Nissan pushes to expand electric line-up using Leaf platform
Nissan’s next Leaf is predicted to spawn more models; Terra is likely reserved for a jacked-up version
Nissan will use the platform of its next-generation Leaf to produce additional electric models, as it attempts to offer a more comprehensive range of zero-emission vehicles...
Nissan filed the Terra name at the start of August with the Malaysian patents office – a common practice for car makers hoping to hide their movements from the limelight of larger patent offices. In doing so, it brought back a name that hadn’t been used since 2012, when it was the title of an electric SUV concept first revealed at the Paris motor show.
That car used the first-generation Leaf’s electric driveline to power the front wheels, but added a hydrogen fuel-cell system to power two motors at the back, making the car all-wheel drive.
The production Terra will use Nissan’s vastly improved second-generation Leaf electric drivetrain...
It could integrate an additional rear-drive powetrain to make it all-wheel drive, like the concept.
The largest battery on offer with the Leaf is predicted to double the 30kWh lithium ion pack found in the highest-spec version of the current car. The use of such a battery in the Terra would give it a headline range figure of more than 300 miles. Lower variants will trim range for a cheaper starting price, broadening the car’s appeal and helping it to rank close to the Model 3 and its expected sub-£40k price tag. This will also mean the Terra comfortably undercuts more premium electric SUV models such as the Jaguar I-Pace and Audi e-tron, which are both predicted to cost from about £60,000...
