The 2024 Nissan Ariya is the company’s first foray into the fully electric midsize crossover segment. I found the 2024 Nissan Ariya to be a pleasant commuting partner with a few interesting tricks up its sleeve for the week I had it.
Exterior –
The 2024 Nissan Ariya looks like a slightly more futuristic take on your typical Nissan crossover. It even has shades of the first-generation Murano, with its curves and arched greenhouse. It’s slightly bulbous profile makes it look a bit larger than it actually is with a length of 182.9 inches the Ariya is firmly a compact crossover. The front contains arguably the most futuristic-looking part of the Ariya with its solid gloss black plastic interpretation of the Nissan grille, complete with an illuminated logo and two strips of light running up either side.
My tester’s 19″ dark-finished wheels featured a faceted design that looked suitably futuristic. Larger 20″ wheels are available on the top-it-the-line Platinum trim that features a 5-spoke faceted design in silver.
At the back, you’ll find full-width lightbar taillights and, at least in my model, two shark fin antennas that somehow managed to look silly (like two little horns) and cool at the same time. As a whole the 2024 Nissan Ariya is attractive with just the right amount of futurism to be interesting, but not turn off potential customers by being too weird. I’m a fan.
Interior –
Buyers will be pleasantly surprised by the interior of the 2024 Nissan Ariya, I certainly was.
The dash of the Ariya leans into a zen vibe with quite a few unique touches that set it apart from the competition. A sweeping band of piano black plastic undulates across the dash with two 12.3-inch digital screens set into it, one for the driver and one for the infotainment. I found the middle touchscreen software usable but lacking in modernity with slightly blurry graphics and a less-than-ideal menu system. Luckily, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto are on tap. The driver display on the other hand was much better with super smooth graphics and an easy-to-understand layout.
Move down the dash, and you’ll find an interesting looking piece of faux wood containing glowing, capacitive buttons for climate control. The look is sleek, minimal, and distinctly Japanese, and I was surprised by how well they functioned even though they were capacitive. Other surprises up front include a power slide-out central glove box that can also function as a laptop tray and a power sliding central console that can move fore and aft at the touch of a button. This is something I have never seen before in a vehicle, and while novel, I question how useful it would be on a day-to-day basis. No matter, it was quite fun to use.
Both front and rear seats were comfortable, with the front being of Nissan’s zero gravity design. They were plush and living room chair-like, though lacking in bolstering for more spirited driving, something to be expected of a vehicle in this segment. I found the front seat door armrest to be too far down on the door to be truly useful. Sigh, where’s that power adjustment where you really need it?
I was especially delighted by the Japanese “Andon” paper lantern-inspired interior lighting on the front cabin floor and the front doors, which emitted a soft, soothing glow from behind patterned screens.
In all, the interior of the 2024 Nissan Ariya is a serene, even upscale place to spend time that felt more than worthy of the price tag. Blindfolded, one could easily mistake it for an Infiniti interior.
The drive –
I sampled the Empower+ FWD version of the Nissan Ariya that featured 238 hp. It was enough power to make the Ariya feel fast but never furious. No, the 2024 Nissan Ariya is an EV tuned around comfort; there are no throw-you-in-the-back seat launches here—just smooth, easy power.
The ride quality was, for the most part, pleasant, with an almost luxury-like feel when it settles into cruise on a freeway. It’s a bit of a different story on city streets, where the Ariya’s generally comfortable, pleasant nature seemed easily disrupted by gutters and bumpers, causing it to buck and become a bit more unsettled than you would expect. It’s still a comfortable ride, just a bit busier than I would expect in the city.
My Empower+ model featured an 87 kWh Lithium-Ion battery with up to 289 miles of range. I was pleased to find the Ariya’s software very capable of providing accurate range estimates, with my tester appearing to deliver at least the quoted 289 mile range (and probably more).
The 2024 Nissan Ariya’s one-pedal driving feature is called e-Pedal. I found this feature to be hard to modulate smoothly when stopping because it moves the brake pedal to match how the regenerative braking is stopping the vehicle. This made it difficult when I wanted to take over the braking, leading to many jerky stops. It’s an interesting idea, but its execution left a lot to be desired. Luckily, it can easily be defeated by pressing a button on the center console to deactivate.
My tester came with the brand’s semi-autonomous driving system, ProPilot Assist 2.0, standard equipment on Empower+ trims and above. This system allows for hands-off highway driving and worked very well in my tests, keeping the Ariya centered in its lane and accelerating and braking in a natural manner. Activation of the system was also easy, thanks to a dedicated steering wheel-mounted button.
Conclusion –
The 2024 Nissan Ariya may not have any crazy whiz-bang future tech or sci-if looks, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing. Its rational, soft-spoken nature will delight those looking for a quiet, comfortable, and, yes, even stylish mainstream crossover.
