2007 Nissan Altima Hybrid Preview
Unique Bedfellows Make HEV Alternative
The demand for a green alternative to the gasoline-powered internal combustion engine (ICE) is becoming increasingly urgent around the world. For jurisdictions that do not have clean diesel fuel, such as North America, the answer is either to own a very small car, such as a Toyota Echo, or to buy a hybrid (HEV).
The hybrid concept, put into motion by Hondas Insight and Toyotas Prius, combines the environmental friendliness of electric power with the unlimited range of gasoline. While Honda will bring out additional HEV models and Toyota has announced that most of its popular cars, SUVs and trucks will be available with HEV technology, additional manufacturers such as GM and Ford, as well as Toyotas Lexus nameplate will soon be getting into the game.
The most recent automaker to make the HEV announcement is Nissan, having decided to make a gasoline-electric hybrid from its popular midsize Altima sedan. Rather than taking the route of Honda and Toyota, which chose to go with unique purpose-built HEV vehicles the first time around (you couldnt initially get a hybrid-powered Civic and still cant get a Corolla HEV for instance), Nissan has chosen to add an HEV powerplant to a vehicle that is already established. Like the Honda Civic Hybrid, Ford Escape Hybrid and Lexus RX 400h, the Altima is based on a top-selling car, giving buyers merely another option on a list of engines and powertrains.
By the time the Altima Hybrid hits the market in 2006 as a 2007 model, announced recently at a San Francisco Nissan event, rival and HEV parts supplier Toyota will most likely have its Camry hybrid on the market, Honda will be well into the first sales cycle of its Accord Hybrid, while without doubt competition from the big three will also enter the fray.
In case you didnt hear that right, in an odd but mutually beneficial agreement Toyota is supplying Nissan with its sophisticated hybrid gasoline-electric system. The Altima Hybrid will make use of a Nissan-built four-cylinder gasoline engine as its main source of power, mind you.
To those on the outside of the auto industry peeking in, such cooperation between Toyota and Nissan might come as a bit of a shock, but to those with their ears to the ground (and regular readers of our automotive news section) it wont be, as the two Japanese companies made a deal in September of 2002 where Nissan would get Toyota HEV technology to produce 100,000 hybrid vehicles over the course of five years. Components made by Toyota that will be used by the Altima Hybrid include the transmission, inverter, battery, and control units. Note that the product itself is built by Nissan at its facilities.
The benefits that hybrid technology offers Nissans midsize sedan are quite numerous and positive of course. For a relatively small premium over the price of a base Altima, theres a lot to be gained in both performance and efficiency. Such is not always the case with HEVs optimized purely for fuel economy, but the Altima Hybrid will use the base-equipment four-cylinder engine as the primary power source with the electric motor added to gain extra torque off the line. Meanwhile, in stop-and-go and low-speed traffic the electric motor will often take charge over the gasoline motor allowing the Altima to run silently, resulting in less fuel consumed and therefore reduced greenhouse gas emissions.
Incidentally, the fact that the Altima hybrid will be able to be powered solely by its electric motor is the sign of a full-hybrid drivetrain. Honda designed their hybrid Insight and Civic as mild hybrid systems, which means when the car is driving, or the air conditioning system is in operation, the gasoline engine must be running. Mild hybrids only shut off when the car is motionless and the air conditioning is off.
Although no horsepower or torque ratings for the Altima Hybrid have been disclosed as of yet, the gain in performance is expected to be likened to driving a V6-powered Altima, with the benefit of 4-cylinder fuel savings of course.
That in mind the Altima should be fun to drive, accommodating to five occupants and their cargo, clean to the environment and extremely efficient on readily depleting natural resources. Whats more, it is expected to appear almost identical to a regular gasoline-powered Altima. Nissan made no comment on what that regular Altima will look like by model year 2007, however, as an update is expected close to this time.
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The latest automaker to announce it is getting on the rapidly growing hybrid bandwagon is Nissan, with its gasoline-electric Altima. (Photo: Nissan North America)
Unlike the Toyota Prius, Nissans new hybrid will be based on an already existing best-selling car. (Photo: Nissan North America)
In a strange twist, Toyota is supplying Nissan with its sophisticated hybrid gasoline-electric system (2005 Altima shown). (Photo: Nissan North America)
For a relatively small premium over the price of a base Altima, theres a lot to be gained from the hybrid version in both performance and efficiency (2005 Altima interior shown). (Photo: Nissan North America)
To increase performance, the Altima Hybrid will utilize Nissans powerful 4-cylinder engine combined with an electric motor to gain extra torque off the line (2005 Altima shown). (Photo: Nissan North America)
Four-cylinder gas consumption combined with V6 performance will make the Altima Hybrid worth the wait (2005 Altimas shown). (Photo: Nissan North America)
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