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Presenting an all-new electric car called the Leaf at Nissan's equally new eco-friendly world headquarters in Japan over the weekend was the easy part. The tough part will be meeting the aggressive sales goals of Nissan-Renault CEO Carlos Ghosn, who's reportedly aiming to produce 50,000 globally in its first year of production, ramping up to a goal of 200,000 when it's slated to go on sale to the public in 2012, including in Canada.

To put that number into perspective, it took Toyota 11 years to sell one million Prius gas-electric hybrid models after its 1997 debut in Japan; that's for a vehicle with a significantly greater range than the Leaf's estimated 160 km, and it can be fuelled like any other car.

So it's no doubt an aggressive target for what promises to be a historic car: the first affordable, uniquely designed all-electric car since GM's ill-fated EV1. A Nissan Canada spokesperson confirmed this week that the Leaf hatchback is scheduled to go on sale in this country in 2012.

What exactly "affordable" will mean in this country won't be confirmed until closer to the launch of the front-wheel-drive, five-seat, exhaust-less hatchback.

Nissan says it is aiming for a price range of a "typical hatchback" in the Civic-sized C-segment, which would give it a price range between about $20,000 and $30,000, not including the recently announced $10,000 rebate announced by the Ontario government to be enacted in 2010.

Whether this estimated price range will include the cost of the battery "engine" itself is also a question mark, as trade journal Autoweek reported this week that Nissan will lease the battery separately.

Nissan is keeping confirmation of many of those details to itself until closer to the car's initial limited launch in the U.S., Japan and Europe late next year.

The Leaf looks very much like a futuristic, yet normal, five-door hatchback, outside of its bright-blue LED headlights up front and the conspicuous lack of any sort of tailpipe.

The car's plugs are integrated into a flap under the Leaf's front badge, which hide a high-speed three-phase charger that can provide an 80 per cent charge in about half an hour, or a full charge on a 220-volt outlet in about eight hours.

Unfortunately for North Americans with mostly 110V outlets in their garages now, Nissan Canada says that a 220 volt line will be required for charging the Leaf at home. Autoweek quoted company engineers as saying that it can be charged on a 110V outlet, but requires a 16-hour charge from a totally depleted state to achieve full range.

The Leaf produces 80 kW of power, and 280 Nm of torque, which translates to 107 hp and 207 lb-ft of torque, with a top speed of just over 140 km/h.

In terms of size, the Leaf is about the same length, width and wheelbase as the Honda Civic, the current best-selling car in Canada, so it has major potential consumer appeal here.

But a major stumbling block here could be its range in frosty winter temps - Nissan hasn't offered any estimates for range in extreme winter temperatures, but acknowledges that it will be lower with heater as well as air conditioner use.

Suzuki's mid-size Kizashi coming this winter

Suzuki has unveiled its first mid-size sedan for North America, called the Kizashi, and it will be one of the few vehicles in its segment to offer all-wheel-drive.

Then again, the mid-size moniker may be overstating things, as its overall size is much closer to the Civic/Corolla crowd than the roomier and more big-boned Accord/Camry set, and it is designed to compete with mid-sizers like the Mazda6 and VW Passat.

The Kizashi - pronounced "Kee-Zah-Shee" - will offer a 2.4-litre, four-cylinder engine mated to a six-speed manual transmission or an optional CVT with paddles behind the steering wheel. S

Suzuki has not released output figures for this engine, nor fuel economy numbers, but has confirmed that a hybrid version is in the works - at some point in the unspecified future.

Slated to arrive this winter, Suzuki says the car boasts refined road manners and interior detailing on a higher scale than its rivals, and presumably current Suzuki cars as well. The optional all-wheel drive system will come with a button to activate it, upon which power will be extended to the rear wheels.

Eight airbags and electronic stability control will come standard, says Suzuki, while Bluetooth, iPod connectivity and a 425-watt Rockford Fosgate sound system will all be available.

Camaro Transformers edition coming to Canada

It may be slightly over the top - come on, it was introduced recently at the Comic-Con show in San Diego - but a Transformers edition of the Chevrolet Camaro is now available for special order. So all those Canadian Bumblebee fans who thought the package may have been reserved for American audiences will be relieved to know that the insignia-festooned car will in fact make it over the border.

The package is available on 2010 yellow RS and SS models, giving the Camaro the black stripes of the Bumblebee alien robot protagonist in this summer's blockbuster hit. It includes a number of Autobot symbols in strategically placed spots: on the wheels, fenders, and centre armrest inside. That face-like symbol is the identifier of the hero robots, in case you're not familiar with the franchise, or toys that spawned them.

The $1,245 package also includes Transformers script on the hood, as well as the sill plates, just to make sure you're constantly reminded of the car's unique lineage.

BMW confirms electric Megacity brand coming

Details are still sparse, but a new brand from BMW called Megacity is coming within the next six years, a brand aimed at marketing electric or other types of super-clean vehicles to customers living in large, congested cities.

Norbert Reithofer, chairman of the board of management at BMW AG, confirmed the move as well as the supplier of the Megacity electric car batteries this week; the batteries will be produced in a joint venture with Bosch and South Korean electronics brand Samsung SDI.

Reithofer gave few details about the car, but said that the car would be available in the first half of the next decade.

globeauto@globeandmail.com