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Nissan has a reputation for
creating some of the most
exhilarating sports cars on the
market. Nissan has also
developed the world’s first
practical Zero Emission family
car, the Nissan LEAF.
Now Nissan has put that
expertise together. It has
captured the excitement of a
sports car and the environmental
benefits of an electric vehicle
and blended them into one
dramatic two-seater concept:
ESFLOW.
ESFLOW has been created from the
ground up as a pure electric
vehicle, to give an idea how a
Zero Emission sports car of the
future might look. Living
ecologically has often been seen
as an act of austerity – to save
one’s environmental conscience
sacrifices must be made. ESFLOW
is here to address that
misconception.
Owning an ecologically sound car
does not have to come at the
expense of driving enjoyment.
The briefest glance at the
ESFLOW is enough to tell you
what kind of car it is: a long
bonnet leading into a steeply
raked, wrap around windscreen,
the compact cabin placing the
occupants bang on the car’s
centre of gravity, hunched
arches over ultra-low profile
tyres wrapped around six spoke
wheels. ESFLOW is unmistakably a
sports car, and those in the
know will recognise its heritage
– hints of classic and
contemporary Nissan sports cars
abound.
Vitally, ESFLOW is not an
existing ICE (internal
combustion engine) powered
vehicle that has been adapted to
run on electricity, but a sports
car that’s been designed from
the outset as a Zero Emission
vehicle. This means that
Nissan’s forward thinking
designers have had free rein to
place the power train and
batteries in the optimum
positions to benefit the car’s
handling and performance and
enhancing the thrill of driving.
The Car
The ESFLOW is based on existing
technology, implemented in
innovative ways. An attractive,
head turning composite body
covers an aluminium chassis,
incorporating its own roll cage.
The powertrain unit, which
employs the same technologies
installed in the Nissan LEAF, is
tuned to offer a sporty driving
experience.
The Powertrain
ESFLOW is rear-wheel drive and
it runs on two motors. The car’s
graceful proportions allow the
twin electric motors to be
placed above the axis of the
rear wheels, in a mid-ship
position. These motors
independently control the left
and right wheels, and so the
torque is optimised to ensure
outstanding vehicle stability
and control as well as efficient
power regeneration. The motors
produce enough torque in an
instant for it to reach 100kph
in under 5 seconds.
Power for the motors comes from
the same laminated lithium-ion
battery packs used in the Nissan
LEAF, but in ESFLOW the packs
are located along the axis of
the front and rear wheels. This
centralises the mass of the car,
and thus its rotation point,
close to the driver’s hips.
These cleverly positioned
batteries enable the car to
travel over 240km on one charge.
The Chassis
An
aluminium chassis has been built
around the drive train, taking
full advantage of the
opportunities that Zero Emission
electric propulsion provides.
Power cells are incorporated in
such a way that they benefit
ESFLOW’s strength and poise, not
detract from them. Indeed,
unlike a conventional fuel tank,
batteries do not get lighter as
they provide energy, so the
car’s weight distribution
remains constant throughout a
drive.
The high waistline afforded by
the ESFLOW’s classic sports car
proportions allows strong, yet
unobtrusive roll bars
incorporated in to the structure
behind the seats to safely take
the entire load of the car in
the event of a roll over,
negating the need for obtrusive,
thick, reinforced A-pillars and
the blind spots they inevitably
create.
This almost unobstructed view
ahead will not be unfamiliar to
fighter pilots, and just as such
pilots speak of “strapping their
planes on to their backs”, we
hope ESFLOW owners will also
feel the car to be an extension
of their bodies, reacting to
their slightest whims. The
driver must be at the centre of
the sports car both physically
and metaphorically.
The Body
The ESFLOW is undoubtedly an
attractive car. Crisp, clean
lines not only convey the purity
of its sporting potential, but
suggest the clarity of electric
power. The colour scheme chosen
for the concept car is inspired
by glaciers – highly reflective
solidified liquid with blue
tints in its shadows. Like its
ZEV concept forebears and
contemporary stable mate the
ESFLOW’s headlights and Nissan
emblem are tinted cool blue. The
six spoke wheels contain blue
carbon inserts while the same
material adorns the side sill,
roof mounted lip spoiler and
lower rear bumper.
Blue LEDs accentuate the
futuristic lights slashed into
the bodywork both front and
rear. Where the Nissan LEAF’s
protrusive headlights are used
to guide airflow around the door
mirrors, this is not needed on
ESFLOW as the mirrors have been
replaced with minute rear view
cameras at the base of its
A-pillars. The ESFLOW’s front
lights do protect a secret of
their own however: flip out
charging points built in to the
air ducts beneath.
The Interior
Ecological minimalism need not
come at the expense of luxury.
The cabin of the ESFLOW is clean
and open and weight saving has
been a priority throughout its
design, but it is still a
comfortable and pleasant place
to sit. By far the heaviest
components in modern cars’
interiors are the steel framed,
thickly upholstered and
increasingly motorised seats. In
ESFLOW the seats are sculpted
into the rear bulkhead of the
car, negating the need for a
heavy frame. This of course
means that they are immobile,
but this is of no consequence as
the fly-by-wire steering and
pedals adjust electrically to
the best spot to suit each
individual driver’s size and
preferred driving position.
The seats themselves are
upholstered in gold leather and
perforated gold suede while the
doors are trimmed in dark blue
leather and suede. The blue and
gold motif, the colour of
sparks, is continued across the
dashboard, which is also adorned
with silver carbon trim, and
features four multifunction
illuminated LCD displays.
The Driver
Daniel, an ESFLOW owner, works
in tech, but lives for the
weekend. On Friday night after
work, he gets behind the wheels
of his ESFLOW which instantly
links with his pocket PDA and
determines the fastest route to
his girlfriend’s home. Finding
street side parking is a synch
as the ESFLOW’s compact
dimensions allow it to slip into
the narrowest of spaces. On
Saturday he drives to a popular
club to exhibit his DJ skills
and his friends are impressed by
his cool EV sports car.
On
Sunday he drives through the
mountains for leisure. ESFLOW’s
superb weight distribution and
unobstructed view ahead enables
him to effortlessly nail every
apex, every time. His descent
from the mountains is more
relaxed and he allows the ESFLOW
to overrun on the long sweeping
curves, turning the potential
energy he and the car gained
climbing up the gradients back
in to electrical energy he can
use once he hits the roads
around Barcelona.
As
his ESFLOW sips energy in its
garage Daniel prepares himself
for the week ahead, batteries
fully recharged. |
