Nissan’s upcoming Leaf electric vehicle is expected to carry a hefty premium over its gasoline-only competition, but the Japanese automaker is confident it will sell at least 20,000 examples of the Leaf before the EV ever hits dealer showrooms.
The Leaf will officially be available for pre-order next spring, and Nissan is fully confident that it will tally at least 20,000 sales before the EV ever hits showrooms. “We are confident we will have 20,000 reservations for the Leaf by the time it goes on sale,” Carlos Tavares, Nissan’s chairman for the Americas, told Automotive News at an event in Nashville today.
Nissan has yet to release pricing for the Leaf, but early estimates suggest the EV will carry a price tag of at least $30,000 – more than triple the price of a base Nissan Versa.
However, fleet sales could help Nissan to reach that sales goal. The Leaf will be available for retail purchase, but Tavares is hopeful that a number of businesses – particularly in the Nashville area – will purchase the Leaf for fleet use. Nissan is currently working to develop a full recharging grid in several Tennessee cities.
The Leaf will initially be imported from Japan, but production at Nissan’s Smyrna, Tennessee plant is expected to kick off in 2012. Once the Smyrna plant is up and running, Nissan will have the capacity to produce 150,000 Leafs annually.



09/29, 5:34 PM
posted by:
brijan81
everyone just has to have a Prius in thier line up!!!!! mmmkay
09/29, 5:44 PM
posted by:
Samintosh
Another Volt’s killer….
09/29, 5:49 PM
posted by:
worst 3
how is it a volt killer it Electric only and a range of under 100 miles and will coast more then 30k so it not cheap either.
09/29, 5:53 PM
posted by:
brijan81
worst3-hey, im learning the diff. between the charger and the challanger…lol
09/29, 5:59 PM
posted by:
beatusmongous
Not a Volt killer, nor a Prius killer. Not even a lady killer. Still, it’s intriguing, and if the price is low enough, I’m game. For 30k, no thanks. For 18k, definitely. No, it will NOT replace my family car, so don’t even start that “but it only goes 100 miles and you will never be able to get out of town” crap. It’s a 2nd car, a daily driver, and one that will serve the likes of me well.
09/29, 6:29 PM
posted by:
DenverGuy217
I just cannot see spending $30k+ for a small vehicle that looks like it should cost $15k. electric milage is one thing but styling still sells most cars. Why don’t manufacturers ever seem to get that.
09/29, 6:40 PM
posted by:
A4
I totally called the price on this one.
09/29, 6:46 PM
posted by:
carstuff
A4, they have not announced the price yet. They probably saw your comment before and felt that was good enough data for them
09/29, 7:21 PM
posted by:
05Z88Path
So you could buy a Z or a Leaf. Well that’s a no-brainer.
09/29, 7:34 PM
posted by:
beatusmongous
Or two Cubes.
09/29, 7:50 PM
posted by:
worst 3
if it dose charger to 80% in less then 30min with special connection it could possibly be good as a taxi for cities like NYC.\?
09/29, 9:17 PM
posted by:
johnnycanuck
The more people they can convince to buy the Leaf the more gas will be left for the rest of us to enjoy cars like the Z.
As a Vancouver guy I never thought I’d hear myself say this, but Go Leafs!
09/29, 9:38 PM
posted by:
The Stig
@johnny,
Do they still call it “The Garage” or did the signs come down after GM went mams skyward?
09/29, 10:09 PM
posted by:
psiclone
LOL @ worst 3
Who told you this is a Volt killer? Madam, this thing is missing half the technology of the Volt and looks like a girly-boy car. Could you please provide some specifics as to why you’ve assesed this as a Volt killer? Emotional responses do not count.
09/29, 10:35 PM
posted by:
andy
haha i wouldnt call this a Volt killer at all, the Volt is a lot more of a car, offering a hell of a lot further range and you dont get stuck if the battery runs out of juice. price tag of atleast $30,000 it isnt drastically cheaper than the Volt either when you compare what you get out of each car..
09/29, 10:37 PM
posted by:
johnnycanuck
It’s still GM Place. And much like its namesake a beer that’s worth about a loonie costs 10 times that of your after tax dollars.
09/29, 11:31 PM
posted by:
lemonade
heavy business fleet sales? hmmm…..
Hard to pin this on a large variety of businesses as being practical for their needs. If I’ve made it this far, I’m probably pinching everything to just get by. Don’t see myself throwing down $30k for a little “business 5 door hatchback”.
09/30, 1:12 AM
posted by:
fordman
Toyota is coming out with the Branch to challenge the Leaf. Ford will wait and just buy the technology from Toyota and Ford will call theirs the Turd!
09/30, 1:16 AM
posted by:
worst 3
psiclone
i was saying it was NOT a volt killer to Samintosh i most deferentially do not think it a volt killer, the biggest threat to the volt is the volt it self (mostly price and use of new tech with always risky) then the Prius. but if i did yes lol @ me.
09/30, 1:25 AM
posted by:
leftwingagenda
depends on marketing…if it suits your company to be able to say they have an EV fleet and buy renewable power from the electric company, that’s a very green (therefore marketable) thing to say…
comparing this thing to other cars based on price is just dumb, though…cars like this aren’t about price/performance comparisons…it’s a freaking EV…a new genre of car…the first models are always expensive, but get cheaper as they evolve…the question is, how are you going to react when gasoline powered cars become 2x or 3x as expensive as an equally performing EV? ;P
09/30, 8:12 AM
posted by:
Need more oil for GM jackass
I would buy the Leaf by Nissan over any piece of sh#@ Buick or GM for that matter. The japanese and koreans are far more ahead than we are. What does GM have to offer- the Aztek? Come on. What about all those ugly nasty cars from Buick- look like they popped right out of my toilet. Be American- Buy high quality cars from Lexus, Toyota, Nissan, and Honda.
09/30, 9:10 AM
posted by:
2WheeledSpeed
What’s it feel like to be a mindless drone NMOFGMJack@$$?
09/30, 10:26 AM
posted by:
Smegley Wanxalot
Does it come with a rake?
09/30, 10:53 AM
posted by:
Cardemon04
lol @ johnny… “go leafs”… you just talked me out of any wish I had for this cars success. I could never support the Leafs.
on the subject though. talk is cheap. to Nissan: release a price and start pre-orders now. to all the “I’ll buy a leaf” tools: close you mouth, whip out your checkbook, and start writin!!
09/30, 10:54 AM
posted by:
DenverGuy217
Ha ha ha ‘a rake’ good one!
09/30, 11:26 AM
posted by:
And The Winner Is…
Too bad they can’t turbocharge it, they could call it the Leaf Blower.
09/30, 12:47 PM
posted by:
DenverGuy217
I can see high school and college kids already planning a new prank called Turning Over a New Leaf, literally….
09/30, 1:43 PM
posted by:
beatusmongous
I can see our next ENG vehicle being a Leaf, or another EV – Because Green is Universal!
09/30, 9:14 PM
posted by:
reedfast
Do these change color before they fall from trees?
09/30, 9:15 PM
posted by:
reedfast
i think not, and you dare to muck up the good name of the leaf family with your technology and fuel efficiency.
09/30, 11:22 PM
posted by:
psiclone
worst 3, my sincere apologies. Your reply was that of a gentleman considering my mistake. I looked too quickly and grabbed the wrong name from above. Not only was that post was meant for Samintosh but I happen to fully agree with your posts.