The new Nissan Ariya Nismo will be available to pre-order from 17 October, with prices for the hot electric SUV starting from £56,620 – £1,780 more than the previous range-topping model, but £3,370 less than one key rival, the Tesla Model Y Performance.
The Ariya Nismo will only be available in one specification at launch, with every car finished in the Nismo Stealth Grey paint that was previously offered on the Nissan GT-R supercar. Early buyers also get a limited piece of artwork and £500 credit to spend on the Nissan Charge network of public chargers.
The Ariya Nismo’s dual-motor powertrain produces 429bhp and 600Nm of torque – 40bhp more than the former range-topper – which is enough for 0-62mph in exactly five seconds. According to Nissan, accelerating from 50-70mph also takes just 2.4 seconds. Power comes from an 87kWh battery, but a range figure for the Ariya Nisam hasn’t been announced yet.
In case you’re wondering, in a game of top trumps the Ariya Nismo can’t beat the Kia EV6 GT’s 577bhp and 740Nm, and it’s humiliated by the Hyundai Ioniq 5 N, with its 641bhp, 740Nm of torque and 0-62mph time of just 3.4 seconds.
But Nismo hasn’t spent all its time getting more power from the motors. For starters, the Ariya’s e-4ORCE four-wheel drive system has been tuned to deliver a new 60:40 rear bias, to make the car feel sportier, and maximise grip by adjusting the power sent to each wheel 10,000 times per second, according to Nissan.
