Twin-motor Nissan Navara hybrid possible

The new Nissan QASHQAI e-Power will be the first hybrid model of its kind to launch in Australia in late 2022, but it certainly won’t be the last.

When we asked Nissan Australia managing director Adam Paterson if the next e-Powered vehicle from Nissan is likely to be the new-generation X-TRAIL, which also arrives in local showrooms later than expected in the fourth quarter of this year, he responded, “It’s a good guess but I won’t confirm it for you.”

But he did confirm that e-Power technology could be scaled up to work effectively for bigger, heavier vehicles – perhaps including the replacement for the brand’s top-selling vehicle in Australia, the Nissan Navara ute.

“From an engineering standpoint I think the answer is probably yes. If you’re asking me to confirm that e-Power will be put in anything else at this point, no,” said Paterson.

Delivering a unique petrol-electric powertrain that functions like a battery-electric vehicle such as the Tesla Model 3 and Nissan LEAF EVs, Nissan’s e-Power technology employs a combustion engine purely as a generator or range-extender for the battery.

The petrol engine has no connection with the driving wheels, giving the e-Power hybrid powertrain concept huge scope, says Paterson.

“You know it will work on different displacement motors, so it’s not just going to work on a 1.3-litre engine [fitted to the Qashqai] – it can be tailored to different displacements,” he said.

Nissan has refused to rule out a hybrid or electric ute in future, with executives previously suggesting that by mid-decade we could be looking at an electrified pick-up truck.

It’s not clear whether Nissan will seek to hybridise its next-generation Navara ute, which is due post-2024, or follow Kia’s lead and deploy a fully-electric ute.

But the idea of an e-Power Navara driven by a pair of potent electric motors with a petrol or diesel engine to deliver extended range – backed by the security of an established refuelling infrastructure – should appeal to ute buyers across Australia.

“As it’s been explained to me, the engineering principles would allow it [e-Power] to be applied to different sizes and displacements,” reiterated the Nissan Australia boss.

The dual e-motor set-up in the AWD Nissan Ariya electric SUV generates 250kW and 560Nm, which would deliver ample carrying and towing capacities in a ute application.

Because the e-Power hybrid powertrains use much smaller lithium-ion battery packs than conventional EVs, in which a large proportion of the vehicle’s cost and weight is accounted for by the battery, the price point would almost certainly be lower than most pure-electric utes expected to arrive in the next few years.

The unique powertrain concept has merit for a wide array of applications and, as we discovered in recent testing of the QASHQAI e-Power in Europe, it works effectively in practice too.

But Nissan is not giving on pure combustion engine power any time soon and with the upcoming Ford Ranger and Volkswagen Amarok utes set to deploy bigger, more powerful V6 engines, the next Nissan Navara could also upsize its powertrain options.

Paterson wouldn’t confirm whether the next Navara will get V6 power, but he wouldn’t rule it out either.

“It’s been demonstrated that there’s demand for different powertrains in the ute and pick-up segment.

“We’ve got our four-cylinder twin-turbo [diesel engine] right now and that’s what we’re going to continue offering in the short-term, but it doesn’t mean we’re not examining the possibility of other powertrains or powerplants in future offerings,” he stated.

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