While 20,000 people have placed preliminary orders for the anticipated Nissan Leaf, U.S. deliveries have only been in the hundreds, and getting up to normal production won't happen until April. The challenge for Nissan is that it is working with all-new product platform and an entirely new powertrain technology - one that has never been put into truly high-volume production before.
The Environmental Protection Agency has granted a request from ethanol advocates to increase the amount of ethanol from 10% to 15% for 2001 model and later vehicles, instead of 2007 model year and later as mandated earlier. The decision is sure to inflame yet more legal struggles with opponents such as automakers and environmentalists.
Following right behind range anxiety, it's very likely that the safety of electric vehicles must be addressed by those selling these new vehicles to concerned shoppers. Just as safety-conscious OEM Volvo has recently done, Mitsubishi has undergone crash testing of its upcoming electric car, the i-MiEV, which was performed by ADAC, Germany and Europe's largest automobile club.
For advocates of plug-in electric vehicles, arguments usually come up regarding the positive benefits of EVs being offset by half of U.S. electricity coming from coal-powered electricity plants. As the country moves away from its addiction to coal, renewable energy sources need to have a better working relationship with providers of natural gas, says Sierra Club chairman Carl Pope.