New York City goes electric! Nissan and the New York City Taxi & Limousine Commission put together a pilot program adding six Nissan Leaf electric vehicles to the NYC normal taxi service.

Nissan is looking for owner-operators and fleet operators who are interested in participating in this pilot program. Each participant will receive a lease on a Nissan Leaf to use as a taxicab for up to a year free of charge.

The goal is to gain valuable feedback about how the electric cars function as taxis on the busy streets of New York City and to show people that electric vehicles are viable options.

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Nissan has developed a ‘Wireless Charging System’ that allows recharging simply by parking the vehicle. Charging is able to start automatically once the vehicle is above the charging device installed in the ground of the car park.

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The 2012 Nissan Leaf is the second generation of Nissan’s all-electric family hatchback, following on from the highly popular 2011 Nissan Leaf.

But one year on from the original Leaf‘s launch, what’s different in the 2012 model? Here’s our list of things we think you need to know about the revised 2012 Nissan Leaf.

Charging

Like most other electric cars on the market, it will come complete with a level 2 J1772 charging port, capable of recharging from a suitable level 2 charging station from empty in between 6 and 12 hours, depending on the power provided by the charging station, temperature and the car’s state of charge.

Just like the 2011 Nissan Leaf, it will be possible to charge the 2012 Nissan Leaf from a 110-volt domestic power socket — but this kind of charging is not recommended by ourselves or Nissan and could take up to 20 hours from empty.

When it comes to rapid charging, the higher specification 2012 Nissan Leaf SL will feature a direct-current rapid charging port as standard, allowing it to charge to 80 percent full in under 30 minutes from a

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Before 2010 came to a close, both Nissan and General Motors launched their respective plug-in vehicles. For General Motors, it was the Chevrolet Volt plug-in hybrid that made its December debut. The Nissan Leaf electric vehicle landed in a lucky buyer’s driveway on the 11th of last month. With both automakers making good on their promise to debut mass-produced plug-ins by the end of 2010, the question of which vehicle tallied more total U.S. sales in the month of December can, with a limited degree of accuracy, now be answered.

The Associated Press reports that General Motors sold between 250 and 350 Volts in the U.S. by the end of 2010. On the other hand, Nissan reportedly sold less than 20 Leafs in the U.S. before 2011 rang in. Production volumes for both vehicles will continue to ramp up in the coming months and that’s where the real battle lies, but if you’re dead set on comparing actual 2010 U.S. delivery numbers, than it’s the Chevrolet Volt that outsold Nissan Leaf by a substantial margin.

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