Nissan Ariya goes from concept to road-going car

Last November, Nissan unveiled the Ariya Concept Car at the 46th Tokyo Motor Show together with the IMK EV Concept Car and its Leaf RC race car. It was all about full electrification and in a short time, its Ariya Concept Car came into fruition. The Ariya embodies what an electric crossover SUV should be in the future. The difference is, you can actually have it soon, if you live in Japan that is. Nissan started producing the Leaf EV in 2010, and it has become the best-selling EV in the market globally.

Nissan CEO Makoto Uchida and Chief Operating Officer Ashwani Gupta unveiled the Ariya to a global audience last week during a livestreamed event at the new Nissan Pavilion in Yokohama.  “The Nissan Ariya is a truly beautiful and remarkable car,” Gupta said. “It enables you to go further, easier and in comfort. The Ariya is designed to impress, and to express what Nissan strives for – making our customers’ lives better.”

Nissan promises greater driving excitement, confidence and comfort with this 100% electric powertrain with a powerful acceleration and smooth plus quiet operation. With its ProPilot 2.0 technology, both the driver and passengers can relax and enjoy riding the Ariya. Aside from autonomous driving technology, seamless connectivity and concierge-level assistance, the Ariya offers a spacious lounge-like interior. The car goes on sale mid next year with a price tag of about 5 million yen.

On paper, the 2WD 90kWh variant has the longest range of up to 610km, while the AWD 65kWh variant has the shortest at 430 km. The AWD 90 kWh variant is the quickest at 5.1 seconds from 0-100khp. The top speed of the AWD variants is 200kph while the 2WD variants have a top speed of 160kph.

Nissan’s pioneering EV strategy makes the Ariya its most technologically advance Nissan to date. The car’s all-electric drivetrain combines excellent power delivery, charging capabilities and range. Customers can choose from multiple configurations to meet their individual needs. These include two-wheel-drive and e-4ORCE all-wheel-drive versions, as well as two different battery sizes making a total of four different variants.

Its e-4ORCE all-wheel control system and low center of gravity gives the vehicle sportscar-like performance with all-weather capability. The system’s twin electric motors provide a balanced, predictable ride, with sports car-level power delivered in the blink of an eye. Last year, we had the opportunity to try out their prototype two-motor EV at the proving grounds of Nissan in Yokohama which gave us a clear idea on how the driving dynamics of a two-motor AWD system vastly outperforms a single motor 2WD platform.

The Ariya’s striking exterior design represent Nissan’s new design language, which it calls “Timeless Japanese Futurism”. The idea is to use distinctive Japanese design approach with elements of tradition yet conveyed in a simple yet powerfully modern way. Being an all-EV platform, Nissan’s designers took advantage of the car’s flat floor, and thanks to its compact climate control components, it gives the Ariya the most spacious cabin in its class. The lounge-like interior, featuring Zero Gravity seats, provides a welcoming and comfortable environment for driver and passengers alike.

“The Ariya enhances driving excitement, ensures high levels of comfort and confidence and heightens the joy of connecting,” Gupta said. “It’s more than just a great EV crossover, it’s a great vehicle. It’s a true force of wonder, and it’s coming soon.”

The modern connectivity and high tech all-new human-machine interface lets Ariya owners and passengers use their natural speech to adjust car settings. Over-the-air firmware updates makes sure any new applications and features will be uploaded quickly. The Ariya also features Amazon’s Alexa voice command.

“The Ariya is the first to feature the latest combination of all of Nissan’s advanced technologies, making it a very special model in Nissan’s history. For example, we have a new HMI system that uses two 12.3-in. screens that we call the “monolith.” You will be seeing this in future Nissan vehicles, as well as the latest ProPILOT driver assisted technology.” Said Nissan Development Chief Product Specialist Makoto Fukuda

“Nissan’s intelligent personal assistance technology, I believe, is omotenashi in its purest form. Ariya supports your lifestyle whether from home or on the go. Currently, once you get in a car, many systems don’t support Amazon Echo or Apple Siri, resulting in a disconnected experience for the customer. We wanted Ariya to provide a seamless experience when it came to voice command systems, such as equipping it with a revolutionary natural-language understanding system that allows you to make requests to the on-board voice control technology using normal, conversational sentences.” Added Fukuda. Omotenashi is the Japanese way of giving proper hospitality to its customers and guests.