A VIP ARIYA
After a long genesis, Nissan’s EV SUV makes its grand entrance... but is it worth the wait?
Leaf owners who have enjoyed the reliability of their cars will love this
What took Nissan so long? The company was a pioneer of electric cars when it launched the Leaf in 2011, and since that car has been a great success, I’m surprised it’s taken Nissan until now to follow it up with another EV.
The newcomer is the ariya, a middle-size SUV entering a market already well populated by cars such as the Volkswagen ID.4, Kia EV6 and hyundai Ioniq 5.
So let’s see how it fares against its competition.
First off, the ariya looks appealing. The coupe-like sloping rear is elegant. The designers have echoed the front end of the petrol Qashqai with the grille but since this car is electric there is no need for air intakes or slats. Both Korean rivals have better styling to my eyes, but the ariya more than matches them inside.
First thing you’ll notice is the feel of space and the flat floor. There’s no full-length centre console separating you from the front seat passenger; instead a shorter unit that on highspec models slides electrically.
The ariya range is straight-forward to understand. You have a choice between 63 kwh and 87 kwh battery packs. The former is fitted to frontwheel drive models whereas the bigger pack is available in both front and four-wheel drive variants. Nissan calls the latter E-4ORCE.
There are only two trim levels: advance and Evolve. Our test car is the entry-level advance with a 63 kwh battery which makes it the cheapest (rather, least expensive) at £43,845. honours for most expensive goes to the E-4ORCE Evolve at £56,290 which is a ridiculous amount to pay.
The official range of our car is 250 miles (the 87 kwh battery gives 329 miles in the 2WD car and 310 miles in the AWD). Our test car was delivered with about 135 miles left. We did the proper young adventurous urban couple image bit (without fulfilling the young part, sadly) that all manufacturers love to emphasise in their SUV marketing by going paddle-boarding on the coast near Southampton.
We could have made it there and back without charging but it would have been tight. So we recharged at Winchester services on the way home. The ariya can charge at 130 kw which is quick but not ultra rapid (10-80% charge should take 31 minutes). One rapid charger was broken and the others occupied but we added 50 miles of charge (which cost £10) from an hour’s waiting.
While the inside of the ariya feels spacious, the boot is average in capacity with 466 litres. Skoda’s Enyaq iv holds a massive 585 litres, for example. It took our two inflatable paddleboards without us having to fold the rear seats flat. as a method of transport the ariya is most pleasant. The ride quality is very good, even over the roughest of surfaces, and the cabin is well insulated from any suspension or tyre noise.
It’s a relaxing place to be, and that’s
thanks to a well-designed cockpit.
all ariyas come with a pair of 12.3in screens under glass. It looks elegant and graphics are clear. across the dash runs a strip of fake wood that contains haptic controls for temperature and other functions. They’re illuminated and easy to use.
The new ariya is a good addition to the electric SUV market, and those Leaf owners who have enjoyed the reliability and refinement of their cars will love this newcomer. If they can afford the stiff price, that is, and the small luggage area doesn’t push them towards a rival offering.
The hyundai Ioniq 5 is still my pick of the bunch but the ariya is a better car than many of its competitors, including VW’S ID.4.