Thoughts on the Nissan Leaf?

[phucheneh]

Oh, okay.

I just see...'more Prius-y.' But to each their own, as far as the aesthetics are concerned.

I was just thinking...man, I had a Versa...it was not that bad. Motor was a little wimpy, but it had a decent-feeling six speed and had handling that was fairly neutral/predictable/competent. Kinda like comparing a Corolla to a Prius, only I think I'd rank both the Nissans above their counterparts (...I just pretend the Yaris and Sentra don't exist...).

 

[Kaido]

Oh, okay.

I just see...'more Prius-y.' But to each their own, as far as the aesthetics are concerned.

I was just thinking...man, I had a Versa...it was not that bad. Motor was a little wimpy, but it had a decent-feeling six speed and had handling that was fairly neutral/predictable/competent. Kinda like comparing a Corolla to a Prius, only I think I'd rank both the Nissans above their counterparts (...I just pretend the Yaris and Sentra don't exist...).

My parents have a Versa CVT hatchback. It's surprisingly nice. Very smooth & stable, even though it looks small. Good mileage too.

The Yaris...where do I begin. I didn't even take it for a test drive because I felt like I was going to snap the shifter off. Golf ball on a #2 pencil is what it felt like I did take the Sentra out, felt like a rental car. Really liked the Versa sedan though - very fun to drive and a huge amount of car for $12.9k at my local dealership (5-speed with A/C). Sort of considering it...the S80 T6 eats about $85 every fillup here in CT; the Versa sedan 5-speed gets 36mpg highway & the CVT is adverstised at 40mpg :whiste:

 

[phucheneh]

Standard six sppeeeeeddd. Granted, it seemed like the extra gear was just making up for the wimpy engine.

My 2011 hatch was only like 14k. Had one option package that added keyless and cruise, I think. Nothing else. It was a really good utilitarion little car up until it got smashed to death. And yeah, you probably felt the same way I did about the Sentra (costs more than a Versa but [pre redesign, at least] gave nothing extra) and Yaris (kinda the opposite: you get less but don't get much of a price break).

 

[Kaido]

Bosch offers $3,000 wireless chargers to Leaf and Volt owners:

http://www.engadget.com/2013/06/14/bosch-wireless-charger-leaf-volt/

Bosch recently released an $450 charging solution for EVs, but if you want to go wireless, it's going to cost you a lot more. The company has formed an exclusive partnership with Evatran for the distribution and installation of its wireless chargers for the Nissan Leaf and Chevy Volt. Each Plugless Level 2 Electric Vehicle Charging System (now that's a tongue-twister) costs $2,998 for the Volt and $3,098 for the Leaf, not including taxes and installation fees. It's comprised of a wall-mounted control panel that provides electricity to the parking pad, which transmits power to your vehicle. You've got to admit it's convenient when all you have to do to juice up is park on top of the pad, but would you actually shell out that much cash in the name of convenience when plugging a (cheaper) charger in is no Herculean task?

 

[Doppel]

Bosch offers $3,000 wireless chargers to Leaf and Volt owners:

http://www.engadget.com/2013/06/14/bosch-wireless-charger-leaf-volt/

Those are cool, but even a person who is as lazy as me isn't going to drop $3k to avoid plugging it in each night :0

 

[LTC8K6]

But the EMF!!!!

 

[Kaido]

But the EMF!!!!

Yeah, we're all screwed if an EMP goes off in the area

 

[Kaido]

Nissan Leaf battery replacement will cost $100/month, offers new pack at any time:

http://green.autoblog.com/2013/06/20/nissan-leaf-battery-replacement-will-cost-100-month/

Here's how it works. At any time, like when the warranty is about to end – so, at 4 years, 11 months or 59,999 miles – or even after your warranty ends, a Nissan Leaf owner can sign up for the battery replacement program. At that point, you start paying $100 a month (or whatever the final cost will be) and immediately get a new battery pack that has a full 12 bars of capacity.

Hmm. In my ZX2, I'm doing about $40 a week right now. So that'd be just over 2 weeks of gas for the battery replacement cost, or approximately half of what I'd be paying in fuel.