Four will go to Nissan, two to Infiniti
Nissan and its luxury brand, Infiniti, will be getting six new all-electric vehicles within the next five years according to a new report. Speaking with Automotive News, Toshihiro Hirai, Nissan corporate vice president for powertrain and EV engineering revealed that four will go to Nissan and two will be under Infiniti. The six EVs will be part of the 12 that the Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi Alliance is planning to release up to 2022, as originally detailed last September on a business plan by Carlos Ghosn, the alliance’s CEO.
All six vehicles will be fully electric and none will feature hybrid technology like Nissan’s own e-Power system, which was proven popular in its home market of Japan. Currently, the Note is the only vehicle available with the e-Power hybrid system in the Japanese market and it’s expected to find its way to the automaker’s U.S. lineup. Unlike more conventional hybrid systems, Nissan’s e-Power system only uses the gas engine as a generator and will not power the car directly.
Although this plan only covers the next five years, Nissan CEO Hiroto Saikawa announced last month at the 2018 Detroit auto show that Infiniti will eventually become an electrified brand. Starting from 2021, new Infiniti vehicles will either be all-electric or feature the automaker’s e-Power hybrid system. Infiniti will launch its first all-electric vehicle in 2021.
Source: Automotive News (Subscription required)