Nissan electric car for sale in America in 17 months
Somebody start the countdown clock! We've been hearing promises from Nissan for some time now that they would be selling an all-electric car in America. They've trotted out several interesting concepts over the past few years but they still haven't shown a design that they are committed to building. While we wait for that announcement (maybe Geneva?), the director of product planning and strategy for Nissan America, Mark Perry has said that the company will debut a "pure electric car" with a 100-mile range in 17 months. It will seat 5 and be able to "fast-charge" in 26 minutes at charging stations being planned for spots along major highways as well as malls and other public places.
Tennessee, home to Nissan's American headquarters as well as a factory, is slated to be one of the launch locations and the company is already talk with the TVA and other utilities about a future smart grid and other issues. Perry said they would like to build the car and batteries at Smyrna, though they would have to import batteries from Japan at first. No top speed figures were given but he did say it would be fast enough to get you a ticket.
[Source: Chattanoogan]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
scammer-killer 9:24PM (2/17/2009)
I'll buy one....don't even have to see it first.
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Chris M 10:34PM (2/17/2009)
I'd prefer a 200 mile range and a fast charge just under an hour, that would be good for travelling with breaks for recharging and snacks.
But I'd be willing to accept a 100 mile range for a substantially lower price!
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Herm 8:24AM (2/18/2009)
Chris, get a 10kw generator on a small trailer and get unlimited range.. start it about 20 miles into your trip and it will keep the battery topped off.
Herm 8:21AM (2/18/2009)
if the price is right it will sell out.. the perfect 2nd car for moms everywhere... no more having to go to sleazy and messy gas stations and very little maintenance. Make it ding-proof with plastic body panels and it would be even more perfect.
100 mile range is kind of overkill but I guess that should deal with range anxiety.
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Gary 11:24AM (2/18/2009)
Only hard-core environmentalists who are blind to being realistic will buy these.
If I wanted to go on a short day trip, this thing is unusable--I'd have to plan more about where to recharge one of these things than where I actually want to go.
Sure, you can go buy a gas-powered car for long trips, but I thought the idea of electric cars was to save the planet--not encourage people to have extra cars sitting around for specialized purposes.
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gsolman6 12:38PM (2/18/2009)
Gary,
For a two car household this would make an excellent commuter car for 5 of the 7 days. Save the other gasser for weekends or for hauling.
For longer trips you could plan to eat a places where they had recharging outlets (when they come about). 26 minutes would be sufficient to fill you and your car up.
Brn 11:56AM (2/18/2009)
The more I see stuff like this, the more I'm convinced that the Chevy Volt is the right direction.
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Rick 2:16PM (2/18/2009)
I'm surprised no car companies asked for stimulus money to help create a grid for electric cars. Meters with outlets in them, gas stations with charge stations, roads lined with magnetic strips or something similar, that could recharge the car's batteries as you drive over the road, etc.
This is like coming out with a gas powered car with no gas stations other than one at home. They need to be hitting up governments and other industries to figure this out and start implementing it now or EVs will never overtake oil/gas burners.
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Jon 7:21PM (5/04/2009)
I also like the idea of second cars. My work commute is 8 miles. Driving around town for soccer matches, shopping or whatnot is just a few miles at a time. Sometimes, I go to the city, which is 26 miles. 100 miles would get me there and back with lots of mileage to spare. Also, my 15 year old gas-powered car is due for a replacement -- I'm hoping it'll last until this car comes out!
It's the 200+ mile journey that is the special case. It might actually be more cost effective to just rent a suburban (all the space you need, and 4WD) for those two trips a year to Tahoe or what have you.
JGG 4:04PM (4/20/2009)
I'd buy one in a heart beat. No more gas and I can ride around town! Heck what's not to love. Wonder if there will be a solar panel attachment to charge while parked at work or the beach. That would be awesome!
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KC 2:30PM (5/06/2009)
Nissan is counting on partners such as http://www.betterplace.com/ to build a network of battery exchange stations in metro areas. Other countries are already deploying this model at a large scale.
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EDW 3:20PM (5/23/2009)
I will buy one if the cost is affordable! I can't see buying a Prius type vehicle for 25K when I can drive a Nissan Sentra for 15K that gets 33 AMPG. The extra 10K can't ofset my cost. Soooo if the electric is affordable for the long haul I will get one or more!
I would buy American if I could find a Company that is willing to make a splash instead of the creeping of models micron by micron to add just enough improvements to stay with their American companies Golf buddies. The 3rd world Companies are taking over because of things like this. I would buy a Volt if it could ever get off the starting line and didn't cost so much! Why does it take so long to get it going? The cost will be so great for Volt 30-40K I don't see how the average person can afford it.
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Jonathan 4:24PM (5/29/2009)
I know there is supposed to be a $7,500 tax credit or something....does anyone know if that is just a one time write off at the end of the year or have any other information about it. If that's the case and I can just get $7500 tax break then it might bring the car down to an appropriately priced vehicle. Input or additions?
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black out car trouble 3:22PM (7/11/2009)
read somwere top speed is 75 MPH
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MINI 411 4:22AM (7/18/2009)
I'm currently driving an all-electric MINI-E and it's great. Hoping for the Nissan to be available just around the time the MINI-E trial ends so I don't have to go back to fossil fuels (and no, my electricity is not generated by fossil fuels -- google this: "green power network").
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