Nissan’s all-electric light van the e-NV200 is to go on sale in June following a series of trials with organisations such as British Gas, Fedex Express, the Royal Mail and The City of London Corporation.
Nissan said the urban delivery vehicle, which it is building in Barcelona, combines elements of its battery-powered Leaf passenger car with its NV200 van but has a unique part-count of 30% including a re-engineered chassis and a higher capacity regenerative braking system.
The brand claimed the e-NV200 has a range of more than 105 miles and can be quick charged to 80% capacity in 30 minutes. The battery can also be recharged overnight using a domestic 16-amp single-phase 3.3 kW supply, which reduces to four hours if a 6.6kW/32-amp supply is used.
The van version of the electric vehicle, which is also available as a five-seat people carrier, has the same 4.2m3 load volume and 740kg payload as the NV200, with the lithium-ion battery housed under the floor. The cargo bay is reached through sliding doors on both sides as well as rear opening doors.
The most obvious visual difference between e-NV200 and its conventionally powered sibling is the adoption of Nissan’s EV “face,” familiar from the Leaf. The central charging doors and LED headlights are blue tinted as are the arrow-like positioning lamps that sit within new, crescent-shaped, headlamps.
LED bulbs are used in the rear lights of all versions as well as at the front on passenger models. The “electric” blue theme extends to the e-NV200’s badging.
Inside there’s a new instrument panel with a digital read out, while the gear selector shifts like a conventional automatic rather than the computer-style joystick of the Leaf. Nissan said this would help drivers regularly moving from internal combustion engined vans into the e-NV200 to acclimatise more quickly.
The e-NV200 gets hill start assist as standard.