First sold in Japan and the U.S. almost 10 years ago, the battery-powered Nissan Leaf has sold more than 360,000 units as of 2018, according to data released last week from Germany-based Centre for Solar Energy and Hydrogen Research Baden-Württemberg (ZSW).
Actually, California-based Tesla, which started selling EVs in 2012, came in second place, selling over 240,000 units in the same period, while Chinese state-owned firm BAIC’s EC series was the third most popular EV model as of last year.
The total number of electric cars worldwide has risen to 5.6 million in early 2019, up 64 percent from 2018, with China and the U.S. seeing the biggest growth. China has a total of 2.6 million EVs on the road while the U.S. has 1.1 million e-cars on its highways. ZSW includes data from both battery-powered Evs and plug-in hybrids.
The competition is intense
Nissan can thank the European market for its popularity. That is one market Chinese automakers have still not been able to crack. But since being introduced into Europe in 2011, the Nissan Leaf has become the most popular EV in Norway in 2018, when around 12,000 of the vehicle were delivered.
There is competition to worry about, and Nissan is already planning to roll out a new Leaf model called LeafPlus. The LeafPlus will have triple the range of the 2010 model. LeafPlus’ range of 226 miles (360 kilometers) will put it in line with the likes of Tesla’s Model S and Hyundai’s Kona EV.
The LeafPlus’s electric motor is more powerful than the base Leaf’s 147-hp unit, producing 215 horsepower and 251 lb-ft of torque. Even with the more powerful engine, the charging time will remain the same as the base Leaf model, and cargo capacity will not be compromised because of the energy density of the battery.
