From Free Press: More than 6,600 people had reserved a Nissan Leaf by Friday morning, just a few days after the automaker started taking reservations for the all-electric vehicle. 

The reservations come from potential buyers in the U.S. who paid a $99 refundable deposit to reserve their Leaf. The hatchback Leaf, slated to drive about 100 miles per charge, is to be priced at $32,780, before a $7,500 tax credit.

The company’s goal is to have 20,000 reservations by the time the vehicle goes on sale in select markets, including Washington, Oregon and California, in December.

According to designers who chatted with Financial Times, “The Nissan Leaf will be equipped with a 24kWh Lithium Ion battery manufactured by NEC and, over time, the performance of the battery will decline. This is the nature of batteries. When the battery’s capacity reaches 80% of it’s original, it’ll need to be replaced…The plan will also help to reduce the purchase and lease prices of the Nissan Leaf by offsetting the high additional cost of battery.”

And from the press release via Nissan:
The world’s first EV designed for large-scale volume production
• High-performance, zero-emission power train and platform take the “joy of driving” to another dimension.
• A design that evokes a clean and intelligent image and a body that achieves optimal aerodynamics and wind noise characteristics are packaged into this innovative and original five-passenger, five-door hatchback.
• Has a range of more than 160km (100 miles) on one full charge, which is sufficient for most daily needs.
• Features an advanced IT system that is specially designed for zero-emission mobility. Navigation screen supports the driver by displaying range autonomy areas and battery-charging spots with a touch of a button.

honestly, we can’t wait to give one a test ride – but for now we hope you enjoy the Leaf Photos… and your daydreaming.
Source: Jalopnik

Nissan LEAF is our first zero-emissions electric car. Don’t confuse it with a hybrid or any other type of gas-powered, eco-friendly vehicle. This is electric – 100%. That means it burns zero gas and produces zero emissions. But this is no golf-cart. Off the line, Nissan LEAF performs like a V6. Plus, there’s room for five, and it comes with all the quality, reliability and versatility you’ve come to expect from Nissan cars.

- Zero tailpipe emissions
- 100% electric — no gas required
- Competitively priced
- Speeds up to 90 mph
- 5 passengers, 5 doors
- Advanced airbags, premium audio, Nissan navigation system, and more

Creating that infrastructure will be a huge challenge, but Mark Perry, director of product planning for Nissan North America, tells the Tennessean the company will be ready when the first Leafs (Leaves?) roll into showrooms in December 2010. “There is a lot of work to be done and not a lot of time to do it,” he said.

Nissan didn’t announce a price tag on their Leaf, although they claim it will be an affordable, C-segment model. Nissan also states their electric car will be cheaper to maintain, due to less moving parts – and will fall under Government guidelines for tax exemption and/or rebates on fuel efficient/alt. energy vehicles.

The Leaf uses a laminate lithium-ion battery pack with an output of over 90 kilowatts. The car’s drive motor puts out 80 kilowatts of power, substantial enough to give it performance equivalent to a gas-powered car. Nissan claims the Leaf has a range of over 100 miles, fairly typical for electric car projects from other automakers. The Leaf uses regenerative braking, and has a recharge time of 30 minutes to get the battery pack up to 80 percent using a quick charger. From a 200 volt source, the Leaf takes 8 hours to recharge.

The Leaf will be built in Japan, as well as their United States plant in Smyrna, Tennessee.

Source: CNET

Nissan’s EV will feature a 24kW lithium-ion battery, which produces 109 horse power and 280Nm of torque. Thanks to regenerative braking, the car is expected to be able to travel about 99.4 miles on a full charge.

Nissan’s Zero-Emission EV will debut in Japan on August 2nd.

Nissan has utilized their cute, new and fun-to-drive Nissan Cube, as the guinea pig for their electric car. It will be powered by an advanced lithium-ion battery, but no real specs have surfaced yet on the vehicle. Production is scheduled for this winter with 50,000 units. Look for the production model at 2009′s Tokyo Motor Show in October.