Electric car? Hybrid?

It has been more than 20 years since I drove a Nissan. When I was a student, I borrowed my grandfather's second-generation Cefiro and used to drive it around a lot. I remember that I liked the VQ engine, which had just been released at the time, because it was very smooth and easy to handle.

The new Nissan Note uses Nissan's proprietary technology called e-power.A car that uses gasoline as fuel to run an engine for electricity generation, and then uses the electricity generated to run a motor.It is.

This is a series hybrid(The engine is used only to generate electricity and the motor is used to drive the car.)It is a system called, unlike hybrids such as the PriusPowered only by motorIt is. Therefore, theIt features the same acceleration and torque feel as a fully electric car.It is.

Interior and exterior textures, etc.

I actually got to ride it.Cost performance of the texture is good.I think it is a very good car. It is not luxurious or very sophisticated, but the door handles are metal, and the seats are not just the fluffy "chairs" often found in Japanese compact cars, but have adequate cushioning, firmness, and hold, and I think they are properly made as "seats.

The interior design is well designed, with the cost of the parts that occupants touch being well spent, and the rest of the interior design is neither good nor bad.It is.

The shift lever is completely a switch, and is operated as if you were operating a mouse. I hear that some people find this uncomfortable, but I felt no particular discomfort and was able to handle it easily.

Rear seat legroom is quite spacious, no more so than a lowly sedan.This would allow adults to sit comfortably.

(A diagram of a trial sitting.)

The doors are also reasonably heavy and solid.The closing sound is not bad. However, theRear seat doors are flimsy.It is. As is the trend with many domestic cars in this class, they are quick to cut corners on the rear doors. Naturally, I understand the cost issue, but I always wonder if something can be done about it.

How is the motor-driven driving?

First, we decided to run the car in eco mode.The eco mode and S mode are modes that enable so-called "one-pedal" driving, in which regenerative braking is strongly activated.It is.

I started to run out.The motor speed rises slowly in relation to the accelerator pedal opening and accelerates slowly.It feels like it. However, because it is a motor, the torque is instantaneous, so even on steep hills, it does not feel like it is hard at all. The car climbs gently and steadily, and personally, I would not be dissatisfied if I were asked to drive in this mode all the time.

Next, we tried S mode (Sport). The motor speed quickly increases in relation to the accelerator pedal position. This is the reason why theImpression as if the car were lighterreceive. Even when starting from a stoplight, it feels like you are slipping out.

The driver feels as if more power is available than in the eco mode, but the gas pedal response seems to be different from the eco mode.Difference between running at lower electric cost or not.I think it is a good idea.

However, when driving on a winding road in this S mode, the regenerative braking works strongly, allowing the driver to smoothly enter a curve almost without stepping on the brake before the curve. AndThe good thing about this car is that it has good acceleration response, so you can exit a corner instantly and drive very comfortably.Id.

Finally, try driving in normal mode. In this mode, you can drive the car as if it were a normal gasoline engine. In other words, the regenerative braking is only as strong as the engine braking of a normal gasoline engine, and if you want to stop, you have to step on the brake properly.

From S mode to normal mode, I personally felt this was the fastest and most powerful. This is becauseIn S mode, strong regenerative brakingTherefore, when the driver relaxes his/her foot pressure on the accelerator pedal slightly, there is a subtle deceleration sensation, as if the car is being pulled from behind. Therefore, the car does not feel as if it is running smoothly.

Presumably, in S mode, if you accelerate at full throttle, you will naturally be faster than in normal mode, butUnder normal city conditions, the normal mode felt smoother and faster.

Driving in normal mode is truly exhilarating. The car accelerates smoothly and smoothly because it is motor-driven, then steps on the brake, decelerates, and then starts to move forward.Re-acceleration is also really stress-free as the torque picks up instantly.It would be difficult to achieve this with a gasoline engine.

In researching this car in advance, I often see comments about how powerful and fast it is, and it is certainly more powerful, smoother, and faster than other cars with engines in the same price range. However, theNot exactly overwhelming power.Therefore, we should not expect absolute speed such as 0-100km/h acceleration performance.(In my case, I often drive high power cars such as Porsche, so my senses may be a little off)

However, theQuite satisfying in terms of instant accelerationThe Porsche is a very good car. If it is a game of acceleration for a few meters, I think it is more than a Porsche. I think it is even better than a Porsche when it comes to acceleration over a few meters. It is especially smooth and easy to drive when the car in front stops suddenly, and after passing it slowly, it moves to acceleration.

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