Nissan Pivots Toward Hybrids as Sunderland Plant Trades an EV for the Kicks e-Power

Nissan is shifting its manufacturing priorities toward hybrid and extended-range vehicles, aiming for the technology to serve as its primary powertrain across North and Latin America by 2030, according to reporting from The Next Web based on comments given to Automotive News.

The automaker's transition is already reshaping assembly lines in the United Kingdom. At its plant in Sunderland, England, Nissan is investing £170 million to build the Kicks e-Power for Britain, Europe, and Turkey. The vehicle pairs a 143-horsepower electric motor with a 1.4-liter gasoline generator. The Kicks takes over a factory slot previously earmarked for an all-electric Qashqai, a vehicle promised in 2023 before Nissan ceased development in early 2025. Reports suggest that if an electric Qashqai returns, it will not arrive until the early 2030s.

In North America, Nissan Americas Chairman Christian Meunier outlined targets to import a hybrid Rogue crossover from Japan before starting local assembly at the company's plant in Tennessee in 2028. Meunier said the company aims for hybrids to make up 30% to 40% of Rogue sales, without setting a target date. A hybrid Kicks will follow in the American market in 2028, trailing its European rollout at Sunderland.

The shift leaves Nissan with a limited pure battery-electric lineup. The carmaker currently sells only the Leaf after cancelling the Ariya last year without plans for revival. Meanwhile, the hybrid pivot creates regulatory tensions in the UK, where the zero-emission vehicle mandate requires 33% of manufacturer sales this year to produce zero tailpipe emissions. Pure electric cars accounted for a record 29.8% of UK sales in August and 25.6% year-to-date, but Sunderland's hybrid Kicks will not qualify toward zero-emission targets.

The Sunderland facility continues to struggle with production volumes, building 273,174 vehicles last year compared to more than 500,000 in 2019, running at roughly half its operating capacity. With one of its two lines slated for closure, Nissan signed a non-binding memorandum with Chinese automaker Chery in June to manufacture Chinese cars on the line—a move that could safeguard a majority of the facility's 6,000 jobs, though final terms remain unsettled.