The first person to order a Nissan LEAF electric car was a woman from Kerry through her local Nissan dealer. She also got to unveil the car at its official launch in Dublin Docks at the end of July.
Minister Eamonn Ryan will most likely have one, and ESB boss Padraic McManus as the ESB are involved in rolling out charging points all over the country.
On average, it will cost around €232 (less than €20 a month) to maintain a LEAF EV on the road; a saving of 80 percent on running costs compared to 'normal' vehicles
Nissan Ireland are looking to sell 1,000 units over the next 18 months.
This is the first time a carmaker has attempted to build an electric car from scratch. Cars will be built in Japan until 2013 when production moves to the company's Sunderland plant where it will be built alongside Qashqai and Juke.
beautifull & best intirior cars
The electric motor is 'fuelled' by a laminated lithium-ion battery with a power output of more than 90 kW.
Standard features include air conditioning, satellite navigation, cruise control and a parking camera and a quick charge socket. It will also have driver/passenger/side/curtain airbags as well as Electronic Stability Control.
luxery cars images
Driving it was a doddle after a few instructions to do with the gearstick which looks like the mouse you use for your computer. The performance from a standstill is really impressive as full power is available from the 'off'.
Battery Consortium only has a goal of producing batteries at $400 per kWh by mid-decade.
To those with ANY knowledge of the market Nissan's price comes as no great surprise. The wholesale price for small format Li-ion cells has been around that level for several years. 18650 li-ion batteries have been sold on eBay at the price since at least 2006.
best famly cars
It's an early adopter's dream. Now Nissan has revealed the secret behind the Leaf's reasonable price: a reasonably priced battery pack.
While we've seen published 'opinion' from the likes of Vinod Khosla, Boston consulting and engineering undergrads at Carnegie Mellon all predicted doom for EVs based on a lithium-ion batteries cost around $1000 to $1,200 per kWh, the Leaf's 24 kWh battery pack costs just $9,000 to produce, or $375 per kWh, according to a report in the Times of London.
The trip computer shows instant/average energy consumption, driving time, and driving range. Maximum speed is 140kmh. And the car seats five in comfort.
Early indications are that insurance costs for the LEAF will be lower than for a 1.6 petrol or 1.6 diesel car.
