Upcoming Australian emissions rules open the door to Nissan hybrid onslaught

Nissan says it is open to bringing more-efficient models to Australia, such as the Juke hybrid and more affordable Qashqai e-Power grades.

The upcoming New Vehicle Efficiency Standard (NVES) is poised to open the door to more hybrid models from Nissan, as the brand looks to lower its fleet’s emissions average under the threat of penalties.

Nissan Australia has already thrown its support behind the proposed rule changes, which would see manufacturers fined for breaching ever-tightening fleet emissions averages, with the policy set to be introduced from the start of 2025 and enforced from July the same year onwards.

However, speaking to Australian media in the UK, including Drive, Nissan’s Senior Vice-President and Chief Planning Officer for the AMIEO (Africa, Middle East, India, Europe, and Oceania) region, Francois Bailly, questioned the pace at which NVES would be introduced, and how quickly targets would tighten.

“I think the answer [to more hybrids] is yes. The question is the transition, and really it caught us by surprise,” he said.

“We owe our customers safe, affordable, clean cars … there’s no debate on that. [But] when you look at CAFE (corporate average fuel economy) emission in Europe, it took six years. In Australia, it’s much faster.”

The biggest-emitting models in Nissan Australia’s current line-up are the Navara ute, Patrol off-roader, and Pathfinder large SUV.

Since its first proposal in February, the NVES has been amended to re-classify many large off-road SUVs under the less stringent emissions target applied to utes and vans.

However, in 2025, each Patrol sold would still generate ‘debits’ equivalent to a fine of $11,600 – while a petrol V6-powered Pathfinder, which is a car-derived, light-duty vehicle, would face a fine of around $7600.

For reference, a Toyota LandCruiser 300 Series V6 diesel would face a fine of $1700 in the first few months of the scheme, while a Kia Sorento petrol V6 would see a circa-$6200 penalty.

And while electric vehicles will aid in offsetting high emissions averages, Nissan’s current-generation Leaf electric car is now in run-out in preparation for a new version expected sometime next year.

More EVs are expected too, though they are likely to materialise over the next five years, but the brand also fields e-Power hybrid versions of the Qashqai and X-Trail to help lower average fleet emissions.

With targets tightening each year for both commercial and passenger vehicles though, Nissan – like all car brands – will need to stay on top of future new-model rollouts to ensure low-emission, high-efficiency vehicles are being prioritised.

As next-generation electric vehicles are still a while away, this leaves hybrids as the only lever for Nissan to pull in the short term to bring down fleet emissions.

The Juke city SUV is offered with a Renault-designed hybrid system in European markets, which teams a 1.6-litre petrol engine with an electric motor and high-voltage starter/motor generator to cut the claimed CO2 output by about 20 per cent.

The hybrid Juke has previously been ruled out for Australia, and has not been announced for the updated model coming later this year, but it is built in right-hand drive so it may remain an option.

More affordable versions of the Qashqai e-Power are also expected, as the sole grade currently available with a hybrid set-up is the top-of-the-range Ti priced at $51,590 before on-road costs.

If the Qashqai follows the same route as the X-Trail, where e-Power was first offered in flagship form, expect to see a Qashqai ST-L e-Power to come in priced around $46,390 (a $4200 price-premium over the equivalent petrol-only grade) before on-road costs to better compete against hybrid versions of the Toyota Corolla Cross and Hyundai Kona.

And like the Juke, the facelifted Qashqai is due to make it Down Under in late 2024.

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