Orange Co Calif...wanting to test drive considering purchase

Hi everyone,
I'm in HB.
I did this same type of research before we purchased our 2005 Prius.
I'm thinking of taking the NEXT indicated step and going all electric.

Curious ....about
-Availability in Orange Co.
-test drive in Orange Co.
-must have's when purchasing!

-Availability in Orange Co. - just about any dealer
-test drive in Orange Co. - dealer
-must have's when purchasing! - I think the floor mats are important. Other considerations would be the Quick Charge port (or not), and the SL package which includes a backup camera.

I also have the trunk organizer, which I like, and the mud flaps look ok. Not needed in SoCal, though.

I recommend attending a Saturday morning event:

http://www.mynissanleaf.com/viewtopic.php?p=125712#p125712" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Thank you Tony.....
Sounds like a branch of OC prius club?

I just wasn't certain if dealers actually had units on their lots for test drives and the markup over MSRP was stupid crazy (like back when Prius was hard to acquire)....!

I'll show up Saturday!

I'd agree with TonyWilliam's suggestions. I'm in Irvine. I leased my Leaf through Connell Nissan in Costa Mesa and I recommend them highly. Ask for the General Manager, Mark Ranauro and tell him Phil sent you, he'll treat you well. You can either buy a Leaf from stock on any dealer's lot, or order one through the Nissan Leaf site.

I recommend, though, that you ask for a waiver on the $100 Aerovironment charging dock (also called an EVSE) home evaluation. Aerovironment is Nissan's EVSE partner, but their installation prices are too high. Many people here are getting along well with Nissan's standard 110V charging cable, or by having it upgraded through http://www.evseupgrade.com" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; for a few hundred dollars to operate on 240 V power.

EDIT; I see that you already read the OC group thread and are planning to meet us on Feb 4 in Cerritos. See you there.
By the way, we're not affiliated with the Prius Club. We formed independently via this forum and our Leaf interest. Our Branch Manager (pun intended) is Garygid on this forum.

hbrocks said:

Thank you Tony.....
Sounds like a branch of OC prius club?

I just wasn't certain if dealers actually had units on their lots for test drives and the markup over MSRP was stupid crazy (like back when Prius was hard to acquire)....!

I'll show up Saturday!

Click to expand...

If you find markups on Leafs on dealers' lots, check around. Fontana Nissan and Mossy Nissan in San Diego County usually have them at discounts.

hbrocks said:

Thank you Tony.....
Sounds like a branch of OC prius club?

I just wasn't certain if dealers actually had units on their lots for test drives and the markup over MSRP was stupid crazy (like back when Prius was hard to acquire)....!

I'll show up Saturday!

Click to expand...

No, nothing to do with Prius, however, I think the last poll I saw was 18% of LEAF drivers have or had a Prius.

While you're in the exploratory stage, click on the link in my signature line, "Range Chart", and print that out for reference. The range estimator on the LEAF is referred to as the GuessOmeter.

I wouldn't pay over MSRP.

I agree with the other posters, shop local. Some dealers have orphans and most are selling at MSRP these days. If you don't find the color/config you like down there, we have a few at Nissan of Downtown LA. All are going at MSRP. I have all colors except red right now.

Cheese and rice.....
I can't even type a post without having to "re-log-in".....(irritating)

ah....Thanks again everyone for the replies..!
We have some history with Connell in CM so I guess we'll swing by there.

So the big learning curve is figuring out "Range". (Thanks for the chart Tony).
This seems akin to having a cell phone that barely last a full day and home is the only place you can charge it.

And there seems to be additional cost considerations to get fitted for a home charging unit? (sigh).
Is there a website or app that shows a radius map of "range" from any given point to the end limits of the Leaf's range?

Lots to learn....(but exciting)

hbrocks said:

This seems akin to having a cell phone that barely last a full day and home is the only place you can charge it.

And there seems to be additional cost considerations to get fitted for a home charging unit? (sigh).
Is there a website or app that shows a radius map of "range" from any given point to the end limits of the Leaf's range?

Click to expand...

The car itself can show a map of what it thinks its remaining range is. Not perfectly accurate but helpful in conjunction with Tony's chart.

Check out the charging locations on the web. Chargepoint and Blink have their sites. Open source sites include recargo, carstations and plugshare.

See you on Saturday in Cerritos. We can give you enough information to make your head swim as well as show you all the features of the cars.

hbrocks said:

And there seems to be additional cost considerations to get fitted for a home charging unit? (sigh).

Click to expand...

As Boomer23 suggested, I'd start by locating an accessible 240 V outlet, if possible. Then get the 120 V charge cord (aka. EVSE, or Electric Vehicle Supply Equipment) that comes with the car "upgraded" by a third-party (EVSEupgrade.com) to accept 240 V (Level 2). You might also need to buy an adapter for your particular type of 240 V outlet. That would be the most cost-effective solution, no more than somewhere in the ballpark of $300.

In my case, I find it convenient to have a Level 2 EVSE (aka. charging dock) in my driveway (check eBay, Home Depot, and Lowes for these, and use any reputable, licensed electrician to install). I also went with EVSEupgrade.com's solution for travel purposes, so that I can leave the charge cord in the car all of the time and be prepared to charge from any 240 V (or 120 V) supply while away from home.

hbrocks said:

Is there a website or app that shows a radius map of "range" from any given point to the end limits of the Leaf's range?

Click to expand...

The car itself provides such a display, but it represents too much of a guesstimate, does not account for altitude changes or varying driving/road conditions, and really cannot be relied on.

While I believe that at least one person on this forum is developing an app that will predict the amount of charge required to drive to a specified destination, I am not aware of anything that is available today. For now, the best approach is to get familiar with the car and do a little planning before doing any drive that has the potential to stretch the car's range.

Love learning this stuff....!
Awesome,
see you guys in Cerritos!

Keep in mind that as much as all these tools are helpful in the beginning, the best approach is to get the car and become familiar with how the range works for your type of driving. Charging full at home is cheap and reliable. Having at least a Level 1 charge option at work can be enormously helpful as well. After that, it's all convenience charging which is on its way to becoming ubiquitous. Just get the car and your life will change for the better immediately.

The #1 thing is to evaluate your driving habits and range. A few questions to ask yourself are,
-What is my average daily miles driven (including to/from work, errands, etc.)? I personally do not rely on charging at my destination. In the event the spot is taken or the charger is not working, I don't want to get stranded.
-Although some people use their Level 1 (L1) supplied chargers, it is very nice and convenient to have a L2 charger at home. I think the EV Project is still going on, which can land you a free Blink charger (some people have had issues - mine has worked flawlessly). In order for it to be free, typically your junction box needs to be a stones throw from where you want your charger setup.
-What type of driver am I? Lead footed drivers find that their available range is much less than anticipated (maybe up to 15%). Same is true on a ICE car, but with a range of 300-400 miles, seeing 15% drop is not as noticeable than on an EV with a range of 75-100 miles.
-What is the climate in my area? Being in SoCal you're one of the best case scenarios. The AC is very efficient as opposed to the heater which is very inefficient.
-What type of roads do I drive? Very fast highways can lead to reduced range as can mountains and hills.

All of the things listed above have a similar impacts to ICE cars, but with a maximum range of 100 miles (in IDEAL conditions) each variable is amplified over that of it's impact in a vehicle that can go 300-400 miles.

Not meant to scare you, just being realistic. My wife and I LOVE our Leaf and hardly drive our Subaru any more, but being candid the Leaf does not work for everyone and you don't want to be stuck in the boat of getting a car you try to squeeze your lifestyle into.

Best of luck in your decision making!

P.S. The floormats are a good option as are some of the other things - they are all cheaper online than buying from the dealer.

Thanks Eric....!

hbrocks said:

Love learning this stuff....!
Awesome,
see you guys in Cerritos!

Click to expand...

help us out here. To give best advice, I think the key things we need to know are:
what is your daily commute
and
do you live in a single-family home where you can easily install a 220-line?
and, of course,
will it be your only car?

EricBayArea said:

I personally do not rely on charging at my destination. In the event the spot is taken or the charger is not working, I don't want to get stranded.

Click to expand...

That is a very conservative approach. I personally rely on destination and "opportunity" charging to complete a number of my trips in the LEAF, some of the trips being sort of long, and I've never been "stranded". The worst that has happened is that, on a couple of isolated occasions, I've had to make unplanned stops at Nissan dealerships to charge for a couple of hours. My case might be atypical, though, as I live high up in the mountains and need to make sure to have lots of charge before starting up the "hill".

Here in Southern California, there are enough Nissan dealers and other places to plug in that I'm never really worried about not having a backup. As I know I can always plug in somewhere, it's just a question of how convenient it's going to be. When we hopefully get more Quick Chargers, and more retail establishments offer charging, things should further improve.

thankyouOB said:

hbrocks said:

Love learning this stuff....!
Awesome,
see you guys in Cerritos!

Click to expand...

help us out here. To give best advice, I think the key things we need to know are:
what is your daily commute
and
do you live in a single-family home where you can easily install a 220-line?
and, of course,
will it be your only car?

Click to expand...

Thanks for the questions....
Being that I've been driving a Prius the past 7 years....and we very rarely "travel" much (and yes we do have a 2nd vehicle)...I feel pretty comfortable that I could pull-off something with a limited range like the Leaf.

My work is 30 miles round trip (Work at Edison...where we already have multiple charging stations for the Toyota RAV's and the Volt....).
We own a Townhome with a detached garage.

based on those issues, you are a perfect candidate!!!


and better suited than I am, as I have a 50-mile rdtrip.

Your range is easily done, even if you charge every other day, AND you can charge at work.
You prolly dont even need a home charger. You can just charge at home using the upgrade of your Nissan EVSE, as suggested by other drivers, and put a 220 volt line in your garage.

EricBayArea said:

I think the EV Project is still going on, which can land you a free Blink charger

Click to expand...

Nope, those of us in OC (I'm in SB) got "squeezed out" of the EV Project. LA and SD only. But as thankyouOB pointed out, you probably don't even need a home charger. Heck you might not even need to ever charge at home, working at Edison!

You've got what sounds like a perfect situation - my only question is what took you so long? Had you jumped on board earlier you could've gotten lower pricing with a 2011 model and a $5000 CA rebate instead of $2500, but even still the Leaf will be a great deal for you. Maybe you can save a bit if you can find an '11 still for sale somewhere, especially since the '12 is not significantly improved in any way that I'm aware of. Otherwise, just make sure not to pay the $99 Aerovironment sucker fee and shop around for dealers that offer a discount off MSRP (Fontana and Kearny Mesa come to mind). I got mine at Surf City Nissan, and they've been ok (free tire rotation at 7500 miles was nice), but if I could do it over I'm sure I could've gotten a better deal at one of the aforementioned dealers.

Also make sure you will have enough tax liability to use the full $7500 credit, otherwise you may be better off leasing.

hbrocks said:

My work is 30 miles round trip (Work at Edison...where we already have multiple charging stations for the Toyota RAV's and the Volt....).
We own a Townhome with a detached garage.

Click to expand...

Go for it. It will be a piece of cake. (And unlike some here I frequently tell people not to get a Leaf). It will also get you an HOV sticker. Coming from a Prius the Leaf drive will be a step up even if the interior is a little spartan.

The actual range in SoCal is probably 50 miles if you want not to think about it. Total range is probably high 60s unless you work at it. But you're well withing that range and with chargers available at work you'll have plenty of range for daily driving.