Nissan reports record EV sales despite drop in Leaf demand

Renault-Nissan has reported record EV sales in 2015 despite a drop in sales of its Nissan Leaf electric vehicle. Global sales of Renault-Nissan's battery-powered vehicles rose 2.5 percent to a record 84,754 last year even though there was a slowdown in demand for the Nissan Leaf, the world’s best-selling electric vehicle.

The Leaf is the world's best-selling EV, with more than 201,000 vehicles sold since it launched in 2010, the statement said. In total, all-time EV sales by the alliance were 302,000 at the end of 2015. The reason for buyers passing on the Leaf is that it has a shorter EV range than newer models like the Chevy Bolt EV which is expected to ship at the end of the year.

The new Leaf launching this year will have a 30 kilowatt-hour battery pack to boost the range by 20 percent on the previous 24 kilowatt-hour model.