Nissan Ariya Review Price Range Performance & Features

The Nissan Ariya is not only a few years too late, but is also going to be ridiculously overpriced, in Australia. The base-variant, called the engage, is priced at fifty six thousand Australians. It should have been some fifteen grand cheaper. Because, better EVs than the Ariya, are already available for 40 grand. Just look at the Geely E-X 5. It has a 45 kilometre range advantage over the Nissan, on the WLTP cycle. Ariya's acceleration is also slower than the Geely. So what the hell are Nissan charging a fifteen thousand dollar premium for? The almost-dead Nissan brand? Nissan is in such a dire condition financially, that in all probability, the Ariya is probably going to be Nissan's last attempt, at making an EV before the brand conks out. On the other hand, if you are going to spend upwards of fifty six grand anyways, at least get a Tesla. Not only, does the rear-wheel-driven Model 3, have better dynamics than the front-wheel driven Ariya, and a good, hundred and twenty eight kilometer longer range. Not to forget, the Tesla might soon get permission to go driverless, if the scumbag politicians allow it. However, if having fun, while driving an EV, is even remotely important to you, go straight for the MG 4 X-power. For just 4 thousand dollars extra, you get a car that is quicker, than a Porsche nine eleven. Let's take a moment to appreciate, that a sixty thousand dollar EV today, can embarrass a three hundred thousand dollar Porsche in a key performance parameter. But the story doesn't end here. If you wish to get a car, even quicker than the X-power, at half the price, simply get a used Model 3 performance. Twenty twenty examples, with around hundred thousand kilometres on the clock, are already retailing for less than thirty five grand. If you don't want the hassle of using a public charger, you can always go for a plug-in hybrid, and actually save some money, compared to the Nissan. The Haval H6 GT is a couple of grand cheaper than the base Ariya. But is almost three seconds quicker than it, to a hundred kph. A side-note here, is the all-wheel-drive version of the Nissan Ariya, which costs an insane, seventy two grand, and yet is slower than the plug-in hybrid Haval. Last but not the least, are the dinosaur-fuelled vehicles. There's the Golf GTi, which is currently the quickest conventional car up to seventy grand, but is still three-tenths off the pace, compared to the Ariya. If you want something more affordable, then you have the Polo GTi, the quickest conventional car up to forty grand. There are of course some gems in the used car market, with X-power matching performance under twenty grand, for those who know where to find them.

By now you must have realized, that this is not a conventional review as such, but more of a comparative assessment, of where the Ariya stands in terms of it's price, performance and range. Link to the best available review of the Ariya, is posted in the pinned comment, if you would like to watch it.