Market-leading Nissan Leaf EV hits 20k UK sales

1 in 2 EVs sold in 2017 is a Nissan

2017 Nissan LeafElectric car pioneer Nissan was an early pioneer of EV technology in Britain – and is now benefitting from this by commanding 50 percent of the UK new electric vehicle market in Q1 2017. Britain is also the third-largest global market for the Nissan Leaf EV, behind only the U.S. and Japan, and is the biggest nation of all for the e-NV200 electric van.

Success in Britain has played a big role in helping the Leaf become the world’s best-selling EV: every year since its launch in 2010, 1 in 4 Leaf sales throughout Europe has been in the UK. Sales have grown rapidly too – it took Nissan four years to hit 10,000 sales in Britain, but little more than a year to reach 15,000.

Now, 8 months later, it has topped 20,000 sales, and fittingly, the 20k UK Leaf was sold to an existing owner. Diane and Chris Ray of Hollesley in Suffolk switched their two-year old 24kWh Leaf for a new 30kWh one: Diane liked everything about it, and only wanted a Leaf with a bigger battery as a replacement. 

2017 Nissan Leaf

It’s fitting that the Leaf is proving so successful in the UK, as it’s also built here. The Sunderland plant makes 55 a day, and there’s a battery plant next door to it supplying the Leaf’s lithium ion units. Nissan’s EV manager, Edward Jones, says “the number of customers who go on to buy another Leaf is… significantly higher that the industry average”. Such customers can now claim they own a genuinely all-British EV.

Of course, the current Leaf is not in its first flush of youth. It’s been around seven years, and is showing its age. Nissan’s happy to tell us an all-new Leaf is on the way in 2018, and is even keen to show us a first teaser of it ahead of its full reveal later this year.

2018 Nissan Leaf teaser

In the meantime, it’s hoping to keep up the current car’s dominance with some double-take deals. How about this for starters: a Leaf Acenta 24kWh for £189 a month on a two-year 0 percent APR PCP deal? Nissan even gives you free insurance, free home charger, a £1000 contribution towards your deposit and the option of two years’ servicing and maintenance for just £99.

With deals like that, it’s no wonder Nissan’s taking such a high proportion of the UK’s record 4.4 percent market share of alternative fuelled vehicles… 


More Nissan news on Motoring Research: 

  • Nissan Sunderland plant hit by cyber attack
  • Sunderland safe: Nissan confirms car production will stay in UK
  • Nissan IDS Concept previews next Nissan LEAF at Tokyo Motor Show

 

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Richard Aucock
Richard Aucockhttps://www.richardaucock.co.uk/
Richard is director at Motoring Research. He has been with us since 2001, and has been a motoring journalist even longer. He won the IMCO Motoring Writer of the Future Award in 1996 and the acclaimed Sir William Lyons Award in 1998. Both awards are run by the Guild of Motoring Writers and Richard is currently vice chair of the world's largest organisation for automotive media professionals. Richard is also a juror and Steering Committee director for World Car Awards and the UK juror for the AUTOBEST awards.

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