The technology behind electric vehicles has certainly come a long way, but fully electric vehicles have yet to make it into the mainstream. Aside from the Tesla sports car, automakers have yet to produce electric cars that are not only efficient, but are affordable, safe, and reliable. One automaker that promises to change that is Nissan. With its first electric vehicles reaching production by 2010, Nissan is hoping to become a leader in zero-emissions vehicles in the near future.
Initially, Nissan had planned to offer its first electric vehicle only to commercial fleet customer, but has since planned a more robust launch of vehicle says Nissan Chattanooga. Confirming these lofty EV goals this week was Nissan CEO Carlos Ghosn who said that the new car will become available in the U.S. and in Japan in limited numbers as early as April 2009. Following mass production, one Tennessee Nissan dealer remains exited about the prospect of having these vehicles arrive in Nissan showrooms by 2012.
Production of the upcoming Nissan EV will likely include production facilities in Japan, as well as at Nissan’s facilities in Tennessee, where as many as 100,000 units could be produced. Although many detaild still remain unknown, Chattanooga Auto Loans points out that Ghosn stressed that the car will be affordable or else it simply won’t work.
Based on examples of recent test vehicles, the Nissan EV will likely feature a 35kWh battery pack that will be leased to keep costs down. The electric motor will also drive the front wheel and be capable of mileage comparable to around 367 miles per gallon.
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As Nissan prepares new electric vehicles, look to Nissan in the News for the latests details.
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