Is Nissan X-Trail preparing to become a plug-in hybrid? Family SUV could borrow PHEV tech from Mitsubishi Outlander: report – Car News

Reports from Japan speculate that Nissan will add its first plug-in hybrid (PHEV) powertrain to its global lineup.

Accordingly Best CarThe X-trail will be the first possible contender to receive hybrid technology; the publication suggests that the gasoline-electric system could be developed in-house and available in the “late 2020s.”

But given that the X-trail and Outlander PHEV are already powered by the same platform, it’s more likely that Nissan will borrow the technology from Mitsubishi. Nissan and Mitsubishi have signed an OEM partnership that facilitates the exchange of powertrain technologies.

The X-trail and Qashqai are currently sold with a hybrid powertrain option, but the 2.1 kWh lithium-ion battery pack only facilitates modest pure electric driving and provides a range of around 4.0 km.

The Outlander PHEV, on the other hand, is one of Australia’s best-selling plug-in models and provides a claimed pure electric range of 84 kilometres.

Mitsubishi has sold 18,741 Outlanders so far this year; Approximately 20 percent of these are PHEV variants, accounting for approximately 3,750 units.

From the report Best Car This comes at a time when hybrid demand continues to grow globally and electric vehicle demand is losing momentum, especially in western markets.

Hybrid and PHEV vehicle sales in Australia increased by a cumulative 98.7 per cent by this time last year, accounting for 15.6 per cent of new car sales by August 2024, compared to 8.25 per cent in August 2023.

PHEV vehicles still account for a relatively small share of total hybrid sales, accounting for 13,076 new vehicle registrations so far in 2024, compared to 116,316 plug-in hybrid sales.

This figure still represents a huge 124.7 percent year-on-year increase for PHEV vehicles compared to sales of just 5,750 units last year.

The massive growth has been fueled in part by the recent arrival of the BYD Sealion 6 PHEV, which has reached 2036 sales since orders began in May.

A total of 57,076 EVs were purchased this year compared to 56,922 last year; This is a marginal increase of just 1.4 per cent year-on-year, with 830,226 vehicles sold in Australia by the end of August this year.