Nissan accused of dumping its electric car pioneers

House owners of Nissan Leaf electrical vehicles have accused the agency of “dumping its pioneers” after it introduced its app would cease working for older automobiles.

The agency says the app – which permits distant management of capabilities resembling heating – is stopping as a result of the UK’s 2G community is being switched off.

However prospects have reacted with anger, telling the BBC they didn’t count on it to be withdrawn.

Specialists count on the problem to have an effect on extra electrical automobiles because the market grows.

Round 3,000 Nissan Leaf and e-NV200 vehicles made earlier than 2016 are affected by the app being withdrawn.

These older automobiles are fitted with 2G management items which talk with the app.

Nissan advised the BBC: “The NissanConnect EV app at present linked to Nissan Leaf and e-NV200 automobiles produced up till 2016 will shut down from 1 April 2024 in preparation of the 2G expertise sundown.”

It added: “House owners will, nevertheless, nonetheless have the ability to use key options resembling Local weather Management Timer and Charging Timer straight from their automotive’s Navigation System.”

Affected drivers have advised the BBC of their disappointment – partially as a result of cellular community operators won’t be phasing out 2G till the top of the last decade.

“I used to be very shocked,” mentioned Max Siegieda, a 2013 Nissan Leaf proprietor in Manchester.

“I might have anticipated a minimum of six months, 12 months, one thing like that to rearrange alternate options. This can be a key characteristic of the automotive that is going away.”

He mentioned the app’s distant entry for options resembling heating the automotive or charging remotely at cheaper instances was “a significant promoting level” when he purchased the automotive second-hand in 2022.

He was already contemplating upgrading however now says he could be “reluctant” to purchase one other Nissan “due to the shortage of discover” they gave concerning the app shutdown.

David Morris, who has a 2014 Nissan Leaf, obtained an electronic mail on Wednesday which mentioned his app will cease working subsequent month.

“If you purchase a automotive you count on to have help for it for a minimum of 10 years,” he advised BBC Information.

“Would I purchase one other one once more, from this producer, if they don’t seem to be going to help it for a long run? Undecided,” Mr Morris mentioned.

Although this subject impacts a comparatively small variety of drivers, specialists predict many extra car house owners will encounter comparable issues sooner or later.

Dr Benjamin Gorman, a senior lecturer at Bournemouth College, mentioned Nissan “actually ought to have inbuilt some type of backward compatibility” in order that the automotive may nonetheless join by plugging in a telephone or by means of Bluetooth, including that “it’s unhealthy design.”

However he mentioned, sooner or later, different electrical car house owners may additionally see their software program finally lose performance as expertise moved on, and firms stopped issuing updates.

He additionally pointed to broader tendencies throughout the trade, resembling some automotive producers beginning to cost a month-to-month subscription payment for entry to additional options resembling apps.

“I believe it will be a a lot wider subject, as a result of basically, producers are more and more shifting to promoting {hardware} as a service,” mentioned Dr Gorman.

Nonetheless, Sam Sheehan, motoring editor at automotive agency Cinch, mentioned it was essential to maintain the issue in perspective, with this case having rather a lot to do with the Leaf being a trailblazer.

“It was initially the one mass-market EV [electric vehicle] on sale, which implies the linked software program it makes use of may be very outdated,” he advised the BBC.

Mr Sheehan predicts that whereas newer vehicles will finally lose some performance as expertise strikes on it is doubtless they’ll “keep working for a lot, for much longer than the primary Leaf’s historic tech.”