Nissan finally shows off the Max Out EV convertible concept in IRL -...

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Way back in November 2021, Nissan shared renderings of four electric vehicle concepts with intriguing names like Chill-Out, Surf-Out, Hang-Out and Max-Out as part of its announcement to invest $17.6 billion to develop new EVs and battery technology.

Nissan has finally showed a physical version of one of those concepts — the Nissan Max-Out EV convertible — ahead of its Nissan Futures event that will begin February 4 in Yokohama, Japan. The event, which runs through March 4, is meant to showcase how Nissan is shaping the future of sustainable mobility and innovative design, according to the company.

Not much is known about the Nissan Max-Out aside from what we can glean from looking at it and the vague, aspirational description Nissan provides.

The vehicle is indeed a two-seater convertible that the company said was created on “the fundamental concept of being one with the car.” We’re not sure what that means exactly. Is this some kind of Avatar Na’vi queue situation or merely wordplay to suggest that the design and performance of this theoretical vehicle will make drivers “feel” as if they are one with it?

Concepts are often design exercises meant to spur creativity within a company. Sometimes, these concepts provide a directional glimpse at which design road an automaker may take. In other words, elements of the Nissan Max-Out could make it into the market.

Nissan GT-R fans are likely watching closely. There are hints that a GT-R successor is coming, and it will be electrified. Nismo CEO Takao Katagiri told Autocar in a December 2022 interview that Nissan was developing a new sports car that would be available as a hybrid or in other electrified formats. It will first be sold in Japan, followed by North America, Europe and the UK.

Nissan’s Ambition 2030 plan, which it initially introduced in November 2021, aims to electrify half of its portfolio and release 15 new EVs by the end of the decade.

At the time, the company said it would develop 23 electrified vehicles through 2030, with 20 of those coming to market by 2026. The company said it wants 75 percent of its portfolio to be either hybrid, plug-in hybrid or battery electric in Europe, 55 percent in Japan and 40 percent in the US and China by 2030.