The 2013 Leaf that will be sold in the States features a similar host of technical and equipment improvements as the Japanese domestic market (JDM) model presented in November last year, with one important exception.
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Before the launch of the all-electric 500e at last week’s LA Auto Show, head of Fiat product marketing Matt Davis told Bloomberg News: “Let’s be honest, ugliness is probably one of the worst forms of pollution. The Fiat 500e proves that you do not have to give up on good looks to deliver an electric car.”
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Given that the Japanese carmaker shifted 9,679 units in 2011, the target was around 20,000 units for 2012. “We’re not worried about it”, said Ghosn. “I feel very good about this objective.”
In October, the Leaf sold 1,579 units, an increase of 86 percent compared to the same month last year. This was also its best month in 2012. Ghosn was right about feeling good, right?
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The 2013 Leaf was unveiled in Japan on Tuesday, but Nissan officials recently confirmed that a similar suite of upgrades will be applied to the North American version, which will stop being imported from Japan and begin production at the brand's Smyrna factory in Tennessee this December, with sales to start in March 2013. The same should apply for the European version.
As mentioned, the highlight of the 2013 model is the revamped electric powertrain featuring new or redesigned components starting with the new electric motor, which will be used in the updated Leaf as well as the Renault-Nissan group's future hybrid electric vehicles (HEV).
We first came to know of the existence of the Leaf stretch limo back in the summer from Nissan itself, which even released a video of the eight-passenger model (see below).
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Both these numbers are a far cry from the 20,000 Leafs Nissan wanted to sell in the car's first fiscal year on the market.
However, Nissan isn't sitting with its arms crossed waiting for a miracle to happen, as the company plans to add a lower-cost variant to the range as part of a 2013 model facelift, Autonews reported today.
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Humberto Klee and David Wallak say that Nissan advertises a range of 100 miles (160 km) or less, depending on a number of variables like the road conditions and the weather.
The plaintiffs claim is that the carmaker does not say that the Leaf can attain this range only if its battery is fully charged.
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However, that's not what caught our attention; this is what did and we quote Toyota's press statement:
"This sales figure represents sales momentum that has propelled the Prius Plug-in to a stronger first full six-months sales pace (6,061 units) than Chevrolet Volt Plug-in (2,745 units) and the all-electric Nissan Leaf (3,875 units)."
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A total of eight Leaf police cars will be at the disposal of PSP, which is the security force responsible for policing the large urban areas of the southern European country.
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The only change made to the Leaf was the disabling of the regular model's electronic speed limiter in reverse, which in theory enabled the pure-electric model to be driven backwards as fast as it could go forwards.
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The stretched version of Nissan's pure-electric model was manufactured by Imperial Coach Builders of Springfield, Missouri. The custom shop added an extra seat bench at the rear end of the car and re-trimmed the interior with leather upholstery and wooden décor.
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While going in reverse doesn’t sound like much fun, keep in mind that unlike conventional powered models, the Leaf's electric powertrain enables it to be driven backwards as fast as it does forwards simply by disabling the regular model's electronic speed limiter.
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