Nissan reinvents BladeGlider

Nissan has revived the BladeGlider pure-electric concept it revealed at the 2013 Tokyo motor show by releasing images of a heavily updated "fully-functioning advanced prototype".

Back when it was unveiled almost three years ago, Nissan claimed its radical concept had the potential to be the "best-handling road car ever".

Designed by the pioneering racing car designer and aerodynamicist, Ben Bowlby, the BladeGlider followed the DeltaWing race car that Nissan also sponsored.

Bowlby was also behind the ill-fated but technologically advanced GT-R LM NISMO hybrid that the Japanese car-maker called time on after poor performance dogged its maiden season in the FIA World Endurance Championship in 2015.

The updated BladeGlider has been developed in collaboration with Williams Advanced Engineering, which is related to the F1 team of the same name.

The rear-wheel drive BladeGlider comes with two 130kW motors that, together, produce 200kW/707Nm.

Weighing in at just 1300kg, it packs two powerful motors fed by a 220kWh lithuim-ion battery. Working altogether, Nissan claims the pure-electric sports car can sprint to 100km/h in less than five seconds and reach a maximum top speed of 190km/h.

Said to have taken two years to develop, the BladeGlider shares the old car's narrow front track/wider rear track arrangement, which is said to boost not only aerodynamics but efficiency and stability.

Nissan and Williams even went as far as developing new cooling systems for the motors and large battery pack.

Now featuring working rear-hinged dihedral rear doors and what Nissan calls a "roll-over protection system", the concept is said to combine the "exhilaration of an open-topped racer with the safety of a coupe".

The 1+2 seating arrangement lives on in the new concept and the BladeGlider gets a new interior that uses just two screens to display information, while all the major controls have been moved to be included on the steering wheel.

Door mirrors were sacrificed for aerodynamics with two monitors placed either side of the wheel projecting the view from behind.

With each seat now featuring a four-point safety harness and grippy epoxy resin to hold occupants in place, the BladeGlider looks like it could be a futuristic Caterham 7 rival.

Key to its handling is a new three-stage torque vectoring system that’s been created by the engineering-arm of Williams F1.

Featuring an 'off', 'agile' and even a 'drift’ mode, the new system is said to battle understeer by sending torque to an outside wheel to restore balance and grip on the front axle.

Nissan says the torque vectoring is not designed to 'govern' the driving experience but to enhance it.

Previously, Nissan announced it wanted the BladeGlider to be in production by 2017 but now, according to insiders, there are no longer any plans to sell the pure-electric sports car.

Instead, it's now being billed by the Japanese car-maker as "an exciting real-life study into the potential of advanced EV performance".

To help succeed in its mobile advertisement for pure-electric cars, Nissan has built two final prototypes. Both will star at the Rio Olympics that begin next week. One will be static while the other will be used to give what the car-maker is calling "dynamic rides" to media and VIPs.

Speaking following its unveiling, Nissan's boss, Carlos Ghosn said: "Nissan believes that enthusiasts should look forward to a zero emission future and BladeGlider is a perfect demonstration of that. It’s the electric vehicle for car-lovers.”