Nissan global EV sales pass 1 million mark – half of what Tesla makes in 6 months

Japanese automaker Nissan announced this week that it has surpassed 1 million electric vehicles (EVs) sold globally in more than a decade since the launch of the then groundbreaking Nissan Leaf in late 2020.

Nissan says the Leaf has now sold more than 650,000 units around the globe and is still being sold in 50 markets including Japan, the United States, and Europe.

Nissan has since added two more electric vehicles to its offering, the Nissan Ariya in 2022, an all-electric crossover and the Nissan Sakura, the company’s first EV in the Japanese mini-vehicle market.

Nissan says the Sakura has received orders of 50,000, and has won three prestigious awards in Japan, including the 2022-2023 Japan Car of the Year.

Australia accounts for a small fraction of those sales, with only 331 Nissan Leaf models sold in 2022. And despite having been on sale in Australia since 2012, Nissan reported last year that Australian sales of the Leaf had only managed to edge past the 2,000 mark, accounting for 0.33% of all global Leaf sales. The Ariya is yet to go on  sale in Australia.

Nissan’s early leadership with the Leaf has now been overwhelmed by new players in the market. Nissan’s total EV sales now account for less than half the EV target of new market leader Tesla, which aims to sell two million EVs across the world in 2023, mostly the Model Y and Model 3.

Nissan cumulative EV sales by region