Nissan may have underestimated the demand for its all-electric 2011 Leaf. The company had originally planned to supply its dealers with two demo cars each, but with buyers essentially beating down doors to be among the first to hop behind the wheel, Nissan has decided to cut that number by half in order to free up supplies.
2011 Nissan Leaf Wallpaper
2012 Nissan Leaf
2011 Nissan Leaf Engine Design
2011 Nissan Leaf Interior Design
2011 Nissan LeafThat may mean as many as 1,000 additional Leaf EVs will be in stock when the car goes on sale in December. Nissan USA has only been given a total of 20,000 Leaf vehicles for sale on our shores in 2011, and the company hit that many reservations months ago.
Why so few? The real hang up is having enough batteries to go around. While Nissan is working closely with its supplier in Japan, the company is also building a new battery facility in Smyrna, Tennessee that should help crank out 200,000 battery packs per year when it goes online in 2012. At that point, Nissan says that it should be able to produce somewhere around 150,000 Leaf units per year.
Why so few? The real hang up is having enough batteries to go around. While Nissan is working closely with its supplier in Japan, the company is also building a new battery facility in Smyrna, Tennessee that should help crank out 200,000 battery packs per year when it goes online in 2012. At that point, Nissan says that it should be able to produce somewhere around 150,000 Leaf units per year.
