* The 11-foot-long Nissan Sakura is Japan’s best-selling electric vehicle, per Bloomberg. * The $13,000 “Kei car” has left rivals such as Tesla in the dust. * Mini “Kei trucks” are taking off in the US, with some being sold for as little as $5,000.
I see them everywhere around here in Osaka. It makes me happy that Japanese buy at least Nissans EVs.
I’ll buy one
Making EVs cheap did the trick! Who would have thunk it?
I got my i3 for about 1.6m yen, nice and cheap, and has the same range as the sakura, while being much more powerful and quick.
My next car is going to be a tesla for sure, Japans chademo network sucks, while tesla’s NACS network is much better.
Tiny cars in Japan makes a world of sense, shame it’s such a hard sell to get other markets to import them at volume. I drove a Nissan Moco, tiny little nugget!
Well, average american won’t fit in this one
Not gonna lie, it looks pretty. I think Tesla will lose out as more EVs will offer better and cheaper options as well as when people realise that they don’t want to support a deranged egomaniac.
I can afford that..
Fantastic news
There’s a trend on western media lately constantly mentioning that “cHinEsE EVs wILL dOmiNaTe ThE wORLD” and a lot of Chinese nationalists are bragging about this
There are also those annoying EV fantards that constantly says that “ThE dOmiNAnCe of JaPAnEsE cARS wiLL bE OvEr becAuSe ThEy faIL to iNvEsT in EVs.”
This news can finally shut these idiots up
Rather invest in this than a Tesla or Chinese Communist EV
I bought one of those last year and I’m loving it. Mine cost more like $30,000, though, but that’s still about $10,000 lower than the cheapest standard-sized EV. The base-priced $13,000 version contains absolutely no options or accessories. If you want music, AC, and car navigation you’ll pay more. My high-end G model contains all of the options and accessories available except for automatic parking. I figured if I can’t park a kei car myself I probably shouldn’t even be driving.
As a Tesla owner, this is good news. Tesla has been partnering with other automotive manufacturers so their EV can be supported at Tesla charging stations. These will never be a competitor for Tesla though. Tesla will continue to out rank other EV in performance and in safety ratings. It isn’t just about having an EV. It’s also about performance, longevity and safety. Tesla will continue to come out with top ranks in these areas as their vehicles are just built better. It’s like comparing a Toyota to a Mercedes. It just isn’t a comparison in quality. That isn’t to say that Non-Tesla EV are bad. They just are not the same thing and don’t offer the same specifications that a Tesla does. Not everyone can afford a Tesla or likes their design so it’s great that there is now more EV on the market for people to choose from.
This is a good article and a good wake up call to the Tesla fanboys that assume Tesla is dominating in every country in the world because it’s doing well in the US. It’s not.
For one, Teslas cost 30 to 40% more outside of the US. Secondly, while the US has had several price cuts for the Model 3, Japan has only had price increases. I know, currency and all that.
Japan loves its Kei cars and Nissan made a very good EV one, and it’s selling well because of it. Next Japan needs a 6-seater people carrier EV, and Tesla definitely won’t be making one of those.
Instead they’re focusing on the pickup truck that looks like a broken Nintendo 64 game, and let me tell you that won’t sell at all here!
Hi! I’m the writer of this article – we’re looking at doing another piece talking to Sakura owners about what it’s like to drive the car and why it’s so popular. If you drive a Sakura and are interested in talking to us, feel free to email me at [tcarter@insider.com](mailto:tcarter@insider.com). Thanks!
I wish they’d sell these in Europe, it would be perfect for our roads. It’s really cute.
>The cozy interior of the Nissan Sakura.
Fits half an average American, which is why it will remain a JDM. I’m jealous.
Though I’m happy to see the Sakura has been a success, and there are more and more delivery vans powered by electric motors, I do still see a hell of a lot of people buying dumb ass SUVs and even trucks lately. Hopefully the truck thing is just a fad, and the popularity of the Sakura will drive up competition in the kei EV space, which is basically just a couple of cars at this point.
Considering Tesla is owned by a Nazi, yeah I’d say this is a good move.
19 comments
TL;DR:
* The 11-foot-long Nissan Sakura is Japan’s best-selling electric vehicle, per Bloomberg.
* The $13,000 “Kei car” has left rivals such as Tesla in the dust.
* Mini “Kei trucks” are taking off in the US, with some being sold for as little as $5,000.
I see them everywhere around here in Osaka.
It makes me happy that Japanese buy at least Nissans EVs.
I’ll buy one
Making EVs cheap did the trick! Who would have thunk it?
I got my i3 for about 1.6m yen, nice and cheap, and has the same range as the sakura, while being much more powerful and quick.
My next car is going to be a tesla for sure, Japans chademo network sucks, while tesla’s NACS network is much better.
Tiny cars in Japan makes a world of sense, shame it’s such a hard sell to get other markets to import them at volume. I drove a Nissan Moco, tiny little nugget!
Well, average american won’t fit in this one
Not gonna lie, it looks pretty. I think Tesla will lose out as more EVs will offer better and cheaper options as well as when people realise that they don’t want to support a deranged egomaniac.
I can afford that..
Fantastic news
There’s a trend on western media lately constantly mentioning that “cHinEsE EVs wILL dOmiNaTe ThE wORLD” and a lot of Chinese nationalists are bragging about this
There are also those annoying EV fantards that constantly says that “ThE dOmiNAnCe of JaPAnEsE cARS wiLL bE OvEr becAuSe ThEy faIL to iNvEsT in EVs.”
This news can finally shut these idiots up
Rather invest in this than a Tesla or Chinese Communist EV
I bought one of those last year and I’m loving it. Mine cost more like $30,000, though, but that’s still about $10,000 lower than the cheapest standard-sized EV. The base-priced $13,000 version contains absolutely no options or accessories. If you want music, AC, and car navigation you’ll pay more. My high-end G model contains all of the options and accessories available except for automatic parking. I figured if I can’t park a kei car myself I probably shouldn’t even be driving.
As a Tesla owner, this is good news. Tesla has been partnering with other automotive manufacturers so their EV can be supported at Tesla charging stations. These will never be a competitor for Tesla though. Tesla will continue to out rank other EV in performance and in safety ratings. It isn’t just about having an EV. It’s also about performance, longevity and safety. Tesla will continue to come out with top ranks in these areas as their vehicles are just built better. It’s like comparing a Toyota to a Mercedes. It just isn’t a comparison in quality. That isn’t to say that Non-Tesla EV are bad. They just are not the same thing and don’t offer the same specifications that a Tesla does. Not everyone can afford a Tesla or likes their design so it’s great that there is now more EV on the market for people to choose from.
This is a good article and a good wake up call to the Tesla fanboys that assume Tesla is dominating in every country in the world because it’s doing well in the US. It’s not.
For one, Teslas cost 30 to 40% more outside of the US. Secondly, while the US has had several price cuts for the Model 3, Japan has only had price increases. I know, currency and all that.
Japan loves its Kei cars and Nissan made a very good EV one, and it’s selling well because of it.
Next Japan needs a 6-seater people carrier EV, and Tesla definitely won’t be making one of those.
Instead they’re focusing on the pickup truck that looks like a broken Nintendo 64 game, and let me tell you that won’t sell at all here!
Hi! I’m the writer of this article – we’re looking at doing another piece talking to Sakura owners about what it’s like to drive the car and why it’s so popular. If you drive a Sakura and are interested in talking to us, feel free to email me at [tcarter@insider.com](mailto:tcarter@insider.com). Thanks!
I wish they’d sell these in Europe, it would be perfect for our roads. It’s really cute.
>The cozy interior of the Nissan Sakura.
Fits half an average American, which is why it will remain a JDM. I’m jealous.
Though I’m happy to see the Sakura has been a success, and there are more and more delivery vans powered by electric motors, I do still see a hell of a lot of people buying dumb ass SUVs and even trucks lately. Hopefully the truck thing is just a fad, and the popularity of the Sakura will drive up competition in the kei EV space, which is basically just a couple of cars at this point.
Considering Tesla is owned by a Nazi, yeah I’d say this is a good move.
If it’s Japan made, then u approve 100%.
I saw a few in Japan. Quite cute.