Carlos Ghosn, Chairman of the Nissan/Renault/Mitsubishi alliance, says EV range anxiety is pretty much a thing of the past, and that his companies will now focus on lowering vehicle prices.

“We have seen that consumers do not talk anymore about range or autonomy as long as you guarantee more than 300 km,” Ghosn recently told reporters in Hong Kong.

The automakers only recently identified 300 km as the key milestone. “You could not have guessed this through studies,” Ghosn said. “You had to have 500,000 [electric] cars on the ground to understand that consumers do not put autonomy on top of their concerns any more when you cross 300 km.”

Renault’s Zoe EV claims a range of over 300 km, and Nissan estimates the range of its upcoming 2019 Leaf at 225 miles (362 km).

For the Chinese market in particular, price is now the key issue, Ghosn said. “When you look what are the electric Chinese cars that are selling, they are very, very affordable cars,” he said. “The price point of the LEAF today is not adequate for the Chinese market.”

Nissan plans to introduce an electric version of its Kwid crossover to the China market through its existing joint venture with Dongfeng. “This will address the particular segment of the very affordable electric car,” said Ghosn.

Source: Nikkei via Green Car Congress