This $15,000 Nissan Kei Automotive Is Japan’s Finest-Promoting EV

• The Nissan Sakura is an all-electric Kei automotive.
• It is simply 11 toes lengthy and weighs beneath 2,400 lbs, with a beginning worth of round $15,000.
• The Sakura has develop into Japan’s best-selling EV, however Nissan is not promoting it anyplace else… but.

There is a cause Individuals appear more and more fascinated with Japanese Kei autos: It is superb to see small automobiles successful. The previous twenty years have seen Individuals utterly scorn something small, low cost and easy, shifting 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 among them begins at $80,000. In Japan, issues are completely different. The most effective-selling EV is a $15,000 metropolis automotive from Nissan.

The Nissan Sakura is a “Kei” car, a Japanese designation for autos that meet strict measurement, energy and engine displacement guidelines. Meaning its energy is capped—like all Kei autos—at 63 hp, and size is capped at 11 toes, 2 inches. So the Sakura is about 11 toes lengthy, 4.8 toes large and 5.4 toes tall. 

It weighs slightly below 2,400 lbs, with a 20.0-kWh battery that permits it to go 111 miles on a cost. Observe that is a WLTP determine, which tends to be much more beneficiant than the EPA cycle used within the U.S. It will possibly cost from 10-80% in about 20 minutes, although, so you’ll be able to replenish vary rapidly. 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 toes, and costs begin round $15,000 at present change charges, with well-optioned examples near $20,000. You will get it in 15 completely different shade schemes, with two-tone choices that add some spunk. It appears cheerful and enjoyable, and Japanese patrons do not appear to look down on small automobiles the way in which Individuals do. 

That is made the Sakura a successful proposition. Our reviewer appreciated it when he drove it again in 2023, and a new video from AutoTrader U.Ok. appears to agree. Host Rory Reid—previously of Prime Gear fame—calls it “pleasant.” No surprise Nissan offered 37,140 of them in Japan final 12 months, per Wards Auto, accounting for almost 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 robust.  

Reid argues that the Sakura may win some hearts and minds within the U.Ok. or Europe, however that dialog is only 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 automobiles are usually not nice for America’s highway-heavy infrastructure, and automobiles with beneath 100 miles of EPA vary have sometimes faired poorly right here. Plus, even town automobiles 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 automobiles, and Nissan has a notable dearth of thrilling merchandise. It is lastly bought a winner in its hand, now it simply must double down.

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