Nissan starts selling limited number of Murano Hybrids in US

During a year when green-car models such as the Honda CR-Z and Cadillac ELR met their inglorious end, Nissan is actually adding to the green-car choices in the US. The Japanese automaker and maker of the Leaf electric vehicle is introducing a hybrid version of the Murano, according to Car and Driver. Given the small number expected to be produced, the Murano Hybrid could become a collector's item.

The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has already taken note of the hybrid crossover, certifying that the model gets a combined 29 miles per gallon for the front-wheel drive version and 28 mpg for the all-wheel-drive version. By comparison, the conventional Murano gets 24 mpg in both FWD and AWD. Nissan apparently doesn't have terribly high hopes for demand for the new hybrid, though, as the company only plans to sell about 600 of them here this year.

Low-production numbers aside, the addition is a change from recent green-car news, when automakers have been shelving low-selling models. Word got out last month that Honda wouldn't keep the CR-Z hybrid around for the 2017 model year and Cadillac stopped producing the ELR extended-range plug-in earlier this year.

The introduction of the Murano Hybrid is a bit of an about face for Nissan. Nissan unveiled the Murano Hybrid, which pairs a supercharged engine with an electric motor, at the 2015 Shanghai Motor Show and started sales of it in China shortly thereafter. But Nissan is more noted for hybrids it has discontinued in recent years because of low sales. Production of the Pathfinder Hybrid started in 2013, but stopped last year. Nissan also used to sell an Altima Hybrid, but that model was discontinued in 2012 after five years of production.



Source