Nissan News
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General Electric, the conglomerate that produces everything from power-plant turbines to television shows, wants to jumpstart the electric-vehicle market. To do that, said CEO Jeffrey Immelt yesterday in London, it will place the "largest order in history" for electric vehicles, numbering in the tens of thousands. That order could come as soon as next week. It will likely be spread across mutliple manufacturers, since early production by General Motors and Nissan is limited, and will encompass not only passenger cars but also delivery trucks. Immelt did not specify whether the order would be...
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Chrysler To Tap Federal Money--This Time, for Green CarsChrysler may join Nissan, Ford, Fisker and Tesla in winning a share of federal loans to convert old factories to greener-car production. Automotive News reports that Chrysler has applied to the Department of Energy for approximately $10 billion in low-interest loans, to be used for retooling...
Martin Padgett -
Does the 2011 Nissan Leaf Deliver Its 100 Miles Of All-Electric Range?Your Mileage May Vary. One of the terms banded about time and time again by automakers as a justification for why your car doesn’t get the fuel economy it says your car should. The reason? Fuel economy is affected by many different variables, from the mood of the driver to the weather, tire...
Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield -
Ever Wonder How Nissan Makes the LEAF? Check this out!We have been all over the 2011 Nissan LEAF since we first heard the car was coming to market. We have even been “green” with envy as people have driven the LEAF all around the world, but we have yet to see one at a mile high. However, our interest has been perked yet again with the...
Jonathan McGrew -
What Happens When the 2011 Nissan Leaf Battery Pack Runs Low?The PR guy got us lost. Twice. But David Reuter, Nissan’s chief communications director, didn’t break a sweat even when the Remaining Range indicator fell below 5 miles and started flashing. Which leads us to think that even after the 2011 Nissan Leaf battery pack hits...
John Voelcker -
PETA Proposes Ads Urging Electric-Car Drivers To Go VeganAh, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, the gift that just keeps on giving headline fodder to eager editors. Which is probably just what PETA intended. We learned last week that PETA proposed to Boston's chief of environmental and energy services, Jim Hunt, that it run ads promoting the...
John Voelcker -
With the first Leafs now rolling off the production line, Nissan has given us an insight into how the car is produced with a short video. The video shows different aspects of production, such as how the battery is produced and installed, how the inverter is made and how the motor is made and installed. You also get a glimpse of various stages of the production line. One of the interesting aspects of Leaf production is how the car is built on the same line that's used to create some of Nissan's other niche vehicles such as the Juke mini-crossover, the stylish Cube city car and the Note city...
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How To Pay Just $12,280 For A Brand-New 2011 Nissan Leaf Electric CarAll the different incentives to purchase electric cars can be confusing. But if all the stars align and you're the lucky person who can take advantage of multiple incentives, there’s a slim chance that you could buy a brand-new 2011 Nissan Leaf for a mere $12,300. Here’s how it works...
John Voelcker -
2011 Nissan Leaf Electric Car: First Drive ReviewOctober has been quite a month. This week we drove a pre-production version of the 2011 Nissan Leaf, the first production electric car to be sold by a major automaker in more than 80 years. Unlike the range-extended electric 2011 Chevrolet Volt, which we drove last week, the 2011 Leaf is a pure...
John Voelcker -
Don't Blink In Disbelief As BP Offers Electric Car RefillingWhat does British Petroleum, one of the most-hated corporate villains in the past twenty years do to become a little more loved by environmentalists? Allow a network of electric car charging stations to be installed at its filling stations. But while there are more than 11,000 BP owned gas stations...
Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield -
Leaf, Volt, Fiesta & More Named Green Car of the Year FinalistsFive finalists were announced today for the 2011 Green Car of the Year Award, which will be presented next month at the 2010 Los Angeles Aut o Show. The five contenders span two plug-in cars, two hybrid-electric vehicles, and one high-efficiency subcompact gasoline car: 2011 Chevrolet Volt 2011...
John Voelcker -
Live: First 2011 Nissan Leaf Electric Car Rolls Off Production LineAfter years of anticipation and multiple media events, the day is here: The first production 2011 Nissan Leaf will roll off the production lines this Friday at 11:30 am Japanese time. The embedded video below shows the live event, and we hope that it remains archived after the fact. We'll shortly...
John Voelcker -
We’ve already seen first-hand how the 2011 Nissan Leaf’s navigation system can predict just how far it will be able to travel before it needs a recharge, and even find you a nearby charger. But while parts of the navigation system and energy consumption software are proprietary to Nissan and smartphone-ready applications for the Leaf are available on devices powered by the major software platforms, the heart of the Nissan Leaf’s operating system is powered by Microsoft’s Windows Embedded Automotive 7. Keeping It Quiet We’ve driven the Leaf several times, and...
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Simulated: Nissan LEAF's Range In Variety Of Traffic, Weather ConditionsNissan has released official range estimates, based on computer simulation of a brand-new LEAF (meaning with a brand-new battery), in a variety of weather and driving conditions. Whether the aim of the estimates is to reduce so-called range anxiety or not (even though early-adopters aren't likely...
Nelson Ireson -
Nissan LEAF is faster than you thinkRecently, our counterparts over at AllCarsElectric.com reported on how to make your Chevrolet Volt feel more like a Tesla (more here). Really, it comes down to one basic principle—competition. From the time the wheel was invented, and then motorized, people have been racing or competing...
Jonathan McGrew -
Two Things About Electric Cars The Wall Street Journal MissedWe read a lot of stuff about green cars and, lately, most of it's about electric cars. Sometimes the coverage is unquestioning and adulatory. More often it's cranky and dismissive. But major media outlets are working hard to understand the complexities of what is a huge, slow, expensive, and very...
John Voelcker -
Volkswagen Gains EV Experience With Ex-Renault ExpertDespite Volkswagen's green technology mainly being focused on clean diesels, the company are clearly serious about their EV program too, having lured Joerg Sommer from Renault to be their new sales director for e-mobility. The ex-Renault man previously ran the French company's EV brand operations...
Antony Ingram -
Your Ultimate Guide To Electric Car Charging EtiquetteThe end of 2010 is fast approaching and that means in a few short months we’ll see the launch of several different plug-in vehicles. But as the 2011 Nissan Leaf, 2011 Coda Sedan, 2011 Chevrolet Volt, 2011 Wheego Whip LiFE and others hit the roads of the U.S., hundreds of new electric car and...
Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield -
You've heard by now that I'm buying a 2011 Nissan Leaf. In case you're wondering, it's a Cayenne Red SV, which I'm hoping implies some hyper-real blend of Porsche and Lamborghini performance. Maybe? Maybe not. I won't be among the first folks to take delivery, though. Lance Armstrong already has his; my Leaf won't be here until April. But we're prepping for its arrival, talking with my accountant on wrangling the great tax credits available, and with the electrician to line up new service dedicated to the car. It's almost like adopting an infant, having to prepare the house--as well as the...
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Enterprise To Add 100 2011 Coda Sedans To Its Electric Car FleetElectric cars and the rental market seem made for one another. While you’re not easily going to be able to make huge long-distance family trips in an electric rental car, all electric rental cars are ideal for visitors to larger cities throughout the U.S., be they on holiday or stop-over...
Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield -
2011 Nissan Leaf: Free Rental To Allay Range Anxiety?Electric cars are becoming more commonplace on motorways around the world, especially in Europe where there are many urban cities that don’t require people to drive long distances. However, Nissan is starting to understand that the consumers may have “range-anxiety” do to the...
Jonathan McGrew -
2011 Nissan Leaf Tested On An Island Amongst The TreesWe love cars here at AllCarsElectric, but sometimes there's nothing better than heading out of the cities and away from civilization to enjoy all that nature has to offer. The last thing we'd want when we got there would be to find our favorite retreat filled with motor vehicles and the fumes they...
Antony Ingram -
After Top Gear, Ben "The Stig" Collins Digs Electric CarsWhat happens when mysterious masked racing driver of the U.K’s most famous car-based entertainment show reveals his identity? Contrary to the opinions aired on the testosterone-filled, gear jamming show he actually quite likes electric cars, and he's not been afraid to share his admiration...
Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield -
Getting Younger Generations Interested In Electric CarsCape Town in South Africa has just hosted the end of a journey of almost 2,500 miles on solar, hydrogen or electric power. The race, the South African 2010 Solar Challenge, was won by Japan's Tokai Challenger, a solar-powered vehicle with a top speed of 100mph which has previously won the 2009...
Antony Ingram