Nissan’s 2020 EV
While many car manufacturers are still some years away from giving their customers a mainstream electric vehicle, the Nissan LEAF is at it again. This four-door, five-seater family car has been hugely successful selling over 450 000 units since 2010. Now, the company is launching a second-generation Nissan LEAF with added safety features, equipment and more power thanks to Nissan’s Nismo division.
What To Expect From The 2020 New Nissan LEAF
The Nissan LEAF has a loyal following of satisfied customers from all over the world and for good reason. Since the beginning, people were impressed by the simplicity, the low running costs and the sheer convenience of charging a car at home.
Even though the first Nissan LEAF lacked some power, the company updated the system with a 30kWh battery upgrade. The 2020 Nissan LEAF promises even more with a 40kWh battery for quicker charging and longer range while better styling and additional standard equipment provide exceptional value for money.
Nissan LEAF Styling and Safety Features
Many agree that one of the best things about the Nissan LEAF is that it doesn’t look like an electric car. Fact is, the styling is not dissimilar to that of a normal, modern-day combustion engine family car. Better yet, it doesn’t resemble a futuristic design that essentially tries too hard to impress.
On the inside are plush, comfortable seats with sufficient leg and headroom with all the things you’d expect from a modern family car. A standout is the updated infotainment system which now features an 8-inch screen compared to the previous standard 5-inch or optional 7-inch.
The safety features are immensely impressive where the Nissan Safety Shield 360 driver safety tech suite is now standard equipment. This includes automatic emergency braking with pedestrian detection, lane departure warning, rear cross-traffic alert, blindspot warning, high beam assist and rear automatic braking.
It doesn’t stop there as the new Nissan LEAF also comes standard with Intelligent Around View Monitor and Intelligent Driver Alertness while featuring more airbags for occupant safety. The 2020 Nissan LEAF continues with the ProPilot technology and the ever-impressive e-pedal which makes driving an absolute pleasure as you can operate the car by only using the throttle.
Specifications And Battery Range
The standard LEAF has an estimated 239 km range on its 40 kWh battery pack while the Plus derivative can go about 363 km courtesy of its 62 kWh battery pack. In terms of power, the smaller battery pack produces 147 horsepower while the Nissan LEAF Plus model shows an impressive 214 horsepower.
While this is the standard, road-going version, Nissan’s Nismo division has shown what they are capable of and what an electric car could (and probably should) look like. Their sportier version is called the LEAF Nismo RC which comes equipped with all-wheel drive to handle the increased power of its bigger battery.
According to Nissan, the LEAF Nismo RC generates 240kW at 640Nm of torque which is available from the start considering an electric car’s incredible power from 0r/min. Nissan says that the LEAF Nismo RC will do 0-100km/h in just 3.4 seconds while top speed has not been rated.
The Nissan LEAF is undoubtedly one of the world’s leading electric vehicles which is set to return to South Africa in the next few months. Whether there is sufficient infrastructure to accommodate a widespread adoption of electric cars, only time will tell. Visit our website for more information on the next-generation Nissan LEAF and book your test drive online.
