiterated that it is very open to partnerships after the highly anticipated merger with Honda collapsed.
