Nissan CEO abandons '12 electric vehicle sales target - Detroit News

[jas0707]

Washington — Nissan Motor CEO Carlos Ghosn finally admitted the automaker will not meet its sales target for its all-electric Leaf — in another sign of the broad struggle of the electric vehicle industry.

"The forecast we have given ourselves for the year will not be reached," Ghosn told Bloomberg Television in Mexico City on Thursday.

Despite months of lagging sales, the Japanese automaker has steadfastly refused to acknowledge that it could not double sales in 2012 to 20,000 after selling nearly 10,000 in 2011.

In October, the Leaf also had its best month all year, selling 1,579, up 86 percent from a year ago. For the year, Nissan has sold 6,791 Leafs, down 15.6 percent from this time a year ago.

Full Article at Link...

http://www.detroitnews.com/article/2...e-sales-target

[fakeout]

It seems to me that if they already cold weather is not ideal for EVs, I find it daring for GM to announce they'll focus part of their high mileage efforts on electric-only vehicles. The Volt seems more reasonable.

EDIT: Yay, I wasted my 1000th post on electric vehicles. Uh...

[hydrogen]

If Nissan can't, then how in the world can Tesla survive?

It seems to me that if they already cold weather is not ideal for EVs, I find it daring for GM to announce they'll focus part of their high mileage efforts on electric-only vehicles. The Volt seems more reasonable.

EDIT: Yay, I wasted my 1000th post on electric vehicles. Uh...

EV innovation will separate the men from the boys, and the Volt is Chuck Norris. I can't wait to see the Spark EV.

[HermPerez]

The new 2013 Leaf will use a heat pump AC system, that will reduce the electric consumption of the heater substantially.. solving the winter issues.

[BlackGTP]

Perhaps they should market the Leaf at the high end golf cart segment.

[b4z]

But wait! The leaf is so much better than the volt. Har har!

[scout62]

The new 2013 Leaf will use a heat pump AC system, that will reduce the electric consumption of the heater substantially.. solving the winter issues.

That may use less power in the winter but it doesn't make the battery like cold weather any better.

[Tre-Tre]

They have a problem it's called the Volt. Who would buy a leaf and worry about being stranded, when you can buy a Volt and have no range anxiety.

[MechEng]

The new 2013 Leaf will use a heat pump AC system, that will reduce the electric consumption of the heater substantially.. solving the winter issues.

I am interested to see how well and efficient a heat pump will work in an automotive application with such a high temperature differential. Heat pumps move energy. But the bigger the delta T the more energy it takes to move the energy.

But cold weather range is not the Leaf's biggest problem in my opinion. The fact that many of their batteries are seeing fast degridation in hot climates is their biggest problem. Is Nissan going with a liquid thermal management system on the next Leaf like the Volt?

[JeffInDFW]

The Leaf with be a nightmare around Nissans neck for a LONG time to come. With no heating or cooling of the battery like the Volt has, the Leaf batteries are already suffering. Nissan also does not protect their battery as carefully as GM did with the Volt, allowing the Leaf battery to discharge farther. It goes on and on. Ghosn forced his engineers to rush the Leaf to production even though they kept telling him it was not ready. He even BRAGGED about it to reporters! Just give the Leaf time to turn into the nightmare that it is.....

[spd98]

I'm glad to see this. They could be like Tesla and keep kicking the can down the road. Or they could just admit that they won't make production or sales numbers because the market isn't there. Something tells me Nissan may pay for this honesty in thier stock price. While Tesla walks around free (with its stock at prices over 100X what it's worth).

[BlackGTP]

Will the heat pump approach even work in northern areas? I live in CT, previously I lived in a townhouse with electric heat. I had true electric heat and a heat pump. The heat pump could only keep a 30 degree differential, so if it was 10 degrees outside it could only heat the house to 40 degrees. Even if it was 40 out and I used the heat pump it could keep the house 70 degrees, but it was a very cold 70 degrees. The reason is that the heat pump would push 70 degree air (so there was a constant 70 degree breeze in the house), whereas if I used the electric heat it would pump out much hotter air to heat the house to 70.

Obviously a very different application of a heat pump - but does anyone know if the same or similar issues would come with the Leaf?

[akbar]

Ghosn forced his engineers to rush the Leaf to production even though they kept telling him it was not ready. He even BRAGGED about it to reporters! Just give the Leaf time to turn into the nightmare that it is.....

I guess after GM spurned Nissan in the merger attempt (reportedly a big obstacle in the merger was GM not being satisfied with Nissans compensation for GM's electric tech), he was obsessed at showing GM he can do better and faster.

All this over reach may come back to bite him in the ass...

[DirtyMoney]

Carl Rove

[spd98]

A heat pump will not work at really low temps which is where the battery will need the most help. Once you go below 30F heat pumps use strip heaters and that blows the power draw up big time. I would think they should develop and LP or NG option lol.