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Nissan Sets 2010 For U.S. Electric Car Launch

Discussion in 'Prius, Hybrid, EV and Alt-Fuel News' started by cwerdna, Mar 6, 2008.

  1. cwerdna

    cwerdna Senior Member

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    Green Car Advisor - Nissan Sets 2010 For U.S. Electric Car Launch

    Nissan Sets 2010 For U.S. Electric Car Launch[​IMG]
    Nissan Motor Co., which has come late to the hybrid game, doesn't want to be caught unplugged when electric cars start hitting the market, says company boss Carlos Ghosn.
    An electric Nissan will be introduced in the U.S. in 2010, he told reporters Wednesday during an impromptu discussion at the Geneva Motor Show, with a global lauch of the vehicle to follow in 2012.
    Ghosn, who chairs both Nissan and its French partner, Renault, said the electric car would be sold worldwide by both brands. He did not elaborate on brand distrinctions, model variences or particulars of the electric drive system being prepared, but did say the cars would not be identical.
    Renault would target the European market, Ghosn said, while Nissan would target Asia and the U.S.
     
  2. efusco

    efusco Moderator Emeritus
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    2010 is VERY close...that's quite an announcement to have kept under their hats this long. I really really hope it's true, affordable, has good performance, styling, range, etc. This is VERY big news.
     
  3. SyCo

    SyCo Member

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    Canada in 2012 ? Or will it be available in 2010 like the Altima 2007 which was also available in Canada from the start !? :rolleyes:

    Well the sooner the better :D
     
  4. vuapplepudding

    vuapplepudding New Member

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    Why is Toyota waiting to announce what they have? They have test models rolling around.

    And why are the 2009 Toyota models already being advertised and sold, BUT, the 2009 Prius is still void of any news?

    I cannot wait to get a hold of my first affordable electric car.

    I would have never thought of Nissan as a contender in the electric race other than their electric forklifts.

    I graduate in 2010, so this would be a SWEET graduation present. HINT...HINT to my friends and family.
     
  5. hill

    hill High Fiber Member

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    Let's all pray it aint more vaporware. If true? WOW !! Go Nisan! GM (still working on choosing a battery manufacturer and a concept/design that's somewhat aerodynamic) must be cleaning their shorts, on that anouncement.
     
  6. clett

    clett New Member

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  7. TonyPSchaefer

    TonyPSchaefer Your Friendly Moderator
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    Speaking of range, what is the projected range?

    It's one thing to say that someone is going to make an electric vehicle, it's something completely different to announce a predicted range and charge time. I didn't find either in the article. Let's face it, you can drop several LIon batteries in a car, call it an electric vehicle, and be done with it.

    I'll celebrate when I see specs and a production model.
     
  8. SyCo

    SyCo Member

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  9. efusco

    efusco Moderator Emeritus
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    If that's accurate this thing is dead before it starts. Other than a few EV fanatics that'll never go with the public at large....unless it comes in at under $20k...even then I'm not so sure.
     
  10. GeekEV

    GeekEV Member

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    I do not know. Maybe I'm just an EV fanatic (more of a tech fanatic really), but that would be perfect for a commuter vehicle for me. 99 miles is more than enough to get me around town for a day.
     
  11. Fibb222

    Fibb222 New Member

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    It might not obtain complete public acceptance, but I doubt its appeal will be small considering where gas prices might be by then. A great second family car perhaps?
     
  12. MountainStone

    MountainStone Light Bringer

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    Hitting the nail right on the head here. My family doesn't need more than one vehicle capable of cross-country trips. An electric car with 99-mile range would fit my daily commuting needs perfectly. I suspect it would fit the daily commuting needs of millions of families.

    I can't wait to buy the first production electric car with warranty to enter the market. 2010 seems wildly optimistic, but at least we have some dialogue.
     
  13. JSH

    JSH Senior Member

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    I agree. My wife and I could get buy with a car that has a true range of 50 miles for 95% of our driving. (Not counting my 130 mile per day commute) We would keep the Prius for my commute and for interstate driving and use the EV for her 12 mile commute and city driving.

    I'm not sure that 2010 is wildly optimistic. To reach that goal they would need to have first generation prototypes testing this summer.
     
  14. Darwood

    Darwood Senior Member

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    That is exactly what I'm waiting for. I've said I don't care who makes it. I'll buy the first car that comes out that can get me around town without the use of gas (assuming a reasonable price). My wife and I both average 10 miles a day. I don't need a 2oo mile range. I need insulation from gas supply problems and a removal of the pain I get from pumping my money over to countries that hate us.
     
  15. daniel

    daniel Cat Lovers Against the Bomb

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    I'd feel a lot more inclined to take this seriously if the picture looked like a real car, rather than something out of a sci-fi movie. You know good and well nobody is actually going to market something that looks like that. Therefore there isn't even a prototype. Just an "artist's rendition." That picture came out of the publicity department, not the engineering department. That means it hasn't even gotten to the engineering guys yet.

    I guess they figured if GM can announce a make-believe car, they can do the same. Dream on, guys, this is a pretty obvious spoof.
     
  16. bruceha_2000

    bruceha_2000 Senior Member

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    Looks like they missed there :)

    Same issue as any other EV. 81 mile range (I presume that is under optimal conditions meaning probably 25 MPH not 65 MPH) will meet some people's needs but I think the market will be small. If I could get a 40 mile (mostly non interstate) plug-in Prius, it would be cheaper than an 81 Mile EV (even at 65 MPH) that would have to be supplemented with extended range rental cars and I would still be an EV driver most of the time.

    Obviously we all have our own 'minimum EV range' requirements. :) Still, I can't see any EV as the best solution for most people unless they are REALLY cheap. Especially not if decent range Plug-in hybrids are available since they CAN be EV vehicles but don't have to be when you need to go farther afield.
     
  17. MountainStone

    MountainStone Light Bringer

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    Seems Nissan is a little farther along than I thought: Nissan Electric Car

    If somebody can 'explain to me how to make that link smaller I'll be glad to do it; the upshot is that according to the article:

    "The company is already testing its lithium ion batteries in the Cube, a car which is being sold in Japan and is reportedly planning to sell the next-generation Cube in the US."

    So if they are currently testing Li-ion batteries, does that put them on schedule to launch a production vehicle in 2 years?

    I agree that we all have our own 'minimum EV range' requirements. In a one-car family a pure electric vehicle will not be the best choice if long-range trips are regular occurances. However, I believe MOST families in this country are two-car families (like mine) where one vehicle could be replaced with an EV, keeping the second PHEV vehicle for commuting and also long-range trips. I would gladly pay a little more for a pure EV option, considering that fuel costs and maintenance costs will be dramatically lower than a gasoline-powered vehicle, and lower than even a PHEV (which still needs all the normal maintenance of a pure ICE vehicle).
     
  18. daniel

    daniel Cat Lovers Against the Bomb

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    1. Write a descriptive term, or even something as simple as the word "here."

    2. Highlight that word or term.

    3. Click on the "Insert Link" icon just above the test entry window.

    A drop-down or pop-up box will open.

    4. Paste the URL into the window in that box.

    5. Hit the Return key.

    Your original word or descriptive term will be a link.

    Note that if you merely put the URL into the text of your message, the board will default to replacing it with the description used on the web page you are linking to, which in my opinion is annoying as hell. You can prevent that from happening by scrolling down and unchecking the option "Automatically retrieve titles from external links" which in my opinion should be unchecked by default.

    To generate short URLs on boards that don't offer the ability described above, or for sending in emails, check out:

    www.tinyurl.com

    That web page allows you to feed it a long URL, and it generates a tiny URL which points to the same page.
     
  19. MountainStone

    MountainStone Light Bringer

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    To quote Homer Simpson: "Computers can do that?"

    Thanx for the lesson, Daniel. It worked just as you said it would. I arrive at my next permanent duty station there in Tacoma at McChord AFB in November; I owe you a beer. Two if you let me drive your ZAP.
     
  20. SyCo

    SyCo Member

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    Well it does -->
    [​IMG]

    Don't know why the news use a sci-fi picture.:noidea: