Battery-powered Nissan goes snow camping

Nissan has pulled the drapes off a specially modified version of the e-NV200 panel van it sells in Europe that has been tailored for snowy adventures.

Called the Nissan e-NV200 Winter Camper, for now, the converted van is a concept but the evidence the Japanese car-maker is now creating campers in-house suggests it could soon offer official conversion to buyers, in Europe at least.

Helping it cope better off-road in the snow and ice, Nissan engineers have raised the standard e-NV200's suspension while adding wider wheels and tyres that can cope with deep snow.

Up front there's a roo bar with two powerful spot lamps but the big changes are within.

Maximising the panel van's load bay, there's now a fitted kitchen, a fold-away table, rock-and-roll bed, that converts into a bench seat and plenty of storage cabinets.

Keeping the heat in, Nissan has fitted insulating glass, while there's a pop-up roof top to boost headroom and an on-board fridge to keep supplies fresh.

Both the kitchen, fridge and interior lights are actually powered by a separate 220-volt power pack to prevent you ruining the van's range while parked. The secondary power source is linked to roof-mounted solar panels that top up the battery in sunny conditions.

Despite its off-road aspirations, beneath engineers have left the e-NV200's powertrain well alone.

That means it keeps its 80kW electric motor that is driven by a small 40kWh lithium-ion battery that provides for a range of around 275km.

Charging times should also be similar to the standard van, with a 40 min fast-charge providing for an 80 per cent top-up.

Despite no official plans to push the battery-powered Nissan e-NV200 Winter Camper into production, the Japanese car-maker has admitted it might change its mind if there's enough demand by buyers.

Related:

Nissan delivers remote working solution

Aussie battery-powered Kombi powers up