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Chinese Nissan Leaf goes on sale in September as Venucia e30

The upcoming Chinese version of the Nissan Leaf, the Venucia e30, was not the highlight of the Dongfeng Nissan stand at this year's Beijing Motor Show. That honor goes to the R30, a compact car with "segment-competitive fuel economy" and a starting price of under RMB 50,000 ($8,033 US). But that doesn't mean Dongfeng didn't make some news about the debut of the world's most popular electric vehicle in the world's most populous country. Dongfeng Nissan will start selling the e30 in the Chinese retail market this September. In a world where EV promises are not always worth the paper they're printed on, it's nice to see this target date is actually ahead of schedule. The sales launch follows EV pilot programs that saw 300 of the EVs rack up a total of one million kilometers (621,000 miles) in Guangzhou, Xiangyang and Dalian since December 2013. The e30 might just be the first or many EVs, since Donfeng-Nissan showed off the Viwa Concept EV last year. There are a few more details in the press release below. Dongfeng Nissan Unveils VENUCIA R30 at Auto China 2014 BEIJING, April 20, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Dongfeng Nissan Passenger Vehicle Company ("Dongfeng Nissan"), the passenger vehicle business unit of Nissan's joint venture in China, today unveiled R30 at Auto China 2014. R30 is the 4th production model for the company's new VENUCIA brand. The compact R30 delivers segment-competitive fuel economy with the strongest engine in class through a 1.2-liter gasoline engine, features a spacious interior, and offers easy handling for drivers to provide a high quality yet competitively priced car to Chinese consumers. The price of the main grade will be less than RMB 50,000. "Very competitively priced, R30 is the perfect entry car for Chinese consumers," said Ren Yong, Deputy Managing Director of Dongfeng Nissan. "I believe many Chinese consumers will choose R30 as their first car in the continuing motorization of China." Bookings for R30 will start within the next two months. Dongfeng Nissan also announced that e30, Venucia's electric vehicle, will be sold in the retail market starting in September. The company has already commenced EV pilot programs in the cities of Guangzhou, Xiangyang and Dalian, with a total of 300 e30s recording a total mileage of one million km since the programs started in December 2013. Venucia recorded sales of more than 100,000 units in 2013 and is targeting a 50 percent increase in sales this year.

Pretty scenery alert: Nissan Leaf drives up a volcano on Maui

Gravity taketh away but gravity giveth back, Nissan is trying to teach all of us. The Japanese automaker has posted a two-minute video about Maui resident Neil Wagner using his Nissan Leaf to catch the legendary sunrise over the volcano in Haleakala National Park. After climbing the more-than-10,000-foot elevation, the Leaf is shown having lost about 84 percent of its usable battery capacity. The finer point, though, is that electric vehicles have a regenerative braking system, meaning that the downhill ride and all of its switchbacks actually replenish battery capacity. Of course, the video didn't show exactly how much of that capacity was replenished, but the point is well-made, and with really cool scenery. Sales for the Leaf have already been strong this year. Through the first three months of the year, Nissan boosted sales 46 percent from 2013 numbers up to 5,184 units. This is after more than doubling sales last year to 22,610 units. And, for anyone curious, there are six publicly-accessible plug-in vehicle charging stations in Kahului and another eight in Lahaina, two of Maui's largest cities, according to the US Department of Energy. We're pretty sure that Mr. Wagner already knows that but we're going to take notes in case we need to make the sunrise drive one day. For now, we're going to check out Nissan's two-minute video below one more time. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.

NHTSA opens investigation into 130k Nissan Versas for breaking springs

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has opened a preliminary evaluation into a suspension problem that could affect an estimated 130,000 Nissan Versas from 2008-2010. According to the government agency's documentation (here as a PDF), there have been 93 complaints of the front coil springs fracturing while driving in these vehicles. Based on reports so far, it appears to NHTSA that this problem can happen at any speed and without warning. When the spring breaks, the pieces can also puncture a tire or brake line. A preliminary evaluation sets out to investigate "the scope, frequency and safety-related consequence" of the potential problem. According to a portion of a statement from the automaker to Autoblog, "Nissan is cooperating fully to answer the agency's questions regarding this issue in a timely manner." INVESTIGATION Subject : Front Coil Spring Fracture Date Investigation Opened: MAY 13, 2015 Date Investigation Closed: Open NHTSA Action Number: PE15019 Component(s): SUSPENSION All Products Associated with this Investigation Vehicle Make Model Model Year(s) NISSAN VERSA 2008-2010 Details Manufacturer: Nissan North America, Inc. SUMMARY: The Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) has received 93 complaints (VOQs) alleging incidents of front suspension coil spring fracture in model year (MY) 2008 through 2010 Nissan Versa passenger cars. Preliminary analysis of the complaints indicates that the coil spring failures occur without warning and can happen at any speed. One complaint (VOQ #10663102) reported the passenger-side coil spring fractured while traveling at 65 mph and caused a sudden tire failure by cutting the inner sidewall 360 degrees. Another complaint ( VOQ #10680740) reported the passenger-side coil spring fractured while traveling 40 mph and result in tire puncture and brake line failure. ODI has also received EWR field report information relating to coil spring failures in the subject vehicles. A Preliminary Evaluation has been opened to assess the scope, frequency and safety-related consequence of the alleged defect.