RALEIGH, N.C. -- Nissan will spend $67.9 million and add up to 90 jobs at its Decherd, Tenn., engine plant to build electric motors for its Leaf battery-electric cars, the automaker said Tuesday.

The Decherd expansion was announced by Brian Carolin, senior vice president for sales and marketing at Franklin, Tenn.-based Nissan North America during his opening address to the Plug-in 2011 national electric-vehicle conference in Raleigh.

Up to 150,000 of the motors will be pproduced annually at Decherd beginning in early 2013 for installation in the Leaf cars that will be assembled at Nissan's Smyrna, Tenn., manufacturing complex, also beginning in early 2013.

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FRANKLIN, Tenn. - Tennessee could be the big winner in the global market to produce the next generation of cars that run on electricity. The Tennessee Electric Vehicle Summit, organized by automaker Nissan and the Pew Clean Energy Program, was held Monday in Franklin, not far from where Nissan will produce batteries for its electric Leaf vehicle.

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Nissan is investigating customer complaints that its new all-electric LEAF will not restart after being turned off.

Without saying how many complaints have come in, Nissan acknowledges that drivers in both Japan and the United States have reported the problem.

Nissan Americas in a statement on Monday, "We are actively investigating to determine the root cause and what action is necessary to address the issue."

Currently, there is no intention to require a recall since the problem is not affecting the safety of the vehicle.

"This is not a safety issue," said the company, "as the vehicle will not stop running while being driven but may not restart after being turned off."

According to Nissan, the defect may originate with a sensor in the air conditioning unit.

 

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FRANKLIN, TN - Nissan North America Inc. (NNA) recently brought sustainable mobility to several states with the arrival of the first all-electric Nissan LEAFs. The deliveries represent the first delivery of an affordable, mass-market, all-electric car to customers in Washington, California, Arizona, and Oregon.

These areas are primary launch markets for the Nissan LEAF, and are also participants in The EV Project, a research and charging infrastructure deployment project funded by a grant from the U.S. Department of Energy and administered by electric-vehicle charging company ECOtality.

The recipients of these first vehicles include:

Washington: Jennifer Steele and Jonathan Hoekstra took delivery of their red Nissan LEAF SL at Stadium Nissan. Hoekstra is a senior scientist with The Nature Conservancy. Steele is a small business owner. Hoekstra and Steele are customers of Seattle City Light, the first electric utility in the country to become carbon neutral. Since 2005, Seattle City Light has achieved annual net carbon neutral carbon dioxide emissions.

Arizona: Amir Seif of Phoenix took delivery of his blue Nissan LEAF SL at ABC Nissan. Seif, 51, was born in Tehran, Iran, and moved to Arizona 32 years ago. He received a PhD in BioEngineering from Arizona State University. Married with four children, Seif is the inventor of LiteGait and founder of Tempe-based Mobility Research, a role that has him traveling extensively, lecturing to physical therapists at rehabilitation facilities.

Northern California: Olivier Chalouhi, a San Francisco Bay Area resident and the first person in the United States to place a Nissan LEAF order, took delivery of his black Nissan LEAF SL at North Bay Nissan of Petaluma. Chalouhi, a 31-year-old entrepreneur, is the founder of Fanhattan, a venture-backed stealth start-up in the connected TV space, where he serves as chief technology officer. He currently lives in Redwood City, Calif, with his wife, Jana, and their two children and holds a master's degree in computer science from the French Aeronautical and Space School. Before purchasing his Nissan LEAF, Chalouhi commuted to work on an electric bicycle.

Southern California: Thomas Franklin, a patent attorney with a specialization in clean energy, received his blue Nissan LEAF SL at Mossy Nissan Kearny Mesa. Franklin, 43, is a native of San Diego who lives in the Village of La Jolla with his wife and three children. He is a partner who practices as a patent attorney in the San Diego office of Townsend and Townsend and Crew. He studied much of the technology in the Nissan LEAF as an electrical engineering student at San Diego State University before attending law school at University of San Diego. Today, many of his patent clients are innovators in the clean tech industry.

Oregon: John Duncan took delivery of his silver Nissan LEAF SL at Tonkin Wilsonville Nissan. Duncan, 61, is a semi-retired college teacher living in Wilsonville with his wife and two sons. Duncan's family has lived in Oregon for four generations, mostly in Eugene. He was a faculty member in the English department of the University of Oregon, where his grandfather once served as a dean.

The initial Nissan LEAF deliveries will be followed by a second shipment of Nissan LEAF electric cars scheduled to arrive before the end of this month. Nissan is on track for a nationwide launch of the Nissan LEAF by 2012, with Hawaii and Texas next to roll out in early 2011. In order to fulfill interest and meet demand in initial launch markets, Nissan plans to reopen reservations in the first half of 2011 as well as shift timing of additional markets until the second half of 2011.

 

Franklin, TN – For the last week and a half, Johnson Elementary School students joined a select group of international journalists who came to the area to get a sneak peek at the all-electric Nissan LEAF before its public offering. Headquartered in Franklin, Nissan North America is currently hosting upwards of 200 television, print and online media from across the Americas region (Canada, U.S., Latin America, Puerto Rico, Argentina and Brazil).

 

The visiting journalists and broadcasters are participating in a “ride and drive event,” taking the LEAF on a route that represents an average driver’s typical day. Johnson Elementary School is a key stop in this hypothetical day, which provides a pit stop for the media and an opportunity for the kindergarten through fourth-grade students to see the a zero-emissions, all electric car in action.

 

Fourth-grade students have been especially interested in the car’s dynamics and environmental impact. They are currently studying natural resources, renewable and non-renewable resources, ways to conserve energy and recycling. The daily stops at the school provide them a chance to check out these new cars and ask questions of the drivers and the Nissan representatives. Nissan will wrap up its press tour this week.

 

Picture: Johnson Elementary second graders William Carroll and Jaden Johnson learn how the Nissan LEAF is charged from Linda Water Nelson, a visiting journalist.

 

Picture: Johnson Elementary second graders (left to right) Jaden Belcher, Jaden Johnson, Emma Jackson, McKenna Weathers, Hope Rees, Jack Butler, William Carroll, and David Ortiz check out the interior of the new Nissan LEAF during a media pit stop at the school.

 

 

From Nissan:

The 2011 Nissan LEAF is the world’s first affordable, zero-emission car, and ushers in a new era of mobility – the “no gas, no tailpipe” zero-emission era. The Nissan LEAF is a medium-size hatchback that seats five adults comfortably and has a range of 100 miles. Unlike internal-combustion engine-equipped vehicles, LEAF’s powertrain has no tailpipe and thus no emission of CO2 or other greenhouse gases while being driven.  The Nissan LEAF can be charged up to 80 percent of its full capacity in 30 minutes when equipped with a quick charge port and using a DC fast charger.  Charging at home through a 220V outlet is estimated to take approximately eight hours.

 

The 2011 Nissan LEAF is scheduled to commence sales in December 2010 in California, Oregon, Washington, Arizona and Tennessee.  It is priced at $32,780 but goes down to $25,280 after a $7,500 Federal Tax Credit.  Many states are also including incentives to bring that price down further - Tennessee for example offers a $2,500 cash rebate.

For some consumers, Nissan LEAF will be the perfect match, and the only car they will ever need.  For others, Nissan LEAF will be a logical addition to the family fleet –  the optimal choice for the daily commute, for example.