• 2 min read
Nissan revives Elgrand to take on Toyota Alphard
Nissan has launched the first all-new Elgrand in 16 years with a hybrid system, AWD, adaptive suspension, and a more upscale cabin.
Image: iXBT
After 16 years, Nissan has unveiled a fully new Elgrand, a premium minivan the company hopes can finally challenge the long-dominant Toyota Alphard in Japan.
The redesign is dramatic. Nissan says the minivan follows its Timeless Japanese Futurism design language and draws heavily from the Hyper Tourer concept shown in 2023. With a large grille and unusual LED lighting, the new Elgrand looks far more like a concept car than a conventional production van.
According to Akira Sugimoto, Nissan’s head of sales in Japan, the Elgrand remains one of the brand’s most important models and is expected to play a key role in strengthening the company’s position in its home market.
The biggest technical change is Nissan’s third-generation e-Power hybrid system. It uses a 1.5-liter turbocharged gasoline engine that does not drive the wheels directly and instead works only as a generator for the electric motor. e-4orce handles all-wheel drive. Nissan has not disclosed full specifications yet, but it has already said torque will exceed 500 Nm.
The minivan also gets Intelligent Dynamic Suspension, an adaptive suspension system that analyzes the road surface and adjusts damper settings in real time.
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Nissan put special focus on second-row passengers. Higher trims offer Zero Gravity seats with ottomans and separate adjustment for the upper and lower sections of the backrest. Rear passengers also get large multimedia displays and a Bose audio system with 22 speakers.
Inside, Nissan says it expanded cabin space, enlarged the sliding-door windows, and reworked the three-row layout to improve visibility for all passengers. The dashboard includes two 14.3-inch displays, and ambient lighting supports 64 colors.
The Elgrand also gets more usable side steps, a partial-opening mode for the sliding doors, and a redesigned cargo area that can hold seven suitcases even with all seven seats in use.
Sales have already started in Japan. The base version starts at 6.87 million yen (about $42,300). Nissan plans to bring the model to other markets later, but has not announced timing.
The launch comes after the previous Elgrand’s sharp decline. In fiscal 2025, Nissan sold just 1,163 Elgrands in Japan, while Toyota sold 81,357 Alphard minivans in the same period. Early demand for the new model appears strong: since the end of May, Nissan says it has received more than 6,000 pre-orders, with more than 5,000 of them placed by private buyers.
Frontier Editor
Dan is our resident futurist, covering electric mobility, space exploration, and the smart home. He's interested in atoms just as much as bits. Whether it's a new battery chemistry, a reusable rocket, or a protocol that finally makes IoT devices talk to each other, Dan breaks down the engineering that pushes humanity forward.
via iXBT
