Submitted 4/24/2010 by Thomas DeFresart

Nissan made its electric Leaf vehicle available for presale this week and has already taken over 6,000 orders in just three days. The reservations were made online and required a $99 refundable deposit, making it easy to claim a copy of the upcoming zero emissions electric vehicle.

Nissan made reservations available only to consumers that had previously expressed interest in the Leaf, and will take orders from the general public starting on May 15th. Nissan expects to have about 25,000 orders before the Leaf goes on sale in December 2010.

The all-electric Leaf will be built in a new plant in Smyrna, Tennessee. The plant is currently under construction and should be able to produce 150,000 units of the Leaf annually.

The Leaf will be have base sticker price of $25,280 plus destination charge after the $7,500 federal tax credit. Consumers will also need to purchase a $2,200 in-home charging station, which Nissan claims is eligible for the federal tax credit.

The price for the all-electric vehicle may be higher than a proven Toyota Prius hybrid, but it’s lower than the expected price for the upcoming Chevy Volt, and surprisingly low for an early adopter, mostly thanks to the substantial federal tax credit.

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