Autoblog

AZ Nissan Leaf owners reporting abnormal battery capacity losses [w/video]

Jeremy Korzeniewski — Wed, 18 Jul 2012 19:13:00 EST

Filed under: Government/Legal, Hatchback, Nissan, Electric

Apparently, some Nissan Leaf owners are finding the crispy weather in Phoenix, Arizona a bit too severe for the batteries in their electric cars.

The CBS affiliate in Phoenix reports that a growing number of the area's Leaf owners have lost large chunks of battery capacity, and the forums at MyNissanLeaf.com indicate that similar complaints have been recorded in other parts of Arizona, Texas and California. A table of battery capacity losses is being kept online here. We contacted Nissan regarding the issue of reduced capacity in hot climes and received this response from spokesman John Schilling:

"We are aware of the handful of customers that are concerned; we are studying their individual situations and experiences."

Nissan North America Director of Product Planning Mark Perry said in a recent video, "Heat is definitely not a friend of batteries. But I'm talking about severe 130-, 140-degree Fahrenheit kind of heat... Don't park your Nissan Leaf - or any electric vehicle - where it's going to be more than 120 or 130 degrees."

In the same video, which you can find embedded below, Perry says, "In just normal conditions, you don't have to worry about it." Thing is, "normal conditions" mean different things to different people, including those who live in Phoenix, Arizona, where daily high temperatures average over 100 degrees several months of the year.

According to CBS5, Nissan "does not consider the issue a problem" but is "investigating five complaints about the rapid loss of battery capacity... all of them in Arizona."

It's interesting to note that the issue of the Nissan Leaf battery's lack of an active thermal management solution was brought up way back in January of 2010. At the time, Nissan's Perry said, "We don't need thermal management in the U.S. ... We've gone on record saying that the pack has a 70 to 80 percent capacity after 10 years."

As you'll see in the video below, however, Nissan's warranty only covers the output of the Leaf's battery pack, not its capacity. Where that leaves heat-drenched Leaf owners remains to be seen. Scroll down for videos from both Nissan and CBS5.

Continue reading AZ Nissan Leaf owners reporting abnormal battery capacity losses [w/video]

AZ Nissan Leaf owners reporting abnormal battery capacity losses [w/video] originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 18 Jul 2012 19:13:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Nissan expects Leaf sales to double when TN plant comes online

Chris Shunk — Tue, 19 Jun 2012 10:15:00 EST

Filed under: Plants/Manufacturing, Hatchback, Nissan, Electric

The Nissan Leaf isn't exactly flying off dealer shelves these days, but the slow-selling EV could receive a sales boost when some production is moved to Tennessee. Bloomberg reports that Nissan is ambitiously expecting to double Leaf sales once the plant comes online in December. The sales boost would then give Nissan a chance at hitting 20,000 sales for the fiscal year that ends on March 31, 2013.

It isn't out of the question that the Leaf could gain momentum with the help of local manufacturing, but first Nissan will need to get EV buyers in the showroom. Leaf sales have ebbed the past two months, falling behind the Chevrolet Volt in sales by more than a three-to-one margin. And speaking of margins, moving production to Tennessee from Japan should help Nissan's quest to make money on the Leaf thanks to lower labor and parts costs.

The Smyrna, Tennessee plant will be ramped up for Leaf production by December. The facility will be able to build up to 200,000 Leaf models and 150,000 battery packs per year.

Nissan expects Leaf sales to double when TN plant comes online originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 19 Jun 2012 10:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Bob Lutz praises Leaf and Volt, says national security requires going electric

Sebastian Blanco — Tue, 17 Apr 2012 15:30:00 EST

Filed under: Hybrid, Etc., Government/Legal, Hatchback, Chevrolet, GM, Electric

Bob Lutz is not going to take attacks on the electric car lying down - the closest he'll come to that is doing push-ups on The Colbert Report. After spending a few of his Forbes columns laying into right-wing pundits for their attacks on the Chevrolet Volt, he is switching to a positive message about how plug-in cars can help with American national security. It is not surprising that Lutz, a former Marine, co-authors the article with two former U.S. Marines commandants and the CEO of FedEx (the three are all members of Securing America's Future Energy's (SAFE) Energy Security Leadership Council). The gist? Well, here's part of the opening paragraph:

When ... threats exist because the United States is the protector of the world's global oil supply lines, it is a clear illustration of how our nation's over-reliance on a single, globally priced fuel impacts our national and economic security.

America's addiction to gasoline costs the government billions of dollars a year, an estimated $80 billion, in fact, to guard the sea lanes, including one little area by Iran:

From a national security perspective, the U.S. military is forced to protect the world's vital oil infrastructure. The single greatest chokepoint is the Strait of Hormuz, through which 17 million barrels of oil per day passed in 2011 - 20 percent of global supplies. Protection of the sea lanes of commerce has become an American burden and will remain so, costing the United States Treasury an estimated $80 billion per year while taxing our military, which is already engaged on multiple fronts.

It's arguments like this that have made the recent right-wing criticism of the Volt such a mystery. If we use less gasoline, we can spend fewer lives and less treasure importing the fuel (of course, we don't lose many lives at the Canadian border, which is where most of our imported oil comes from). The Army says that today's soldier uses an average of 22 gallons of gasoline a day.

Lutz and his co-authors are quite clear that high gas prices are hurting Americans' pocketbooks, "essentially" wiping out tax cuts that Presidents Bush and Obama put into place. That's why, they say, "government action is needed to mitigate the risks of oil dependence, because there is no free market for oil." This intervention contains both expanded domestic production and - surprise - plugging in our light-duty transportation fleet as much as possible and feeding our big trucks lots of natural gas. To that end, they write:

Regarding electrification, the beauty of plug-in hybrids and pure electric vehicles like the Chevy Volt and the Nissan Leaf is that they are powered by electricity, which can be generated from many sources: nuclear, coal, natural gas, and renewables. Best yet, these are all domestic energy sources, meaning OPEC won't be able to corner the market. And the retail price of electricity is far less volatile that the price of oil.

Hard to disagree with that. There's more at Forbes.

Bob Lutz praises Leaf and Volt, says national security requires going electric originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 17 Apr 2012 15:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Nissan Leaf available nationwide in March

Sebastian Blanco — Wed, 29 Feb 2012 18:20:00 EST

Filed under: Car Buying, Hatchback, Nissan, Electric

The wait is over. After the initial launch in limited markets at the end of 2010 and a methodical rollout in 2011, the Nissan Leaf will finally be available to order all around the U.S. starting pretty much immediately. Nissan recently sent out an email that reads, in part:

Your time has arrived. Orders for the 2012 Nissan Leaf will begin in March, making the Nissan Leaf available nationwide. we are officially a 100% electric nation. look out for an e-mail around 3/1/12 detailing when you can order your Nissan Leaf.

We know AutoblogGreen readers from Kentucky and Michigan have gotten official emails from Nissan, and expect lots of others have as well. The last time we spoke to Nissan representatives about the Leaf ordering process, we were told around 2,000 people have been waiting to order their car since they don't live in a place where the EV is available yet.

There is a caveat, of course. Nissan points out that "Limited quantities will be available in launch markets through the Nissan Leaf online reservation system." But still, this is another step forward for the electrification of the automobile in America.

Nissan Leaf available nationwide in March originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 29 Feb 2012 18:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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A word on Nissan Leaf sales, orders and reservation numbers [w/poll]

Sebastian Blanco — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 14:30:00 EST

Filed under: Car Buying, Hatchback, Nissan, Electric

What's up with the sales, orders and reservations of the Nissan Leaf? The Japanese automaker loudly trumpeted the 20,000 reservations it originally collected back in September, 2010 and Nissan's Mark Perry recently told AutoblogGreen that, since then, that number has climbed to around 26,000. Where do things stand today? That's not exactly simple to figure out. Here's what we know:

Number of accepted Leaf reservations: 26,000
- Number of Leaf models sold: 10,000
- Number sold in January: 800 (estimate)
- Number sold in February: 800 (estimate. Perry recently said these two months were sold out or nearly sold out)
- Number of people who haven't had a chance to order because they live in a state where the Leaf is not yet for sale: 2,000 (according, again, to Perry)
- Number of people who cancelled (unknown)
= 12,400 people or so

Nissan's Katherine Zachary tells Autoblog that the company doesn't share cancellation data, so it's not possible for outsiders to know exactly how many of the 12,400 have raised and then lowered their hands. Zachary added, "We have new people coming into the process every day, so it's really a moving target." Still, somewhere out there, there could be 12,000 people who are patiently waiting to snatch up Nissan's 2012 Leaf production. Even if 50 percent of them cancelled, that still leaves many months of strong sales coming for Nissan in the U.S. this coming year, even as production ramps up.

One thing that Zachary was willing to share were the colors chosen by buyers for model year 2012 Leaf orders. They are:

Brilliant Silver - 24%
Blue Ocean - 23%
Glacier Pearl - 21%
Cayenne Red - 19%
Super Black - 14%

Given that Blue Ocean was the Leaf's "Launch Color," we're a bit surprised to see it being outsold by silver, if only just. If you were going to order a Leaf (or if you already have), what color would it be? Take our poll below.

View Poll

A word on Nissan Leaf sales, orders and reservation numbers [w/poll] originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 30 Jan 2012 14:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Stephen Colbert mocks Nissan's call for unique wave for Leaf drivers

Autoblog Staff — Thu, 28 Jul 2011 12:58:00 EST

Filed under: Etc., Marketing/Advertising, Hatchback, Nissan, Electric

Because "saying hello to a Leaf owner isn't just an act of kindness, it's a sign of camaraderie," Nissan is asking, "How do you say hello?"

That's how a recent post on the official Facebook page for the Nissan Leaf is asking drivers to submit a photo of suggested hand signals so that Nissan can determine which Leaf gesture "waves supreme." Submissions must be in by Thursday, July 28. We can't imagine anyone sending in anything inappropriate here. Sheesh.

The Leaf's social networking site suggests three possible gestures: an open-palm wave, a two-fingered V-is-for-victory motion or the forming of a circle, which presumably ties in with Nissan's "The Value of Zero" ad campaign. We're rooting for "zero," but with some 4,400 Leafs on U.S. streets, it's unlikely the gesture will be used too often.

TV personality Stephen Colbert, however, has his own ideas. On the Wednesday, July 27 episode of The Colbert Report, the host openly mocks Nissan's campaign, saying that the eco-minded drivers who buy electric cars "love manufactured traditions created by the marketing wings of multi-national corporations." Colbert even goes on to suggest his own elaborate hand gesture, which you can watch in the video after the jump.

Got a wavy suggestion for Nissan? Submit it to Nissan's Leaf Facebook page by clicking here, and check out the full Colbert Report segment in the video after the break.

Continue reading Stephen Colbert mocks Nissan's call for unique wave for Leaf drivers

Stephen Colbert mocks Nissan's call for unique wave for Leaf drivers originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 28 Jul 2011 12:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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2012 Nissan Leaf gets higher price tag, more standard equipment

Autoblog Staff — Tue, 19 Jul 2011 15:32:00 EST

Filed under: Car Buying, Hatchback, Nissan, Electric

For 2012, the Nissan Leaf mid-size electric will receive some minor upgrades and a healthy bump in price.

Moving into its second model year, Nissan's groundbreaking hatchback will not receive any significant modifications to its exterior or powertrain. However, the decision to make standard the cold weather package - consisting of a battery heater, heated outside mirrors, heated steering wheel, heated front and rear seats and an HVAC duct to the rear seating area - and the addition of a quick-charge port as standard equipment (previously offered as a $700 option) on the uplevel SL model, means that pricing for the 2012 Leaf has increased.

Nissan has set the MSRP of the base 2012 Leaf SV at $35,200 (plus an $820 destination charge) and the uplevel SL at $37,250. That's a healthy step up from the $32,780 price tag on the 2011 Leaf SV and the $33,720 MSRP of the SL version. Of course, the $7,500 federal tax credit still applies for 2012 model year Leafs, meaning the base SV model's after-credit cost is $27,700. Nissan says a three-year lease on a 2012 Leaf rings in at a "highly competitive" $379 a month, a modest $30 bump over the lease rate for a 2011 model.

Here's an in-depth explanation of the complex rollout process for the 2012 Leaf: Beginning on July 25, Nissan will open up the 2012 Leaf ordering process to consumers with existing reservations in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Maryland, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia and Washington, D.C. Then, on August 4, Nissan will reopen the reservation process to the general public in Arizona, California, Hawaii, Oregon, Tennessee, Texas, Washington and all of the aforementioned states listed above. Later this fall, Nissan will begin accepting orders for the 2012 Leaf from residents of Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Jersey, and New York. Sometime after that, Nissan will open up the process for buyers in Delaware, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Indiana, Louisiana, Nevada and Ohio. Nissan says deliveries of the first batch of 2012 Leafs will begin this fall.

Continue reading 2012 Nissan Leaf gets higher price tag, more standard equipment

2012 Nissan Leaf gets higher price tag, more standard equipment originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 19 Jul 2011 15:32:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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