Say hello to…
…the Nissan Ariya is the brand’s most significant all-electric car since the Leaf. The Ariya sits firmly in the mid-size SUV market being slightly longer than the firm’s best-selling Qashqai.
The Nissan Ariya is available with three powertrains; a 214hp motor with a 63kWh battery, a 239hp motor with an 87kWh battery and a 320hp motor with all-wheel drive and the 87kWh battery.
Nissan has kept the trim levels simple, with just two:
- Advance
- Evolve
Advance specification includes as standard 19-inch alloys, clever cruise control, lane assist, blind spot intervention, traffic sign recognition, rear emergency braking, auto high beam, 12.3-inch infotainment touchscreen, satellite navigation, 360-degree camera, connected services, wireless Apple CarPlay, Android Auto, wireless charger, front and rear USB A and USB C connections, front fog lights, rear privacy glass, heated front screen, power-fold door mirrors, powered boot lid, dual-zone climate control, heat pump, auto wipers, powered front seats, heated front seats and heated steering wheel.
Evolve adds a powered panoramic roof, adaptive beam assist, cooled front seats, heated rear seats, memory seats and mirrors, power-sliding centre console, uprated stereo, auto parking and head-up display.
Is the Nissan Ariya suitable for my fleet?
Nissan’s Ariya ticks a lot of boxes for a fleet buyer or driver. The maximum charge speed of 130kW is good and means drivers can take advantage of the faster charging stations. The boot in the 63kWh car is a generous 460 litres. Couple this to a fractionally disappointing cold-weather, real-world, efficiency of 2.9 miles per kWh (giving a 183 mile range) and we’d probably recommend the larger capacity battery and take the smaller boot volume of 408 litres.
As well as a competitive boot volume, there’s also an impressive amount of room for year-seat passengers. This means there’s no issues carrying three adults across the back.
Leasing a Nissan Ariya
While the list price is in-line with rivals – the Ariya starts at just over £46,000 – the lease rates are very competitive and lead times aren’t as long as some rivals. Intelligent Car Leasing is quoting £503 a month on a 3+36 contract with 10,000 miles a year. Gensen Reports adds to the car’s attraction with a claimed maintenance cost of £49 a month.
Driving a Nissan Ariya
Exterior styling may split opinion, but the interior quality and design of the Ariya won unanimous praise during our test.
As well as an overall spacious feeling in the cabin, the neatly labelled, touch-sensitive buttons in the wood-look dashboard not only looked classy, but worked well too.
The large infotainment screen is also clear and quick to respond to inputs. For the most part, the systems are logically designed.
However, the setting controlled through the driver’s display, some controls can be longwinded. For those that like to turn off the lane assist systems, there are more than 15 input steps needed to do this and return to the information screen you were previously on; for instance the trip computer. Fortunately the lane keeping system isn’t overly intrusive.
Fortunately, this is one of very few flaws with the Ariya.
Ride comfort and handling are both well-judged for a family SUV. There’s little bodyroll when cornering and only more sever potholes result in any crashiness to the suspension.
Refinement is excellent, particularly at motorway speeds and the seats offer first rate long-distance comfort.
For those that like one-pedal driving, Nissan offers its ePedal system. While it doesn’t bring the car to a full halt, single pedal driving is possible for the vast majority of driving. However, the transition from acceleration to regeneration when you lift off the accelerator pedal could be smoother, but you do get used to the way it behaves after a few miles.
Verdict on the Nissan Ariya
Nissan has learnt a lot from its head-start in EVs with the Leaf. The Ariya is hugely appealing and practical car with a near-premium cabin.
Nissan Ariya
- Model: Nissan Ariya 63kWh Advance
- Power: 214hp
- Torque: 300Nm
- Max speed: 100mph
- 0-62mph: 7.4s
- Official range: 250 miles
- Test range: 183 miles *
- CO2 emissions: 0g/km
- BIK tax band 2022/23: 2%
* ambient temperature around 0degC
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