Nissan unveils new electric car in bid to drive off competition
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The new vehicle ‘strengthens’ the firm’s ‘leadership’ in the electric car sector.
Japanese giant Nissan Wednesday unveiled a new electric car with an extended range and semi-autonomous driving functions, as it seeks to battle off competitors in a sector it once pioneered.
The second-generation Nissan Leaf has a potential range of 400 kilometers (250 miles) between charges, compared with 250 kilometers for its previous version.
It also boasts semi-autonomous driving capabilities such as keeping the vehicle automatically in one lane on the motorway or parking without human intervention.
Hiroto Saikawa, president and chief executive officer of Nissan, said in a statement that the new vehicle “strengthens” the firm’s “leadership” in the electric car sector.
Nissan was an innovator in the sector seven years ago when it unveiled its first Leaf — which has sold 280,000 units — but has since had to contend with fierce competition from General Motors and Tesla among others.
Faced with tighter global environmental regulations, most carmakers are investing heavily in the electric car sector, sparking a ferocious race to create the next green vehicle.
The new car will be available next month in Japan, followed by the United States, Canada and Japan in January 2018.
The price tag in Japan will be 3.15 million yen (around $29,000).
Questions & Answers
Q.What are the key new features of this second-generation Nissan Leaf?
What are the key new features of this second-generation Nissan Leaf?
The new Leaf offers an extended range of 400 kilometres between charges and includes semi-autonomous driving capabilities. These features allow the car to stay in a lane on the motorway or park automatically without human input.
Q.When will the new Nissan Leaf be available to buy in different markets?
When will the new Nissan Leaf be available to buy in different markets?
The car will be launched in Japan next month. It will then be available in the United States, Canada, and Japan starting in January 2018, though the article repeats Japan for the latter launch.
Q.What is the expected price for the new electric car?
What is the expected price for the new electric car?
The new Nissan Leaf will cost 3.15 million yen in Japan. This is approximately equivalent to $29,000, as stated in the article.
Q.How does the range of the new Leaf compare to the previous model?
How does the range of the new Leaf compare to the previous model?
The new Leaf can travel 400 kilometres on a single charge. This is a significant improvement over the previous version, which only offered a range of 250 kilometres.
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