GM’s Chevrolet Volt tops Nissan Leaf in October sales race

General Motors’ Chevrolet Volt outsold Nissan’s Leaf in October in the battle of electric vehicles.

For October, GM’s October sales were up 2 percent from a year ago. Nissan’s sales jumped 18 percent. The real battle between the two companies this year has been on the electric vehicle front.

In the early part of 2011, Nissan’s Leaf jumped out to a lead and for a while looked like it would rout GM.

Meanwhile, GM curbed production of the Volt with plans to ramp up steadily through the year. Also see: GM plans ’significant increase’ in Volt production

The October sales data may indicate a key inflection point in the EV race. GM sold 1,108 Volts in October to bring its grand total to 5,003. Nissan sold 849 Leaf vehicles in October. For the year, Nissan has sold 8,048 Leaf EVs.

Related:

• Nissan Leaf tops Chevrolet Volt in September sales, but gap closes
• GM’s most luxurious Volt yet: Cadillac ELR
• Designing the Volt: Six ways it’s different from your car
• Ford takes aim at Volt, to triple EV production by 2013
• GM’s Volt, Nissan’s Leaf nearly tied in 2011 EV sales race