Nissan has big plans for electric cars and the cities in which they reside. A partnership with the architects at Foster + Partners will yield the automaker's idea of "The Fuel Station of the Future," which doesn't actually involve any actual stations whatsoever.
Instead, the future of fill-ups is all about wireless induction, where batteries can charge without requiring a physical cord between energy source and battery. Last month, Nissan unveiled a 7-kilowatt-hour wireless charger, which can charge a 60-kWh battery (like the one Nissan is currently developing) overnight, no plug required.
The concept goes beyond the home, though. In Nissan's idealized future, wireless induction will be built into a city's infrastructure, offering juice to EVs on the go. That could render even home charging potentially unnecessary. "Independent infrastructure could be a thing of the past," said Richard Candler, Nissan's manager of advanced product strategy.
Currently, wireless induction is a bit of a plaything, not exactly ready for prime time. Some cell phones are capable of wireless charging, but concerns over charging speed and waste heat (signaling less-than-stellar efficiency) prevents the technology from gaining too much momentum.
Nissan will unveil its full concept next year, likely at the Geneva Motor Show. The second-generation Leaf, which should pack the aforementioned 60-kWh battery (range is estimated around 300 miles), is posited to arrive next year, too.
Japanese automaker Nissan and NASA are teaming up to advance the technology behind cars that drive themselves.
Yokohama-based Nissan Motor Co. and NASA's Ames Research Center at Moffett Field, California, announced Thursday a five-year research-and-development partnership for autonomous vehicle systems so they can eventually be applied to commercially sold cars.
Nissan is excited about the potential of self-driving cars, which executives say could lead to improved safety, a pillar for future autos along with low emission technology.
NASA researchers will be working with Nissan's research unit in Silicon Valley, they said in a joint statement.
In an escalation of the auto industry's war of words over future green technologies, a senior Toyota Motor Corp executive singled out Elon Musk and other rival executives on Tuesday and made a bold prediction for its hydrogen car.
Bob Carter, Toyota's senior vice president for automative operations, said in a speech that he believed a hydrogen fuel cell car it plans to launch next year could eventually be as successful as its pioneering Prius gasoline-electric hybrid.
Carter said "naysayers" who have spoken out against the technology would be proven wrong and referred to Elon Musk, founder of electric car maker Tesla Motors Inc, Carlos Ghosn, CEO of Nissan Motor Co, and former Volkswagen executive Jonathan Browning by name.
"Personally I don't really care what Elon and Carlos and Jonathan have to say about fuel cells. It's very reminiscent of 1998, 1999 when we first introduced the Prius," Carter said at a conference held in conjunction with the Detroit auto show.
The comments underscore just how big the stakes are in the race to take the lead in the next generation green car.
While Toyota is investing heavily in fuel cells, others such as Nissan, Volkswagen and Tesla are betting on electric vehicles as the next big thing while publically questioning whether hydrogen could ever develop into a practical automotive fuel.
