2026 Nissan Leaf revealed in more detail
The company revealed the new Leaf's front profile at the end of March, showing off the car's rounder shape, taller ride height, and aerodynamic front end.
According to Nobutaka Tase, the Leaf program's design director, the new model is 'most aero efficient car we've ever made' thanks to its fastback-style body, active grille shutters, flat underbody, flush-fitting door handles, and 'optimised' wheel design.
Hundreds of new car deals are available through CarExpert right now. Get the experts on your side and score a great deal. Browse now.
There's also an e-dimming panoramic glass roof, which Tase-san claims allowed the team to lower 'critical air detachment points by 12mm'.
In the US and Japan the most efficient Leaf variants will have a coefficient of drag of 0.26, while European models bring that number down to 0.25 as they have unique wing mirror and alloy wheel designs .
Richard Candler, vice president in charge of global product strategy, says the Leaf is 'icon for us' and is 'one of our core heartbeat models'.
In order for the new Leaf to be a 'credible alternative to combustion engine vehicles' it will be able to do '300 to 500km between stops'.
According to Mr Candler the 'average refuelling stop is around 14 minutes, and in that time [the new Leaf] can add over 250km of charge with seamless plug and charge capability'.
Under the skin, the new Leaf employs the CMF-EV architecture that underpins the Ariya electric crossover. The platform, rebranded as AmpR Medium, also serves as the basis of the Renault Megane E-Tech and Scenic E-Tech.
The Ariya is available with 65kWh and 90kWh battery packs, and a selection of drivetrains, starting with a 160kW/300Nm front-wheel drive setup and topping out with a 290kW/600Nm all-wheel drive dual-motor system.
Depending on the drivetrain and battery pack combo, the Ariya's WLTP driving range is between 360km and 500km.
By way of comparison, the second-generation Leaf has a 110kW/320Nm motor paired to a 39kWh battery in its base trim, offering a WLTP driving range of 270km. The e+ variant has a beefier 160kW/340Nm electric motor, larger 62kWh battery, and a WLTP range of 385km.
Since the original Leaf's launch back in 2010 around 700,000 have been sold worldwide. At one stage it was the world's best selling EV ever, but it has since been overtaken by the Tesla Model 3 and Model Y.
Collectively all of the world's Leaf models have covered an estimated 28 billion kilometres.
The new Leaf will go on sale in Australia in 2026. Local models will likely be sourced from Nissan's factory in Sunderland, UK.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Age
18 minutes ago
- The Age
Jumbo jets have almost disappeared, but one airline is sticking with them
It was easy to spot the aviation geeks walking past gate B32 at Frankfurt Airport. Each slowed from their purposeful stride, or stopped entirely, transfixed. For parked on the apron in the near darkness, with twinkling navigation lights suggesting imminent distant adventures, was a Boeing 747-8. Huge, majestic – and very rare. There are 25,000 blue whales, an animal to which the jumbo jet is frequently compared, navigating the planet, but now only about 50 747s in active passenger service, the vast majority of top-tier carriers (including Qantas in 2020), having retired them in favour of newer models. Their decline has been long and drawn out, but was hastened by the COVID pandemic, which saw hundreds sold to cargo airlines or simply scrapped. It seems this four-engine behemoth, first flown commercially in 1970, is no longer financially viable in an era of increasingly-efficient twin-engined jets. The final passenger-configured jumbo was delivered eight years ago, and Boeing has no plans to restart the production line. But one European airline hasn't turned its back on the 747 just yet. Germany's Lufthansa, perceived by many to be aviation's kings of efficiency, still operates 27 jumbo jets – 19 of the newer 747-8s, and eight older, slightly smaller 747-400s – and is even upgrading some jumbo jet interiors with swanky new Allegris seats as part of a €2.5 billion ($A4.4 billion) Lufthansa fleet-wide refit. Why the lingering attachment? Part of the reason is simple and unromantic economics. According to aviation analysts, operations out of its Frankfurt and Munich hubs are each at take-off slot capacity. So, with flight numbers capped, Lufthansa really needs its biggest aircraft, and the 364-seat 747s-8s drop neatly between the Airbus A350 (293 seats) and A380 (455 seats). Furthermore, jumbos, despite their age, have a cracking range of nearly 13,000 kilometres and remain among the fastest passenger jets in the sky (reaching speeds of more than 1100 km/h).
Sydney Morning Herald
18 minutes ago
- Sydney Morning Herald
Jumbo jets have almost disappeared, but one airline is sticking with them
It was easy to spot the aviation geeks walking past gate B32 at Frankfurt Airport. Each slowed from their purposeful stride, or stopped entirely, transfixed. For parked on the apron in the near darkness, with twinkling navigation lights suggesting imminent distant adventures, was a Boeing 747-8. Huge, majestic – and very rare. There are 25,000 blue whales, an animal to which the jumbo jet is frequently compared, navigating the planet, but now only about 50 747s in active passenger service, the vast majority of top-tier carriers (including Qantas in 2020), having retired them in favour of newer models. Their decline has been long and drawn out, but was hastened by the COVID pandemic, which saw hundreds sold to cargo airlines or simply scrapped. It seems this four-engine behemoth, first flown commercially in 1970, is no longer financially viable in an era of increasingly-efficient twin-engined jets. The final passenger-configured jumbo was delivered eight years ago, and Boeing has no plans to restart the production line. But one European airline hasn't turned its back on the 747 just yet. Germany's Lufthansa, perceived by many to be aviation's kings of efficiency, still operates 27 jumbo jets – 19 of the newer 747-8s, and eight older, slightly smaller 747-400s – and is even upgrading some jumbo jet interiors with swanky new Allegris seats as part of a €2.5 billion ($A4.4 billion) Lufthansa fleet-wide refit. Why the lingering attachment? Part of the reason is simple and unromantic economics. According to aviation analysts, operations out of its Frankfurt and Munich hubs are each at take-off slot capacity. So, with flight numbers capped, Lufthansa really needs its biggest aircraft, and the 364-seat 747s-8s drop neatly between the Airbus A350 (293 seats) and A380 (455 seats). Furthermore, jumbos, despite their age, have a cracking range of nearly 13,000 kilometres and remain among the fastest passenger jets in the sky (reaching speeds of more than 1100 km/h).
Sydney Morning Herald
18 minutes ago
- Sydney Morning Herald
Boost for e-bike commuters could be the new work from home
Sydney's peak-hour roads groan under gridlock, pollution and commuter frustrations, so a proposal to pay cyclists to ride to work is so obvious it is a wonder NSW governments have not previously considered such a simple fix. In a Herald exclusive by reporter Daniel Lo Surdo, a secret internal document circulated by a senior government bureaucrat last October proposed that Sydney cyclists be paid to ride an e-bike or e-scooter to work under a European-inspired financial incentive scheme. The proposal is the opening salvo to promote the uptake of electric-powered devices on streets across the state. Among the sweeteners suggested were tax incentives that would allow riders to claim a per-kilometre allowance for each commute and one-off rebates to offset the expense associated with buying an e-bike. Similar schemes have been introduced in France, the Netherlands, Belgium, Italy and New Zealand, with widespread acceptance reported. Two years ago, Queensland and Tasmania also offered rebates to offset the expense of purchasing e-bikes. The bike-to-work programs found in most countries usually take the form of a tax incentive whereby tax-free bonuses are added to an employee's salary each month for cycling to work, instead of driving a car. There are more than a million e-bike and e-scooter owners in NSW, and almost one-third of residents in central Sydney own an e-bike, with the biggest uptake among cyclists in their teens and twenties. But there are some bumps that need to be ironed out. E-bikes have safety concerns due to the fire threat posed by their lithium-ion batteries. Paris banned rental e-scooters in 2023, and an e-scooter trial in Melbourne was abruptly ended last year after footpaths were declared unsafe for pedestrians. Yet, we are grappling with many of the same issues, chief among them riding on footpaths, failure to wear helmets, drinking, hazardous dumping of rented bikes and the risk of injury to riders and bystanders alike. Insurance cover is not mandatory for private riders and is inconsistent among rental providers. With e-scooters set to become legal on NSW public roads later this year, problematic issues associated with their use are not insurmountable. Public awareness campaigns like the one launched last year by Northern Beaches Council will help, as will common sense on all sides. Should the Minns government agree to trial that pays cyclists to ride to work, undoubtedly there will be calls for dedicated bike lanes, charging stations and improvements in bicycle parking at train stations. Cycling organisations have pushed these policies for years, arguing that satnav tracking and the user-pays future awaiting vehicles will turbo-drive bike use among commuters. The biggest disincentives to new cyclists could be Sydney's hilly topography. But the benefits are self-evident: improved health and well-being, reduced carbon footprint (some reports say by 75 per cent) and low running costs that ensure financial savings. Paid to pedal to work certainly looks an idea whose time has finally come.
