Newly established partners Nissan Motors and NEC have been hard at work during the past few months and have revealed today two prototypes designed to employ the joint-venture's advanced lithium-ion battery technology. Initiated last May, the partnership between the Japanese automaker and NEC's Automotive Energy Supply Corporation (AESC) aims to mass produce an all-new electric vehicle by 2012 as part of Nissan's GT 2012 corporate plan.
The vehicles, one all-electric and the other hybrid powered, utilize compact laminated lithium-ion batteries that are said to deliver twice the amount of electric power compared to current nickel-metal hydride units. As a result of their smaller size, the batteries give engineers and designers a freer range in their development of next generation automobiles.
One of Nissan's main focuses on their upcoming advanced cars was to construct them using original in-house developed technologies rather than licensed systems from outside sources. AESC's first creation, simply called the EV (electric vehicle), is based on Nissan's Cube city car and is powered by an 80 KW motor and inverter. With a front-wheel drive layout and compact lithium-ion batteries installed under the floorboards, engineers were able to create a highly efficient and surprisingly spacious all-electric compact car. Officials at Nissan revealed an all-new electric car using the EV's powertrain will debut in 2010 and will not be based on any current model in Nissan's range.
Claimed to be the world's first rear-wheel drive hybrid powertrain, the Infiniti G35 based hybrid electric vehicle (HEV) utilizes Nissan's high performance parallel-powertrain hybrid system. The innovative technology employs two clutches to connect the electric motor to the combustion engine and its associated transmission. The system alternates between the two clutches during changing driving conditions in order to optimize fuel efficiency. Parallel-powertrain systems effectively eliminate the need for traditional torque convertors, and according to Nissan, produce higher responsiveness and linear acceleration. In addition to the original powertrain, the HEV packs the usual variety of gas-saving hybrid features we've come to know such as regenerative braking and idle stop technology.
Expect Nissan's advanced EV and next generation hybrids to come stateside shortly after their 2010 Japanese market release. Nissan will implement their first run of NEC lithium-ion batteries in its associated forklift operations next year.
Source: Nissan