The Japan-only Nissan Leaf Nismo is a handling-oriented electric crossover

Nissan’s new plan to rejuvenate itself is quite wild, it seems. From sourcing international models from its joint ventures in China to reinforcing its domestic models with new variants, the automaker is making noise to show that they aren’t finished just yet.

Historically, it has dipped into its performance arm, Nismo, to make hotted-up variants for regular models. This time, the all-electric Leaf is turning gray and red as it gets the Nismo treatment too, at least for the Japanese market.

The Leaf Nismo is the latest addition in the Nismo road car lineup, and it’s developed with the concept of making the crossover feel more agile.

Because of this, the modifications are more handling-oriented, with the same swing valve-equipped shock absorbers found in the X-Trail Nismo, and it rides on Michelin Pilot Sport 5 tires with bespoke 19-inch Enkei aluminum wheels. It also has a designated NISMO Mode for its Sport mode, and the regenerative braking modes have been tuned for sportier driving.

Of course, this comes with the same aggressive, yet functional aerodynamics on the new front bumper, side skirt, rear bumper, and an extended ducktail rear spoiler that all provide additional downforce without increasing drag. There’s also a “go-fast” stripe on the hood for extra pizzazz. The interior also gets TailorFit synthetic leather material with red accents, alongside optional Nismo Recaro sport seats with power adjustments.

Apart from this, it’s still pretty much the same base Nissan Leaf as power hasn’t been touched at all—so it still outputs the same 217 horsepower and 355Nm of torque for the B7 variants, and 176 horsepower and 345Nm of torque for the B5 variant.

While it’s cool to see how Nissan is applying its motorsports learnings for its everyday passenger cars, do you think this also runs the risk of diluting the Nismo brand?

_{Photos from Nissan}