Nissan says working on hybrid system for smaller cars

YOKOSUKA, Japan (Reuters) – Nissan Motor Co is developing a hybrid system that can be used to power smaller cars as an interim solution to improving mileage before pure electric cars can take over, a top executive said on Monday.

Executive Vice President Mitsuhiko Yamashita said Japan’s No.3 automaker had made no final decision about actually offering small and mid-sized hybrid vehicles, but said the technology may be necessary for consumers who need fuel-efficient, all-purpose cars that have the same driving range as conventional gasoline or diesel cars.

“The best option of course would be for zero-emission electric vehicles to cover all needs, but that’s going to take a while,” Yamashita, who heads research and development at Nissan, told Reuters at an event to brief on Nissan’s latest vehicle technologies.

A mass rollout of hybrid cars would signal a major shift in strategy for Nissan, which has been looking to close the image gap in environmentally friendly technology with hybrid pioneers Toyota Motor Corp and Honda Motor Co by leading in the zero-emission electric vehicle (EV) field.

Reuters