The Nissan e-POWER series-hybrid system is likely to make its local debut in the upcoming Kicks.
Nissan has recently announced that the cumulative global production of vehicles powered by its e-POWER electrified powertrain has since surpassed 1.5 million units, as of the end of October.
First making its debut in 2016 and currently in its second iteration, the Japanese automaker touts that its series-hybrid powertrain are sold in 68 markets around the world. And there may soon be one more to that tally too, as credible rumours suggests for this e-POWER technology will likely be making its local debut under the hood of the upcoming Kicks compact crossover.
Now for those who are unfamiliar with Nissan’s e-POWER series-hybrid system, it very basically is an electrified powertrain that only sees for the electric motor alone to be driving the wheels. The on-board ICE component meanwhile essentially serves just as a generator, and is the only means of keeping the lithium ion battery in this self-charging hybrid system topped up.
Since the e-POWER system is 100% motor-driven, Nissan touts that this hybrid system can offer the same brisk get-up-and-go that one typically expects from a full EV. Thanks to its ICE range-extending generator though, there is no need for anyone to fret about needing to charging these vehicles up when its battery runs low.
What more too is that since the engine only charges the battery and does not directly drive the wheels, it is therefore possible to freely set its start timing and rev range to optimise electrical power production. This in turn sees for Nissan to claim that its e-POWER vehicles can offer a more refined driving experience and greater fuel efficiency relative to other electrified powertrain systems, from a reduced engine operation time in low speed and low load conditions.
As alluded to previously, the series-hybrid system was first introduced first in Japan in 2016 with the Note. Availability of the innovative powertrain has since been expanded to the Kicks, X-Trail SUV, as well as the Serena minivan, with Nissan touting that nearly 43% of all its cars sold in its home market last year were e-POWER models.
Cumulative production of e-POWER vehicles
| Japan | 1,170,000 units |
| Europe | 140,000 units |
| China | 60,000 units |
| Others | 150,000 units |
| Total | 1,520,000 units |
The Kicks e-POWER that is all but likely to land locally will be packing a naturally-aspirated 1.2-litre three-pot serving as the on-board generator to feed the 1.57 kWh lithium-ion battery, while a 95 kW front-mounted drive motor will be solely responsible to drive its front wheels. Among the more notable figures quoted with this setup (obtained from our neighbouring countries) is for this small crossover to come with similarly small 4.6 l/100 km fuel consumption claim, all the while outputting a punchy and consistently flat 260 Nm torque band from its 100% e-drive setup.
