Nissan Leaf - 7 day test drive - a blog of my experience
Discussion
Never got more than 1 tree ... guess I must have a heavy foot :-)
BTW, I was told today that the Ecotricity units on the motorways may well accept any kind of RFID card (e.g. Oyster, contactless credit card, works pass)
Worth a shot if you're wanting to use the Knutsford or Keele service chargers (presuming work aren't going to let you trail a three-pin plug out the window :-))
BTW, I was told today that the Ecotricity units on the motorways may well accept any kind of RFID card (e.g. Oyster, contactless credit card, works pass)
Worth a shot if you're wanting to use the Knutsford or Keele service chargers (presuming work aren't going to let you trail a three-pin plug out the window :-))
autofocus said:
Range dropped to --- which I guess is pretty much zero
before this dropped to 9 miles and then --- by the time I made it to the city centre.
but the range dropped from 36 to --- This was perhaps a little to close for comfort.
Despite all your your planning, on the two days you've driven it you've had zero miles remaining indicated three times?before this dropped to 9 miles and then --- by the time I made it to the city centre.
but the range dropped from 36 to --- This was perhaps a little to close for comfort.
Olivera said:
Day 1 and 2 both sounded appalling, like having an imminent breakdown always on the horizon. With that kind of range I would always need an internal combustion car as well, so can't yet see the point.
Hi there,Yes I see your point, never felt the urge to panic though as knowing where the chargers are gives you great comfort. I guess if I was going to different places everyday and did not know the areas then a pure EV at the moment would not work.
Regards
Tim
cheddar said:
Despite all your your planning, on the two days you've driven it you've had zero miles remaining indicated three times?
Hi there,Only twice actually as the 36 and 9 relate to the same journey.
The first time was last night when I booted the car to show my son the acceleration and the car went from 12 miles to pretty much zero, I was only a mile or so from home and knew it would be ok.
The second time was today when I left Warrington showing 36, had 9 showing on the edge of Manchester city centre which dropped to zero about half a mile from a charging point. Never gave me a reason to panic.
Regards
Tim
pboyall said:
Never got more than 1 tree ... guess I must have a heavy foot :-)
BTW, I was told today that the Ecotricity units on the motorways may well accept any kind of RFID card (e.g. Oyster, contactless credit card, works pass)
Worth a shot if you're wanting to use the Knutsford or Keele service chargers (presuming work aren't going to let you trail a three-pin plug out the window :-))
Hi there,BTW, I was told today that the Ecotricity units on the motorways may well accept any kind of RFID card (e.g. Oyster, contactless credit card, works pass)
Worth a shot if you're wanting to use the Knutsford or Keele service chargers (presuming work aren't going to let you trail a three-pin plug out the window :-))
Might try this for a giggle. I rang Ecotricity today and asked them if they could turn chargers on over the phone as I did not have a card due to only have the car for a few days. Apparently they have had a policy change and they cannot do this now.
Regards
Tim
Olivera said:
Day 1 and 2 both sounded appalling, like having an imminent breakdown always on the horizon. With that kind of range I would always need an internal combustion car as well, so can't yet see the point.
A breakdown is an unexpected event over which you have no control. Trying to drive 100 miles when the car says you can only make 90 is always going to result in the expected outcome. The car warns you when you still have about 20 miles left in it that you should be looking for a charger - which you can do by voice control only. The SatNav (also voice controlled) tells you if you are going to exceed the range and suggests charging points.If you regularly do 100+ mile journeys then no, an electric car is not a good idea. But for everyone else it is an excellent way to save money towards a fun car for the weekend :-)
i personally have never liked the idea of electric cars for various reasons, however I can completely see the appeal to some. Even after 2 days of your blog I simply could not do it. There seems to be so much forward planning compared to,
open door, drive, fill when necessary, arrive.
It's charge night before, plan journey, compare to range, look at charging points in the area, open door, drive super carefully on correct roads, arrive, charge and repeat. Every single time you go further than 50 miles. With no spontaneous decisions allowed and no unforeseen circumstances.
Although I appreciate at the moment these are supposed to be 'city cars' and your not really doing that, the principle is the same I think.
open door, drive, fill when necessary, arrive.
It's charge night before, plan journey, compare to range, look at charging points in the area, open door, drive super carefully on correct roads, arrive, charge and repeat. Every single time you go further than 50 miles. With no spontaneous decisions allowed and no unforeseen circumstances.
Although I appreciate at the moment these are supposed to be 'city cars' and your not really doing that, the principle is the same I think.
This is a really interesting thread - thanks OP for all the updates.
I have been doing sums, but even using my best man maths (and the best deals quoted), I can't make one of these work - even though I'd really like to give it a try for a couple of years, and I have a predictable mileage with 4 round trips a week totalling 160 miles.
I have been doing sums, but even using my best man maths (and the best deals quoted), I can't make one of these work - even though I'd really like to give it a try for a couple of years, and I have a predictable mileage with 4 round trips a week totalling 160 miles.
For a lot of people no planning will be necessary though, me for example Monday to Friday 10 miles to work and 10 back , in the evening odd trip to friends etc maybe another 20 miles, overnight charge would do me every time. I do a 100 mile return trip every second weekend but I can swap with the wife for that one trip or go down the planning route. Summary for me is 90% of my days one overnight charge would see to my driving needs. I suspect there are few in similar boat.
Interesting write up Tim, thanks.
I'm thinking of EV for my OH when her current car needs replacement. She has an easy commute for 90% of her driving.
I do think Tim is being brave in depending on public chargers. will be interesting to see how well things go as EV use picks up. With free parking at the charge units I can see some people just holding the spaces all day regardless of need.
I'm thinking of EV for my OH when her current car needs replacement. She has an easy commute for 90% of her driving.
I do think Tim is being brave in depending on public chargers. will be interesting to see how well things go as EV use picks up. With free parking at the charge units I can see some people just holding the spaces all day regardless of need.
Hi there,
OK discovered a flaw in EV cars.
They really really don't like cold weather. 1°C when I left home this morning with the car showing 83 miles after an overnight charge. Made it to the office (44 miles away) with the car showing just 21 miles charge left. That was with the heater only on occassionally and the wipers/radio on pretty much the whole time.
Was planning a trip to Liverpool today but might postpone this now as having no ecotricity card is a bit of an issue.
Have popped the car on charge at the office (normal 3 pin plug) and might just catch up with all my admin today before heading home.
Regards
Tim
OK discovered a flaw in EV cars.
They really really don't like cold weather. 1°C when I left home this morning with the car showing 83 miles after an overnight charge. Made it to the office (44 miles away) with the car showing just 21 miles charge left. That was with the heater only on occassionally and the wipers/radio on pretty much the whole time.
Was planning a trip to Liverpool today but might postpone this now as having no ecotricity card is a bit of an issue.
Have popped the car on charge at the office (normal 3 pin plug) and might just catch up with all my admin today before heading home.
Regards
Tim
OP, had mine on 7 day test in December and found out a few things you may or may not find useful.
There is the facility to set the heater to come on before you use the car in the morning so its nice and toasty therefore no need to whap the heater on high resulting in drop in range.
Once on the move I found that putting the fan constantly on low at about 20-21 had only a small affect on range and kept the cabin warm.
I really liked it and used it for my 120 mile a day commute. Luckily there was a charging point 5 mins walk from my work with free parking.
Speaking to the car park attendent I was the only person to use it in the last year! This is in Sheffield.
Great deals at the emoment as well.
There is the facility to set the heater to come on before you use the car in the morning so its nice and toasty therefore no need to whap the heater on high resulting in drop in range.
Once on the move I found that putting the fan constantly on low at about 20-21 had only a small affect on range and kept the cabin warm.
I really liked it and used it for my 120 mile a day commute. Luckily there was a charging point 5 mins walk from my work with free parking.
Speaking to the car park attendent I was the only person to use it in the last year! This is in Sheffield.
Great deals at the emoment as well.
speedyguy said:
How much do you think an overnight charge costs ?
£1,£3, £5 ???
I have Economy 7, just over 5p per kWh. My 60 miles a day uses 14 kWh (hey I like to use the acceleration). £1,£3, £5 ???
So 70 pence a day.
If I charged at peak rate then it would be 15 x 14 = £1.80
Yes Tim - as GG says, you can set pre-heat to reduce the "no range in the cold" challenge. On the Tekna Leaf the heat pump only draws heavy current for the first ten minutes or so. But you do need to be plugged into a proper charging point rather than the 3-pin plug. Or you can use the seat and wheel heater, plus there is a screen defrost setting that doesn't use as much electricity (I think you have to press the mode button several times and maybe toggle heat/ac off by hand until you just get the necessary flow. Haven't used it for ages as I put some FogDoc on there instead).
You can also turn the car on while you're plugged into a Rapid charger, and get it warmed up then - shame about the Ecotricity card with the rapid charger being at Knutsford itself!
Edited by pboyall on Friday 13th March 14:34
I think it's great the OP has put up the blog, cannot wait to see today report...
I considered a Leaf as a replacement for our Civic, but range concerns meant we ended with a Lexus IS300H (which is very very nice..)
Judging by OPs first 2 days, I really don't think most people have enough forward planning for an electric car with limited range (less than 200 miles).
Yes most days we do less than 50 miles, BUT twice last week we've had longer trips come up at short notice, result was the Lexus has done 600 miles in 10 days, with some days of less than 20 miles, other days 120 miles +. If we had a Leaf the longer trips would have cause serious headaches/planning issues...afterall the point of the car is about freedom/mobility, which the limited range of the Leaf just cannot deliver.
Cannot wait to see a cheaper 200 mile range Tesla though
I considered a Leaf as a replacement for our Civic, but range concerns meant we ended with a Lexus IS300H (which is very very nice..)
Judging by OPs first 2 days, I really don't think most people have enough forward planning for an electric car with limited range (less than 200 miles).
Yes most days we do less than 50 miles, BUT twice last week we've had longer trips come up at short notice, result was the Lexus has done 600 miles in 10 days, with some days of less than 20 miles, other days 120 miles +. If we had a Leaf the longer trips would have cause serious headaches/planning issues...afterall the point of the car is about freedom/mobility, which the limited range of the Leaf just cannot deliver.
Cannot wait to see a cheaper 200 mile range Tesla though
Gassing Station | EV and Alternative Fuels | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff