The new 60 kWh Nissan LEAF is looking to start production in January 2019. While we don’t have an official pricing yet, leaked dealer documents give us an idea.
The news comes from Alex Bernstein, the Senior Pricing Analyst at CarsDirect. He has seen Nissan’s preliminary pricing sheets and states that the 60 kWh Nissan LEAF will have a $5,500 premium over the 40 kWh variant. The LEAF has multiple trim options with the base LEAF starting at $29,990 and the high trim SL version starting at $36,200.
If the $5,500 premium is to be believed, then in the words of Bernstein:
If that proves to be the case, that could result in a price range starting at just over $36,000 for the 60-kWh LEAF S and extending to around $42,500 for the SL trim. As a result, the LEAF could become a compelling alternative to the Chevy Bolt EV, which ranges from $37,495 to $41,780 and offers up to 238 miles of driving.
Certainly, the current LEAF has been very popular. However its current 151 mile range is starting to look limited. The 60 kWh variant is projected to have a range of around 225 miles, a nearly 50% increase. On top of that, there have been many troubles with the LEAF’s battery rapidly degrading, and not having an active cooling system. Rumors that this LEAF will use LG chem cells rather than Nissan’s own might prove to an improvement in quality.
Reportedly, this version will also have 100 kw fast-charging for decreased charging times, which is always a plus.
Additionally, Bernstein states that Nissan will discontinue the 40 kWh SL variant when the 60 kWh version starts production. This gives some validity to the claim of a $5,500 price bump. There would be no reason to buy a $36,200 40 kWh LEAF SL over a 60 kWh LEAF S that costs $36,000. As such, it makes sense to discontinue the 40 kWh SL.
If it does come out at this price point, the the LEAF will continue to be an attractive buy. It will be a very easy alternative the Chevy Bolt and (eventual) Model 3 standard-range. Nissan is nearing its 200,000 unit federal tax credit cutoff. It has currently sold 123,000 LEAFs, leaving them ~75,000 more units.
What do you guys think about the possible price point? Let us know down in the comments below.
Source: CarsDirect
