Current Issue : Nissan Electric Car

Nissan to unveil first mass produced electric car on Sunday

By: Irma Venter
30th July 2009
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Japanese vehicle manufacturer Nissan will unveil its first mass-produced electric vehicle, due for launch in Japan and the US next year, on Sunday.

The five-door hatchback will have a range of 160 km before it would need recharging, says Nissan South Africa product engineering division vehicle test group manager Paul Gurney.

The vehicle is scheduled for its European debut in 2011, with the suitable global markets to follow in 2012.

Japanese production of the vehicle - its name remaining a secret - will start at 50 000 units a year, with other possible global production sites being scouted.

Gurney says the emphasis has been on developing a "valid vehicle" delivering a solid performance, with sales not necessarily driven by an environmental agenda, even though it is a zero-emission vehicle.

The vehicle makes use of an on-board computer to advise the driver on remaining battery (lithium-ion) range - with recharging happening overnight at a simple wall-plug or dedicated en-route station - as well as on the location of the nearest recharge station.

Gurney says Japanese fuel cost on a comparable internal combustion vehicle will come to around R600/month for a 1 000 km drive-distance, with the electric vehicle offering a recharge bill of roughly R120/month for the same distance

Nissan South Africa brand and corporate communications GM Pat Senne notes that South Africa may only receive the Nissan electric vehicle once certain measures are in place, such as recharging infrastructure, incentives, and once consumers have been educated on the use of such vehicles, which spells a radical shift from checking a fuel gauge.

The Japan launch will go hand-in-hand with government incentives, such as tax reductions, which will see the price of the much more expensive electric vehicle drop to equal that of a standard vehicle.

"Nissan South Africa is busy working with the Department of Trade and Industry on the concept of zero-emission vehicles," says Senne, unwilling to divulge more information.

Nissan has already signed partnership agreements with around 30 government bodies for the introduction of its electric vehicle worldwide. South Africa is not included in this number.

These agreements set the framework for the incentives necessary to make the launch of the electric vehicle viable.

Signatories include Singapore, Israel, Portugal, the US state Tennessee, Denmark and China.

Nissan South Africa product engineering division GM Fumio Uchiyama says the cost of the electric vehicle should reduce once economies of scale step in, and once battery technology improves.

The battery is the most expensive component of the vehicle.

Nissan has a target of reducing carbon dioxide emissions from its vehicles by 90% by 2050.
Edited by: Creamer Media Reporter