The new Nissan Leaf will be priced from £32,249, having been confirmed eligible for the maximum £3750 discount under the UK's Electric Car Grant scheme.
Due to enter production in Sunderland next month, the Leaf is the fourth sub-£37,000 EV to qualify for the higher of the two available grants, following the Ford Puma Gen-E, Ford E-Tourneo Courier and Citroën ë-C5 Aircross. The other 35 cars on the scheme have been awarded the lower £1500 discount.
It means that all of Nissan's EVs are eligible for the ECG, the Micra hatchback and Ariya SUV having already received the £1500 discount.
The Leaf launches exclusively with a 75kWh battery pack giving up to 386 miles of charge, and a 213bhp motor on the front axle capable of delivering the SUV from 0-62mph in 7.6 seconds. A cheaper entry-level Leaf, with a 52kWh battery giving a maximum range of 271 miles, will come later, possibly bringing prices below £30,000, but Nissan has yet to announce pricing for that.
For now, the range kicks off with Engage trim at £32,249 - including a heat pump, 18in alloys, an 11kW onboard charger and two 12.3in screens as standard. The Engage+ package costs an extra £900, and adds a range of Google services, heated front seats and steering wheel, larger 14.3in screens and a wireless phone charger.
Then the range climbs up to Advance at £34,249 – adding a dimming panoramic roof, head-up display, electric boot lid, privacy glass and a wraparound front light bar – and tops out at £36,249 for the Evolve model, which adds a nine-speaker Bose sound system, vehicle-to-load charging function, synthetic leather seats and a massage function for the driver.
All prices include the ECG.
Nissan GB boss James Taylor had earlier told Autocar the Leaf would be in a "very strong position" to receive the maximum grant, given the framework that determines which models qualify is based on criteria that takes into account the environmental impact of production and shipping.
Speaking after the ECG scheme was announced in the summer, Taylor said the suggestion that the rules had been written with Nissan in mind was "going a little bit far" but it was right that the scheme favoured locally manufactured vehicles.
"Our battery plant is being built in Sunderland, and when full-scale production starts there next year, we will have British-assembled and -built batteries going into British-assembled and -built cars," he said.
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