2012 Nissan Silver Edition on 2040-cars

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Is 120 miles just about perfect for EV range?

When it comes to battery-electric vehicles, our friend Brad Berman over at Plug In Cars says 40 miles makes all the difference in the world. That's the approximate difference in single-charge range between the battery-electric version of the Toyota RAV4 and the Nissan Leaf. It's also the difference between the appearance or disappearance of range anxiety. The 50-percent battery increase has zapped any lingering range anxiety, Berman writes. The RAV4 EV possesses a 40-kilowatt-hour pack, compared to the 24-kWh pack in the Leaf. After factoring in differences in size, weight and other issues, that means the compact SUV gets about 120 miles on a single charge in realistic driving conditions, compared to about 80 miles in the Leaf. "The 50 percent increase in battery size from Leaf to RAV has zapped any lingering range anxiety," Berman writes. His observations further feed the notion that drivers need substantial backup juice in order to feel comfortable driving EVs. Late last year, the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS), along with the Consumers Union estimated that about 42 percent of US households could drive plug-in vehicles with "little or no change" in their driving habits, and that almost 70 percent of US commuters drive fewer than 60 miles per weekday. That would imply that a substantial swath of the country should be comfortable using a car like the Leaf as their daily driver - with first-quarter Leaf sales jumping 46 percent from a year before, more Americans certainly are. Still, the implication here is that EV sales will continue to be on the margins until an automaker steps up battery capabilities to 120 or so miles while keeping the price in the $30,000 range. Think that's a reasonable goal to shoot for?

Nissan details 326k-vehicle Takata recall for US and Canada

Nissan is recalling 326,000 vehicles in the US and Canada as an expansion of its Takata inflator campaign. Of those, 263,692 are in the US. Nissan's broadened campaign in the US covers 250,967 examples of the 2004-2006 Sentra and 12,725 units of the 2004 Pathfinder to replace their passenger side airbag inflators. The 2005-2006 X-Trail is also included in Canada. Customers should receive official notification of this recall by mail in June. Nissan and Toyota announced a 6.5-million vehicle global expansion of their Takata recalls recently. At that time, Nissan was still working with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration on the details of what models were affected. This latest release outlines those figures. Related Video: Nissan Statement "Nissan Group today notified The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and Transport Canada that it will be recalling 2004 to 2006 Sentra, 2004 Pathfinder and 2005 and 2006 X-Trail vehicles throughout the United States and Canada to replace Takata SPI Passenger Air Bag inflators. This recall expansion is intended to address vehicles equipped with SPI inflators that are not already subject to previously announced recalls. More specifically, this includes vehicles located outside the high absolute humidity areas manufactured between early 2004 and end of production. Customer notification will begin in June." Vehicles Affected Approximately 326,000 in U.S. and Canada Market Model Model Year(s) Population Total USA Sentra 2004-2006 250,967 USA Pathfinder 2004 12,725

Nissan executive Jun Seki resigns to become president of Nidec

YOKOHAMA, Japan — The executive tasked with leading a recovery at Nissan said he had decided to resign just weeks into his new job, a move that could disrupt the automaker's push to turn the corner on scandal and slumping sales. Jun Seki, Nissan's vice chief operating officer and a former contender for chief executive, told Reuters he was leaving to become the president of Nidec, a Kyoto-based manufacturer of automotive components and precision motors. He will likely depart in January after three decades at Nissan, including a stint heading its China business. "I love Nissan and I feel bad about leaving the turnaround work unfinished, but I am 58 years old, and this is an offer I could not refuse. It's probably my last chance to lead a company too," he said in a brief interview. "It's not about money. In fact, I will take a financial hit since Nissan pays us well," Seki said. He declined to elaborate further. Nissan and Nidec declined to comment. Seeking to roll back some of the costly expansion under ousted chairman Carlos Ghosn, Nissan has embarked on wide-ranging turnaround plan. That plan, which began in April, is now on track to generate a cumulative few hundred billion yen in cost cuts and operational efficiency gains by the year to March 2022, according to two Nissan sources who spoke on condition of anonymity. One hundred billion yen is roughly equal to $915 million (707 million pounds). Adding to concerns about disruption among Nissan's top management, the sources said that Seki, Chief Operating Officer Ashwani Gupta and Chief Executive Makoto Uchida have so far failed to gel as a team after being named to their posts in October. They officially took over on Dec. 1. "There was no instant, cohesive chemistry achieved by those appointments," one of the sources said. Gupta and Uchida were not immediately available for comment. Seki's resignation could further complicate Nissan's relationship with top shareholder Renault SA. Seki recently worked in Paris for a year and was seen as relatively close to the French automaker. PERSUADED IN THE END Asked if he was leaving Nissan because he was passed over for the role of chief executive, Seki said that was not the case but did not elaborate. He and Uchida, most recently the head of the China business, had been seen as top contenders for the CEO job. Reuters reported in September that Uchida was seen as more favored by Renault.