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Nissan's fastest Ariya EV, this Nismo model, isn't the quickest or most dynamic mid-sized performance electric crossover you could choose, but it might still charm you with its rapid pace, attractive looks and classy cabin.
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Background
In 40 years of history, Nissan's Nismo performance brand has produced some interesting cars. Some great (the GT-R Nismo supercar), some good (the 370Z Nismo performance coupe) and some not so good (the Juke Nismo frantic small SUV). What it hasn't yet engineered - until now - is a performance EV. This is it, the Ariya Nismo.
We've had plenty of performance-minded EVs based on mid-sized crossovers to date; some quite fast (like the Volkswagen ID.4 GTX with 340PS). And some very fast (like the Hyundai IONIQ 5N with 650PS). With 435PS, the Ariya Nismo falls somewhere in between. It's the first Nismo-badged Nissan to be offered in Europe since the GT-R was forced into early retirement by tighter emissions regulations. Can it really be a fitting follow-up to that memorable car? Let's take a closer look.
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Range data
| Min | Max |
| Price | 56630 | 56630 |
| Max Speed (mph) | 124 | 124 |
| 0-62 mph (s) | 5 | 5 |
| Electric WLTP-Rated Driving Range (miles) | 261 | 261 |
| Length (mm) | 4595 | 4595 |
| Min | Max |
| Width (mm) | 1850 | 1850 |
| Height (mm) | 1660 | 1660 |
| Boot Capacity (l) | 415 | 1290 |
| Power (ps) | 435 | 435 |
| Torque (lb ft) | 600 | 600 |
Driving experience
Given the heritage of the Nismo sub-brand, you might hope for quite a lot here. Rest to 62mph in dispatched in 5 seconds exactly, if you select the feisty 'Nismo' setting that's been added to the usual selection of drive modes and adds a synthesised engine note. But that doesn't increase the top speed you'd usually get from a twin motor Ariya, still limited to 124mph.
So what's been done here by Nissan's motorsport division, apart from tweaking the motor software for a few more braked horses? Well the dual motor e-4ORCE four-wheel drive system has been tweaked so that more of its torque output is biased towards the rear. It's variable to the road surface beneath, dependent on which the front can take up to 60% of motor output, the rear up to 75%. The engineers have finessed the suspension too though disappointingly, adaptive damping isn't on the agenda, even as an option. Instead, Nismo's contented itself with firming up the springs, dampers and anti-roll bars - by quite a lot actually, as you'll discover the first time you take to a poorly-surfaced road; the rear rebound damping is a full 67% firmer than an ordinary Ariya. You'll feel that over speed humps.
If it was going to do this, you'd hope that Nismo might have completed the job by giving the steering a bit more feel and beefing up the brakes. But there's nothing like that here, so you're not as encouraged as you should be to sample the improved traction offered by the bespoke Michelin Pilot Sport EV tyres. And of course there's certainly not the cornering agility that you'd get in the pricier rivals mentioned earlier with their systems able to shuffle torque around between their rear wheels at power through the bends. And those kinds of set-ups are welcome when you're trying to hustle 2.2-tonnes of family-sized EV through a testing set of turns.
Pretty much everything else is much as it would be with the conventional twin motor version of this car - with the exception (obviously) of the 261 mile drive range figure you get from the 87kWh battery, which is 58 miles down on the ordinary Ariya e4ORCE model and the least you'll get in this segment. Unlike with some rivals, there are no steering wheel brake regen paddles that might encourage you to try and improve that range; just the usual Ariya 'e-Pedal' button, which maximises regen harvesting to the point (up to 2.2g) where the actual brake pedal is hardly ever needed.
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Design and build
One of the things that might well convince you into an Ariya Nismo is the way that it looks. Even in standard form, this is an attractive car and its form hasn't been spoiled in any way by all the carefully integrated splitters and skirts of this top version. These have added 40% more downforce without affecting the standard version's sleek 0.30Cd drag coefficient. Red lower trimming, a subtle roof spoiler and big 20-inch Enkei wheels mark out this Ariya's Nismo status.
It's nicely done inside too, where the cabin's unlike anything else in the segment. There's more red detailing and red 'Andon' interior illumination, but Nissan's refused the temptation to add carbon fibre trim. The alcantara upper dashboard treatment looks classy and there are wood-like inlays (that look better than that sounds). The seats, trimmed in a suede-like material and featuring stitched NISMO logos, are specifically designed for sporting driving, offering enhanced support and body-hugging grip under hard cornering.
As usual with an Ariya, the dashboard has a very minimalist design, with almost all the physical buttons replaced by capacitive haptic-feedback switches integrated into the fascia surface. There's a 12.3-inch central touchscreen; and a digital instrument binnacle display of the same size, plus what Nissan reckons is one of the biggest head-up displays in the segment. There's also a fold-out centre stowage box beneath the main instrument panel.
The 2,775mm wheelbase length means rear legroom's reasonable and there's a reasonably-sized rear bench, but it would be more comfortable for two than three. The boot capacity is rated at 415-litres.
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Market and model
Nissan wanted £56,630 for this Ariya Nismo at the time of our test in late 2025. That gets you 435PS here, accounting for the £6,000 extra you'll need over the top model in the standard part of the Ariya range, the 87kWh 'Evolve' e4ORCE, which has 306PS.
So how does that stack up as a value proposition? Well it depends on your point of comparison. In terms of power output, we'd suggest this Nissan's closest mid-sized sporty EV crossover rivals to be either the top 459PS 'Performance' versions of Tesla's Model 3 and Model Y. Or the car in this segment that shares this Ariya's AmpR Medium platform, the Alpine A390, which compares to this Nismo in its lesser 390PS GT form. But all the models just mentioned up or around the £60,000 bracket, a slug more than this Nissan.
All the kit we've briefed you on in our 'Driving' and 'Design' sections comes included of course, plus everything you'd expect to find on a top Ariya. Including ultra-slim full-LED headlights which incorporate four 20mm projectors and are combined with animated indicators. Inside, there's a sophisticated centre dash infotainment screen which incorporates a 'digital assistant' incorporating Amazon Alexa voice control and activated by the phrases "Hello Nissan" and "Hey Nissan". This set-up includes 4G connectivity and can receive over the air updates for infotainment elements and chassis and EV settings. There's plenty of smartphone integration too of course, which will enable appointments to be fed to the car in advance any journey.
As you'd expect, you'll get Nissan's latest suite of 'Safety Shield' camera safety equipment. The front grille houses a whole range of sensors that drive Nissan's 'ProPILOT' driver assistance systems - features like Lane Keeping Assistance and Adaptive Cruise Control.
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Cost of ownership
We gave you this Nismo model's 261 mile driving range figure in our 'Driving' section. That's significantly down on the 319 mile figure you'd get from a normal 87kWh 'Evolve' e4ORCE Ariya model. There are the usual controls for increasing the level of regenerative braking so that you can maximise this car's range potential. Like other Nissans, the Ariya operates with an 'e-Pedal' system when braking regeneration is at its maximum, meaning that in normal driving, you'll be able to launch, accelerate and decelerate only using the throttle pedal.
This car only DC charges at up to 130kW. That isn't especially fast but will allow around 230 miles of range to be added to this car's battery pack in around half an hour. The Ariya comes ready for 22kW three-phase AC charging, but if you can only charge using a single-phase 7.4kW home wallbox, you'll need about 14 hours for a full charge. Which means that if you've a late finish and an early start, you might have journeying problems. Things will be better of course, if you're able to charge at at least 11kW on a three-phase AC supply, in which case you can reduce to time for full replenishment down to 9 hours and 30 minutes. A nice touch is the inclusion of an LED inspection light in the car's charging point so that owners won't have to rely on street lighting to connect their cars to an electric source at night.
The warranty is a conventional three year / 60,000 mile affair and the battery of this Ariya is covered by a separate eight year / 100,000 mile policy. Servicing is every year or 18,000 miles, whichever comes first, so you'll save a bit on that compared to a combustion-engined model. And Nissan offers an 'Enhanced Servicing Plan', which can be had with either two, three or four-year packages.
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Summary
It's a strange confection this. Nismo spec is more than just an Ariya trim upgrade, but it stops short of being the properly engineered stand-alone performance model we might have hoped for from a sub-brand with 40 years of motorsport heritage. It's hard as well to see who it might sell to. Someone taken by an Ariya EV is unlikely to be a Nismo fan - and the reverse also certainly applies. If you do want a fast mid-sized EV crossover like this, it's hard to ignore the fact that for not much more than Nissan is asking here, you could get a lot more power with other rivals, notably Hyundai's IONIQ 5N.
But power isn't everything and it's true to say that this Ariya Nismo gives you as much of it as you can reasonably use. It also looks less 'Max Power' than many of its rivals - so you'll avoid the midlife crisis allegations that might come with purchase of something like an IONIQ 5N. We still feel though, that Nismo can do better than this. Apparently their engineers are open to the idea of a faster Ariya Nismo RS model. Perhaps that's a car this one should have been.
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