Nissan Leaf Becomes Best Selling EV In Europe For The Fourth Time

The all-electric Nissan LEAF has smashed its own sales record with a 33 percent increase in European sales in 2014 over the previous year, taking more than a quarter of the electric car market with 14,658 sales.

This year the Nissan LEAF has been joined by an unprecedented number of new entrants into the EV market and has emerged as the leader on a global, US and European basis. Last year was the fourth year in a row that the electric family car has topped the zero-emission sales charts in Europe.

Moreover, the all-electric LEAF clocked up 4,051 sales in the UK, more than doubling the volume sold in 2013 (1,812). The British-built Nissan LEAF remains the nation's electric model of choice, boasting 55 percent of the pure EV market and outselling its nearest competitor.

Nissan Europe senior vice president of sales and marketing, Guillaume Cartier explains the increase in sales, commenting: "We can now see the impact that word of mouth is having on our sales, with 95 percent of our customers happy to recommend their car to a friend and 50 percent saying they would never go back to diesel or petrol. This kind of powerful advocacy, combined with an increasing awareness of the massive running cost savings electric car drivers experience, is why our Nissan LEAF sales continue to grow."

Cartier continued: "Data from our CarWings telematics system* shows us that Nissan LEAF drivers drive 40 percent more kilometres than the European average for petrol or diesel cars, covering over 16,500 km per year. This data demonstrates that this car is the primary car for many households and that is changing the consumer perception of electric cars."