Regarding The Electric Pickup Model, Nissan: Not Yet

Nissan Frontier 2022. (Doc. Nissan)

JAKARTA - With the development of e-Power electric motors, the Nissan route to the electrification era is getting clearer. The Japanese automotive manufacturer began showing its spurs to move to the electrification realm gradually.

Nissan intends to make some of the existing models to be used as electric-powered vehicles. Starting from pickups like Frontier and existing SUVs or new models.

Senior Vice President, Global Product Planning & Program Management, Ivan Espinosa, said that this powertrain e-Power still needs to be developed further, especially for pickup vehicles.

He also said that in the development of the powertrain made by Nissan, it is hoped that it can meet the needs of electric vehicle customers.

"One of the things we are considering is that e-Power is not the best solution for pickup. It's very good for loading goods, just like EVs. But when it comes to pickups, not yet. We're working on it," Espinosa said as quoted by CarBuzz, Sunday, May 14.

Nissan has produced electric vehicles such as the Nissan Leaf and Ariya but Nissan realizes that the public has not fully received electric-powered vehicles.

Previously, Nissan developed an e-Power with a series of hybrid-tech vehicles using the powertrain combined with combustion engines so that Nissan's cars could receive additional travel distances.

However, Nissan's e-Power technology doesn't seem to be suitable for use in a large pickup or SUV model.

The development requires a process that cannot be completed briefly. Espinosa is also considering working on an electric version of Navara or Terra, depending on market trends.

Espinosa also illustrates that it is not impossible that in the future there will be many models with this powertrain e-Power.

"And at that time, we will see how far we go by pickup. Are we doing EVs in this segment or e-Power. There could also be some solutions we can do," added Espinosa.

Like other manufacturers, at the end of this decade Nissan plans to move completely to the realm of electrification. No wonder some old names such as Frontier, GT-R, Terra, or Z will become electric vehicles in the future.