Nissan Motor Co will introduce a lower-priced version of its electric car, called the Leaf S, as it rolls out 2013 models, the company said Wednesday.
Pricing for the new versions of the Leaf, including two that have been sold for two years, has not been announced.
The 2013 Leaf is expected to be at dealerships in February, said Brian Brockman, Nissan spokesman.
Two versions of the Leaf will come with a standard 6.6-kilowatt onboard charger that will cut charging time in half compared with 2012 models, Nissan said.
That charger will be optional equipment on the new Leaf S, Nissan said. Pricing for that option was not released.
Leaf cars sold in North America for the past two years have been made at Nissan’s plant in Japan. Production has shifted to the company’s Smyrna, Tenn., plant, where output ramped up this week for 2013 models, Brockman said.
The 6.6-KW charger will allow owners to charge the Leaf’s lithium-ion battery in less than four hours using a 220-volt outlet.
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