Nissan is getting ready to take on Renault and Mercedes-Benz with an all-electric van.
The brand used World Electric Vehicle Day to tease its new plug-in load-lugger, with a reveal locked in for September 9.
Details about the van are thin on the ground, but it’s likely to lean on a platform from within the Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi Alliance.
Renault has a new electric Kangoo van with a 44kWh battery pack, and a claimed range of 265km on the WLTP test cycle.
Peak power in the Kangoo is 80kW, and peak torque is 255Nm.
Nissan does have its own electric platform to lean on. The Ariya electric SUV has 65kWh and 90kWh battery packs, good for up 610km of electric range on the Japanese test cycle.
Expect that figure to drop significantly when the Ariya is tested on the tougher WLTP test cycle.
The electric van won’t be the first from Nissan. It’s offered the e-NV200 since 2014, and gave it an update in 2018 with a 40kWh battery pack.
Electric vans are becoming commonplace, especially in Europe.
Mercedes-Benz Vans has committed to developing only electric vans on the back of its Citan reveal, while Ford and Volkswagen have committed to making their vans electric.
In the USA, General Motors’ new BrightDrop brand includes an all-electric delivery van, while Rivian has developed an electric van for Amazon.
Startups such as Arrival are also taking on the e-van market.
