Next-Generation Nissan LEAF Could Be Offered In Crossover Form & 5-Door Hatchback

[evnow]

http://insideevs.com/next-generation-ni ... hatchback/

According to reports, the next-generation Nissan LEAF may be offered in both crossover and 5-door hatchback versions.

Autocar is reporting that work is already well underway on the next-gen LEAF and that “there could be more than one LEAF.”

Nissan executive vice-president Trevor Mann told Autocar that LEAF could be viewed sort of as a sub-brand for Nissan:

“There could be more than one LEAF. We’ve always said it needn’t be one car.”

“We’ve got the NV200 electric, too, now, but obviously we’re still studying other opportunities.

“What we’ve got to do is to make sure the market is right.We want to make sure that when we do the next one or we expand the line-up, we’re really taking the market intelligence that we’re gathering and using it. With our customer base, we have an enormous amount of feedback that we can recycle into what we do in the future.”

[DNAinaGoodWay]

Like the Prius line, only better. The more variety the better.

[TomT]

Well, if you don't count customer service or customer honesty or corporate openness, perhaps... But then, Toyota is not known for being great at that either, particularly the latter... I'll not hold my breath on this...

Like the Prius line, only better. The more variety the better.

[NeilBlanchard]

Yes, I have been wondering why Nissan has not already come out with other EV models. This would help sell more by meeting more people's needs and/or tastes.

[LeftieBiker]

Yes, I have been wondering why Nissan has not already come out with other EV models. This would help sell more by meeting more people's needs and/or tastes.

I'm sure that someone, somewhere, in Nissan's corporate lair wants to sell Leafs. However, most people involved in selling Nissans do not. There is a Nissan TV ad out out now (touting corporate fleet fuel economy) that actually shows a guy looking at a Leaf - and then driving off in an Altima. When most people at Nissan actually want to sell the car in volume, maybe then it will come in two or three forms.

[evnow]

I'm sure that someone, somewhere, in Nissan's corporate lair wants to sell Leafs. However, most people involved in selling Nissans do not.

When Leaf itself isn't selling all that well - it doesn't make sense to offer more choices that would sell even less. Afterall there is a big cost in offering variants.

With 200 miles range, it starts making sense as each variant will probably sell enough to justify its existence.

[DanCar]

...With 200 miles range, it starts making sense as each variant will probably sell enough to justify its existence

The future is bright long term, but short term the price might be high. Also of concern is the EV credit expiring.

[DarthPuppy]

When Leaf itself isn't selling all that well - it doesn't make sense to offer more choices that would sell even less. Afterall there is a big cost in offering variants.

Not selling well? I seem to recall the Leaf out-selling every other EV out there by leaps and bounds. Now I can't speak to what numbers a car company considers to be a good seller. But given the newness of the market and the range limitations on this first Gen, Nissan has done extremely well thus far.

I do concur that entirely new models are very expensive to bring out. That is part of why I'm a big proponent of companies doing EV versions of existing ICE models. That should be doable on a tighter budget. I love the Leaf. But to reach the broader market, I believe the companies do need to start doing more of their mainstream cars in EV versions.

[cwerdna]

When Leaf itself isn't selling all that well - it doesn't make sense to offer more choices that would sell even less. Afterall there is a big cost in offering variants.

Not selling well? I seem to recall the Leaf out-selling every other EV out there by leaps and bounds.

Yes, Leaf is the best selling EV in the world and US, but it has fallen WAY short of predictions it has made.

Examples:
http://wheels.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/11 ... hief/?_r=0 from November 2010:
"Nissan Will Sell 500,000 Electric Cars a Year by 2013, Says Chief
...
Deliveries of the Leaf are scheduled to start next month. Mr. Ghosn, speaking to reporters in Washington on Monday afternoon, did not say just how many he expected to sell in the first three years. He said, however, that the Leaf would hit 500,000 units a year in three years. Mass production, he explained, would lower costs enough to make the car a sales success without subsidies sooner than once expected. He said he once thought that number was a million cars a year, but now believed it was from 500,000 to 1 million..."

http://www.greencarreports.com/news/108 ... shortfalls

https://web.archive.org/web/20130816111 ... 24822.html - look at that 150K per YEAR production rate vs. http://insideevs.com/monthly-plug-in-sales-scorecard/

For some US sales perspective, look at the sales numbers at http://www.goodcarbadcar.net/2015/07/us ... model.html and Battery Electric take rate at http://www.hybridcars.com/june-2015-dashboard/.

http://cleantechnica.com/2015/05/05/wor ... -vehicles/ mentions passing 170K units worldwide, but Leaf began shipping December 2010. Also, unfortunately, Japan's 3/11 in 2011 messed things up for Nissan and many other companies, not just automakers. So, that didn't help, back then.

[evnow]

Not selling well? I seem to recall the Leaf out-selling every other EV out there by leaps and bounds. Now I can't speak to what numbers a car company considers to be a good seller. But given the newness of the market and the range limitations on this first Gen, Nissan has done extremely well thus far.

As cwerdna says, Nissan expected the numbers to be much higher. They talked about 200k a year just for US. At that time they wanted to have 5 Nissan EVs on the road within a few years. All of them have been put on hold - except perhaps eNV200 which just got released in EU recently.