New Nissan Micra, Leaf replacement and Juke among five Nissan EVs due by 2026

Nissan has declared it will launch five new electric vehicles in Europe by 2026, including the all-new Nissan Micra and Nissan Juke, plus the replacement for the pioneering Leaf electric hatchback - which is likely to be a crossover SUV.

The first of these to arrive will be the new Nissan Micra, due to be unveiled later this year, and based on the same technology that unpins the recently unveiled Renault 5 E-Tech. It will be produced by the Renault Group’s EV-dedicated company, Ampere, and use its AmpR Small platform.

The next-generation Nissan Juke will make use of the same underpinnings, and is expected to be pitched as a Jeep Avenger rival in the small SUV sector. Meanwhile the new Leaf, which will be a crossover of some description and sit above the Juke, should utilise the AmpR Medium platform (formerly CMF-EV) found under Nissan’s existing Ariya.

The other two EVs confirmed for Europe are vans. The all-electric Interstar panel van – Nissan’s Ford E-Transit rival – is due on sale in the second half of 2024. The firm is also working on a new compact LCV based on Renault’s FlexEVan that’s being designed for use in cities.

One other new model is earmarked for Europe by 2026, which should be the facelifted version of the best-selling Nissan Qashqai we’ve already spied testing. Nissan will probably use this to introduce the third-generation of its hybrid e-Power technology that is also coming to Europe.

Compared to current e-Power models, the third-gen powertrains can provide 20 per cent more power and are 10 per cent more fuel efficient, but also 20 per cent less expensive. 

According to Nissan’s president and CEO Makoto Uchida, the third-gen e-Power tech will allow the company to achieve cost parity between hybrid and pure-petrol cars by 2026. Nissan also hopes that by 2026, 40 per cent of its sales in Europe will be for EVs.

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This new model blitz is part of Nissan’s ambitious plan to introduce 30 new models worldwide within the next three years. Of those 30 new global models, 16 will be electrified, with the rest relying solely on internal-combustion engines. 

Looking further into the future, Nissan is going to create five new models on a single flexible platform, developing them “together as a family,” said Uchida. The platform will allow for different body styles, but using standardised body components. 

According to Uchida, this way, once the main vehicle is ready, developing the remaining four will cost half as much and take four months less. Production of the first model using the new platform and approach is set to begin in 2027.

Nissan is also working on new battery technologies, and plans to “significantly enhance” its nickel-cobalt-manganese (NCM) lithium-ion batteries – the type used by the Ariya. By 2028, when Nissan plans to launch a seven-seat electric SUV, it says the improved NCM batteries will be 50 per cent more energy dense, and rapid charging will take half as long. 

The company is working on LFP (lithium ferro phosphate) batteries – like the Citroen e-C3’s – and solid-state batteries, which are both due to feature in Nissan models in 2028.

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