- The Nissan Sakura is an all-electric Kei automobile.
- It is simply 11 ft lengthy and weighs beneath 2,400 lbs, with a beginning worth of round $15,000.
- The Sakura has turn out to be Japan’s best-selling EV, however Nissan is not promoting it wherever else… but.
There is a cause Individuals appear more and more fascinated with Japanese Kei automobiles: It is wonderful to see small vehicles successful. The previous 20 years have seen Individuals fully scorn something small, low-cost and easy, transferring in direction of ever-bigger, ever-more “premium” choices. That is why our three best-selling EVs are all made by Tesla, a premium model that claims to be an AI firm first. One in all them begins at $80,000. In Japan, issues are totally different. The very best-selling EV is a $15,000 metropolis automobile from Nissan.
The Nissan Sakura is a “Kei” automobile, a Japanese designation for automobiles that meet strict dimension, energy and engine displacement guidelines. Which means its energy is capped—like all Kei automobiles—at 63 hp, and size is capped at 11 ft, 2 inches. So the Sakura is about 11 ft lengthy, 4.8 ft huge and 5.4 ft tall.
It weighs just below 2,400 lbs, with a 20.0-kWh battery that enables it to go 111 miles on a cost. Notice that is a WLTP determine, which tends to be much more beneficiant than the EPA cycle used within the U.S. It could cost from 10-80% in about 20 minutes, although, so you may replenish vary shortly. There’s even vehicle-to-load performance for powering exterior electronics.
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The Sakura can be tremendous nimble and tremendous low-cost. Its turning circle is simply 15 ft, and costs begin round $15,000 at present change charges, with well-optioned examples near $20,000. You may get it in 15 totally different coloration schemes, with two-tone choices that add some spunk. It seems cheerful and enjoyable, and Japanese patrons do not appear to look down on small vehicles the way in which Individuals do.
That is made the Sakura a successful proposition. Our reviewer preferred it when he drove it again in 2023, and a new video from AutoTrader U.Okay. appears to agree. Host Rory Reid—previously of High Gear fame—calls it “pleasant.” No surprise Nissan offered 37,140 of them in Japan final yr, per Wards Auto, accounting for practically half of all EV gross sales within the nation. The corporate needed to cease taking orders at one level as a result of demand was so sturdy.
Reid argues that the Sakura might win some hearts and minds within the U.Okay. or Europe, however that dialog is solely theoretical. Nissan solely sells the Sakura in Japan, and has no plans to develop it for now. It is no shock that it will not come to the U.S. Tiny, 63-hp Kei vehicles should not nice for America’s highway-heavy infrastructure, and vehicles with beneath 100 miles of EPA vary have usually faired poorly right here. Plus, even town vehicles higher suited to American highways—together with the Honda Match, Mitsubishi Mirage and Ford Fiesta—have all been killed off right here.
We do not deserve the Sakura. However Europe does. Reid is correct that there is a actual alternative for Nissan to win over some patrons there. It is unlikely to be the kind of smashing success it’s in Japan, however Europe has a notable urge for food for metropolis vehicles, and Nissan has a notable dearth of thrilling merchandise. It is lastly acquired a winner in its hand, now it simply must double down.
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