KevinSharpe
Well-known member
Tom Barnard, Communications director of Nissan GB tweeted today "Nissan is to donate 400 electric car quick chargers to organisations and companies across Europe. We hope to get 65+ for the UK."
KevinSharpe said:Tom Barnard, Communications director of Nissan GB tweeted today "Nissan is to donate 400 electric car quick chargers to organisations and companies across Europe. We hope to get 65+ for the UK."
Maybe Nissan has noticed that the US has shown it’s own lack of “commitment” to the DC infrastructure, like:TomT said:How nice! Too bad they don't share the same commitment in the U.S.
KevinSharpe said:Tom Barnard, Communications director of Nissan GB tweeted today "Nissan is to donate 400 electric car quick chargers to organisations and companies across Europe. We hope to get 65+ for the UK."
edatoakrun said:Maybe Nissan has noticed that the US has shown it’s own lack of “commitment” to the DC infrastructure, like:TomT said:How nice! Too bad they don't share the same commitment in the U.S.
KevinSharpe said:Tom Barnard, Communications director of Nissan GB tweeted today "Nissan is to donate 400 electric car quick chargers to organisations and companies across Europe. We hope to get 65+ for the UK."
SAE manipulated by American manufacturers, putting CHAdeMO DC standard in doubt, while (so far) only producing vaporware alternative.
The failure of West coast government agencies to meet their commitments to install pilot program DC chargers, a year after LEAF sales began in these early rollout areas.
Previously donated charger (Vacaville) with perfect location to offer proof-of concept, shut down without rational reason, just as LEAF deliveries began.
And lets not forget the political risk of investing in a a country where a bat-ass-crazy-republican party, based on a fox-news version of reality, may increase subsidies to petroleum fuels after the next election.
Check out the map below to see a view of the commitment of Europe to DC charging, as compared with the US.
http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?msid=210740974077298891697.0004ac7e66a8121c75d8e&msa=0" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
They have contributed quite a bit to EV Project.TomT said:How nice! Too bad they don't share the same commitment in the U.S.
I am forced to agree. Even if they did donate the equipment, there wouldn't be enough takers.johnr said:Nissan probably recognizes the sad reality that if they were to donate 400 quick-chargers for use in the US, many of them would likely suffer the fate of that one installed in California several months ago which has not yet received permission by PG&E to be turned on, or would suffer from fiendish demand charges.
SteveInSeattle said:It is not clear to me how important Quick Chargers will be to adoption of electric cars. First, the Leaf is the perfect commuter car but a very impractical road trip car since we would have to QC EVERY HOUR to travel any distance at freeway speeds. Second, QC is not good for the battery. Third, there will never be enough Quick Chargers to insure that there is no extra waiting time, so planning travel using QC will always be a gamble.
The Leaf is the perfect family second car for in-town commuting. I don't plan to ever use QC-- If I need to travel beyond the Leaf range I would take the ICE car. I think talking about QC does a disservice to the marketing of the Leaf-- customers are lead to believe that they should wait for the infrastructure that most of them don't need in the first place.
I don't see QC as enabling road trips, but I do see it as enabling days where I have LOTS of errands to run, and as enabling trips one city over, like to nearby OC or LA. I've done the OC on L2, but it only worked because it was a pleasure trip and we purposely went to shopping locations that had L2 available. QC would let me do more general travel.SteveInSeattle said:It is not clear to me how important Quick Chargers will be to adoption of electric cars. First, the Leaf is the perfect commuter car but a very impractical road trip car since we would have to QC EVERY HOUR to travel any distance at freeway speeds. ...
nlagnew said:I am basically two hours from the NC coast. A quick charger between Raleigh and Wilmington, at a rest stop, would be the perfect thing to get me (and many from my immediate area) to the coast. The same may be true of some areas in Massachusetts (I grew up 90 minutes from the camp on Cape Cod where I spent many summers)... and so forth. Once in these vacation areas, a LEAF is nearly perfect. Without the charge in the middle, though, I will either need to use the ICE car or rent one.
Given the experience so far with the QC chargers in Portland (neither is functioning) I am not very optimistic that I will ever be able to try my QC port. This I think is a real threat to widespread EV acceptance. Horror stories of stranded EV owners who expected to be able to charge, but didn't get it b/c Blink or somebody disabled the charger, will only serve those who want to keep the EV from succeeding.DoxyLover said:As someone mentioned earlier in the thread, making a trip that depends on QC is a gamble until you have more than one QC EVSE in an area. What if you get to your first planned QC point with 20% battery charge left and it's broken? you have just bought yourself either renting an ICE car to continue or a 6 hour stop for L2 charging before you can either continue (hoping that it'll be fixed before you need to return) or (most likely) just head home.
NISSAN TO DONATE ‘QUICK CHARGERS' TO SPEED DEVELOPMENT OF NATIONAL EV CHARGING NETWORK
•400 quick chargers to be given away free by Nissan
•Installation in high profile locations starting February 2012
•Charge to 80% in 30 minutes
Nissan is accelerating plans for a European-wide Quick Charge (QC) network for electric vehicles by giving away 400 new quick charging stations free of charge.
These new points will boost existing networks and give EV customers greater freedom and flexibility by effectively extending the range of their car.
Countries across Europe have been asked to pitch for a charging network and the best ‘bids' will win an allocation of chargers. In the UK, Nissan has put in a bid for 65 chargers which would be strategically located at selected service stations along the motorway network, creating a ‘pathway' on major routes across the UK.
Contact has already been made with the three largest motorway service station chains who have a total of 100 stations across the country.
In addition, Quick Chargers would be located in some city centers and other key locations such as airports.
Nissan currently has a network of 32 EV dealers, 26 of which already have a Quick Charger installed. The remaining six dealers will be the first in the UK to install these new smaller units, the total number of dealers with QCs is expected to be 150 by the end of 2012.
By recharging batteries in a fraction of the time, this radical step will help drive more customers towards electric vehicles such as the Nissan LEAF. The advanced lithium ion batteries in Nissan LEAF can be recharged from 0 to 80% capacity in just 30 minutes using a quick charger.
Although a range between charges of up to 110 miles will be enough for most Nissan LEAF owners, the spread of Quick Charger networks will allow drivers to travel longer distances in a day. Recharging a Nissan LEAF with a quick charger takes a little longer than it takes to refuel a conventional car and is significantly cheaper.
Jim Wright, Managing Director, Nissan Motor (GB) Limited said: "While we are confident that the LEAF's range will satisfy most customers' needs, we understand that some will need to make occasional longer journeys. Our vision is to create a ‘pathway charging network' which would remove so called ‘range anxiety' and open up pure EV ownership to a whole new spectrum of drivers."
The move follows an agreement between Nissan and five of Europe's leading utility and EV infrastructure supply companies to speed up the provision of the latest quick chargers developed by Nissan Motor Co., Ltd., which are cheaper - up to half the previous price - and smaller than before. The target is to have a network of quick charge stations across Europe with several thousand units in place by the end of 2012 and tens of thousands by 2015.
To kick start this ambitious programme Nissan is now announcing it will give 400 units away to Zero Emissions Mobility partners and volunteering companies across Europe, all of which are enthusiastic backers of the company's ambitious electro-mobility plans.
A selection process has already started and winners will be awarded chargers according to how they fulfill a strict list of criteria developed by Nissan. These include convenient and accessible charger location, installation starting February 2012 and free or discounted charging for all Nissan LEAF customers for at least one year.
"With a significant number of QCs available across Europe, EV owners will be able to recharge quickly no matter where they go. We believe this is essential for the mass adoption of EVs," said Pierre Loing, Vice President Product Planning & Zero Emission Business Unit, Nissan International SA.
I looked up NLPC after noticing a series of anti-EV articles.padamson1 said:Check out this conservative website http://nlpc.org/stories/2011/11/06/chevy-volt-again-suspected-house-fire, I count at least three anti-EV articles on the front page alone. It seems some people will do anything to quash EV's.
SteveInSeattle said:First, the Leaf is the perfect commuter car but a very impractical road trip car since we would have to QC EVERY HOUR to travel any distance at freeway speeds. Second, QC is not good for the battery. Third, there will never be enough Quick Chargers to insure that there is no extra waiting time, so planning travel using QC will always be a gamble.
The Leaf is the perfect family second car for in-town commuting. I don't plan to ever use QC-- If I need to travel beyond the Leaf range I would take the ICE car. I think talking about QC does a disservice to the marketing of the Leaf-- customers are lead to believe that they should wait for the infrastructure that most of them don't need in the first place.
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