Nissan Leaf for SA launch by 2013

The Nissan Leaf battery car will be released in South Africa as soon as the government puts the necessary infrastructure and incentives in place.

The Nissan Leaf battery car will be released in South Africa as soon as the government puts the necessary infrastructure and incentives in place.

Published Oct 6, 2011

Share

It's official; Nissan is to launch its Leaf battery car in South Africa "as soon as conditions allow", according to Nissan SA managing director Mike Whitfield.

He was speaking at the Johannesburg International Motor Show, where the Leaf is on display.

But what does that mean?

Since its world launch in late 2010, the Leaf has been introduced to countries which have implemented the necessary charging infrastructure and government incentives to support electric vehicles.

To date these have included Japan, the US and a growing number of European markets, and more than 12 000 have already been sold.

Following talks with the SA government, Nissan now plans to release the Leaf for sale in South Africa, possibly within the next two years, depending on market readiness.

Whitfield said: "We intend to bring the Leaf to South Africa in 2013, subject to confirmation of government policy on charging infrastructure and customer incentives.

"There is more work to do before we can confirm its launch in South Africa but this underline both Nissan's, and this country's, commitment to delivering a more sustainable future for road transport."

The Leaf's lithium-ion battery gives it a range of as much as 160km on a charge and a top speed of 145 km/h - although not at the same time, of course - and Nissan claims it's competitive with conventional vehicles in terms of safety, spaciousness and handling.

It's currently built only at a Nissan plant Oppama, Japan, but will be assembled at Smyrna in Tennessee from late 2012 and the Sunderland plant in the United Kingdom by early 2013.

Related Topics:

Nissan