The Nissan Leaf, which has grown to become a crossover, can hit the assembly line next spring

Production of the “green” SUV, based on the Chill Out concept, will be established at the plant in Sunderland (UK).< /p>

The history of the Nissan Leaf electric car began in 2010. In 2017, the second generation hatchback debuted; this five-door entered the world market a year later. Europe remains one of the main regions for the model, despite a noticeable decline in indicators. According to statistics from Jato Dynamics, last year Leaf sales in the old-world market amounted to 17,387 units, which is 40% less than in 2022.

Pictured: Nissan Chill-Out Concept

After rumors that the second generation would be the last for the Nissan Leaf, the company said that it did not intend to abandon the model. At the same time, the next generation Leaf will move into another segment — compact crossovers. It is expected that such a new product will have a coupe-like body.

The “third” Nissan Leaf will be created based on the Chill concept -Out, which the Japanese company showed back in 2021. By the way, at the same time the manufacturer presented its development strategy until 2030 (this plan was later revised several times). It is also expected that the design of the next generation Leaf will feature features of the Ariya electric crossover.

It is known that production of the current generation Nissan Leaf was completed in March of this year. According to British Autocar, work immediately began on installing new equipment at the plant. It is reported that production testing will begin in August and will last for six months. And if the preparatory stage goes smoothly, the first copies of the production Leaf crossover will roll off the assembly line of the plant in Sunderland (UK) in March next year. So it is possible that the premiere of the new generation model will take place at the end of this year.

It is expected that the third generation Nissan Leaf will be based on the CMF-EV platform, on which the current Ariya and Renault Megane E-Tech crossover models, as well as the Chill-Out show car, are based. It is likely that the new compact crossover will receive a “green” e-4orce powerplant. The Japanese manufacturer will officially release details about the technology later.

Nissan is investing a lot in the future of the plant in In Sunderland, let us remind you that the production of the updated Nissan Qashqai crossover has recently started here. The Japanese company spent £2 billion on a large-scale reconstruction of this enterprise. The project also involves the construction of another plant nearby, designed to produce batteries for the next Leaf, as well as another Gigafactory nearby; They will be managed by Nissan's Chinese partner, Envision.

At the plant itself, the former battery line for the second-generation Leaf will reportedly be converted to produce an all-electric version of the Nissan Juke. It is expected that such a green new product will hit the market around 2027. By the way, the current model has recently been restyled and received a new top-end N-Sport package.