The Nissan Ariya was revealed way back in the dark days of summer 2020, yet is only reaching dealers in early 2023 in front-wheel-drive guise with the all-wheel-drive e-4ORCE version arriving later in the spring. It was worth the wait. This compelling electric SUV is the first new model to really challenge the Hyundai Ioniq 5 and Kia EV6 for all-around excellence. Although it falls well short of those in terms of charging speed, everything else from its interior space and functionality to its available performance and range align closely. The Ariya actually offers a broader selection of battery, performance and trim level combinations, making it possible for buyers with more realistic EV expectations to avoid paying for range, speed and/or features they don’t really need. This breadth of offerings with price tags ranging from $43,000 to about $60,000 allows the 2023 Nissan Ariya to not only compare favorably with those class-leading EVs, but also with cheaper models like the Kia Niro EV on the low end, and pricy luxury models like the Mercedes EQB and Lexus RZ 450e on the upper end. The Ariya Platinum certainly provides superior performance and range over those particular luxury EVs, while boasting an interior that’s arguably just as luxurious and far more stylish. That cabin also gives it a leg up on the Tesla Model Y. Ultimately, the Ariya is a well-rounded electric car made by a company that has been making them longer than almost everyone. Not only is it a great advancement over the humble Leaf, but Nissan clearly applied the knowledge it learned selling that electric car for 12 years and two generations to a new vehicle that consequently comes across as less of a prototype or trial balloon than other EVs. If you’re looking for an electric car, check it out. For more visit https://www.autoblog.com/article/2023-nissan-ariya-review/ #nissan #nissanariya #ariya #ev
TranscriptJAMES RISWICK: I'm driving the new Nissan Ariya. Now we saw this car for the first time quite a long time ago. But it's only reaching production now. So was it worth the wait? I would say it is. This is one of the most compelling new EVs. It's a fully-formed serious effort to make a very competitive EV. To that point, I would say it is competitive with the top EVs, the Hyundai Ioniq 5, and the Kia EV6.
To that point, it is similarly sized to those in terms of its interior space, its exterior footprint. I would say it feels a little more like an SUV. It's sort of a bit higher, and it certainly looks more like a taller SUV than the Kia and Hyundai, which are more like big hatchbacks or wagons. Now the car enthusiasts out there will say, oh, well, rear-wheel drive is better. That's-- fair enough. However, if you don't like to bomb around a mountain road, and specifically if you live in a poor weather climate, front-wheel drive is going to be just fine.
Put on snow tires, you're going to be just great. But if you have rear-wheel drive, you're going to need all-wheel drive. At least that's what most people think in poor weather climates. And they're probably right. But with the Hyundai and Kia, if you've got all-wheel drive, you also get a very huge performance bump, which also comes with a big price bump. So you are paying a lot more for perhaps performance you don't need.
This car, front-wheel drive, you don't need all-wheel drive. But if you do get all-wheel drive, well, you do also get a big performance bump. In upper trim levels, the dual motor or e-4ORCE, all-wheel drive Ariya produces 389 horsepower and 442 pound feet of torque. That drops to zero to 60 time below five seconds.
So if you want more power, well, you can absolutely get it in this car. And it really does legitimately feel quick. In addition to that, e-4ORCE actually allows for some torque vectoring. It can defer the amount of power going from the right and the left wheels. That is a benefit both in poor weather conditions as well as, well, handling.
So it's not just a performance advantage. There's actually a handling advantage to all-wheel drive in this car. Another distinctive thing about the Ariya is the availability of different battery packs across its trim level lineup. There's a regular battery pack, which is good for about 200 miles give or take, depending on whether you get the front wheel or all-wheel drive versions. And then the extended range pack, which is around 300 with front and all-wheel drive.
Now why would you want less range? The whole thing right now is going farther, more range, kill range anxiety, et cetera. Well, for one, the standard range, well, it costs a lot less. But after selling the Nissan LEAF for as long as Nissan has, it has a lot of customer feedback. And a lot of customers don't need more range than say 200 miles. Or even that's too much. Because they're mostly just running errands around town. They're taking the kids to school. They're going to Target. You don't need a 300-mile battery pack for that, especially if you have a second car.
So why pay more for something you don't need? Why put all those extra resources into putting things in your car you don't need? Now on the other hand, in terms of charging, the Ariya is not quite up to snuff. It's fastest DC fast charging rate is 130 kilowatts. Mustang Mach-E's 150. And then the Hyundai and Kia, they're over 200. They just blow this car away. This also doesn't charge as fast at home. So let's talk about other EV-specific elements.
Like most cars these days, there is a Sport Mode. But if you put it in Sport, you get this-- kind of ethereal Jetsons-like noise. In terms of one-pedal driving, which is common in EVs, well, it's not in this car. There is no one-pedal driving. You can keep it in D, or you can put it into B mode, which gives you some braking by itself, but not nearly as much-- I'd say it's like level two for Hyundai or Kia. Then there's this e-Step, which is a new feature for the Ariya.
And this is the first car that I've experienced other than the Mercedes EQS and EQE where the pedal actually moves when it's slow. So this does give you more automated braking. But it moves the pedal, which means that the pedal is not where you expect it to be. I am personally not a big fan of that. Makes it a little harder to modulate the brake. Because the brake pedal in this car has quite a bit of kind of mushy travel to it, which is normal, normally fine.
But then when the e-Step's on, that mushiness is wiped out. And you instead get firm brake pedal. It's kind of like what the EQS is. No thank you. I'm going to turn that off. The other thing is even with that e-Step again, it's not one-pedal driving. So it gets to about 10 miles per hour and calls it a day. And you have to take over and brake.
In terms of the rest of the driving experience, recent Nissans frankly haven't been that great to drive. And a big part of that was they all had continuously variable transmissions and the engines kind of droned a bit. Well, there's no engine. There's no CVT. So that alone makes this, well, an inherently more appealing Nissan to drive. I do enjoy the steering effort in this car. It's very nicely precise. And it's well weighted.
And with this e-4ORCE all-wheel drive system, you do get some torque vectoring around corners. This is not like an Acura SH-AWD car by any means. But I wouldn't be surprised if on a more dynamic road driven back to back with the Hyundai and the Kia that this would compare quite favorably to those.
So apart from charging, this Ariya really does compare favorably to a Ioniq 5 and an EV6. And this platinum costs about $60,000, which is in the territory of a Mercedes EQB and a Lexus RZ. And you know what? I think this is superior to those. On paper, it has superior range, and it has comparable performance available, if not far more. And its interior is legitimately luxurious. It's arguably the Ariya's finest attribute. And I would say it is stronger than both the EV6 as well as the Ioniq 5.
And it totally blows away the VW ID.4 and Toyota bZ4X. Both in terms of quality, but in terms of design, this strikes a just-right balance between kind of futuristic minimalism and actual functionality. This touchscreen is very easy to use. It is user friendly unlike the VW ID.4 and the Toyota bZ4X.
It looks cool. So it does satisfy that Kia EV element. And then there's interesting functionality. There is a hidden sizable bin that comes out. And it is powered with this button right here. There's also this handy center console that moves back and forth. And it's power operated. And that is standard. There's also lots of cool design elements all over this interior with interesting patterns in the carpet, and in the speaker grates. And then in the platinum trim level, you have this beautiful blue, real leather upholstery, and suede cloth all over the dash.
So in terms of functionality of storage, and of technology, and in terms of aesthetics and quality, this Ariya really delivers. It could very easily be the best in the class.
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So whether you're looking for a more modest grocery getter, or a higher performance, longer range, luxurious EV, well, this Ariya can do both. And with a variety of different ranges and performance levels and trim levels than even you get with the Ioniq 5 and the EV6, this is one of the more compelling new EVs. Was it worth the wait? Think so.
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