Your understanding of the roll-out is incorrect. They only plan on releasing cars during the next two model years - so 550 a year each for 2012 and 2013.

123 mi city mileage, as Edmunds.com has also stated is not special at all. A LEAF can achieve similar # as per Nissan.

What's really "pissing me off" is the fact that, EVEN if Honda sells the Fit, it's setting the Fit to be a sales success...NOT. A complete sales failure is what it will be.

@ 37K, assuming that's BEFORE the $7.5K tax credit, that'll be $20K more than a entry model Fit, or 2X the price of a nicely equipped Fit.

Sure, they can sell on Zero emission, but when it comes to money, no one can ever recoup the cost due to fuel savings, or maintenance cost. Mind you, it's very cheap to maintain a Fit, and ICE Fit is also very good in fuel savings. Good luck trying to have people to buy the EV just to sell on the idea of "you'll save the world"...wait, you can't buy the EV.

What's even worse is that it's 2X more expensive than the larger Honda Insight Hybrid!

I believe that this is the most dangerous backlash of building an EV based on a currently available model - that one can compare if it's "worth" it.

Also, based on what one can see here on the Fit EV, it looks more and more likely that Spark EV will be around $30K range too!

Isn't it ironic that, car companies can actually "destroy" the EV market by building and selling EVs (at a price so steep that makes no sense)?

Well, so far Nissan seems to be the only large car manufacturer that is charging ahead at full speed with EVs... I bought a LEAF, I've driven it in excess of 11,500 miles so far and I will be looking at Nissan again for future purchases.... Brand loyalty is a two way street...

@ Tom,

Sorry, I just don't see it. I guess I'll just agree that we'll disagree here. But let me tell you why I disagree.

Scenario 1: Fit vs Fit EV, or Focus vs Focus EV, or Spark vs Spark EV.
In this scenario, all of the vehicles share
- exactly identical platforms and shell;
- exactly identical interior and exterior sizes/dimensions;
- exactly identical seats & instrument...well, slight twist here and there;
- exactly identical model and class size; and
- exactly identical parts/accessories sharing (i.e. you can fit the body kit, eg. a spoiler - factory OEM or after market, off from a Fit, Spark, or Focus, to their EV counterparts with perfect fit.)

Scenario 2: Versa / Tiida vs LEAF
- totally different platform and shell;
- similar, but totally different interior and exterior sizes/dimensions;
- totally different seats & instruments;
- totally different model but same class size, hence similar dimensions; and
- totally different parts/accessories sharing - none of Versa/Tiida body kits or parts will fit onto the LEAF.

From my pov, these are 2 different scenarios, so it is inappropriate to apply generalization due to similar size of scenario 2 and justify it for scenario 1, or the fact that both Versa & LEAF are H/Bs, when both vehicles are utterly different from each other. If there's no other Nissan for better comparison, that's because there really is no comparison.

Sooooo disappointed. But I saw it coming. I called the local dealer a few months back asking about the Fit EV and they knew nothing about. Never heard of it. This for a car that was due out early next year. That told me what I needed to know.

I'm now waiting for a regular gas Fit Sport to be delivered. I just gave up.

All the automakers are flubbing the EV market. Limited production, restricted availability, astronomical prices (really, Ford?), and then these crazy lease programs. If truly interested buyers like me can't become owners, what hope is there for attracting ambivalent drivers?

The EV market could die again not due to lack of consumer interest, but due to lack of spine in automakers. All while oil prices climb higher and higher. Brilliant.

@ Brian & Tom,

I don't think that the issue here is about cross shopping - vehicles of different brand, different models, etc. That is normal and most people do it.

I think the issue - my issue - is that after you've cross shopped, you will determine what trim level you want to get, based on what you desire and what you have in your bank account, and most importantly, what your brain is thinking :)

Hence, to me, there really is no cross shopping between Fit EV against Fit Sport. It's just a trim level change, straight speaking.

Just like when Brian finally picked the Insight (my choice too, if not thanks to all the generous rebates on the LEAF lease), I would think that the next step was to choose the trim level (base / EX / EX-L).

When one cross shops, there is an understanding of give or take, i.e. (LEAF as example, against Versa), similar interior size, but one is nicer, whereas the other is cheaper, plus (whatever)...

But when one select trim levels, everything becomes price only (can I afford the Navigation and Audio option, do I need the body kit accessories). That, I believe, will be problematic for vehicles like Fit, Focus and Spark, when their EV trims are 2-3 times more than the base or well-equipped version.

The only exception here, I guess, is that when a shopper is looking straightly for an EV purchase, and his/her choice are just i, LEAF, Fit EV, Spark EV, Focus EV, Coda, Wheego, etc. However, if the ideal is to promote EV purchases among general consumers, this is probably not something worth discussing at this point.

When I did my calculations on the efficiency of the Leaf, I didn't compare it to the versa, despite similar looks, but to a VW Jetta or equivalent, because of the trim level and the options. The Leaf is the equivalent of a $23,000 car, not a $14,000 one. Full navigation, internet connectivity, high level of trim, built in bluetooth, computerized dash, all of these are more indicative of a higher end vehicle. Plus it drives and rides like one. I have the upgraded model, and out the door it was $37K, including tax and license. Toss in the $7500 rebate, and you are looking at about $30K for the car. Now add tax and license to that $23K Jetta, and you get $25K. So you have to make up $5K in fuel difference before the Leaf is more economical.

That's easy. At 15000 miles a year, the Leaf uses about 3600 KWh a year. At 12 cents a KWH, which is assuming I charge the Leaf half the time peak and half off peak (which I don't, of course), you get $432 a year in electricity.

The equivalent car might get 30 MPG. At 15K miles a year, that's 500 gallons. Multiply by $3.50 a gallon (it ain't getting cheaper, folks), and you get $1750 a year. Or basically, you save $1250 a year on operating costs, not counting maintenance. So after 4 years, you have made up that $5K.

By the way, if you only charge off peak, like I really do, then you only pay 6.6 cents a kwh, and you cut the return on investment down to about 3 years! Not bad at all!

Yes, the Toshiba SCib battery is the real news here. It explains why the Fit gets more miles from 20KWH than the Leaf from 24KWH: it can be bled completely. It also explains why it's lease only: the car will last forever but probably cost a fortune to build if the battery tech is expensive. Of course when produced in larger numbers this could be a great deal for consumers, but like mentioned before, this is just a CARB play, not meant to become a threat to Honda's ICE business.

It's funny though that Honda is now offering battery tech that could be charged in minutes, without actually mentioning any fastcharge capabilities. Could it be that Honda, king of the ICE, actually feels threatened by batteries that could be recharged in minutes?