- The Nissan Leaf will return as an SUV.
- The company says it’ll be more efficient and offer a Tesla-style charging plug from the factory, solving two of the Leaf’s major issues.
- But with no range or price announced, I can’t say whether it’ll be a hit.
The Nissan Leaf is back, and this time it’s a crossover. After plenty of speculation, Nissan confirmed today that the reborn Leaf will arrive in the U.S. within the next 12 months, and shared its first full image of the vehicle.
I was on hand at Nissan’s “Full Speed Ahead” event in Atsugi, Japan and got to see the production-intent Leaf up close. The new model is an egg-shaped subcompact SUV. A 3/4 size Tesla Model Y from the side profile, its lighting treatment up front and around back are both more unique and, to my eye, more successful than the new Model Y design.
Photo by: Nissan
The rear taillights are particularly interesting, with two vertical and three horizontal holographic-effect LEDs, with a similar black-plastic surround as the modern Nissan Z. “Two-three” is pronounced “Nissan” in Japanese, so the lights are a branding nod. Since photography was not allowed and Nissan only shared a front image, you’ll have to wait to see it in full.
Photo by: Nissan
The Leaf pictured with the rest of Nissan’s upcoming U.S. models. There’s a new Rogue, an Xterra-inspired EV crossover and a new Sentra all coming our way.
Nissan says the low lip and rounded shape help give the Leaf a drag coefficient of 0.26. That’s slipperier than a Chevy Equinox EV, but can’t match the Model Y’s 0.23. Still, Nissan claims the aero improvements will help the 2026 Leaf be a range and efficiency champ.
For now, the company wants us to take its word for that. Nissan revealed no specs for the new Leaf on Wednesday, saying full information would be available during its full reveal in June of this year. For now, Nissan isn’t sharing much. It confirmed that the U.S.-market Leaf will have a Tesla-style North American Charging System Plug and offer a dimmable panoramic sunroof and 19-inch alloy wheels. We also saw that it has a new interior with a push-button shifter and a new graphical interface. But that’s all we get for now.
Photo by: Nissan
The Leaf will be joined by a Micra EV and Juke EV in Europe, but they’re not supposed to come to the States.
Ponz Pandikuthira, Nissan’s chief planning officer for North America, confirmed to InsideEVs that affordability was still important for the Leaf. But he stopped short of sharing any details of planned pricing or how it will compare to competitors.
We also don’t know what sort of battery it’ll use, how much power it’ll get, or how far it will go on a charge. That makes it hard to know whether this will be the EV reset Nissan desperately needs. The company brought the Leaf to market in 2010 as the first mass-market EV, and while it was a ground-breaker, it has been left to wither on the vine with an outdated air-cooled battery and an unexciting, economy-car vibe. It was a sales success globally, but Nissan failed to capitalize on its first-mover advantage. It took until 2023 for the company to launch another EV in America, the Ariya, which Pandikuthira admits has a pricing problem that has made it less popular than expected.
At the same time, Nissan’s global business is struggling. Net income fell over 90% in the first half of FY2024, and the company is projecting a net loss for the fiscal year that ends on March 31. The company’s event showcased a variety of products that are coming, including an electric adventure-crossover, a midsize Infiniti electric crossover and an all-new Rogue with plug-in hybrid and hybrid options. All of those should help, but the other EVs won’t hit the market until late 2027 or early 2028.
Until then, the Leaf will be tasked with re-invigorating Nissan’s EV lineup. Will it work? We can’t say. With no details on range, pricing or power, its position in a hyper-competitive and smaller-than-expected EV market remains to be seen. But with Nissan struggling and an American affordable EV market that’s underdeveloped, I’m hoping the new Leaf is a winner.
Contact the author: Mack.Hogan@insideevs.com.
