(page 102)
...The LEAF 1 was an outstanding initial effort, as evidenced by how well the ~300k gen 1 LEAFs are still performing, and its continuing high worldwide sales rate to date.
It's unexpectedly long production life has given Nissan the luxury of time to make major improvements, and I expect LEAF 2 will probably be a significant advance from our BEVs.
Just how much more efficient, lighter, and less expensive than the LEAF 1, and how many new features it will have, will be announced in the next few months.
I'm
impatiently driving my 2011 (over 6 years and over 52k miles on the O.E. battery pack, and covered 95.7 single-charge miles the day before yesterday, from "100%" to the VLBW.) and waiting for the LEAF 2 news before I decide what my next BEV will be.
Very interesting story below on how Nissan/Renault's culture of delegating authority, working cooperatively with partners and suppliers,
and benefiting from long experience in building cars (
The Anti-Tesla approach) has revolutionized the entry-level ICEV.
We might be reading a similar story about the development of the gen 2 (or maybe the gen 3) LEAF/Zoe in the future...
True Disruptors Of The Auto Industry: 118-Year-Old Renault, A 71-Year-Old Man And A $4,100 Car
There has been a lot of talk about disrupting the auto industry. If you want to see disruption in full-scale beauty, you must go to Chennai, India. The city formerly known as Madras has become a veritable hotbed of automotive disruption, and not just because the mercury constantly flirts with the 100 degree mark. Some 30 dusty, and very nerve-rattling miles south of the airport is the Oragadam Industrial Corridor, and right in the middle of it is Renault and Nissan’s joint production site, which is trying to crank out the $4,100 Renault Kwid as quickly as it is snapped up, usually by first-time buyers, who finally can afford a real car.
Some 40 years ago, we finally could afford a real computer, 64K and all -- now a real car can be bought at a similar price.
For those who think the outrageous price is not low enough, the factory has just started to produce a $3,700 derivative, the Datsun Redi-GO. Both are real cars, on a brand-new platform, and they already disrupted the marketing plans of Maruti-Suzuki, which until now has dominated the rapidly growing Indian car market, but probably not for a lot longer. (The secret of how Renault-Nissan has achieved the cars’ ultra-low price is revealed here. But does Renault-Nissan make money with the cars? The answer is here.)...
https://www.forbes.com/sites/bertelschmitt/2017/05/22/true-disruptors-of-the-auto-industry-a-118-year-old-carmaker-a-71-year-old-man-a-4100-car/#6d1e8b1d69b0