Nissan NV: Automaker’s Earliest Commercial Vehicles for U.S.

Nissan introduced a line of commercial work vans this week in high-roof and usual configurations. At former glance, the Nissan NV cargo vans, with their high-roof design, look like competition for Ford’s Transit Connect. The Transit Connect, which Ford initiate, selling in the United States last year, is an economical light-duty van with 135 cubic-feet of cargo space. The Nissan NV1500, NV2500 and NV 3500 are medium and heavy-duty commercial vehicles that can hold more than twice the payload of a Transit Connect.

The real news here is that Nissan is undertaking into the United States commercial vehicle market, which has been owned almost exclusively by the big three Detroit automakers. The good news for Nissan is that its first entry in the big-hauler group will fill a vacant niche: high-roof cargo vans capable of carrying large, heavy loads. The Nissan vans would have competed directly with specified Dodge Sprinter if it were still available. But after Daimler and Chrysler fell out of love, Sprinter left from this market.

While Japanese vehicle manufacturers have experimented in the light-truck category for years, they have not before ventured into serious hauler territory: vehicles with more load capacity than a half-ton pickup or van. Nissan appears to be testing the heavy-duty waters with the NV, which will be presented late this year, but the automaker is not diving in headfirst.

The Nissan NV vans are existing as standard-roof models in all versions and as high toppers in NV2500 HD and NV3500HD configuration. Like the Transit Connect, the high-roof versions permit stand-up access to the interior.

NV buyers can prefer a 4-liter V-6 or a 5.6-liter V-8. Both are backed by a 5-speed automatic transmission and drive through the rear wheels. No fuel economy numbers are available yet, but in terms of efficiency, the NV vans, with large-displacement gasoline engines, appear to be old school. Sprinter, on the other hand was outfitted with a standard 3-liter diesel, but stringent United States emission regulations apparently make it impractical for Nissan to offer a diesel in North America. With Sprinter gone, Nissan will have the United States high-top heavy-duty van market to itself for currently.

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