Nissan: We looked back with nostalgia at the 1990s for inspiration for the new Leaf
Design chief explains how Nissan sought to combine nostalgic references with cutting-edge design to make the new Leaf as efficient as possible
Nissan looked back to the 1990s as inspiration for its new Leaf, one of its design chiefs has revealed.
Speaking during the online reveal of the new electric crossover, Nissan Design Europe’s vice president, Giovanny Arroba, said his team studied Nissan’s back catalogue of 1990s models when penning the new Leaf.
That decade favoured car designs with smooth surfaces and simple detailing – two themes Nissan wanted to explore with the new Leaf to make it as aerodynamic as possible.
“Nisan is all about innovation, excitement, fun – we have a lot of adventure in our line-up,” Arroba told the PA news agency. “We have a lot of performance in our range and also a lot of charm. We have lots of cars that express playfulness with technology – I think the recently-launched Micra is one of those.
“But with Leaf, we wondered how we could express this sense of Nissan-ness and also being cutting edge? We did a bit of soul searching, and we were very conscious that there tends to be a 30-year timeline in design trends. And rightly so, because 30 years ago our target customer, including me, was growing up. It [the Leaf] isn’t retro, but there is a bit of nostalgia and reflection and bringing that [feeling] into the modern age.
“We looked at the line-up of Nissan in the 1990s, and realised that there was some synergy there. With the new Leaf, we knew from the very beginning that we had a very high target of 0.25Cd (drag coefficient). When we looked back in history, those Nissans of the 1990s used the same formula of achieving sleek aerodynamics. We were really inspired by those cars of that era – super flush and super sleek.”
Many carmakers are striving to make their latest electric vehicles as sleek and aerodynamic as possible to reduce drag and boost electric driving range. Wind resistance and drag are two of the biggest factors of efficiency.
Nissan has given the Leaf a coupe-like roofline, an aerodynamically-optimised rear spoiler, flush door handles, and smooth underbody panels to allow the car to slip through the air as easily as possible.
Those cutting-edge aero details have been matched to some nostalgic design cues, said Arroba. The black-out rear panel and bold 3D rear lights (which, incidentally, spell out “two” and “three”, or “Ni” and “San” in Japanese) are a nod to the 1983-2000 Nissan 300ZX, while the bright teal paintwork of the launch car references brighter hues offered in the 1990s.
When asked why Nissan hadn’t incorporated any design details of the original 2010 Leaf – which arguably could be considered an iconic model just like the 300ZX – Arroba said: “It [the original Leaf] is too new for nostalgia…[but] who’s to say that when Leaf moves forwards and when the timing is right we might bring some elements [of the original Leaf] to [future Leafs].”
