Auto News – Daily Last Auto News

Last Auto account – Nissan to body Leaf in Sunderland Japanese close puts acceptance in British bulb to body its groundbreaking electric car

Nissan has appear that its new all-electric five-door bear – the Leaf – will be congenital in the UK at the company’s Sunderland plant.    

The Leaf is set to be the aboriginal accumulation produced car with aught emissions, and will be the alpha of a ambit of eco cars from Nissan, with assembly due to activate aboriginal in  2013.   

It will be powered by an 80kW (107bhp) electric motor, twinned with accelerated charging lithium-ion batteries, which Nissan claims will accord the Leaf a top acceleration of over 90mph and a ambit of 100 miles.

The assembly of the Leaf, and the architecture of a new ability to accumulation the lithium-ion batteries for the car, due to activate in April, represents a £420m investment by Nissan in the UK car industry, and will ensure job aegis for the 4,100 advisers at the Sunderland plant.

The Leaf will be launched in Japan after this year, but we will not see it on British anchorage until the common barrage in 2012. Nissan affairs to body 50,000 Leaf’s per year at the plant, which will aswell be amenable for bearing the new Juke bunched SUV.

Andy Palmer, chief carnality president, and bang-up of the company’s all-around electric car strategy, said the Leaf â??is a five-seater auto that offers the aforementioned space, practicality, and achievement of a agnate car in its chic – bare the tailpipe emissions.â? There is no chat yet from Nissan on prices, but apprehend it to amount hardly added than the agnate Ford Focus.