The Nissan Note e-Power has been spotted in India several times, but this is the first time that the car has been spied testing on the roads. Indian government’s plan to make India an all-electric vehicle nation by 2030 has got the attention of the manufacturers, and global players are now contemplating on bringing their electric models to the country.
The Note e-Power was spotted in Chenalpattu, Tamil Nadu with zero body camouflage. The new spy pictures also reveal that the Note e-Power that is being tested is a range-extender version and the same is being evaluated for the Indian market. The spied pictures are of the ‘Medalist’ variant. It features many signature Nissan designs like V-shaped front chrome grille and a large wraparound headlamps.
The car gets a 1.2-litre, three-cylinder petrol engine that is only used to charge the batteries but does not power the wheel directly. The electric motor is an 80 kW or 108 Bhp rated motor that drives the front wheels. The range extender engine kicks in when the batteries are running low and replenishes the energy. India is still to get an electric charging station network, and cars like Note e-Power will be highly suitable for such conditions. Nissan claims that the engine charges the batteries enough to go for 37 km using one lite of petrol.
Now the range extender versions of a vehicle are considered as hybrid and Indian government has imposed a significantly higher tax on the hybrid cars compared to the all-electric ones. There are no such cars in India yet, and it will be a first of its kind vehicle. It will be interesting to see how the Indian government classifies the new car. Nissan is also considering to bring the all-electric Nissan Leaf to India. Nissan is expected to showcase both the vehicles at the Auto Expo 2018.