The battle for sales supremacy in the eco-friendly segment between Nissan’s pure electric Leaf and GM’s extended range Chevrolet Volt is really heating up lately, with the two models separated by only 17 cars in U.S. sales figures so far this year.
And while GM is betting on the introduction of a slightly lower priced base model as well as the extended availability of the Volt in all 50 states to win this battle, Nissan is counting on increasing output to ease customer delays after production was disrupted by the Japan’s earthquake and tsunami on March 11.
Nissan’s chief executive officer Carlos Ghosn told reports on Monday that the company will deliver a record number of electric cars in the States this month. “We’re going to have 1,500 cars delivered in the month of June, which is going to be the largest amount we’ve delivered in the United States,” said Ghosn. “This should help, a little bit, restart the enthusiasm.”
Even though Nissan secured 20,000 reservations in the US in 2010, the company will not be able to cover all orders due to the production shortages in Japan. However, Ghosn noted Nissan aims to deliver a minimum of 10,000 Leafs to the States this year.
The Leaf is currently available in the states of Arizona, California, Hawaii, Oregon, Tennessee, Texas and Washington, but Nissan said it will add Virginia, Maryland, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Florida and Alabama to the list before the end of the year.
Ghosn said that in the initial phase of Leaf sales, the company’s goal is to get customer input to address any potential issues with the car.
“When you introduce a new technology, solving all the problems before launching the technology is an illusion,” said the Nissan boss. “You have to listen to customers and solve the problems as they appear.”
Source: San Francisco Chronicle
