Nissan Leaf production overtakes iconic Bluebird’s manufacturing record

The production of Nissan’s all-electric Leaf has overtaken the iconic Bluebird at the company’s Sunderland plant.

The production of Bluebird totalled 187,178 units from 1986 to 1990 – at its height, a Bluebird saloon was rolling off the production line every 22 hours.

Now, 35 years later the Sunderland plant’s production record has been beaten: the factory has manufactured 195,380 units, and production time is down to 10 hours per unit.

And it’s not all about replacing humans with robots: When the plant opened in 1986 it employed 430 people. The current headcount stands at 6,000. There are still 19 staff working on the Leaf who joined in the Bluebird days back in 1986.

The five-door hatchback was the best-selling electric passenger vehicle from its launch in 2010 until early 2020, when it was overtaken by the Tesla Model 3. At the end of that year, the Leaf celebrated global production of 500,000 units.

The first Leaf had a range of 73 miles on an overnight battery charge. The latest model boasts a range of 239 miles, with a charging time from 20 to 80 percent of battery capacity in 90 minutes.

Nissan has set itself the goal to achieve carbon neutrality across the company’s operations and the life cycle of its products by 2050.

As part of this effort, by the early 2030s every all-new Nissan vehicle offering in key markets will be electrified, as well as introducing innovations in electrification and manufacturing technology.

The company recently announced plans for a major expansion to renewable energy generation at its record-breaking plant in Sunderland, UK with a proposed 20MW solar farm extension.

If approved, the 37,000-panel extension would result in 20 percent of the plant’s energy coming from all onsite renewables, enough to build every single zero-emission Nissan LEAF sold in Europe.

Alan Johnson, vice president of manufacturing at Nissan’s Sunderland plant, said: “Bluebird was an iconic model for the plant and evokes fond memories among all Nissan enthusiasts.

“Leaf volumes overtaking Bluebird shows how dramatically our manufacturing innovation, skills and processes have evolved as we drive towards electrification.

“Leaf overtaking Bluebird is a landmark – but there are many more to come for our team at the plant as our electrified line up grows.”