2022 Kicks e-Power hybrid to launch next month
The push for electrified vehicles is well under way and Nissan hopes to make that transition a little easier with the newest addition to their line-up, the Kicks crossover, with e-Power.
To supplement its current fully electric offering, the LEAF, Nissan is presenting Filipino drivers an interesting way to adjust to this new technology in the form of the Kicks e-Power.
How e-Power works
The Kicks e-Power is a crossover SUV powered by Nissan’s unique e-Power hybrid system. It hopes to combine the best parts of both a conventional gasoline-powered vehicle with that of a fully-electric vehicle.
Like a fully electric vehicle, the Kicks uses an electric motor and batteries to drive the wheels. The gasoline engine (a 1.2-liter 4-cyldiner) is only there to charge batteries and keep the system powered up. It’s not connected to the wheels at all, and in essence, simply serves as a generator. With this setup, the Kicks e-Power is essentially a self-charging electric vehicle.
Nissan chose this setup to provide many of the benefits of a fully-electric vehicle. For one, the Kicks enjoys quick acceleration thanks to the electric motors and their instant torque powering the wheels. Secondly, it benefits from regenerative braking (found in electric cars and hybrids), which put power back into the system when slowing down. Third, this allows the Kicks to use the gasoline engine only when needed, making for a very quiet ride in most city driving conditions. Finally, because the gasoline is hardly used, it enjoys from very high fuel efficiency, able to go farther than a conventional car on the same tank of fuel.
The result is a car the feels like a fully-electric car, but without the worry of limited range because of the batteries. Like a conventional car, the only limit is the amount of fuel in the tank.
As mentioned before, the Kicks e-Power is composed of a 1.2-liter three-cylinder gasoline engine powering the batteries and electric motor. This series hybrid setup is capable of producing 136 PS and 280 Nm of torque. Nissan claims it can easily achieve between 22 to 25 km/l under the best driving conditions.
The vehicle will also come with various drive modes like Eco, Sport, and Charge. These modes regulate just how much the gasoline engine turns on and off, adjusting the drive feel from a standard gasoline engine car, to more of a fully-electric car.
It also comes with an e-Pedal Step feature, derived from the Nissan Leaf’s e-Pedal technology. It allows drivers to accelerate and decelerate with just one pedal. Naturally, pressing on the pedal, causes it to accelerate. Lifting off the pedal causes it to slow down. How hard it applies the brakes depends on how slowly or how quickly the accelerator is released. Of course, the system can be turned off should the driver prefer the traditional two-pedal setup.
The car
Besides the novel hybrid technology, the Kicks e-Power is designed to look and feel like any modern crossover. It boasts styling similar to the Juke, but with features that have been toned down and are more pleasing to the eye for more buyers.
It rolls on 17-inch alloy wheels, LED headlights with LED daytime running lights, LED taillights, a choice of leather or fabric upholstery, an intelligent rearview mirror system, push-button start, 60:40 split rear seats, rear A/C vents, and USB charging ports for the rear passengers. Top-of-the line models will even have a touchscreen infotainment or a 2-DIN sound system.
The test drive
It’s a lot to take in, and so Nissan generously allowed us to test drive the Kicks ahead of its official launch.
The drive itself consisted of several stages demonstrating the Kicks’ ability to accelerate, brake, handle, and cruise using its e-Power hybrid system. To help show what’s going on with e-Power, the instrument cluster shows a power monitor to give drivers an idea of where the car is drawing power at any given time.
Accelerating draws a lot of power, and so naturally, with the pedal to the floor, the engine came alive to help power the batteries. Revs rose, but only up to a certain point. Because it functions more like a generator, it’s been designed to rev only up to a certain point to keep noise down. The display showed the engine with arrows leading towards the batteries.
As the brakes were applied, the vehicle quickly slowed, the engine powered down. This time, the front wheels were shown on screen with arrows point toward the batteries, indicated regenerative braking at work.
When cruising, the Kicks attempts to use the engine as little power as possible drawing from the batteries. The engine occasionally comes on to add more charge. Yet with concerted effort it can cruise in electric mode.
The Kicks e-Power certainly looks and feels like a conventional car. There’s no adjustment needed as the onboard computers turn the engine on and off automatically. The battery charge level is also monitored automatically. This means all the driver needs to do is pay attention to the road and ensure there’s fuel in the tank.
Granted, it’s not a 100% electric vehicle, but it certainly a good introduction to how electric vehicles work, and can give any driver thinking of switching lots of time to enjoy the benefits, while the nation begins putting up charging stations.
The Nissan Kicks e-Power will launch in August, with the price, variants, and color availability revealed on that day.