New Cars Rombengan 2011 - 2020

From CNN / Fortune, the diary of an electric car commuter: When an argon-blue Nissan Leaf, the first production all-electric, zero-emission family car to hit the U.S., whispered into my garage last month, I knew instantaneously that it was a game changer. New relationships come with hopes, fears, and surprises, and ours -- the Leaf's and my union -- went quickly from blind date to a marriage of convenience.

The Leaf is nothing short of a bellwether of the automotive revolution that is headed to a driveway near you. Tighter fuel-efficiency standards, emerging markets' requirements, fluctuating gas prices, and a race in powertrain innovations are all in play. Audi, GM (GM), VW, and others are jockeying for dominance. Audi wants to rule the luxury electric-vehicle (EV) market; its first entrant, a plug-in hybrid, will come to market in 2014. GM's solution, the Volt, has just gone on sale and offers a small onboard gas-powered generator to feed the electric motor and extend its range. VW will roll out its EV in 2013.

So Nissan wins the prize for being first to market with a production pure electric. The company's visionary CEO, Carlos Ghosn, saw the opportunity to dominate the EV category and pushed hard to get the appealingly bug-eyed five-door hatchback built. "With the arrival of the Leaf, it is in our hands, and that of the public, to steer our industry toward its future of sustainable mobility," Ghosn blogged recently. "We believe this innovative car will silence the skeptics and bring a valuable solution to life."

Nissan granted Fortune the first "long term" (eight-day) loan of a Leaf. The Leaf can go about 100 miles between charges, and Nissan maintains that 95% of U.S. commuters drive less than that each day. It was my mission to determine whether that was sufficient to withstand my local reality, L.A.'s worst traffic-choked arteries.

First, a pleasant electrician named Marty arrived to install the Leaf's 240-volt charging dock in my garage. ("It's as simple as putting in power for a hot tub," he explained.) The moon-faced, wall-mounted unit can replenish the Leaf's lithium ion batteries in eight hours.

Then my Leaf arrived with a flourish -- bright, shiny, and eager to please, as were its two Nissan spokesmen. We conducted a detailed walk-around, which uncovered an important fact: There was nothing complicated, obtuse, or unfriendly about the car. The controls on the center console were intuitive. I found the range-map and power-usage screens easy to navigate. A button next to the hood release popped open the little door on the Leaf's nose, revealing the port where the charger's J-plug (shaped like a gas nozzle but smaller) clicks into place. The optional solar panel on the rear wing collects power only for a secondary electrical system that controls the power windows, door locks, and radio. A black sack in the rear hatch area contained the backup charging cord -- a simple three-prong affair with which you can top off the Leaf in a mere 20 hours or less.

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From the The Californian / Associated Press: This was the year General Motors Co. and Nissan made good on their promise to bring mass-produced electric cars to the market. But don't count on seeing one in traffic soon. Sales so far have been microscopic and they're likely to stay that way for some time because of limited supplies.

GM sold between 250 and 350 Chevy Volts this month and Nissan's sales totaled less than 10 Leaf sedans in the past two weeks. Production for both is slowly ramping up.

It will be well into 2012 before both the Volt and Leaf are available nationwide. And if you're interested in buying one, you'll need to get behind the 50,000 people already on waiting lists.

It's still unclear just how large the market for electric cars will be once those early adopters are supplied. The base sticker price is $40,280 for the Volt and $32,780 for the Leaf, much higher than most similar-sized, gas-powered cars. If those prices rise, it could make them even more of a niche product than predicted. Buyers also are worried that advertised lease deals may not last, and a federal tax rebate of $7,500 could disappear if Congress decides battery-powered cars are no longer a priority.

The first electric car sales were marked with fanfare. The envy of green-car geeks across the country, new owners were treated like rock stars at dealerships. They were greeted by high-level GM and Nissan executives, followed by cameramen and interviewed by local reporters. When they got home, they blogged about their experiences, sent links of newspaper stories to their friends, and stopped to talk to anyone who expressed interest in their new wheels.

Jeff Heeren of Nashville, Tenn., became the sixth Nissan Leaf owner on Dec. 22. Nissan's advertising agency, Chiat Day, followed Heeren and his family around as they picked up their silver-colored Leaf, and have posted a video on the Leaf's Facebook page. Not surprisingly, Heeren is a fan. "What's amazed me the most in driving it is that it's just a car, like any other car," he said.

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From John Gartner, on Huffington Post: The first Chevrolet Volts, Nissan Leafs, and Smart EDs were delivered in December, but in the annals of history, 2011 will be remembered as the year that electric vehicles (EVs) arrived. EVs for sale to consumers will dominate the headlines throughout the year as average Americans begin to recognize EVs as they roll down the road.

Because of the stalled start in the 1990s, when consumers were tempted by and then denied access to GM's EV1 and other EVs, every milestone during the year will be magnified in the media. By year's end nearly new 50,000 EVs will be plugging in at garages and lots across America. The arrival of new models from automakers Think, Coda, Mitsubishi, Mini, Toyota, and Chevrolet (a few of which were delayed from 2010) will give consumers more options.

Any missteps -- and there will be some -- will be cause célèbre for the EV doubters who don't believe in or desire a move away fossil fuels. Humans have always been fallible in designing and operating vehicles, and replacing liquid fuel with electrons won't change that. While considerable safeguards have been put in place to prevent accidents when charging a vehicle, somewhere someone will find a creative way for failure, and we can expect considerable fanfare by the naysayers when this inevitably occurs.

One of the important trends of 2011 we've identified at Pike Research will be the slow subsiding of the catch phrase "range anxiety." Range anxiety is the supposed fear that both prevents consumers from wanting to buy an EV with a 80-100 mile driving range or from driving said car very far for fear that the batteries will run out, leaving the driver stranded. Range anxiety has been overblown, underestimating drivers' ability to monitor their battery charge level through the various dashboard displays and auditory prompts.

Like the arrival of EVs, the rollout of charging infrastructure has been slower than expected off the line. However, installations of public charging infrastructure such as the government-subsidized EV Project and Charge Point America will see hundreds of charging stations installed across many of the nation's largest metropolitan areas. The availability of public charging equipment will actually outpace the need for vehicles to plug-in, which will result in many charge spots idled for most of the day, or even days at a time. While this will be the subject of derision as a waste of taxpayer money, if EVs instead outpaced charging infrastructure, it could result in a serious setback as the minority of drivers who plan to regularly charge their vehicles away from home might otherwise wait to make a purchase.

The electric vehicles' second act will be a top media story throughout the year, even at the box office with the mid-year release of Revenge of the Electric Car (watch the trailer). Many consumers will get their first direct exposure to EVs by renting a car from one of the many rental agencies that will make emissions-free driving a premium service. Fleets including delivery vehicles and taxis will be critical for collecting data about EV performance and to build confidence that this time around, EVs are here to stay.

Driving or video-gaming? Both. From Edmunds Inside Line: The 2011 Nissan Leaf is already a techno-geek's dream, but the new electric car's telematics system offers something most probably didn't expect: competitive rankings for energy use.

Nissan's Carwings system records and displays daily, monthly and annual data for distance traveled, electricity consumption and average miles per kilowatt-hour (kWh), among other figures. Best of all, it shows drivers how they stack up against other Leaf owners — and awards a virtual trophy to the top scorer. Check this image below originaly posted on MyNissanLeaf:



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From the FinanzNachrichten: Portugal received delivery of the first 10 electric vehicles in Europe from Nissan as recognition of the country's pioneering work in electric mobility with the MOBI.E project.

The Prime Minister José Socrates is one of the ten recipients and will now travel exclusively by Electric Car for his official travels around the capital city. With this Portugal becomes the first country in the world to have a head of state head of government using an electric car for official matters.

Prime Minister, Jose Socrates, said:

"Portugal is extremely proud of the introduction of the electric vehicle. This initiative is only possible due the fast implementation and development of the Portuguese MOBI.E Charging Network, which is considered a leading example to the world of how to roll out electric cars. Portugal is the first country in the world to have a nation-wide smart grid for electric vehicles."

The other cars will be purchased by nine companies of the technological consortium that developed the MOBI.E solution as a clear sign of the need for a transition to Electric Mobility.

The cars were delivered Carlos Tavares, Vice-President of Nissan, in a Ceremony that occurred in Parque das Nações, in Lisbon.

Portugal Pioneer on Electric Mobility

Portugal is the first country in the world to implement an electric vehicle charging network at a national scale. The MOBI.E network, which currently spreads over 25 municipalities throughout the country, displays over 50 charging points already installed growing to more than 1300 normal charging points and 50 quick charging stations by mid-2011.

It is the only truly integrated system in the world, focusing on the user and ensuring open-access and interoperability. Such approach has drawn interest from many countries to the MOBI.E Programme.

The MOBI.E charging network is thus the first electric mobility smart grid and has established itself as a world industry benchmark.

Portugal has therefore become the definite living lab for electric mobility, and is well on its way for a more sustainable oil-independent future.

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Autoblog Green brilliantly spotted a tidbit of information buried within a San Jose Mercury News article that might help clarify Nissan’s delivery plans for the electric Leaf in the United States. According to Nissan’s spokesman Tim Gallagher, the Leaf's widespread roll out will kick off soon: ‘By the end of the summer, our goal is to have everyone in their car’.

Last September, Nissan stopped taking reservations for the Leaf in the US, having reached its goal of 20,000 pre-orders 3 months ahead of schedule.

In December, the first Nissan Leaf was delivered in Petaluma, Californa, to 31-year-old Olivier Chalouhi. Days later, the first ten Nissan Leafs being delivered in Europe were taken in Lisbon, Portugal, by the consortium behind the nation’s electric mobility plan, the Mobi.e, and the Portuguese Government.

Electric vehicle's website EV.com has named Nissan Leaf car of the year. The Leaf is the first mass-produced pure electric vehicle (100% electric, no-gas) from a major car manufacturer available in the United States.

Deliveries of the front-wheel drive five-door electric hatchback started in December of 2010, with the very first model being delivered in Petaluma, California to 31-year-old Olivier Chalouhi. Days later, the first ten Leafs delivered in Europe were bought by the Portuguese Government and the consortium behind Portugal's national mobility network project. The first year’s production was essentially pre-purchased online within months of it being offered.

EV.com sent its congratulations to Nissan and their CEO Carlos Ghosn, credited with 'not only bringing a automotive industry changing product to the mass-market, but also providing the spark that started an electric car revolution at the major automotive manufacturers'.

Tweet this post From DW World: Portugal’s long-term target of 750,000 electric cars fits with its smart energy plans. Already, the country has 40 percent of its energy coming from renewable sources.

The launch in Portugal in January of Nissan's Leaf marks the start of the rollout in Europe of what the company says is the first 100 percent electric car aimed at a mass market. Nissan targeted Portugal - where it will also soon be assembling batteries for the Leaf - after that country's government agreed to setting up a national network of charging points.

In fact, the network is to be compatible with any make of electric car, and is part of still more ambitious long-term plans for a genuinely "smart grid" that could help Portugal make fuller use of its fast-expanding renewable energy capacity.

In early December, amid ultra-modern architecture at the former site of the Expo 98 World Fair in Lisbon, members of the Portuguese public got the chance to test drive the Leaf.

Portuguese consumers are curious about electric cars

Comments ranged from the polite to the enthusiastic, with the lack of engine noise the most obvious characteristic of what at first glance looks like a regular five-seater family run-around. But the very lack of engine noise creates some new "problems."

"For instance, the headlamps have a specific design to avoid air going to the mirrors," said António Joaquim, the communications director of Nissan Iberia Portugal.

"The exterior mirrors on a normal car produce a lot of noise with the wind. But on this car, which doesn't make any noise from the engine, all the very small noises that on other cars are not perceptible are - let's say, uncomfortable."

The more obvious matter of charging the car seems straightforward: a small panel on the bonnet opens to reveal something rather similar to an ordinary electric plug.

"If you want to charge when you are parking inside a garage in your own house or in a shopping centre, it's better to have it on the bonnet," Joaquim added. "It's a completely different usage from a combustion engine. You just charge the car during your daily life."

Charging stations are scarce for now, but are expected to increase

There are two charging options: a partial quick charge, for example when you are on the motorway and do not want to stop for long, or a cheaper slow charge of up to eight hours.

Prospective buyers in Lisbon seemed to take the limitations of electric cars on board.

"It's a nice car, and a good prospect for someone like me who has an urban life, and drives about 30 or 40 kilometres to work and back," said one man, who declined to give his name.

The innovative design of the Leaf's lithium batteries means that you can drive the car for longer.

But even a fully-charged Leaf has a more limited range than a car with a full fuel tank. So the fact that it recently was named European Car of the Year - the first completely electric vehicle to do so - raised some eyebrows.

António Pereira, editor of Portuguese car magazine AutoMotor, told Deutsche Welle he suspected the competition's jury may have been anxious not to miss a trick, having previously failed to garland the first version of the Toyota Prius, which later became a hit.

The Nissan Leaf is, he said, an interesting experiment, and Portugal a suitably small testing ground, but with some problems.

"Recharging stations are still few [in number] and mainly in the big cities," he said.

"And in Portugal we mainly live in apartments. So either you have a parking space in your building or you have to recharge at night in the public recharging station. That's complicated because there won't be one for each."

Portugal pushing for dynmaic energy flow in its 'smart grid'

Still, the spread of on-street charging points in Portugal is the reason the Leaf is getting its European launch in the country.

The government-led Mobi.E consortium is installing 1,300 chargers around the country, compatible with all makes of car. In addition, the state is offering a 5,000 euro ($6,500) subsidy for buyers of electric cars - bringing the Leaf's price down to 30,000 euro - and a road-tax exemption.

Portugal's ambitious declared long-term target of 750,000 electric vehicles on its roads also fits with plans to expand its renewable energy output, going some way to addressing sceptics' argument that electric cars' environmental impact depends on where their power comes from.

"We have defined as a target to be the first country to have a nationwide and comprehensive infrastructure for vehicles and to work to give the necessary framework and incentives so that we can massively introduce the electric vehicle," Luís Reis of Mobi.E explained at a trade fair earlier this year.

"This is important not only in terms of the sustainability of mobility but also in terms of the strategy that we have for energy."

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Tweet this post From the New Scientist: Gentlemen - and women - plug in your engines. This will be the year of the electric car. No, seriously. After seemingly endless testing, technical hiccups and plain reluctance on the part of manufacturers to move electric vehicles from the concept phase to the showroom, it's finally happening. A fleet of new cars powered by the plug instead of the pump will take to the road in 2011.

Leading the charge is the Chevy Volt. With a 16-kilowatt-hour battery and a 110-kilowatt (149-horsepower) electric motor, it can go 60 kilometres on a single charge, plenty for commuting and weekend grocery runs. Critics point out that a 1.4-litre gasoline engine kicks in when the battery runs down, making the Volt a mere hybrid rather than a fully fledged electric car. And with demand for the Volt forecast to far outstrip supply, some dealers in the US are reportedly slapping steep premiums on top of the already hefty $40,280 price tag.

Even if the Volt fizzles, the Nissan Leaf, Ford Focus Electric and Renault Fluence will all be widely available in the next 12 months. Then there's Mitsubishi's diminutive i-MiEV, powered by a 47-kilowatt electric motor and boasting a range of 160 kilometres. It has been on the road in Japan since 2009 and is expected to go on sale in both the UK and the US in the new year.

Two factors have combined to bring electric cars to the mass market at last: the arrival of high-capacity batteries and the near-collapse of the American auto industry, which forced US car makers into building small, efficient vehicles that can compete with foreign offerings.

The biggest remaining obstacle is cost. Electric vehicles offer the amenities of a compact car at the price of a luxury sedan. Tax breaks in some countries should help. But if the quiet whoosh of the electric motor is to replace the growl of the internal combustion engine, prices will have to plummet. Competition and yet more innovation in battery and drivetrain technology could allow that to happen.

Tweet this post After that ridiculous scene with Fabio, oil loving Fox News decided to attack Olivier Chalouhi, the world's first Nissan Leaf owner, for supposedly getting Obama to pay for his Japanese car (lies). I suppose bailing out criminal bankers with tax-payers’ money is ok with Fox, though.

The unembeddable and unbelievable video can be seen at Fox. Chalouhi's response can be read below (originally posted to MyNissanLeaf):

I did check with Nissan Corp before accepting the interview, and yes it was a pure evil setup from Fox. I wanted to return the question to them with the foreign oil angle, but they wouldn't give me the speech back. Sorry about that guys, I should have known better, but I don't watch TV, I don't have cable, and I'm not from the U.S. The sad thing is that I'm sure that some Americans will watch this and think, "heh, he's right, why am I paying $7,500 to this guy?" (heh, not only is the car Japanese, but I'm French :p) ok, I'll stop here, I don't want to be dragged into political discussions... The car is great ! That's what matters.

Hat tip to EVPerspective

Tweet this post The Portuguese Prime-Minister José Sócrates said this Wednesday that electric vehicles will free his country and many other from oil addiction, as he got one of the first ten Nissan Leafs delivered in Europe.

‘They don’t make any noise, they have zero emissions and they’ll free our nations from oil addiction’, said the Prime-Minister. ‘These are the three reasons why I’ve always wanted to put Portugal in the forefront of the electric car, a vehicle that will change our cities and Europe’s transportation networks’, he added.

Mr. Sócrates also pointed that only with serious incentives European governments can promote public acceptance of the electric vehicle. ‘It shouldn’t be a thing just for three huggers’, the Prime-Minister joked.

The Leaf is going on sale in Portugal in 2011 with an estimated price of 30,000 euros, tax discount and state incentives included.

In the same ceremony, in Lisbon, Nissan’s vice-president Carlos Tavares told the media that ‘electric vehicles are vital for the future of the auto industry’, as well as ‘one of the answers to climate change’.

At the end of the ceremony, the Portuguese Prime-Minister drove off in the Government’s Nissan Leaf, one of the ten first such models being delivered in Europe.

The other nine Leafs were bought by the consortium behind Mobi.e, Portugal’s national electric mobility program. The Mobi.e concept has already been exported to Malta and Portugal is in talks with several other countries to implement its mobility project abroad.

Tweet this post Nissan is delivering this Wednesday in Lisbon the first ten Leafs in Portugal. Nine electric vehicles will be delivered to the consortium behind the national mobility program, the Mobi.e, formed by companies like Siemens, EDP, Critical Software, Efacec and Martifer, among others. The Portuguese Government will also get a Nissan Leaf to be used by the Prime-Minister José Sócrates on official acts. Sócrates is attending the cerimony.

Renault-Nissan is not an official partner listed by Mobi.e, also run by Novabase, INTELI, Rener Living Lab, CEIIA and Remobi, but is working with the Portuguese consortium on the development of a nationwide mobility network. Some 1.300 plug-in charging stations are expected to go online in Portugal until June 2011. The country has been chosen both by Renault and Nissan for extensive experimentation with electric vehicles over the last years.

The Mobi.e mobility concept has already been exported to Malta and Portugal is in talks with other countries to develop mobility networks based on the Portuguese, open model of business, national EV project.

Tweet this post A Nissan entrega esta quarta-feira os primeiros Leafs em Portugal. Dez carros eléctricos são hoje entregues em Lisboa às empresas do consórcio Mobi.e, responsável pelo programa nacional de mobilidade eléctrica. Siemens, Efacec e EDP são algumas das empresas que recebem o novo veículo eléctrico. Também o Governo de Portugal terá um Leaf para utilização do primeiro-ministro José Sócrates em actos oficiais.

A Renault-Nissan, não sendo um parceiro oficial do Mobi.e, colabora com o projecto português, tendo testado os seus modelos naquele país ao longo dos últimos anos.

O projecto Mobi.e foi recentemente exportado para Malta e Portugal está em conversações com outras nações para a implementação de soluções baseadas no conceito português de mobilidade eléctrica, que se destaca por um modelo de negócio aberto à participação de diferentes empresas e fornecedores. Até Junho de 2011, Portugal terá cerca de 1.300 pontos de recarregamento a funcionar em todo o país.

O Governo de Portugal oferece incentivos fiscais na compra de veículos eléctricos, sendo a dinamização da rede de mobilidade um dos objectivos inscritos no Orçamento do Estado para 2011, recentemente aprovado.

Fonte: JN