I spent a week in the LEAF and talked about it on radio. I also posted two videos below. One is my review, the other is making my 20 mile trip home, on the highway at night, with just 22 remaining miles of range indicated. Although I'm new to the LEAF, I'm not new to electric vehicles. Driving the LEAF reminded me of getting my SEGWAY. I won a contest that made me one of the first two dozen SEGWAY owners in the country (no, I didn't get it for free!). The horn blowing, the thumbs-up signals, the questions I got, was all repeated with the LEAF. It's clear that a ton of people really want to make the leap to electric!
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i1B4ncIJJH8[/youtube] [youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=As2K8UY_MNo[/youtube]
I found that it's fun to go all electric. It also takes some getting used to. The Nissan LEAF helps you make the transition...but you have to learn that your lead-footed ways have a real impact on how far you can drive.
The LEAF is peppy off the line....a great looking car....but a little mushy when it comes to handling. But, then again, sports-car handling is probably NOT why you buy a Leaf. You buy it to drive past gas stations. The LEAF is a pretty roomy car for its size and offers a quiet cabin that's made even better by the absence of a gas engine! There's a lot of headroom, although you'll have to duck your head a bit to get out of the back seats. The rear seat, located above the batteries, elevates you above the front seats. On the up-side, the seat height in back gives you better visibility. LEAF is an acronym for Leading, Environmentally friendly, Affordable, Family car.
On city and suburban streets the LEAF is fantastic. A hands-down winner. Driving the expressway, however, sucks up power in a hurry.The LEAF is rated at 100-miles per charge...but that'll shrink to 60 or 70 if you're a more aggressive, highway driver. The treat is that most public charging stations I found were FREE, because they're new. Imagine GASSING up your car for free. Using them, and the at-home charger, worked great for my daily commute. A word of warning, since the public chargers are seldom-used, they're not always ready to go. The first parking lot I visited had two chargers that were not working, the second had two that apeared fine but couldn't be turned on by the remote ChargePoint operator. I had a third occassion where units couldn't be turned on. If you're going to drive an electric plug-in, get a ChargePoint access card to help you use their public charging units.
Since it takes time to recharge a LEAF, you have to plan ahead for any trips that'll take you far from your base. If not, you'll find yourself driving on the edge, developing a case of range anxiety, and wondering why you ever went all-electric. Be sure to see the short video below. With 22 miles left on my LEAF battery, I set out for home 20 miles away. The battery is nearly done, it's chilly, at night, and the drive is almost all highway. But, I did it on purpose and learned a bit in the process.
The sticker price of the LEAF we drove was $35,410. It's eligible for the $7,500 federal tax credit and a rebate from the State of Illinois. The amount of the Illinois rebate is 10 percent of the base retail price of the vehicle, not including add-on equipment options, up to $4,000. The only vehicles eligible for a 10 percent rebate amount are new electric vehicles purchased from an Illinois dealership.
During my time with the LEAF, I learned that you get a lot of attention driving an electric car and you also get a lot of questions. There are many people who want to get off the gas pump for good. It isn't for everybody, but you can continue to turn-over that gas engine...or you can decide to turn over a new LEAF.
By the way, this week I'm test driving a Cadillac Escalade. I've noticed a subtle difference....
Ed Curran
FM News Chicago
http://fmnewschicago.com/testdrive
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i1B4ncIJJH8[/youtube] [youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=As2K8UY_MNo[/youtube]
I found that it's fun to go all electric. It also takes some getting used to. The Nissan LEAF helps you make the transition...but you have to learn that your lead-footed ways have a real impact on how far you can drive.
The LEAF is peppy off the line....a great looking car....but a little mushy when it comes to handling. But, then again, sports-car handling is probably NOT why you buy a Leaf. You buy it to drive past gas stations. The LEAF is a pretty roomy car for its size and offers a quiet cabin that's made even better by the absence of a gas engine! There's a lot of headroom, although you'll have to duck your head a bit to get out of the back seats. The rear seat, located above the batteries, elevates you above the front seats. On the up-side, the seat height in back gives you better visibility. LEAF is an acronym for Leading, Environmentally friendly, Affordable, Family car.
On city and suburban streets the LEAF is fantastic. A hands-down winner. Driving the expressway, however, sucks up power in a hurry.The LEAF is rated at 100-miles per charge...but that'll shrink to 60 or 70 if you're a more aggressive, highway driver. The treat is that most public charging stations I found were FREE, because they're new. Imagine GASSING up your car for free. Using them, and the at-home charger, worked great for my daily commute. A word of warning, since the public chargers are seldom-used, they're not always ready to go. The first parking lot I visited had two chargers that were not working, the second had two that apeared fine but couldn't be turned on by the remote ChargePoint operator. I had a third occassion where units couldn't be turned on. If you're going to drive an electric plug-in, get a ChargePoint access card to help you use their public charging units.
Since it takes time to recharge a LEAF, you have to plan ahead for any trips that'll take you far from your base. If not, you'll find yourself driving on the edge, developing a case of range anxiety, and wondering why you ever went all-electric. Be sure to see the short video below. With 22 miles left on my LEAF battery, I set out for home 20 miles away. The battery is nearly done, it's chilly, at night, and the drive is almost all highway. But, I did it on purpose and learned a bit in the process.
The sticker price of the LEAF we drove was $35,410. It's eligible for the $7,500 federal tax credit and a rebate from the State of Illinois. The amount of the Illinois rebate is 10 percent of the base retail price of the vehicle, not including add-on equipment options, up to $4,000. The only vehicles eligible for a 10 percent rebate amount are new electric vehicles purchased from an Illinois dealership.
During my time with the LEAF, I learned that you get a lot of attention driving an electric car and you also get a lot of questions. There are many people who want to get off the gas pump for good. It isn't for everybody, but you can continue to turn-over that gas engine...or you can decide to turn over a new LEAF.
By the way, this week I'm test driving a Cadillac Escalade. I've noticed a subtle difference....
Ed Curran
FM News Chicago
http://fmnewschicago.com/testdrive
