"A new report shows that Europeans have shown little to no interest in purchasing an electric vehicle like the Nissan LEAF.
At the recent Frankfurt Motor Show in Germany, Klaus Doerrzapf voiced his concerns and why he won’t be purchasing an electric vehicle even though he has solar panels installed on his house.
“It’s too early,” the 50-year-old manager at an electrics company said at the International Motor Show in Frankfurt. “Range and price are a problem. Battery life and charging times are also concerns.”
Doerrzapf isn’t the only European that feels that way. “I wouldn’t buy one just yet,” said Jean-Pierre Ahtuam, 38, who runs a juice bar in central Paris. “I’d be worried about where I’d plug it in and whether it will be worth anything in a couple of years — that’s got to be a concern with any new technology the first time around.”
At that same motor show, Carlos Ghosn announced that Nissan has sold more than 12,000 all-electric LEAF vehicles worldwide since hitting the market in December 2010. But even some of the auto executives showcasing the pure electric models in Frankfurt seemed skeptical about their future.
“We’re about to find out what happens when several big manufacturers try to sell electric vehicles to real people,” said Ian Fletcher, a London-based analyst with IHS Automotive. “The signs aren’t all good.”
Fletcher predicts battery-powered cars, like the Nissan LEAF, will claim about 1 percent of global production in 2020. Research firm J.D. Power and Associates predict that the market share will below 2 percent by then. These predictions exclude cars like the Chevy Volt since it comes equipped with a range extender."
Em: http://nissan-leaf.net/2011/09/25/europ ... -vehicles/