Plans for a new concept of the Leaf hatchback for the increasingly popular shapes of the crossover are part of a huge investment that Nissan has made in the electric car project, which it intends to implement in the Sunderland factory. This was confirmed to the Autocar server by the European head of the car manufacturer Guillaume Cartier.
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Leaf will probably change from a hatchback to an SUV in 2025 and will benefit from the shared CMF-EV platform of the Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi alliance. At that time, Nissan’s portfolio will consist of five models, all electrified crossovers. These will be the Juke, Quashqai, Ariya, X-Trail and the aforementioned Leaf.
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Overall, Nissan will abandon the development of sedans, station wagons and hatchbacks, focusing primarily on the ever-growing SUV segment. In one sector, however, it still intends to implement. The carmaker’s management is going to turn to its alliance partners for help in developing a small vehicle that would replace the micru on the market.
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“It simply came to our notice then. We are looking for a replacement for the micro and it can be expected that it will be one of the shared models within the alliance, which, however, will bear the Nissan logo, “said Cartier, adding that the main goal of this model will be to generate profit. He added that the small model will definitely be electric.
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Nissan’s strong focus on electromobility stems from the company’s plans to stop investing in the development of internal combustion engines. Like most other carmakers, Nissan is trying to meet EU7 emissions standards, which will come into force in 2025. Nissan expects 80% of sales to be electric cars by 2030.
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The company’s management also said in the future that it was not going to follow the path of hydrogen propulsion and the question mark also hung above Nissan’s sports division. However, Makoto CEO Uchida said that Nissan will continue to support the Formula E electric racing project.
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