Nissan unveils new urban electric car

While we are waiting for Nissan to unveil its new electric SUV, the Japanese automaker surprised us today with a new urban electric car: The Nissan IMk.

The company says that the new 100% electric concept car “hints at the new direction of Nissan’s design language.”

Satoru Tai, executive design director at Nissan, describes the vehicle:

“As a small EV for a new era, the Nissan IMk is designed to be at home in sophisticated cityscapes as much as in traditional Japanese towns. The IMk fuses a modern, clean look, driven by its Japanese heritage, with cutting-edge EV technology. Unconstrained by conventional concepts of the kei car segment, its design is interwoven with Japanese culture. It’s a luxury small EV that I hope a lot of customers are going to drive.”

Here are a few images of the new Nissan IMk electric urban car released by the company today:

Nissan didn’t reveal any detail about the powertrain of the concept other than saying that it will be based on their experience with the Leaf:

“The Nissan IMk concept builds on this experience by offering a pure electric for alternative for customers who desire a compact vehicle suited for a sprawling metropolis.”

They haven’t committed to bringing a version of the car to production.

Instead, Asako Hoshino, Nissan’s executive vice president overseeing global marketing and sales and the brand’s global EV business, says that it gives a glimpse at Nissan’s plans for electrification:

“The IMk concept provides a glimpse of the new direction of Nissan Intelligent Mobility as technology evolves toward electrification and connectivity. At Nissan, we intend to continue launching cars with the latest advanced systems to maintain our lead in automotive innovation.”

The IMk concept will be one of 14 cars displayed at Nissan’s booth at the Tokyo Auto Show later this month.

Electrek’s Take

I’m sorry, but in my opinion, this thing is ugly. The proportions seem all off.

Especially after we have seen several good-looking “urban EVs” like the Mini Electric and the Honda E lately, it’s hard to see something like this.

If this thing “hints at the new direction” for Nissan’s EV designs, I am worried.

That may also come from the fact that I am still disappointed by Nissan’s EV effort. They did so much with the Leaf and I thought for sure that they would build on that success to launch more models and we have yet to see that 8 years after the first Leaf.

It’s apparently finally coming now, but it’s a little late in my opinion. They sat on their lead for 4-5 years too long.