For anyone who follows plug-in sales numbers religiously, they knew this milestone was coming; apparently it was also not lost on Nissan as well.

Nissan says that as of Valentine's Day, February 14th, 2013, the company has sold 50,000 all-electric LEAFs. And while perhaps it was a little slower than originally expected, it is still a remarkable achievement given that before this decade began, there was virtually no electric vehicles at all.

"Today the 100% electric Nissan LEAF marked another milestone in the history of EVs as it passed the 50,000 sales mark, reinforcing its position as the best selling electric vehicle of all time."

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Nissan also takes some time to add some random data points from the 50,000 LEAFs sold:

A total distance of more than 260 million km (161 million miles)* has been driven in LEAFs. A fact which Nissan notes is "greater than the distance from the earth to the sun (and) all of these kilometers were covered with zero tailpipe emissions, contributing to government's efforts to reduce levels of harmful NOx and particulate matter in cities."

million km (161 million miles)* has been driven in LEAFs. A fact which Nissan notes is "greater than the distance from the earth to the sun (and) all of these kilometers were covered with zero tailpipe emissions, contributing to government's efforts to reduce levels of harmful NOx and particulate matter in cities." The highest mileage LEAF globally has been revealed as a Japanese customer who has covered more than 175,000 km (108,700 miles)

(108,700 miles) In 17 European countries, 7,000 cars are being driven every day, with one customer in Spain has already clocked up over 43,000 km in one year

With the introduction of a much lower priced, entry level, S model LEAF being introduced around the world ( $28,800 in the US ), we expect that it will take Nissan a lot less time to achieve the next 50,000 sales of its electric car.

*Figures are based on all LEAFs registered with the Carwings telemetry system, which is not mandatory and not all vehicles are registered.