Nissan will build its own Renault Twingo EV

It was thought the upcoming Micra supermini would be the starting point for Nissan’s new range of pure-electric vehicles, but Auto Express has learned there will be an even smaller model beneath it. 

The unnamed electric car will use technology from Ampere - a subsidiary of the Renault Group set up a year ago with the aim of lowering the costs of EV development and supply not only for Renault, but also for its wider alliance with Mitsubishi and Nissan. 

Nissan will partner with Ampere to develop the new car, and while there are very few confirmed details about this new EV, we can assume it’ll share plenty with the upcoming Renault Twingo, which is on track for a 2026 launch. With this in mind, we expect the Nissan to have a similar price tag to the Twingo of around £17,000.

The Nissan city car should sit on a revised version of the AmpR Small architecture that underpins the Renault 5 and we expect to be used for the new Twingo. Given the scheduling of the Nissan, we don’t expect it to use Ampere’s next-generation electric platform that will be launched in 2028. 

Makoto Uchida, CEO of Nissan, spoke of the firm’s new city car at an event to mark Ampere’s first anniversary. “Nissan has asked Ampere to explore the development of the A-segment car for Europe. Through this partnership we aim to optimise our European coverage,” he said. “With Ampere we target a very short development time. This car will deliver the convenience and advanced functionality that customers expect, but in a small-sized EV at an affordable price.” 

Ampere is planning to shift the battery chemistry of its EVs from nickel magnesium cobalt (NMC) to lithium iron phosphate in order to reduce costs and improve range - despite NMC being more energy dense. Recharging speeds of 10 to 80 per cent in 15 minutes have been mooted as well. However, it’s not known if Nissan’s upcoming value-driven, entry-level EV will make use of this technology.