New London Cab

The old london cab.

It isn’t just Volvo that Geely is reshaping. Here is its interpretation of the black cab’s bulging baby brother! After more than 60 years on its own, the London taxi is to spawn a new range – with the wraps set to come off this radical concept, designed to sit below the TX4, at the Beijing Motor Show.

The current london cab.

The TXN is the first fruit of a link-up between UK cab maker LTI and Chinese car giant Geely, which is poised to take a majority share in LTI’s parent firm.

The heavily retro design – which takes cues from the Mini and even the 1948 Morris Oxford – is to be displayed under Geely’s anglophile Englon brand.

The future london cab.

Inside, the driver sits within a separate plastic cab, allowing the occasional front passenger seat to fold up for extra luggage space. With the seat folded, there is room for three passengers on the rear bench. The TXN is designed to compete in taxi markets around the world, but not the UK.

Nissan e-NV200 Concept

We first featured Nissan’s ambitious plan to make a black cab for the UK earlier this year, including details of a zero-emissions electric version.

Now, a year before trials of that get underway in London, we’ve been behind the wheel of the electric van it’ll be based on.

The standard Nissan cab is due in 2013, but the EV version, the e-NV200, is more interesting. The drive train is based on the Leaf, with an 80kW (108bhp) electric motor generating 280Nm of torque.

Lithium-ion batteries are stored under the floor, which allows for a traditional taxi layout: cabs will have a forward-facing three-seat bench and two rear-facing flip-down chairs. Access is excellent, thanks to the two sliding side doors – safer for pedestrians and cyclists when opened from inside – and the blue-tinted Nissan bonnet badge hides the charging socket.

Behind the wheel, the e-NV200 is similar to the Leaf. On the road there’s an audible whine which gets louder as speed increases, but acceleration is smooth and brisk. Cabbies will also be thrilled to know the taxi will have the necessary 25ft turning circle when it arrives in London.

A 100-mile range seems limited, but Nissan expects cabbies to plug in overnight, quick-charge over lunch (it’s 80 per cent charged in 30 minutes) then return to work. Whether that works in practice will be a key factor in its success.

Key specs

Price: £30,000 (est)

Engine: 80kW electric motor

Power: 108bhp

Transmission: Single-speed automatic, front-wheel drive

0-62mph: 13.0 seconds (est)

Top speed: 90mph (est)

Range: 100 miles (est)

Equipment: Air-con, sat-nav

On sale: 2014