Nissan Reportedly Pricing Electric Car Comparable to Honda Accord
By Bill Moore
Jon Gordon, an Associate Project Manager for BrN Engineering, Inc, in Seattle attended the Nissan Leaf Kickoff event in Seattle today and reports to EV World that Nissan is planning to price the car somewhere in the US$25,000-to-$35,000 price range, or somewhere comparable to a fully-loaded Honda Accord; and the battery will be included. Nissan's Mark Perry had indicated to EV World several weeks ago that the company was investigating the legal implications of retaining ownership of the battery pack, while selling the car, itself. Under that plan, the battery would presumably be leased to the customer, essentially absolving them of responsibility for an battery issues during the warranty period.
He further reports that the car will qualify for the US$7,500 federal tax credit and that there will be incentives for home and commercial charging stations, which will come in three options:
120v/20A (18 hr recharge time)
240v/30A (8 hr recharge)
480v/175A (20 min @ 80% SOC)
The Nissan Leaf is a fully electric, battery-powered car intended for use in urban and suburban settings. It has an estimated range of 100 miles and conventional highway speeds. Early demonstration vehicles will begin to appear in North America starting in 2012, with full consumer rollout slated for 2012. The company plans to begin accepting pre-orders for the first 20,000 production vehicles also starting in 2012.
