“We are going to have several technologies available. We are going to maintain the gasoline portfolio, introduce new (hybrid) technologies such as e-Power and maintain electric ones, although to a lesser extent ”, says José Román, president and CEO of Nissan Mexicana.
Seven years have passed since Nissan opened the door to electric mobility in Mexico. In this period, more players have entered this market – today there are about twenty fully electric models available in the country – but among all of them there are two business models, diametrically opposed, that have worked.
At one extreme are premium brands such as Porsche, Audi, BMW, Volvo or Jaguar Land Rover, which did not skimp on equipment and have managed to position their electric models as “fun” to drive. These marks point to early adopters that they are willing to pay all the zeros on the label for one of these vehicles.
At the other extreme, there is a business model that has been championed by Chinese brands, such as Jac, which offer electric vehicles with the most affordable prices on the market and with a sufficient level of equipment for day-to-day use. The Jac E Sei 1 is the cheapest electric car in Mexico, with a tag of 495,500 pesos. Next is the JacE Sei 2, priced at 630,000 pesos, and from there follows the Nissan Leaf at 700,000 pesos.
In the middle of these two marketing schemes have been the volume brands, which have faced the dilemma of offering competitive prices at the cost of sacrificing a little equipment, something that has not worked because customers who buy a volume brand seek ” more for less ”, or keep the big screens, the panoramic ceilings and put a lot of airbags at the cost of raising prices. The latter has not worked either because price is a purchasing factor for customers of these brands.
The most viable alternative that volume brands have found to ride the wave of electrification has been hybrid models, in all its variables, from the ‘softer’ with engines mild-hybrid or the traditional ones (such as Prius), even those that could already be considered almost electric, except that they use a small combustion engine to generate electrical energy that recharges the vehicle’s battery while it is running. Mazda and Stellantis have opted for mild-hybrid; Toyota, Hyundai and Kia for the traditional ones, and Nissan will bet on the latter, a technology that the brand has named e-Power.