Nissan hedging its bets with new Leaf EV, new Armada and other gas-guzzling trucks

The homely Nissan Leaf EV is available with a bigger battery in the 2016 model year and added range -- up to 107 miles on a full charge. You can still get a Leaf that goes a maximum of 84 miles before you need more juice.

By VICTOR E. SASSON
EDITOR

Jose Munoz, chairman of Nissan North America, delivered good news and bad news to consumers worried about climate change and the 53,000 deaths blamed on auto emissions every year.

Speaking to members of the International Motor Press Association in Manhattan, Munoz said Nissan is "close" to launching a new-generation all-electric Leaf with a redesigned body.

There was no indication whether the second-generation Leaf will have more range than the 107 miles available with a 30kWh battery in the 2016 model.

Leaf lags behind Tesla

The homely Leaf, introduced in December 2010, once led electric-vehicle sales in the United States, but it has changed little and has been eclipsed by Tesla, which cost more than twice as much.

Meanwhile, Munoz -- also executive vice president of Nissan Motor Co., Japan's No. 2 automaker -- had plenty of bad news for environmentalists.

To take advantage of the low price of gasoline, Nissan is launching the "Year of Trucks."

He promised a new Armada and Pathfinder, and a "brand new" Rogue, a crossover.

And if the price of gas rises again, Munoz said, Nissan will market its herd of gas-guzzlers as the most efficient on the market.

In answer to a question from the audience, Munoz delivered more bad news regarding Manhattan's traffic congestion and pollution.

The automaker has no plans to add a gas-electric hybrid version of the Nissan NV200, the so-called Taxi of Tomorrow.

So, the Nissan NV200 instantly becomes the Taxi of Yesterday.

The roomy Nissan NV200 taxi.

Autonomous driving

The Nissan executive did say the company is rolling out autonomous driving features, starting this year, to prevent accidents.

By 2020, he said, Nissan will sell cars that will be fully autonomous in a city environment.

Of course, if Nissan introduces a fully autonomous NV200 taxi, there's no telling how many drivers will be thrown onto the unemployment lines.

The free lunch is alive and well in Manhattan, thanks to Nissan North America, one of the automotive companies that play host at meetings of the International Motor Press Association, described as the nation's oldest organization of automotive journalists and public relations professionals.

I enjoyed a plate full of salad, roasted vegetables, smoked salmon and tomatoes with bite-size mozzarella balls.

I also was able to get two crisp-skin fillets of branzino instead of the same fish prepared in a butter-cream sauce for the buffet. I drank red wine and had fresh fruit for dessert.

New York Auto Show: We'll be choking on most of these cars for many years to come

BETTER PLUG-IN: For green-car enthusiasts, tree-huggers and other lovers of the environment, Toyota on Wednesday unveiled the 2017 Prius Prime. The plug-in gas-electric hybrid, above, gets 120 or more MPGe (miles per gallon equivalent); and travels 22 miles and up to 84 mph in electric mode.

EV FROM KOREA: Meanwhile, Korean automaker Hyundai debuted its Ioniq line -- a gas-electric hybrid, a plug-in hybrid and a fully electric sedan, above, all with conventional styling and interiors. Prices weren't given.

By VICTOR E. SASSON
EDITOR

Automakers use the media at big shows in New York and other world capitals to distract consumers from an over reliance on the antiquated internal-combustion engine to snare big profits.

On Wednesday, I walked the floor of the New York International Auto Show in Manhattan for about 5 hours, only to find a couple of new green cars that will go on sale soon.

Instead, Mercedes-Benz, BMW, Audi, Nissan, Maserati and other automakers pitched their cars as the fastest, best-performing on earth -- and to hell with air pollution and climate change.

And the media -- desperate for ad revenue from oil companies, automakers and their legions of greedy dealers -- go along for the ride.

Media negativity

Since Toyota imported its first gas-electric hybrid in 2000, the number of negative, even hostile articles in the enthusiast and general press have numbered in the hundreds.

As they did in 2000, the media continue to virtually ignore the environmental benefit of green cars. 

Even green-car leader Toyota has begun to run Prius ads emphasizing performance, not fuel savings; and certainly never reductions in air pollution, disease and death. 

Tesla's Model S has been on sale since 2012, but the California-based company doesn't advertise.

Nor is it showing its swift and silent all-electric, zero-emissions hatchback at the New York show or crowing about its nationwide network of free-for-life Superchargers.

Instead, Tesla Motors relies on word of mouth, and sells its luxurious four-door hatchback directly to consumers.

That pisses off dealers, publishers, editors, auto writers and bloggers, who enjoy free loans of the cars they are writing about, junkets, and wining and dining at invitation-only events.

BIG QUESTION: General Motors says the 2017 Chevrolet Bolt EV will offer a range of about 200 miles on a full charge when it goes on sale at the end of the year. At the auto show on Wednesday, no executive was available to say whether Bolt buyers will get free charging for life, as do buyers of Tesla's Model S and the new, smaller Model 3, which is to go on sale in California at the end of 2017.

ONE-PEDAL OPERATION: BMW's all-electric i3 got a big head start on General Motors, but has a range of only 81 miles on a full charge. The i3 has been on sale since 2014, and its strong regenerative braking can bring the car to a full stop without use of the brake pedal.

Tesla tops EV sales

Despite media hysteria over how "expensive" a Tesla is, the Model S was the best-selling EV in the United States in 2015 and the first two months of 2016, according to Automotive News.

Its New York Auto Show Preview listed sales for the Nissan Leaf, Tesla Model S (estimates), BMW i3, Fiat 500e, Smart ForTwo EV, and VW e-Golf.

In 2014, the Leaf led the Model S -- 30,200 to 16,550. The i3 sold 6,092 units; 500e, 6,029; and Smart EV, 2,594.

In 2015, the Model S outsold the Leaf, 26,400 to 17, 269. The i3 sold 11,024 units; 500 e, 4,409; and e-Golf, 4,232.

In the first two months of 2016, Model S sales are estimated at 3,200, compared to the Leaf, 1,685; eGolf, 526; i3, 430; and 500e, 412.

Low gasoline prices were cited, but the price per gallon is beginning to rise again. 

See:

Maserati's irresponsible 164-mph SUV

First drive of hydrogen fuel-call car

FOR SPEED FREAKS: Ars Technica dubs the 2017 Nissan GT-R as "Godzilla Redux." Of course, we need this "faster ... supercar slayer" like we need a hole in the ozone layer.

GLOBAL WARMER: Ditto the Ford GT, which will be raced at Le Mans in June after disappointing finishes at Daytona and Sebring. A production model will be limited to 500 units.

TOP-DOWN POLLUTION: Porsche showed a new 718 Boxster that looks a lot like the old Boxster. Imagine how much fun it will be inching up to the tollbooth at the Lincoln Tunnel.

DISTRACTED DRIVING: Yet another new Mercedes-Benz is likely to drive owners crazy with interior controls from hell --dashboard, doors, steering wheel and console jammed with wheels, switches, buttons, a touch screen and even a rear-view camera you can turn off for some insane reason.

JAPAN v. ITALY: A new Mazda MX-5, including one with a targa-style top, is getting some competition from Fiat, below.

FIX IT AGAIN TONY: A performance version of the Fiat 124 Spider, above and below.

BIGGER IS BIGGER: Buick Avista concept.

ROLLING BEDROOM: If this monstrosity from Lincoln ever reaches production, the doors will be conventional, but the three steps will be standard so owners can climb into the land barge. One possible option is a 100-gallon gas tank.

BEST IN BLACK: Look for the new Lincoln Continental in Manhattan's black-car-for-hire fleets and as limousines at an airport near you.

TOYOTA EV: The three-wheel i-Road is a fully electric urban vehicle for two that leans on curves and at corners like a motorcycle, above and below. Toyota hasn't announced production plans.

TWO TO A SPOT: Two i-Roads can be parked side-by-side in a single parking space.

Consumer Reports editors discount Tesla's potential for slowing climate change

Tesla's Model S is a large, premium all-electric car, but it is dwarfed by some of the behemoths produced by General Motors and other U.S. automakers, such as this gas-guzzling Buick Roadmaster from the 1990s.

By VICTOR E. SASSON
EDITOR

The editors of the Consumer Reports have been knocking themselves out in recent years, urging food shoppers to buy chicken raised without harmful antibiotics.

Consumers Union, the magazine's advocacy arm, has even tried to shame Trader Joe's into banishing from its shelves any meat or poultry raised on the growth promotant.

But on other important global issues, such as climate change, and air and noise pollution, the editors of Consumers Reports have failed us completely.

That's the only conclusion consumers can draw from the magazine's unexpected decision this week to drop its recommendation of the zero-emissions Tesla Model S.

Consumer Reports surveyed 1,400 Model S owners -- perhaps 1 in 10 -- who listed "a range of problems" involving "its drivetrain, power and charging equipment, body and sunroof squeaks, rattles and leaks," The New York Times reported.

I've owned a 2015 Model S 60 for more than 6 months, and have experienced none of those problems.

I didn't order a sunroof after hardly using the one in my 2010 Toyota Prius.

The Tesla logo.

Clearing the air

Responding to the survey -- "Tesla's reliability doesn't match its high performance" -- company CEO Elon Musk said "a lot of early production cars" were included, and problems have already been addressed "in new cars."

Musk also noted the magazine has said 97% of owners would buy another Tesla -- the highest satisfaction rating of any car it has ever tested.

Still, the bigger omission is that Consumer Reports still evaluates cars on the basis of their performance, and doesn't give them an environmental rating -- this more than 15 years after the first gas-electric hybrid was brought to the United States.

Reliability problems experienced by a minority of owners are one thing:

What about the potential of a growing number of Teslas and other all-electric cars to slow climate change?

Air and noise pollution also will be eased as more Americans buy EVs.

The fixation of the automotive media, including Consumer Reports, on 0-60 times is ill-suited at a time when many drivers spend a good deal of their day in horrendous traffic, choking on fumes from other vehicles.

The charging port on a Tesla Model S.

With pure EVs widely available, buying a new car has become a political statement

Tesla Motors' Model S 60 looks great in red.

By VICTOR E. SASSON
EDITOR

Did you hear about the cramped C-Class sedan from Mercedes-Benz you can get packed with a 503-horsepower, twin-turbo V-8?

Who needs 503 horsepower in the congested New Jersey-New York metropolitan area?

The AMG C63 S has an MSRP of $71,900, and you'll probably have to visit a gas station every week to satisfy this monster with premium fuel for its 18-gallon tank.

The mileage ratings aren't listed on the company's Web site.

That's $2,000 more than the base price of my roomier, more luxurious Tesla Model S 60, which I brought home last week.

Climate change

Mercedes-Benz isn't the only carmaker engaged in a mindless horsepower race, which aggravates climate change and deadly air pollution.

Today, with a range of all-electric vehicles that can fit any budget, buying a car that still uses gasoline is irresponsible.

Supporting the oil industry has become political now that the Koch brothers are using their billions in a bid to buy Congress and the White House for conservative Republicans.

Fast and quiet

My Model S 60 does 0-60 in 5.9 seconds -- quietly and effortlessly -- fast enough to engage in stop-light grand prix starts with gas guzzlers from Mercedes and other manufacturers.

The car's electric motor is blessed with instant torque, so I love to see them fading in my rear-view mirror. 

Now, let's hope the internal-combustion engine fades into history.

Once you own a Model S, just about every other car on the road seems so, well, ordinary. 

This soon-to-be Tesla owner wouldn't be caught dead in a luxury car from Germany

An all-electric Tesla Model S on display at the Time Warner Center in Manhattan.

By VICTOR E. SASSON
EDITOR

Does any American really need a 155-mph luxury car?

More than 15 years after the introduction of gas-electric hybrids to the U.S., German car makers offer only a handful of green cars.

Their luxury car lines still are filled with gas-guzzling sedans and SUVs that merely aggravate air pollution and hasten climate change. 

Some, like the Mercedes-Benz S-Class, score low on reliability surveys.

Mindless media 

The automotive media are responsible for portraying German cars with hundreds of horsepower from dirty internal combustion engines as viable alternatives to Tesla Motors' revolutionary Model S and other all-electric vehicles.

For example, Car and Driver's blog interviewed Diamler Chairman Dieter Zetsche, who sports a walrus mustache (Diamler A.G. is the parent company of Mercedes-Benz).

One of the loaded questions was posed this way:

"And electric vehicles? Buyers seem unconvinced."

No one said you had to have brains to get a job at a car magazine or a blog like Gas2, which ran the interview recently.

Of course, "buyers" of electric vehicles must have been convinced or why would they have spent $30,000 to $70,000 and more for an all-electric car? 

Tesla Motors is selling about 50,000 Model S luxury hatchbacks annually from a single factory in California.

No ad revenue

The media's hostility toward Tesla might have something to do with the company's no-advertising policy. 

No ads mean no advertising revenue for struggling print and electronic media.

Elon Musk, the genius behind Tesla, didn't even bother showing his new model this week at the New York International Auto Show in Manhattan.

Model S 70D

This week, Tesla announced a new base model, the 70D, which costs $75,000 and has all-wheel drive and slightly more range, 240 miles v. 208 miles for the discontinued Model S 60.

The Associated Press story I saw in my morning paper reported the electric car maker "is going after mainstream luxury car buyers" with the new model.

The story didn't explain why the $70,000 Model S 60 -- which has a 380-horsepower electric motor and can go from zero to 60 mph in 5.9 seconds -- didn't compete against "mainstream" luxury cars.

The new 70D trims only .7 seconds off that 0-60 time, even though it has a motor with 124 more horsepower.

My Model S

I am scheduled to pick up my new Model S 60 next week.

I am sure it will be the best car I have ever owned, and with free updates from Tesla will remain fresh and more advanced than just about anything else on the road.

The only cars we've had for more than a decade are Toyota Prius hybrids, and we have more than 60 solar panels on the roof of our home.

The Model S 60 will be a perfect fit, especially in view of the limited driving I do as a senior.

German cars

In the last few years, I've worked part time for fleet-management companies in New Jersey that supply new cars to the media and VIPs.

I've driven just about every Mercedes, BMW, Audi and Porsche, occasionally as a chauffeur during Fashion Week or other special event.

Some of them have switches and controls that are so hopelessly complicated I had to consult the owner's manual to figure them out.

I couldn't wait to jump back into my 2010 Prius.

World's automakers unveil their latest ideas for hastening climate change

Instead of showing a production model of the next-generation Prius hybrid, Toyota unveiled the Mirai fuel-cell sedan at the New York International Auto Show press preview today. Only 3,000 will be available in the U.S. from the last quarter of this year through 2017, a spokeswoman said.

The interior and exterior of the Mirai are underwhelming -- too reminiscent of the Camry. The electric-drive sedan will have a range of 300 miles on a fill-up of hydrogen.

By VICTOR E. SASSON
EDITOR

Only a small fraction of the hundreds of vehicles on display at the New York International Auto Show in Manhattan can be considered environmentally friendly.

At today's press preview in the Javits Center, I saw a handful of purely electric cars, maybe a dozen gas-electric hybrids and Toyota's hydrogen fuel-cell vehicle, which is going on sale later this year in very limited numbers.

After all, the show is produced by the Greater New York Automobile Dealers Association, not the Environmental Protection Agency.

At the opening press breakfast this morning, dealer association President Mark Schienberg emphasized that performance is the leading factor driving new-car sales -- followed by technology and fuel efficiency.

In other words, don't look for a great many new products later this year and in 2016 that are aimed at slowing climate change.

The show opens to the public on Friday.

The Toyota Mirai's electric motor (rated at 153 horsepower), fuel cells and hydrogen tank, front to rear. The midsize, four-passenger Mirai will have an MSRP of $57,500.

The Ford Focus Electric.

Volkswagen's all-electric e-Golf.

Mitsubishi's all-electric, hard-to-pronounce i-MiEV.

The low-slung BMW i8 plug-in hybrid sports car has an MSRP of $137,450, but that doesn't include treatments from a chiropractor.

The new Ford GT, reminiscent of the race car that won Le Mans from 1966 to 1969, is going on sale next year.

Mazda's new MX-5 Miata.

Lincoln unveiled a limousine-like Continental Concept, which is expected to be produced for the 2017 model year. The announcer said the car will have soft-closing doors, which reminded be of the Toto toilet seat.

Automobile writers packed one of the first press conferences of the day, for the 2016 Chevrolet Malibu, which is being billed as finally competitive with the Toyota Camry and Honda Accord in the scrappy midsize-sedan segment. A gas-electric hybrid version also will be available.

Platters of fruit and cheese were typical of the fare offered to members of the automotive media at the 115th edition of the New York International Auto Show. Subaru gave out box lunches with vegetable or turkey wraps. Espresso bars were common, but Porsche restricted its lounge to invitees holding a black card. In general, the automakers seem to be cutting back on food service compared to last year's press preview.

Why did Times writer compare BMW's hybrid sports car to the roomy Tesla?

The roomy Tesla Model S, above, would seem to have little in common with the low-slung BMW i8, below, except that both have four wheels. The Tesla is an all-electric luxury car with ample room for four, and the i8 is a plug-in hybrid sports car for two that is difficult to get into and out of.

By VICTOR E. SASSON
EDITOR

Although hybrid and all-electric cars have been sold in the United States for 15 years, many automobile writers still don't feel all warm and fuzzy about them.

Can you blame them?

For years, writers for car magazines and newspapers have been obsessing over tire-burning acceleration, 0-60 times and how fast the model they are evaluating can lap a racetrack.

Impact on the environment? Who knew and who cared?

Many in the automotive media have been skeptical of green cars -- from the Toyota Prius gas-electric hybrid of a decade ago to the revolutionary all-electric Tesla Model S of today.

Times praises BMW i8

In October, The New York Times ran two stories evaluating the BMW i8, a new plug-in gas-electric hybrid that sounds and drives like a sports car.

With an MSRP of $137,500 -- nearly twice that of the Tesla Model S 60 four-door hatchback -- the i8 is high on excitement, low on practicality and is basically a green car that will keep you chained to the gasoline pump.

The low two-seater has scissor doors and a high sill, making it difficult to get into and a nightmare to exit, especially because it doesn't have a passenger-assist handle.

Not designed for women

No woman in a skirt could get out of the car and keep her dignity. In many ways, the i8 is a car designed by men exclusively for men.

Lawrence Ulrich, who reviewed the i8 for The Times' Automobiles section, mentioned the nightmarish ergonomics in passing, but didn't dwell on the car's many contradictions.

He noted the i8 is as "fast as a Corvette Stingray," and "opening the ... 'swan wing' doors brought gawkers running."

Ulrich can't help comparing the i8 -- favorably -- to Tesla's Model S in terms of acceleration, agility and range, noting the all-electric car can't "keep pace on a track or on twisty roads" with Porsches, Corvettes or BMW's own M3 and M4.

Of course, few cars of any kind can.

In an age of climate change, this speed-freak approach to automotive journalism, where every car is judged largely by its performance, seems juvenile.