The auto industry at large is making the switch to electrification, and Nissan is no exception. Its e-Power series hybrid technology, marketed as a transition between combustion and electric propulsion, may soon oust the brand’s diesel power units on its larger vehicles.
Nissan is retiring its entire diesel lineup, impacting its pickups and SUVs sold in Australia
Car Sales Australia reports that Nissan executives have sounded the death knell for the oil burner, especially as far as SUVs and pickups are concerned.
“At the moment we are out of the diesel offer, generally speaking,” said Ilya Deminov, Regional Product Planning and Strategy Manager for Nissan AMIEO (Africa, Middle East, India, Europe, and Oceania). “We don’t plan to come back, so we are constantly now removing our diesel offerings from the portfolio.”
Australia has traditionally been a strong market for pickups. Called utes in the vernacular, they typically come equipped with diesel engines under the hood. Nissan’s Navara midsize model, for instance, packs a 2.3-liter twin-turbo unit for the Australian market, working with either a two-wheel or four-wheel drivetrain.
The automaker's e-Power series hybrid technology is found on five of its global models
As the next-generation Nissan Navara is touted to share its platform with its Mitsubishi Strada rival, there are questions as to what the powertrain will be. This is considering that both alliance partners have their own takes on hybrid propulsion. Deminov says that Nissan will always opt for e-Power over Mitsubishi’s plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV) system.
This means that a scaled-up version of e-Power is not such a farfetched idea, going under the hood of the Navara, Terra midsize SUV, or Patrol full-size SUV. Currently, e-Power runs five of Nissan’s global models: the Note, Serena, Qashqai, Kicks, and X-Trail. All the automaker has to do is demonstrate that the series hybrid powertrain can handle up to 3,500 kgs., which is part of the diesel engine’s current job description.
The X-Trail compact crossover with e-Power is coming to the Australian market
Future versions of the Qashqai and X-Trail crossovers are coming to Australia in a choice of standard gasoline or e-Power propulsion. But it seems Nissan is eyeing more than just a change in power unit, as it says its dual-motor e-4ORCE all-wheel-drive system is 1,000 times faster than a standard AWD setup, which means it could be offered not just on the current Ariya EV but on more models down the line.
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