I wouldn't be so critical of the dealer. There have been reports of a few Leaf owners in Chicago who have found the Leaf not to be usable during the winter when the range is significantly reduced. He may have been (over)reacting to this and simply trying to get you into a car he thinks will work for you.
I agree with the suggestion that the Volt would work better in your case. If you have time to charge during the day then you'll have time to recharge the Volt, and most of your driving will be in EV mode. If you don't have the time to charge then the worst that happens is you'll use a little gas. Having recently gotten a Volt, I've been surprised at how little difference there is between the ranges. On paper the Volt has a lot less range but because you can exhaust the battery without any real consequence there isn't as much difference as I though there would be. Forty miles does go fast, but if you can recharge during the day that will not be an issue. I also think your husband will probably like driving the Volt more, so if you ever need his car he'll be a happier camper.
The Leaf like all BEVs works best when people have very predictable driving patterns. The less predictable the more problematic and your driving needs don't seem that predictable (what if you had two clients a long way apart and you couldn't charge between sessions?). In summer you'd probably be fine but I'd think winter might pose challenges.
I agree with the suggestion that the Volt would work better in your case. If you have time to charge during the day then you'll have time to recharge the Volt, and most of your driving will be in EV mode. If you don't have the time to charge then the worst that happens is you'll use a little gas. Having recently gotten a Volt, I've been surprised at how little difference there is between the ranges. On paper the Volt has a lot less range but because you can exhaust the battery without any real consequence there isn't as much difference as I though there would be. Forty miles does go fast, but if you can recharge during the day that will not be an issue. I also think your husband will probably like driving the Volt more, so if you ever need his car he'll be a happier camper.
The Leaf like all BEVs works best when people have very predictable driving patterns. The less predictable the more problematic and your driving needs don't seem that predictable (what if you had two clients a long way apart and you couldn't charge between sessions?). In summer you'd probably be fine but I'd think winter might pose challenges.