Nissan Ariya production electric SUV leaked in patent

At the Tokyo Motor Show last year, Nissan pulled the covers off the Ariya Concept, an electric SUV that the company itself said was almost production ready. Now, patent images of the finalised model – lifted from the Argentinian patent office, apparently – have shown up on the Instagram profile of user @cars_secrets, and while the car shown looks almost identical to the show car, there are a few key details that mark it out as something you’ll be able to buy with real money.

First, let’s talk about the similarities with the concept. The profile has largely stayed the same, with a short bonnet (this is an electric vehicle after all), coupé-style roofline and chunky proportions. So too have most of the design cues, such as the blanked-off V-motion grille, slim headlights, arching side window graphic, the in-vogue “floating roof” design and full-width tail lights.

Look closely, however, and you’ll notice things like a pair of small lights at the bottom of the vertical front air inlets, complementing another pair flanking the centre inlet – which itself has a different design compared to the concept. The front splitter also appears to be deeper, perhaps to make the car more aerodynamic. You’ll also be able to spot the tow hook cover right next to the grille.

Moving to the side, the charging port door is now separated from the front passenger door, while the door handles are conventional Nissan items versus the concept’s almost Volkswagen-like units. There are also some spats behind each wheel, and the rear bumper has been redesigned and features reflectors, reverse sensors and another tow hook cover. The shark-fin antenna is the final piece to the production-ready puzzle.

The interior isn’t shown, but expect the car to get an approximation of the concept’s minimalist interior, which comes with a simple horizontal dashboard, a walk-through centre console and a Mercedes-Benz-style freestanding display panel for infotainment and instrumentation.

As for propulsion, expect the Ariya to come with a choice of single- or dual-motor variants – the latter, dubbed e-4ORCE, will provide all-wheel drive, incorporating lessons from the GT-R’s ATTESA E-TS electronic torque split system. A similar setup trialled in a Nissan Leaf produced 227 kW (304 hp) and 680 Nm of torque, so we can expect the outputs of the range-topping model to at least be on par.

Nissan has also teased that the Ariya will be capable of a range of up to 480 km and get from zero to 100 km/h in under five seconds.

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