Not sure when you stopped by the dealer in Pittsfield but they do have a red demo LEAF that I borrowed Friday afternoon to try on the Pike (up to 83 mph) and test my home charger (A-OK). I understand, the charger in front is usually switched off at the breaker at the current time, but they have said we can use it when needed once we get our car.
I'll be taking delivery of the first LEAF from that Pittsfield dealer late this week or early next week.
I've also been scoping out charging options which we will need if we ever want to leave the county, needing a slightly over 100 miles real-world round-trip with 2-3 hours of charge at the destination to get back home comfortably.
There is a Chargepoint charger in downtown Albany, NY that could provide the 2-3 hours of level 2 charge that I think I'd need to get back home, but all highway driving may still be a stretch (in winter especially) and all other charging options there are too remote to comfortably spend a few hours unless we want to park the car and walk quite a bit. We need them at proper shopping/dining areas where spending 2-3 hours plus is more of our family norm (Target stores, malls, movies).
Holyoke MA has plans for multiple charging stations at the Ingleside mall and Northampton, MA in the downtown garage (both with grant money approved last year), both of which would be perfect for our family needs and would make trips there quite easy for our soon-to-be Berkshire-based LEAF.
I also heard rumors that Pittsfield MA is looking into charging station(s) also for the downtown 2-level garage, so if anyone could utilize that type of resource (residents of the Pioneer valley or Capital District of NY), now may be a good time for a letter to the city of Pittsfield, MA. I'm working on several letters this week myself to send as soon as I get the car. I figure actually owning the car puts me in a better place to advocate for myself and others.
