So far, Infiniti is only giving a hint of what's to come when it launches its first battery-electric vehicle during the 2015 model-year.
Japanese luxury maker Infiniti will charge into the market with its first battery-electric vehicle sometime in 2014, revealed the maker’s senior American executive.
To be sold as a 2015 model, the as yet-unnamed battery car will be based on the Nissan Leaf but will deliver both better performance and longer range, Executive Vice President Andy Palmer told TheDetroitBureau.com during a conversation at the Los Angeles International Auto Show.
The Infiniti electric vehicle will adopt a sedan, rather than hatchback body style, which became “the key challenge” in developing the new model, said Palmer, but he stressed that the production version “is not going to make any excuses,” and will deliver a much more refined appearance and feel when compared to the mainstream Leaf.
The Infiniti EV will share its underlying architecture with the Nissan Leaf - but get better range and performance in a sedan body.
Performance and range, meanwhile, “will be as good as Leaf, if not better,” said Palmer, adding that, “Obviously, you would expect a little better performance from a luxury brand.”
In terms of range, insiders hint that the EPA rating for the Infiniti EV could nudge past the 100-mile mark. Palmer confirmed the 2015 model will make use of an advanced version of the lithium-ion battery pack currently found in the little Leaf. The improved chemistry is likely to be less expensive and, sources suggest, it should produce as much as 20% to 25% more energy than the current Leaf battery pack.
While lithium-ion prices were estimated to be as much as $1,000 per kilowatt hour just a few years ago, Nissan has been basing its business case on driving that down to less than $400 per kWh, something that could shave thousands off the factory cost for the 24 kWh pack in the current Leaf.
So far, Infiniti has released only an early sketch of the design direction it is likely to take with the upcoming EV. But by the time it reaches showrooms the new green machine will enter an increasingly crowded market. Honda revealed the new Fit EV during its L.A. Auto Show preview and other makers revealed plans to enter a variety of mainstream and luxury segments with pure battery-electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids during the annual California car show.
But Nissan and its French alliance partner Renault make no secret of their aim to dominate the electric vehicle market, together putting in place capacity to produce 450,000 battery cars annually by 2015. That will include a new EV line at the Nissan plant in Smyrna, Tennessee — though officials are not disclosing whether Infiniti’s electric car offering will be produced there or in Japan.