High-performance Nismo electric vehicles inbound

Nissan’s motorsports and performance arm, Nismo, will soon be offering high-performance electric cars.

Speaking to UK publication Top Gear, Nissan’s Europe chief Guillaume Cartier said selected models from its upcoming range of electric vehicles (EVs) are being evaluated, with some expected to offer increased power and upgrades from the famed Nismo skunkworks.

“Nismo is an asset that we have,” Cartier said, “and that’s something we want to revitalise. And will we have some, let’s say, cars with the derivative Nismo? The answer is yes.”

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While the company does offer a Nissan Leaf Nismo model in its native Japan, the electric hatch doesn’t benefit from any additional power, and could be considered a visual package for the model.

Despite this, Cartier says the new generation of electric Nismo vehicles will be anything but a styling exercise, with promises of increased performance.

“The point is, it’s not a gimmick,” Cartier insisted.

“To use an English expression, it’s not lipstick on a pig. So that requires some investment to make sure that you bring performance.

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“Here it’s relatively easy to understand: specific suspension and powertrain. The point on Ariya, it’s a challenge because already we have a big battery with high performance. So we need to go higher than that.”

Nissan has promised it will bring 15 new EVs to market but 2030, with the carmaker recently previewing a battery-powered hatch as a successor to the Micra.