Nissan NX8 review: the China-focused EV that won’t make you sick 

Verdict

Engineered at China speed in a couple of years, the NX8 gives Nissan Europe something it hasn’t currently got. Big Nissans tend to sink without trace (Murano anyone), but it could unlock some fleet sales and take on the Chinese at their own game. A 5-minute test drive is too brief for any kind of verdict, but the NX8’s ride comfort certainly shines through. Question is, will it get lost in translation when fettled for Europe?   

Want to know Nissan’s Chinese sales pitch for its big electric SUV, the NX8, which is under consideration for European sales? “It won’t make you sick.” Not so long ago my niece vomited into an Audi Q8 e-tron’s air vents, so I see the appeal. But it’ll take all of Nissan’s marketing genius to come up with a European campaign that doesn’t stink the place out. 

We’re at Nissan’s Grandrive test facility south of Yokohama, sitting in the NX8’s ‘zero gravity’ driver’s seat, inspired by NASA-learnings to support posture. Comfort is key: in China, Nissan even has AI-controlled seats, with 59 sensors to optimise these thrones (and their airbags) for all types of physiologies: not that I felt any AMG-style bolster adjustment during my test drive. The upholstery is cream, a colour punters can spec confidently given the vehicle’s USP.  

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Nissan and its joint-venture partner Dongfeng have gone all-in on tech. There’s an AI-smart fridge/freezer (no word if it’s smart enough to order a Tesco delivery if empty), incredibly fast processing power to assist with urban and highway autopilot driving, and the huge central screen is replicated in front of the passenger to keep them occupied. The big digital driver’s binnacle seems to share Tesla’s obsession with relaying traffic cones: thankfully it also spots all the journalists milling around outside to keep them safe.

We occasionally decry the impersonal beeps and bongs from automated speed limit warnings, but the NX8 has a novel system: an actual flesh-and-blood minder in the incredibly spacious rear (big enough to dress a standing child), shouting out the test track’s speed limits with alarming regularity. He’s also there to enforce the absurd, one-lap, 2.34-mile limit of our test drive. 

Buckle up, buddy! A single electric motor sends up to 335bhp to the rear wheels, and 350Nm of torque. Acceleration is brisk rather than EV neck-snapping: I’d estimate 0-62mph would take between 6.5 and 7 seconds. Not that I could get too frisky with the throttle given the back seat bouncer. 

The prow rises like a speedboat’s, illustrating the car’s forensic comfort bias. The relaxed suspension feels decidedly French, ebbing and flowing with the test track’s contours. Which are admittedly few and far between. Nissan says the NX8 is fitted with sophisticated electronic dampers too: put it all together and you have the SUV’s antidote to travel sickness. It’s pretty quiet too, with minimal noise at speeds up to 40mph as you'd expect from an EV. 

The steering is float-away light at low speeds, firming up with speed to feel remote, artificial and sticky. But, as product manager Wu Yue exhorts, Chinese consumers place zero stock on dynamic attributes, hence a spec sheet devoid of acceleration times and top speed. Instead they want great ride quality, nebulous-sounding “emotional value” (watch a rom-com on the big screen?), peace of mind and electric range.

Ah. This long-range NX8 packs a modestly sized 81kWh pack, offering a range of 391 miles on the Chinese economy test cycle. Europe’s tougher WLTP test will shrink that, but it’ll be comfortably above 300. And DC charging sounds impressive thanks to the right-sized pack and an 800-volt architecture which refuels the LFP battery from 10 to 80 per cent in just 12 minutes. The smaller battery is said to cover 360 miles, and there’ll be a range-extender hybrid too.

Nissan reckons the NX8 has potential in Europe: visually, it’ll fit in as it resembles a wonky BMW iX3 from the sides and rear. The boot stows a generous 773-litres of cargo, and there’s definitely room at the top of our Nissan range for this near-4.9m-long car, some 200mm longer than an X-Trail. 

After all, Chinese new entrants are cutting through by offering a lot of EV for the money, so why shouldn’t Nissan tap its Chinese R&D base to follow suit? It’ll need its UK engineering team to polish up the handling though – probably at the expense of its lush ride. Just so long as it doesn’t make everyone sick.