Slitting Nissan price on new sheet

Paul A. Eisenstein, the Detroit Bureau

Nissan the price on a new version of its battery-electric vehicle leaf to 18 percent or around $6,000 will fall, the manufacturer announced during a press conference North American International Auto show.

The Nissan leaf S trim level now starts at $28,800, according to Executive Carlos Munoz, who noted that the $7,500 federal tax credit on qualified electric vehicles and various state incentives in added buyer in some parts of the country now a sheet for can buy as little as $18,000.

"We are confident that represent this a turning point," in relation to the demand driving the leaf, the first mainstream battery-electric vehicle from a major manufacturer in nearly two decades, said Munoz.

Nissan has the hand the strong headlines, but weak consumer demand late in the year 2010. On a global basis of the manufacturer has sold so far about 50,000, but while his goal was that global demand to boost Nissan achieved only a 22 percent increase in sales in the last year "it was a disappointment for us," said the manufacturer's CEO Carlos Ghosn.

The decision on the leaf drop price - other versions see even a small price reduction - comes as Nissan battery on a new production line in Smyrna, Tennessee will begin production of the car until now the car and his 24-kilowatt-hour lithium-ion battery in Japan have produced.

This meant a significant penalty for Nissan because the currently uneven dollar-Yen exchange rate. Carlos Ghosn noted the manufacturer's original business plan for the leaf expected an exchange rate of 100 yen to the dollar, but that has dipped to less than 80.

Carlos Ghosn said that the manufacturers realized that the price for the original sheet models a problem after listening to "much customer feedback."

Moving of the vehicle in the United States helps to trim production costs but Nissan has taken further steps to improve the production efficiency and lower component costs - especially for the battery, the single most expensive part of an electric vehicle leaf.

But there are other issues to address, he noted how the lack of an easily accessible charging network. Analysts call routinely per charge also limited range, with the sheet between 80 and 100 miles.

Nissan is certainly not the only manufacturer that has recognized the problems with the pricing on battery-based vehicles. Chevrolet has the Chevrolet Volt in recent months a relocation discount been sales triple it last year - helped, even though the demand after as before just as the half reached 45,000 in total, the hybrid had predicted for the plug in on the US market for 2012.

How Carlos Ghosn said General Motors President Mark Reuss TheDetroitBureau.com there are a number of ways to stimulate demand. Sale of the Volt swing after California regulators the use of the vehicle in the State coveted HOV lanes with only one person on Board approved.

"We go to watch and see what happens" as Nissan launches production of the model S lower price, leaf, Reu? said. "they have an effect, no question," said the GM Executive, though he would not commit on a similar strategy for the Chevy Volt.

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