Nissan EV II Prototype 2009 Review - International

Nissan EV II Prototype

Quick Spin

Yokohama, Japan

What we liked
>> Step-off is electric
>> Handling better than hatch-average
>> It's oh, so quiet!

Not so much
>> Urban focussed
>> No engine braking
>> It's oh, so quiet!

One lap does not a road test make, but Nissan's EV II prototype leaves a lasting impression. Especially as it's better than a sneak peek of what we can expect from 'zero emission' motoring in the very near future.

We drove the test mule of the upcoming LEAF all-electric vehicle, due in Australian showrooms 2012, at Nissan's Oppama "mother plant" in Japan where the production-version LEAF will be built.

The lap took in around 4km of the company's test track which includes a GT-R-friendly banked section used at the facility but not allowed to journos on the day. The international invite list to the LEAF's reveal numbered around 80, so time was short and there was a lot Nissan had to say. We were, after all, privy to a landmark moment in motoring.

The EV II prototype uses a Tiida hatch's body and Nissan's dedicated EV chassis, which underpins the production-ready LEAF revealed this month. The position of the battery pack in the chassis enables near mid-ship balance in terms of front-to-rear weight distribution and the underfloor is smooth which helps airflow and aerodynamic efficiency.

The "highly-rigid" chassis accommodates an in-house developed 24kWh lithium ion battery pack capable of generating over 90kW. The battery is housed in a separate frame. This is not to facilitate easy swapping of the pack, but rather for extra rigidity of the platform.

Moving on from the cylindrical-type batteries used in the late 90s 'hyper-mini' model, Nissan's latest lithium-ion battery pack comprises 48 'flat stacks', each consisting of four thinner cells of storage. The flat stacks weigh around 3kg each.

Nissan says the battery is cheaper to produce as fewer parts are required. It claims leading power and energy density stats of 2.5kW/kg and 140Wh/kg. The company also states its manganese-based electrode provides good cost performance, because currently manganese is an abundant material.

Reliability and longevity of the battery is improved by incorporating elements such laminated structure for cooling, according to Nissan's joint-venture battery outfit, Automotive Energy Supply Corporation (AESC).

This battery is AESC's first-generation version. Engineers confirmed others were in development at the time of our prototype drive and LEAF reveal. It powers an electric motor rated at 80kW and hefty 280Nm.

The considerable torque figure is this and any electric motor's forte: instant, near-friction-less spin. The AC motor itself is a compact unit. By our 'guesstimate' around 300mm in diameter and less than double that in length -- and for mechanics likely easier to lift than a healthy esky.

In operation the EV II asks nothing in terms of shift operation from the driver after a single 'gearlever' is moved from neutral to drive. The short shift stick with button détente control activates drive: one step. Thereafter it's two pedals and off or on... Accelerate or brake.

Acceleration is as you might expect from an electric motor: responsive and smooth. Like nothing a conventional car can offer due to relative absence of friction and less moving parts.

Top speed for the EV II prototype (and LEAF) is 140km/h. Nissan doesn't publish 0-100km/h times for the EV II but you're quickly up to street legal speeds. Over the short test track, foot down, we soon made 80km-plus before having to step on the brake pedal to negotiate a corner -- there's little sense of what we know as engine braking.

Like the LEAF, the prototype uses regenerative braking and that's immediately apparent underfoot. There's slight give before noticeably stepping on the system's artificial feedback -- more noticeable than Honda's Civic Hybrid, say, but not uncomfortable. Indeed, braking was equally solid as the best small mass-market sedans and hatchbacks.

Aside from super response from the torquey motor, the EV is obviously quiet. So quiet there's little sense of how fast you're going, other than checking the speedo -- there's little of the 'unconscious' references we rely on day-to-day when driving. No engine noise, no gearshifts, no exhaust note.

And because it's so smooth, you're very quick into corners. Fortunately it's a fairly good steerer, though the wheel feedback in the prototype felt a little dull. It weighted up well through the test track's few twists, but we would hope for better when the production version arrives.

Other brands and models have beaten the LEAF to market but Nissan's EV represents the first 'real' electric car option for widespread use. It's more substantial than Mitsubishi's iMiEV sub-light four-door in terms of size and packaging and presents as a 'proper' five-door hatch.  Equally importantly the LEAF is a family-oriented runabout, rather than a two-seater city car like Smart's plug-in Fortwo.

Research might say most cars, most times serve only one or two passengers and a lighter, two-seater would enable a longer driving range from the battery. But Nissan has resisted the temptation to offer another compromise electric vehicle. LEAF is designed as a real world car and Nissan says its operation will accommodate the requirements of the average driver and family for daily requirements. That is, around 160km driving distance after a full charge taking eight hours via household power source (presumably overnight while taking advantage of off-peak electricity rates).

Cost figures from Masato Inoue, Nissan's Product Chief Designer suggest considerable savings are on offer when you compare the cost to charge the LEAF versus a 'normal' hatch's petrol usage. Nissan's research says electricity cost (at local Japanese rates) for a month's driving (1000km) is approximately 1200 Yen ($A15), compared to petrol for the same distance at approximately 6000 Yen ($A75).

Currently the EV II mule's first-gen batteries can power average daily driving duties, but a trip to the see grandparents in the country? In this tester's case that will require a mid-stint charge.

Nissan Australia's first step will be to champion home and office charging solutions. So unless there's a Nissan dealership halfway with quick charge facility, or the service stations are canny enough to offer recharge options alongside bowsers, using an electric vehicle for the weekend drive, or even taxi/courier daily duties of around 300km (not unreasonable) is a little way off. Infrastructure to support EVs needs to happen sooner rather than later.

Meanwhile Nissan is sure the LEAF manages most urban drivers' requirements -- including the high milers. For the record, or Nissan's at least, Americans drive the furthest distance and Nissan Australia MD, Dan Thompson, says Australians' needs would be much the same.

While the EV II uses the deceptively spacious Tiida small car body upon its dedicated EV platform, the LEAF also appeared spacious and well equipped. Four men carrying stature and consequence arrived on-stage in the LEAF at its official reveal at Nissan's impressive new Global Centre in Yokohama. They were, in no particular order, Nissan-Renault Alliance chief Carlos Ghosn; the mayor of Yokohama; the mayor of the Kanagawa Prefecture of Yokohama where Nissan has mostly tested its vision of zero emission transport and Japan's previous PM, Yasuo Fukuda. (By the looks they had good cabin space and headroom and exited the LEAF with ease -- good for their wise (note: not wizened) bones and weight-bearing shoulders.)

The low-level layout of the batteries in the chassis means minimal intrusion into the cabin affording good space for occupants. Without the requirements of a conventional combustion engine up front, the production model flouts a snubby but stylish nose and the rounded look is carried over to the rear.

Stylists for LEAF said at the EV's reveal their aim was to create a car that resembled the planet Earth as seen from Space. The light blue duco for the near-production model is spot-on; so too its globular but interesting body design. It's better-looking; more standout than the improved third-gen Prius, for mine, and Nissan will keep things like the energy-saving LED head and taillights for the production model.

Componentry for the charge apparatus is positioned up front on the mule -- a characteristic carried over into the production LEAF. It's centrally located; for convenience says Nissan. The EV II demonstrates both 'trickle' and quick charge options via two plugs; one for each outlet. All-up the plugs and housing frame take up little more than a shoebox-sized space under a flap in the bonnet.

Nissan says it has assessed the production-version EV in crash tests. Nissan's Corporate Vice President Dr Andy Palmer wouldn't elaborate upon questioning at the reveal other than declaring the LEAF will match top segment contenders. The US is next in line for LEAF after domestic distribution, so we'll have to wait until NHTSA's verdict for 'official' occupant and pedestrian safety ratings.

Japan-market (at least) LEAFs will be offered with Nissan's IT Support system. The system offers conveniences such as email alert when the battery is fully charged and locations of nearby charging stations. Provided Australia's telecom network is smart enough, we'll be able to use the feature too.

The EV's air-conditioning -- cooling and heating -- can be activated via remote control before driver and passengers board. Apart from very convenient, this helps energy savings, says Nissan. The pre-production LEAF also demonstrated energy options like solar panels, however technicians admitted it was a case of: "seen doing what's seen to be right". The benefits by way of the slim strip fixed to the rear spoiler are "token" and could only help power things like interior lighting, short term.

Considering many vehicle owners have garages, and the simplest EV ownership option is via a household power source from a garage, integrating solar energy is best left as an auxiliary rather than primary option.

In steamy summer conditions at Nissan's test track, the mule's air-conditioning coped as well as a conventional hatch. This augurs well for our local conditions.

As for its claim of 'zero-emission' motoring, Nissan argues that it's up to power companies to provide 'clean energy'. Sitting back waiting for them to do so is folly, say company spokespersons like Hideaki Watanabe, GM for the Global Zero Emission Business Unit. According to Nissan execs, even in places like coal-burning Australia the well-to-wheel equation is friendlier to the environment than the equivalent petrol-engined option.

The EV II mule is not the LEAF and no doubt Nissan will make more changes before we see the true production EV here in 2012. But the fact that the vehicle drives and is packaged like a real car means this is an authentic view at the first generation of mass market EVs.

The production version will also be wallet-friendly, according to Nissan, costing equivalent to a same-segment hatchback. Add in better-than-petrol running costs and the combination becomes even more attractive.

If the LEAF drives like the EV II there could easily be one in our garage... as soon as possible!

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