Nissan Motor is honing the capabilities of its electric vehicles in China, testing models in the country's freezing north to ensure stable driving performance with an eye to launching exports later this year.
Earlier this month, Nissan displayed to Japanese media for the first time its cold-weather testing facility -- which features a test track constructed on a frozen lake -- in Heihe, Heilongjiang province, in northeastern China.
Heihe is located across the Amur River from Russia. Winter temperatures can fall as low as minus 40 C. On the day of Nikkei's visit, the temperature was minus 20 C. Battery performance tends to decline in cold weather.
Nikkei participated in a test drive of the N7, an EV sedan from local joint venture Dongfeng Nissan. Even on rough, snowy roads, the car accelerated smoothly from a standstill to 100 kilometers per hour in moments, remaining stable with minimal shaking.
EVs and other new energy vehicles account for nearly 50% of new vehicle sales in China. Amid the rapid adoption, performance in cold weather -- long a weakness of EVs -- has become a key factor when consumers decide on a vehicle to purchase. Many automakers are using cold-weather testing to demonstrate their vehicles' credentials on wintery roads.
The N7, released in April 2025, is Nissan's first EV designed and developed in China. It has garnered attention as a vehicle tailored to the Chinese market, thanks to features like massage seats.
"Nissan engineers are involved in all aspects of development, and this cold-weather testing is a particularly important step," said Isao Sekiguchi, head of Dongfeng Nissan Passenger Vehicle.
Nissan uses the same test parameters in Heihe as for its globally developed vehicles, and the test evaluators are also trained in Japan. The company aims to differentiate its Chinese EVs from competitors through high-quality steering, braking control and powertrain performance.
Having fallen behind in the rapid shift to EVs, Nissan's new car sales in China fell 60% from 1.56 million units in 2018 to 650,000 units in 2025. But sales of the N7 reached 45,382 units in 2025, showing some success by bringing young buyers to the Nissan brand for the first time.
The company also plans to launch this year the NX8, a sport utility vehicle available in both EV and range-extended EV versions.
The company is weighing exporting vehicles from China moving forward, including the N7 and the Frontier Pro, a plug-in hybrid pickup truck released by Zhengzhou Nissan, another joint venture.
Nissan is facing numerous challenges. Its sales in Japan have also plummeted due to a lack of new models, leading to a major restructuring announced last May.
"Even if we fail, the question is how quickly we can fix it," said Sekiguchi. "We need a startup mentality like Chinese companies."