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Nissan Leaf Ready To Hit The Road
Looking for a practical alternative fuel car? In December 2010, the Nissan Leaf will be available in select markets in the United States. Advocates of environmentally friendly products have been talking about other choices for powering cars for years. Is it finally time? Is it going to be practical?
The benefits are many.
The Nissan Leaf produces zero emissions. None. That’s music to the ears of anyone who believes it’s ludicrous to spoil the air we breathe to the point where we need a smog alert system. The Air Quality Management District issue smog alerts, advising the community that the air is unhealthful to breathe and advising them to restrict outdoor exercise. All because we’re addicted to gasoline. Imagine driving as much as you want without contributing one gram of pollutants to the problem. Imagine that zero emissions cars become the norm and gasoline powered engines go the way of the dinosaur.
Imagine bypassing the gas station – every time you see one. Most electric cars, including the new Chevy Volt, do use gasoline when the battery dies. Not so with the Leaf. This car runs on electricity only. You’ll never again buy gasoline. You won’t care what the price of gas is. You won’t care any more. There is a downside, though, and historically it’s been a big enough problem to keep electric cars from becoming commonplace. When the battery runs out of juice, you can’t switch over to gas. In the past, limited range has kept electric cars from being practical. At last the problem has been addressed sufficiently for most drivers. The Nissan Leaf has a range of about 100 miles before needing to be recharged. That’s more than enough for most drivers. Very few drivers travel more than 100 miles in a day on a regular basis. You would charge your car battery at night when electricity prices are lower anyway. But electricity is expensive too. How does it compare to paying for gas? Charging the Leaf would cost about $2.80 at average electricity rates. That’s right – that’s less expensive than a gallon of gas.
Long drives have posed a challenge that until now has been insurmountable by many drivers. If you were driving from one state to another, you would need to charge your battery along the way. Nissan has added a navigation system that will show you charging stations along the way. A quick charge station can charge the Leaf’s battery will charge up to 80% in about half an hour. That’s sufficient to make long trips practical. Drivers could stop for lunch and charge the car at the same time. It even makes sense for restaurants that cater to long-distance travelers to install quick charge stations – if there are enough Nissan Leafs on the road.
Purchase price has been a major obstacle for electric cars. Research and development makes new technology expensive. In this case, Nissan has priced the Leaf at around $35,000 in the U.S. It’s possible than Nissan is pricing it as low as they can in order to get a foothold on the electric car market. The price of the Leaf is higher in Japan. Car buyers can claim a $7,500 tax credit, bringing the effective price down to $27,500. While not the cheapest car on the market, this brings the price in line with Honda’s CR-V and Toyota’s Prius. Leaf owners will need to install a home charging station, which will cost about $2,200, but they’re eligible for a tax credit for 50% of that cost.
In spite of the few remaining problems, I think the Nissan Leaf is practical for most drivers.
Written by Hannah Valez
San Bernardino Nissan Dealer
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