Nissan Leaf orders begin in April, delivery in December
The time has come. The Leaf is upon us. Pre-orders for Nissan’s EV will begin in April, and, although I think the car should arrive in the fall given its moniker, delivery of the first Leafs (or is it Leaves?) will be in December. Mass production is set for 2012, with a plan of 500,000 EVs for Japan, Europe and the U.S.
Nissan is really the only manufacturer that will be able to respond to mass demand for EVs. As this Forbes Nissan article points out, others “have concept cars. He (head of Nissan, Carlos Ghosn) has a plan.”
The Leaf will have a 100-mile range on its Li-ion battery. The range was a tactical one for Nissan, the thinking being that it reaches a bit beyond the range needs of the heavy commuter but keeps the battery small enough to still make sense cost-wise.
Newark new Nissan dealer Hudson Nissan looks forward to beginning a long relationship with EVs, beginning with the Leaf. I just saw the new Leaf commercial while watching the gold medal hockey game this past weekend. A true reminder of why I’m excited it’s Nissan leading the way in electric vehicles.
Locally in New Jersey, Nissan dealers figure to see a lot of interest in this first EV to roll out. The Leaf seems ideal to me for city driving. Obviously, the current infrastructure in the nation makes it less than possible to drive cross-country in the Leaf, but beyond that, it stands to benefit stop-and-go drivers the most. And with the Litium-ion technology, battery memory is no longer an issue making recharging an anytime thing.
Living in NJ, I do plan to consider investing in this Nissan once it’s made available at dealerships.
