Nissan's New Hybrid Setup Expected to Carry Brand into Future

Nissan treated hybrids as an afterthought for the better part of two decades, now wants to blanket its lineup with them. By 2030, the automaker plans hybrid versions of most of its SUVs, and its North American boss expects the technology to carry the brand.

The first wave is a Rogue e-Power hybrid arriving shortly, with Nissan Americas Chair Christian Meunier telling Automotive News he wants the hybrid to account for 30 percent to 40 percent of Rogue sales "very quickly." His bigger claim: "I think the hybrid is going to become, by 2030, probably the primary powertrain in North America but also in Latin America."

That's a lot of confidence from a company that, a year ago, was flirting with collapse and a string of failed mergers. It's back in the black now, which is the only reason any of this is worth taking seriously.

The early Rogue hybrids come from Japan. Gas Rogue production starts next summer, with hybrid assembly due to begin in Smyrna, Tennessee, in early 2028. Meunier said the move could add a shift and push Smyrna to full capacity — the plant is capable of 600,000 vehicles a year and is currently running about 400,000.

Meunier also said the V6 hybrids are destined for US assembly, potentially spanning subcompact to midsize SUVs and pickups. An Xterra with the hybrid is confirmed. A Kicks e-Power hybrid, already sold in Japan and other markets, is set for 2028.

The rebadged Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV Nissan sold is dead. The company ordered 3,000 units for the 2027 model year and has moved only about 1,500. "The volume of plug-in hybrids in the U.S. has collapsed down to almost zero," Meunier said.

Nissan's hybrid history is thin: a Toyota-licensed Altima from 2007 to 2011, a supercharged Pathfinder Hybrid killed in 2014, and a Rogue hybrid from 2017 to 2020. Catching Toyota, which hybridizes nearly everything, remains a stretch. Catching Ford, GM, and Mazda is the realistic prize — if Nissan can execute.

[Images: Nissan]

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