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Nissan Leaf sales get January jump as Chevy Volt trends downward

The cold January sales dip hit both the Nissan Leaf and the Chevy Volt last month, but when compared 2014 to 2013's first-month-of-the-year sales totals, one of the two early plug-in vehicles obviously came out on top. The top Leaf market also shifted away from Atlanta for the first time in months. Last year, the Leaf sold just 650 units in January, but it managed to move 1,252 last month, a 92.6-percent increase over 2013 but a big drop from the 2,529 sold in December 2013. Paige Presley over at Nissan told AutoblogGreen that the Leaf has now broken sales records for 11 months straight and that, "we see unique seasonality with some December pull-ahead demand based on federal and state tax incentives." The number one Leaf market also shifted away from Atlanta for the first time in months, moving back to San Francisco. That change could be short-lived. "We had some inventory constraint issues early in the month in Atlanta with end-of-year demand depleting stock," Presley said. "By the time we resolved that, the weather hampered sales." There was not as much good news on the Chevrolet front. Last month, the Volt sold 918 units, down from 1,140 in January 2013 and 2,392 in December 2013. It also marks the first time the Volt has sold in the three-digit range since January 2012, when it sold 603 copies. That string of solid months means that the plug-in hybrid has a roughly 12,000-unit lead over the EV since the two cars brought plug-in vehicles back to the mass market all the way back in December 2010. We will have our full report of January's green car sales up soon.

Submit your questions for Autoblog Podcast #316 LIVE!

We record Autoblog Podcast #316 tonight, and you can drop us your questions and comments regarding the rest of the week's news via our Q&A module below. Subscribe to the Autoblog Podcast in iTunes if you haven't already done so, and if you want to take it all in live, tune in to our UStream (audio only) channel at 10:00 PM Eastern tonight.
Discussion Topics for Autoblog Podcast Episode #316
2013 Detroit Auto Show

The real costs of keeping a Chevy Volt on the road

The release of the new, 2016 Chevy Volt is sure to bring a surge of used electric vehicles to the market as early adopters trade their older models in. Many of these cars are selling for a fraction of their original price, thanks in part to federal and state incentives that lowered the initial cost to the first owner, which opens these cars up to a whole new class of consumers. While the prices are getting attractive, potential buyers are still hesitant to buy a used EV due to uncertainty about service and repair costs, but there may be some good news on the horizon. The Chevy Volt comes with a battery warranty that is good for at least 8 years and 100,000 miles, but many of the Volts popping up on the market have passed that 100,000-mile mark. The threat of needing a new battery can be a deterrent, especially with some dealers quoting prices as high as $34,000 for a full "drive motor battery replacement." That sum is more than the MSRP of a 2016 model. Some of the fear of EV maintenance and repair comes from the mystery of the individual pieces that make up the drivetrain and charging system. If we take a look at the Volt in terms of analogs to a traditional internal-combustion vehicle, the outlook becomes a little more friendly. The Volt battery pack consists of three lithium-ion modules in a T-shaped arrangement, each of which can be serviced individually. Module 1 is made up of 90 cells and corresponds to GM part number 22954462, which retails for $3,258.33; module 2 is made up of 72 cells and corresponds to GM part number 22954463, which retails for $2,930.00; lastly, module 3 is made up of 125 cells and corresponds to GM part number 22954464, and retails for $4,933.33. These part numbers have been added to the dealer order systems but have not shown up in the distribution centers at this time. Although all three of the modules add up to a fairly large $11,121.66 total and are still on hold for dealer ordering, the good news is that in most cases these battery cell modules do not need to be replaced. There are many other individual pieces mounted on the battery pack that are serviceable, such as the Battery Energy Control Modules (BECM) and the Battery Interface Control Modules (BICM). These modules control and monitor the battery packs and charging system and have been known to fail while the lithium-ion battery cells are not at fault. Some have been replaced under warranty, but if you are stuck buying one they run about $255 a piece for the part.