Nissan will introduce an EV with range extender engine in 2016
Yoshi Shimoida, Nissan’s deputy general manager for electric vehicle engineering, says his company will introduce an EV with a range extender engine in 2016. Like the BMW i3 REx, the engine will have no connection to the wheels, serving only as a means of generating electricity for the car’s battery. “In the future Nissan will add to the line-up of EV systems an engine that is only for generating energy,” said the EV technology specialist. “It’s something like that [BMW REx]. But we call it a series hybrid,” he said. Shimoida emphasised that the popular Nissan LEAF will not be getting a range extender version.

BMW's i3 has one, the now-discontinued Holden Volt had one, and soon Nissan will offer an electric vehicle (EV) with a compact range-extender engine.

To be revealed in 2016, the new vehicle will be self-proclaimed EV market leader Nissan's first attempt at offering an electric car with a small combustion engine. Unlike regular and plug-in hybrids, the (usually tiny) engines have no connection to the driving wheels.

Instead, they act purely as a generator, sometimes doubling effective cruising ranges.

Yoshi Shimoida, Nissan's Deputy General Manager, EV and HEV engineering division, revealed to motoring.com.au that there will be "no engine" for the LEAF in future, ruling out the world's best-selling EV as a donor car.

"But in the future Nissan will add [a new vehicle] to the line-up of EV systems an engine that is only for generating energy," said the EV technology specialist.

When talk turned to the BMW i3 and its range-extender, Shimoida said it was similar in execution.

"It's something like that [range extender]. But we call it a series hybrid," he said, which is another name given to the range-extending EV technology.

The Japanese EV guru wouldn't be drawn on the Nissan EV's range, or whether it would match that of the range-extender BMW i3. The BMW EV can travel around 150km while the range-extender versions, which get a 650cc scooter engine and a small fuel tank, effectively double that distance to 300km between charges/fills via a 9.5-litre fuel tank.

Shimoida wouldn't say what the new vehicle will be called although he did reveal it's going to be announced sooner rather than later.

"Next year we announce what it's called," he stated.

If the new vehicle is not going to be a LEAF, it's possible an all-new vehicle premiering the range-extending EV technology for Nissan could be introduced.

In September this year, Nissan revealed a new battery pack for the 2015 LEAF electric car for overseas markets that goes from 24kWh to 30kWh, extending the range from 228km to 280km.

Chris Jordan, Nissan Australia's Corporate Communications Supervisor, said the upgraded LEAF will not be offered in this country, but wouldn't rule out the arrival a new range-extender EV – which would be far more palatable to Aussie buyers.

"You'd have to see what it was first," he said. "We look at all products but I can't add anything more than that."