ID :
152198
Sat, 12/04/2010 - 07:45
Auther :
Shortlink :
https://www.oananews.org//node/152198
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Nissan to launch 1st mass-produced EV on Dec. 20+
YOKOHAMA, Dec. 3 Kyodo -
Nissan Motor Co. said Friday it will launch its Leaf electric vehicle in Japan
on Dec. 20 as its first mass-produced electric car to hit the global market.
The 100 percent electric, zero-emission vehicle is designed for Nissan to take
the lead in the fledging EV market, where Toyota Motor Corp. and Honda Motor
Co. also plan to launch similar vehicles as early as 2012, it said.
The Yokohama-based carmaker, which is 43 percent owned by France's Renault SA,
will market the five-seater hatchback EV in the United States later in December
and in Europe in early 2011.
''The new era toward zero-emission mobility will start with the Nissan Leaf,''
said Chief Operating Officer Toshiyuki Shiga at a news conference at its
headquarters in Yokohama. ''We believe this will be the beginning of the new
era for the world's automobile industry, as well as a sustainable low-carbon
society.''
The Leaf is the second EV to be mass produced by a major Japanese automaker
after the hatchback i-MiEV launched by Mitsubishi Motors Corp. last year.
Fuji Heavy Industry Ltd., which launched the Subaru Plug-in Stella last year,
also eyes mass production.
Production will start at Smyrna, in the United States, in late 2012 and at
Sunderland, Britain, in early 2013, with an annual output capacity of 150,000
units and 50,000 units, respectively, Nissan said.
''It is Nissan's commitment to be the leader in zero-emission, and we will make
various efforts and investments to achieve the goal with our alliance partner
Renault,'' Shiga said.
The Leaf will be powered by lithium ion batteries and will have a driving range
of 200 kilometers per charge based on the Japanese standard of measurement. It
takes about 8 hours to fully charge the car using 200 volt chargers, Nissan
said.
The vehicle will have a starting price of 3,764,250 yen, but the actual price
consumers pay will be 2,984,250 yen as the car will be eligible for government
subsidies, the automaker said.
Nissan had set a sales target for the Leaf in fiscal 2010 through next March at
6,000 units, but the automaker had already reached the goal in two months after
it began accepting pre-orders in April.
To charge the battery, the automaker has installed 200-volt normal chargers at
about 2,200 Nissan dealers nationwide, with 200 of them equipped with quick
chargers that can charge the battery up to 80 percent of its full capacity in
about 30 minutes, it said.
The automaker currently makes the Leaf at the Oppama plant in Yokosuka,
Kanagawa Prefecture. The plant has been partly modified to assemble 50,000
units annually, the company said.
==Kyodo
Nissan Motor Co. said Friday it will launch its Leaf electric vehicle in Japan
on Dec. 20 as its first mass-produced electric car to hit the global market.
The 100 percent electric, zero-emission vehicle is designed for Nissan to take
the lead in the fledging EV market, where Toyota Motor Corp. and Honda Motor
Co. also plan to launch similar vehicles as early as 2012, it said.
The Yokohama-based carmaker, which is 43 percent owned by France's Renault SA,
will market the five-seater hatchback EV in the United States later in December
and in Europe in early 2011.
''The new era toward zero-emission mobility will start with the Nissan Leaf,''
said Chief Operating Officer Toshiyuki Shiga at a news conference at its
headquarters in Yokohama. ''We believe this will be the beginning of the new
era for the world's automobile industry, as well as a sustainable low-carbon
society.''
The Leaf is the second EV to be mass produced by a major Japanese automaker
after the hatchback i-MiEV launched by Mitsubishi Motors Corp. last year.
Fuji Heavy Industry Ltd., which launched the Subaru Plug-in Stella last year,
also eyes mass production.
Production will start at Smyrna, in the United States, in late 2012 and at
Sunderland, Britain, in early 2013, with an annual output capacity of 150,000
units and 50,000 units, respectively, Nissan said.
''It is Nissan's commitment to be the leader in zero-emission, and we will make
various efforts and investments to achieve the goal with our alliance partner
Renault,'' Shiga said.
The Leaf will be powered by lithium ion batteries and will have a driving range
of 200 kilometers per charge based on the Japanese standard of measurement. It
takes about 8 hours to fully charge the car using 200 volt chargers, Nissan
said.
The vehicle will have a starting price of 3,764,250 yen, but the actual price
consumers pay will be 2,984,250 yen as the car will be eligible for government
subsidies, the automaker said.
Nissan had set a sales target for the Leaf in fiscal 2010 through next March at
6,000 units, but the automaker had already reached the goal in two months after
it began accepting pre-orders in April.
To charge the battery, the automaker has installed 200-volt normal chargers at
about 2,200 Nissan dealers nationwide, with 200 of them equipped with quick
chargers that can charge the battery up to 80 percent of its full capacity in
about 30 minutes, it said.
The automaker currently makes the Leaf at the Oppama plant in Yokosuka,
Kanagawa Prefecture. The plant has been partly modified to assemble 50,000
units annually, the company said.
==Kyodo
