Nissan electric cars

A major Japanese mainstream brand that pioneered mass-market EVs in Australia with the Leaf in 2012, now expanding into battery-electric SUVs with the Ariya.

Nissan Motor Co., Ltd. was founded in Yokohama, Japan, in December 1933, tracing its roots to the earlier Datsun brand from 1914. Nissan has sold vehicles in Australia for decades through a factory-backed local operation, building a nationwide dealer network across mainstream passenger and SUV models.

Nissan brought the first-generation Leaf hatchback to Australia in 2012, one of the earliest mass-market EVs in the local market, followed by the second-generation Leaf in 2019. The Ariya mid-size electric SUV opened Australian order books in July 2025 and went on sale in September 2025 — the brand's first electric SUV locally, and its arrival roughly six years after the model's global debut, which Nissan Australia attributed in part to Australian Design Rule child-seat tether requirements. Ariya is offered with 66kWh or 91kWh batteries (WLTP range 360–500km) and front- or dual-motor all-wheel-drive (e-4ORCE) layouts. A third-generation Leaf, now a crossover/SUV body style, is due in Australia in 2026.

mainstream, early EV pioneer now expanding into electric SUVs

Battery-electric: Leaf hatch (2nd-gen; 3rd-gen SUV-bodied Leaf due 2026) and Ariya mid-size SUV (Engage/Advance/Evolve grades). Nissan also sells e-Power series-hybrid X-Trail and Qashqai SUVs in Australia.