The all-new Nissan Qashqai e-Power should be joining the local range very soon, with Nissan Australia’s website giving an early preview of the upcoming petrol-electric small SUV.
Nissan’s website says first examples will arrive in “late 2022” (potentially early 2023 with any delays). Rather than cover the whole range, it’s expected the mould-breaking e-Power drivetrain option will be kept for the high-spec ST-L and Ti variants to start with.
This means they will likely wear a starting price north of $45,000 before on-road costs. For reference, the 1.3-litre turbo-petrol-powered Qashqai ST-L is priced from $42,190 plus on-roads.
Power in the series hybrid version of the Nissan Qashqai comes from a front-mounted electric motor developing a healthy 140kW and 330Nm, fed by a 2.3kWh lithium-ion battery pack.
The hybrid part? Well, there’s a 116kW 1.5-litre turbocharged three-cylinder petrol engine that has no connection to the wheels, but instead serves as an on-board generator – a range extender, if you will.
European versions of the Qashqai e-Power claim to use 5.3L/100km on the combined WLTP test cycle, meaning that while the petrol engine isn’t driving the wheels, it’s still not quite as efficient as something like a Toyota RAV4 Hybrid in official lab testing.
According to Nissan’s local website, the Qashqai e-Power will have the company’s e-Pedal (for one-pedal driving), regenerative braking, vehicle sound for pedestrians, and Active Noise Cancellation technology over the equivalent petrol model.
The Qashqai will be the first Nissan model to offer the e-Power system in Australia, with the larger X-Trail also set to offer the technology at some point following the launch of the regular petrol range later this year.
Both the Qashqai and X-Trail compete in critical segments for the Japanese manufacturer, the Small SUV and Medium SUV segments. The latter is dominated by the Toyota RAV4 which reports an overwhelming majority of hybrid sales, so much so that some variants are quoting wait times of over 18 months.
Nissan Australia announced pricing and specifications of the regular petrol-powered Qashqai line-up earlier this week, with the four-tier range kicking off from $33,890 plus on-road costs.
Power in these models comes from a 1.3-litre turbocharged four-cylinder petrol engine driving the front wheels, which puts out 110kW (5500rpm) and 250Nm (1600-3750rpm). It’s mated as standard to an ‘X-Tronic’ CVT automatic.
The new turbo powerplant claims to use 6.1L/100km on the combined cycle. It requires 95 RON premium unleaded as a minimum.
First deliveries of the new Nissan Qashqai are expected in the late stages of 2022, with e-Power models to follow. Stay tuned to CarExpert for all the latest.
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