When we first saw Nissan’s Ambition 2030 Plan, it represented the most ambitious EV-focused plan that Nissan ever undertook. However, the one item that was missing was an attention-grabbing halo vehicle that could gravitate eyeballs to the plan and show the full imagination of Nissan’s designers. The Japanese car giant has addressed that void and has revealed the all-new Ariya single-seat roadster concept.
The Performance Car Of The Future
This Ariya (not to be confused with the CUV of the same name) is designed to be a performance star and while it only exists as digital sketches for now, there are some cues that could be carried over to other Nissan models. The V-Motion front grille is the closest link it has to the fore-mentioned CUV with everything else being tailor-made to deliver high levels of functionality and style. The cockpit has room for only one passenger which appears to be an extreme attempt at weight savings since additional seats and their hardware add massive amounts of weight to any vehicle.
The slick gold and black color scheme also draws plenty of attention and it draws the eye to features such as the rear spoiler, the large air ducts, and the massive alloy wheels. It looks like something you would see in a video game and with Generation Z becoming even more embedded into the world fo gaming and technology, this particular concept could lure in a few of these buyers especially if Nissan decides to do a social media-focused marketing campaign featuring the single-seater.
Nissan Claims It Will Become Technology Test Bed
Nissan reps also released a brief statement that states the single-seater will become a rolling testbed for advanced technologies that will eventually make their way to production EVs and other vehicles. We have seen other automakers do similar moves over the years and here it’ll be the same script with engineers using the single-seater to iron out the bugs of any new technologies before they are ready to be used on production models. The company also pointed out that a real-life version of the one-seater “can bring excitement from road to track” implying that Nissan’s racing projects will also benefit from some of the technologies that will be on full display here in this unique concept.
Ariya SUV Will Be Barometer Of Sales Success
Before Nissan can really go full steam on wild concepts like this one and some of the other models that will be part of the Ambition 2030 plan the Nissan Ariya SUV will have to prove itself in the marketplace. We covered the bulk of what the Ariya brings to customers here, but for those that need a brief recap, this utility will come in four flavors, and the $47,950 Ariya Venture will be the one that arrives first. It will be powered by a single electric motor and a 87 kWh battery pack which will deliver 238 hp and 221 lb-ft of torque to the front wheels. All-wheel drive and more powerful variants will come later, but Nissan claims that this version will be capable of going 300 miles on a single charge.
The success of this model will ultimately play a role in other aspects of the plan and Nissan will be keeping an eye on sales and demand to see if a strong business case can be made for offering the rest of the models covered in the plan. The Ariya will also have a large pool of rivals to compete with but Nissan hopes that its futuristic styling and some of its innovative technology will allow it to carve a large slice of the sales pie for itself.
Carl Malek has been an automotive journalist for over 10 years. First starting out as a freelance photographer before making the transition to writing during college, his work has appeared on numerous automotive forums as well as websites such as Autoshopper.com.
Carl is also a big fan of British vehicles with the bulk of his devotion going to the Morgan Motor Company as well as offerings from Lotus, MG, and Caterham. When he is not writing about automobiles, Carl enjoys spending time with his family and friends in the Metro Detroit area, as well as spending time with his adorable pets.