Nissan rolls out electric car at new headquarters

[Omaha Steve]

Source: AP

By YURI KAGEYAMA

YOKOHAMA, Japan (AP) - Nissan Chief Executive Carlos Ghosn drove quietly out of the Japanese automaker's soon-to-open headquarters Sunday in the first public viewing of its new zero-emission vehicle.

It was the first time the external design was shown of Nissan Motor Co.'s environmentally friendly electric automobile, set to go on sale in Japan, the U.S. and Europe next year. The blue hatchback had a sporty design and a recharging opening in the front.

Designer Shiro Nakamura said the vehicle was designed to avoid a stereotypical futuristic design.

"This is not a niche car," he said. "We didn't make it unusual looking. It had to be a real car."

Read more: http://apnews.excite.com/article/20090802/D99QK6HG0.html

[glowing]

1. I was talking with another guest, and they agreed that after this initial

Cash for Clunkers, that every year, a cash for clunkers program be initiated for a month or so to promote more people to switch over... Then we would have more options.. There are some nice alternatives coming down the line in 2010 that I'd be interested in trading in on.. Would be nice for the program to have some money every year for the program for a month here or there.

Actually, the guest thought that the govt should have provided that first to see if it would help bailout the auto industry first... AND if we do own the car companies that we do, why don't we provide money for R&D to compete with the car companies from other countries who do... Also, make them build buses that are electric/ trains that are fast.. just commission them like they did when WW2 came down the line. Things that we all think make more sense than just a corporate give-a-way.

I like talking to guests at the hotel.. Nice way to hear what the country is thinking or feeling. Everyone I've spoken to want Medicare for all; screw the insurance companies. We aren't Patriotic on the insurance companies. They suck and its the only thing we can get if we aren't really poor or over 65. No one I know cares to keep the current system. If they were like me, their premiums went up an additional $100.00/ month for less coverage.

[tomm2thumbs]

2. video of Nissan car

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OewlbE9drg0

showing some of the features and look

[midnight]

4. I like how easy this looks to operate. I wonder how easy it will

be to maintain.

[madokie]

10. Theres not much to maintain

with an EV. They have suspensions down to a science so those components last pretty much for the life of the vehicle. What is to maintain I ask? Electric motors are pretty much non maintenance required items.

[bahrbearian]

18. Thanks

[dipsydoodle]

29. Looks a bit like the current UK Note.

[defendandprotect]

33. Thanks . . . but

couldn't watch it -- a number of times now a video comes up and there
is no "Play" or other activation . . . sound, etal -- ???

Don't know why?

[RedCloud]

42. Looks good, except it runs on the wrong side of the road!

[boomerbust]

3. 2011

All electric Ford Focus on sale in US. 100 mile range. I would bet on Ford.

[SoCalDem]

5. Does it come with a solar charger? I'd buy one if it did

:)

[boomerbust]

6. Yes

Solar charger included.:evilgrin:

[HysteryDiagnosis]

7. Build them with an option to run your house during a power outage

or after a hurricane (at little more than an idle) and you will have a selling feature many would find quite enticing.

[madokie]

8. How do you 'idle' an electric powered car

you must be thinking of a hybrid of which this is not

[HysteryDiagnosis]

11. Oops... yes, hybrid indeed.... and that would be the only one that

could do such a thing.. now I have some coffee in me, errors are likely to taper off. Good catch.

[madokie]

21. Cool

hope you enjoy the java, it works wonders for me too.:hi:

[ConcernedCanuk]

37. Simple. It just sits there and goes "hmmmmmmmm".

.
.
.

:freak:

:silly:

[wtmusic]

9. Pleast xpost in Environment/Energy

Thanks :thumbsup:

[tocqueville]

12. good for Renault and Oregon and Tennessee

Carlos Ghosn, said that the French-Japanese partnership will supply the state of Oregon with electric cars starting late in 2010 the latest in a series of agreements aimed at encouraging demand for the ultra-clean vehicles. The Renault-Nissan alliance formed a similar deal with Tennessee earlier this year to establish the conditions to encourage the use of electric cars in the central part of the state where Nissan has its U.S. headquarters. The alliance also has concluded accords with Israel, Portugal, Denmark, Spain, France and a prefecture in Japan. Renault owns 44% of Nissan.

[Deja Q]

13. Yet the article has no pics... and just what is wrong with the Volt's appearance?

Still, the Volt is a Chevy -- GM. At $40,000, they're making a very big joke. Pity it's not funny...

[MADem]

15. Other articles do (and someone put video above)

Japan's No 3 automaker and its French partner, Renault SA, have been the most aggressive proponents of pure electric vehicles in the auto industry, announcing plans to mass-market the clean but expensive cars globally in 2012.

Nissan will begin selling the first Leaf cars in the United States and Japan in the latter half of next year, adding more models in rapid succession.

...Nissan did not announce pricing for the five-seater Leaf, but Ghosn said the price, without the expensive lithium-ion battery that Nissan expects to lease, would be within the range of a comparable gasoline-engine car.

Other automakers such as Toyota Motor Corp and Volkswagen AG have also announced plans to launch electric cars in the next several years, but expect implementation to take time due to the vehicle's high cost, limited driving range and long charging times.

Nissan's Leaf will have a cruising range of 160 km (100 miles) and a top speed of over 140 km/hour (76 mph). -- REUTERS


http://www.straitstimes.com/Breaking%2BNews/Tech%2Band%2BScience/Story/STIStory_411424.html

[MADem]

16. The Volt.

They are fighting over other stuff, apparently: http://www.edmunds.com/insideline/do/News/articleId=153706#2

DETROIT — The war of words between the creators of the Chevrolet Volt and its competition are getting ugly. In a Web chat on Tuesday on the corporate GM FastLane blog, the Volt design director accused the competition of "grossly exaggerated aero figures that are not repeatable when we test their vehicles in our tunnel."

Bob Boniface, the Volt design director, did not name names. But he made the remark in response to a question by Lyle Dennis from GM-Volt.com, who mentioned that the Tesla Model S is said to have a coefficient of drag of 0.27. Drag coefficient is a measure of the aerodynamic qualities of a vehicle, a critical component for fuel saving.

Boniface refused to issue a CD number for the Volt, however. "People may think we are skirting the aero issue by not quoting our tunnel figures," he wrote. He added: "If I quote an actual GM-derived tunnel figure, it may not look impressive to you when, in fact, it is superior to most, if not all our competition.

"It is very much like the horsepower race back in the '60s. The Volt aero performance is second only to the EV1 in GM history."

Boniface said GM plans to test the 2010 Toyota Prius "this week. I expect the Volt to stand up to the competition," he added. . . .

[Devil_Fish]

40. GM shot them selves in the foot when they crushed the EV1.

And now they are bleeding to death. The Volt will be the final nail in their coffin because no one is going to pay 40K for a Volt when they can get a Leaf for 10K-15K. It's that simple GM. You sealed your fate when you decided to lick the ass of the Oil industry. Good riddance. Even your gas powered cars sucked in comparison to anything from Asia or Europe.

And before all of you here on DU claim that I hate America, let me tell you something:

Some times the truth hurts, but it must be told.

No amount of flag waving will excuse what GM did when they crushed the EV1. We could have been the leader in the EV industry over 10 years ago, but Oil money speaks louder then the people of the U.S. GM killed them selves with their nose firmly planted. I feel sorry for the workers, but the Exec.'s can go to hell.

[stlsaxman]

43. Abso- friggin'- lutely.... USA could have led the world in EV technology but, no.

GM fucked themselves- and us- over big in one fell swoop.

[WriteDown]

50. Same for you....

See post 49.

[WriteDown]

49. For the love of all good things....

Quit believing urban legends.

http://blogs.edmunds.com/karl/2006/06/gms-ev1----who-killed-common-sense.html

[lunatica]

14. Here is a photo of the car

With a slideshow link under it



http://www.edmunds.com/insideline/do/MediaNav/articleId=153946/firstNav=Gallery/photoId=90252

[Dawgs]

17. Looks pretty futuristic to me.

:shrug:

[dmallind]

26. Why? It's just like a smaller current Rogue with a different hood line and lights. NT

[fascisthunter]

19. not bad looking

[musette_sf]

20. shades of...

the GREMLIN?

[seabeckind]

22. Batteries not included?

I think there was some small print in the Reuters article. If it's more than $15k ... cheaper to buy the gas model in the long run.

I had read somewhere that an oil company owns the rights to the battery technology and is charging an exorbitant licensing fee. Or is that one o' them urban legends?

I like the car -- would fit 99% of my needs to a tee and I can rent a different vehicle for the other 1%. Eg, rent a gas or hybrid for that long trip when I can't use a train or plane for the long leg. Use the Lowes/HD truck when I to bring home some of that chinese plywood.

Comparing it to the Volt you can see why Detroit fell behind. Rather than supplying a vehicle to fit needs, define the needs to fit the vehicle.

[IDemo]

25. Chevron owns the Nickel-metal hydride battery patent

But the ones used in the 'LEAF' and most other current EV's such as the Tesla are Lithion Ion.

[Gregorian]

23. Now if we could only generate electricity, everything would be great.

I am optimistic, but until then it's a bit premature.

[provis99]

24. dandy. so where do we get all the electricity from?

Time to start up the coal-fired electrical plants. Not much of a step forward, in my opinion.

[Codeine]

27. This is why I try to explain to people

that if we're going to put a massive increase in demand on the electrical supply of the US we're going to need - at lest short term - nuclear power plants. Until then an electric car is as bad (or perhaps worse) than its dino-burning equivalent.

[diane in sf]

31. No, even using coal to charge them, it is significantly less energy intensive. As the

poster below notes,we have a lot of excess capacity, particularly at night when most people would be charging these cars. PG&E in California is pushing for plug-in hybrids to use that excess capacity.

[IDemo]

28. A Department of Energy study showed significant idle capacity

The study was done primarily with a focus on plug-in hybrid electric vehicles, and showed that "off-peak" electricity production and transmission capacity could fuel 70% percent of the U.S. light-duty vehicle (LDV) fleet, if they were plug-in hybrid electrics. That means there will be plenty of supply for battery-electrics as well until they become the predominant choice of consumers.

Nobody is trying to claim that there will be an overnight replacement of internal combustion vehicles with electrics. It will take decades before the ICE declines significantly, assuming the CO2 output hasn't significantly declined the human population by then.

[truthisfreedom]

30. Pictures!

[byronius]

32. I Dig It.

[high density]

34. zero emissions

I love that we can just get power from nothing these days. I mean we don't ever burn coal or other fossil fuels to make electricity.

[rollingrock]

35. Many states don't burn coal

natural gas, hydro, nuclear, geothermal, wind, solar.

California gets energy primarily from these sources, less than 5% from coal.

Washington State gets 70% of its energy from hydroelectric, etc.

[and-justice-for-all]

36. There is always a catch, damn it!

"Key to its success will be bringing down the cost of the batteries, which currently cost around $10,000 per car to make. Sensibly, Nissan plans to lease the batteries to customers rather than try to sell the car at an inflated price."

http://www.businessweek.com/autos/autobeat/archives/2009/08/post_4.html

[IDemo]

38. Nissan Rises in Tokyo After Displaying Electric Car

Aug. 3 (Bloomberg) -- Nissan Motor Co., Japan’s third- largest automaker, rose to the highest in 10 months after displaying its first electric car, aimed at a market it anticipates will be larger than hybrids.

Nissan gained as much as 6.5 percent to 734 yen and traded at 733 yen as of 10:28 a.m. on the Tokyo Stock Exchange today. It was the highest since Sep. 29.

Nissan Chief Executive Officer Carlos Ghosn said yesterday electric cars may account for at least 10 percent of global vehicle sales by 2020. Nissan has failed to match the popularity of Toyota Motor Corp.’s Prius hybrid and Honda Motor Co.’s Insight, and is betting demand for emission-free cars will offset the restrictions of limited range.

“Investors are jumping to Nissan after it actually unveiled the much-awaited car,” said Koichi Nishi, an equity strategist at Nikko Cordial Securities Inc. “Products that fulfill the promise of environmental-friendliness are encouraging.”

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=aLC7FCSbP09U

[ProudDad]

39. Think fewer "private" cars

Think more mass transit and "neighborhood" solar powered electric vehicles when it's necessary to haul more or go somewhere the light rail, bicycle or Pedal Jitney can't.

C'mon, we CAN'T AFFORD EVERY DAMN INDIVIDUAL to own a car and/or truck and/or boat on a trailer.

You're just going to have to travel less after the cheap oil runs out, folks...

And be happier -- like what's the 100 mile an hour corporate lifestyle done for you?

[dysfunctional press]

46. for those of us past the exburbs- we'll keep our private vehicles, thank-you.

[ProudDad]

52. There aren't that many who "live past the exburbs (sic)...

Most people jump into their cars to drive a few miles through traffic to and from work (why is the work located so far away from the living?)

Or even worse, jump into the car to drive 5 blocks to the supermarket then 5 blocks to the drug store then 5 blocks to the boutique, then 5 miles to the soccer pitch, etc., etc. etc.

If one contrasts the design of European cities/suburbs - designed when travel was by foot or horse) and the layout of USAmerican cities/suburbs (designed to accommodate the car) the major question is answered.

Think some about your driving patterns. Do you REALLY need a single, private vehicle to get along? Do you have nearby neighbors. Can you envision a lifestyle (hate that word) that could encompass sharing a few vehicles for necessary travel, adequate light rail, bicycle and pedal jitney instead of individual pollution producers?

Think outside the box -- soon you will have to since we've already arrived at Peak Oil and can't burn the shit if we wanted to thanks to Global Climate Change...

[dysfunctional press]

53. as you point out- our entire infrastructure is based around the private vehicle.

the problem isn't with the vehicles themselves, but with the way in which they are powered. developing new ways to power the vehicles is the path that we as a society has chosen.

but, if you'd prefer to live in a more european-like society, there IS a simple solution- move to europe. :eyes:

[Strelnikov_]

41. Carlos Ghosn is Ricky Wagoner on Bizarro World

Ghosn is one of the few execs out there that probably deserves their level of compensation.

[Romulox]

44. The chance of that vehicle going on sale next year in the US for $15000 is nil.

"It was the first time the external design was shown of Nissan Motor Co.'s environmentally friendly electric automobile, set to go on sale in Japan, the U.S. and Europe next year...

Nissan has promised that the Leaf, which goes into mass-production as a global model in 2012, will be about the same price as a gas-engine car such as the 1.5 million yen ($15,000) Tiida, which sells abroad as the Versa, starting at about $10,000."

:eyes: :rofl:

[IDemo]

47. I could see two things delaying the entry into market by 2010

One, I don't know how long crash testing takes, but that will obviously have to be completed before it is allowed for sale in the US.

Two, I'm not so sure that the recession will be such a dim object in the mirror a year from now. The economy could take another huge dump between now and then.

The cost isn't so unbelievable when considering the major cost factor - batteries, won't be part of the price. Electric motors are much simpler and cheaper than internal combustion engines.

Off to work now..

[Romulox]

48. I don't see asking customers to BUY the car but LEASE the battery as a viable marketing plan...

At any rate, basic common sense suggests that if where possible to market an electric car ("simpler and cheaper") at $15,000 or $25,000, other car companies would do so as well.

More likely, the car will come in at twice the price mentioned in the press release articles on this subject or more.

[dysfunctional press]

45. this is THE reason that i'm not going to trade in my clunker for a new internal combustion vehicle.

the next car i buy will be electric.

[Xenotime]

51. This is a great step in saving the environment. Now just discontinue all the other gas cars.