Nissan QASHQAI laps Tassie without stopping for fuel 

Nissan has sent its updated 2026 QASHQAI e-POWER around Tasmania on a single tank of fuel, managing more than 1300 kilometres in the process.

More and more brands are undertaking ‘endurance runs’ to prove their hybrid or EV technology is sound, and Nissan is the latest brand to join the club with its now e-POWER-only QASHQAI small SUV. 

Nissan’s boffins chose a route that covered more than 1200km across Launceston, Freycinet, Hobart, the Huon Valley and Tasmania’s west coast before heading back to the mainland.  

According to Nissan, the QASHQAI travelled 1303km before needing fuel, while displaying an average consumption figure of 4.5L/100km. 

That’s slightly above the updated model’s official 4.1L/100km combined-cycle claim, though still a strong result given the mix of highways, urban roads and Tasmania’s famously challenging (and undulating) terrain.

The facelifted QASHQAI arrived this year with Nissan’s revised hybrid setup which continues to use a petrol engine as a generator for the front-mounted electric motor rather than directly driving the wheels. 

A new ‘5-in-1’ powertrain design combines the motor, generator, inverter and related hardware into a single unit, while the revised 1.5-litre turbo-petrol engine is claimed to deliver thermal efficiency of up to 42 per cent. 

Hybrid sales continue to surge in Australia and Nissan is clearly keen to position e-POWER as an alternative for buyers not yet ready to make the jump to a full EV. 

In April 2026, hybrids and PHEVs accounted for roughly one of every three new car sales in Australia, or 29.5 per cent of the market. 

Join the conversation at our Facebook page
Or email us at editor@carsales.com.au