Much to the surprise of the attendees at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit this week, Johan de Nysschen, President of Infiniti, said the LE, their small luxury electric car, is delayed indefinitely.
According to Nysschen, Infiniti is busy building its brand and attention to the LE ranks lower in the company’s priorities these days. Read: Could Infiniti be struggling and has to stay in the mainstream arena to be relevant?
Some have said that issues with the planned wireless charging or range limitations have caused the delays. Ironically, de Nysschen has always been a detractor of electric cars and has given a laundry list of issues with plug-in cars. He cites lack of charging infrastructure, under-developed battery technology, and poor government support as just a few of the reasons he is less optimistic about the vehicles.
Two years ago, Nissan’s included offering a portfolio of electric cars, namely the Nissan LEAF, Infiniti LE luxury car, a small battery-powered delivery van, and a cool urban subcompact mostly aimed at European and Asian markets.
These days it seems the LEAF will carry almost all the weight of Nissan’s big EV ambitions.
