Steve Puma -
TRIPLEPUNDIT - July 29, 2010
Leaf or Volt? --Ed.
The Plug-In 2010 Conference in San Jose was the site of major announcements by major auto manufacturers Nissan and General Motors. During their Tuesday morning speeches, both Nissan North America’s executive vice president, Carlos Tavares, and General Motors vice president of U.S. marketing, Joel Ewanick, announced that their much-anticipated products would be available in only a limited number of cities, at first, and that both companies will begin delivering cars by the end of the year.
Even though there are many similarities and differences, both Nissan and GM are betting that U.S. auto buyers will embrace the plug with open arms.
The Leaf and the Volt are the first mass-market plug-in electric vehicles to be sold in the U.S. The LEAF is a “pure” battery-electric vehicle, or BEV, and has no gasoline motor whatsoever. Its range is approximately 100 miles. The Volt, however, with an “all-electric” range of only 40 miles, augments its smaller battery pack with a gas motor that can recharge the battery while the vehicle is in motion. While this gives the Volt unlimited effective range, it means that the Volt is not truly “zero emissions”.
This also means that the Volt is a more complex vehicle, and this has apparently been reflected in the price. While the LEAF has been priced at $32,780, the Volt comes in at a much more hefty $41,000. The $7,500 Federal tax credit, and the $2,500 state credit available in CA and some other states, drops these prices to $22,780 and $31,000, respectively, putting the vehicles in completely different buyer segments...
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