Automotive DesignLine Blog
EXCLUSIVE! I'm driving a Nissan Leaf EV for a few days
Rick DeMeis
3/31/2011 10:21 PM EDT
The automotive press pool elves promised me a weekend of driving in the Nissan Leaf. If you have any questions about the electric vehicle, leave a comment here and I'll try and answer it.
But while you're waiting, why not get up to speed on electric and hybrid vehicles with some of these articles:
But while you're waiting, why not get up to speed on electric and hybrid vehicles with some of these articles:
- Hybrid and electric vehicles pose electric/magnetic isolation challenges
- Automotive Isolation Amplifier for Voltage Sensing
- Digital power control, battery management converge in EVs
- Automotive connectors evolve to meet complex demands and EV challenges
- Current and voltage measurement in and around hybrid and electric vehicles
- Active balancing boosts HEV/EV Li-ion battery utilization: Part 1—Range anxiety alleviated
- Under the Hood: Inside the Toyota Prius
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Salio
3/31/2011 11:57 PM EDT
It looks like a cool car. How many miles are you able to get out of it? Is this a pure EV? How do you recharge the battery and how long does it take to recharge?
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Rick DeMeis
4/4/2011 12:55 PM EDT
Nominal range is listed as 100 miles, which varies with temperature and the way you drive. With the 110V charger supplied with the car, a full charge from zero takes about 20 hrs. With a commercial DC charge station, this goes down to 30 minutes for an 80% charge.
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BicycleBill
4/1/2011 8:29 AM EDT
Let us know how it handles in slush and snow, and how much using the heater reduces your range!
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Rick DeMeis
4/4/2011 12:52 PM EDT
This morning the outside air temp was 40F (4C), with a charge of 0.833 of maximum, the computer told me I had a range of 90 miles. When I turned on the climate control, the range figure dropped to 75 mi.
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hm
4/1/2011 12:18 PM EDT
What is the predicted cost of ownership for 10 years usage of the car? How does it compare with that of Nissan Versa?
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Rick DeMeis
4/4/2011 1:40 PM EDT
Nissan says it costs $2.64 for every 100 miles to operate, based on an electricity cost of $0.11/kWh x 24 kWh. The battery has an 8-year, 100k mile warranty. I am not fond of the Versa for several reasons. You can read my review here: http://www.examiner.com/automotive-in-boston/car-locks-pose-accident-hazard
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JudeLD
4/2/2011 10:58 AM EDT
How is roadside assistance handled? If you run out of juice will AAA tow the vehicle or have a charger? Or will AAA simply exclude electric vehicles from free towing?
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Michael.Peterson_#2
4/7/2011 11:42 AM EDT
Nissan is also providing free towing assistance for the first two or three years.
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Rick DeMeis
4/4/2011 1:37 PM EDT
Right now AAA will tow, but they have plans to accommodate "alternative fuel" vehicles, which means looking to have some sort of recharge capability on their service vehicles.
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Nol
4/5/2011 1:42 AM EDT
Hello Rick,
Can you tell us if the car is rated for -30C temperature or even below? Some of us drive in cold climate and I'm wondering if the maker specified something like recommended operating conditions...
Thanks
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Michael.Peterson_#2
4/7/2011 11:44 AM EDT
They are only selling the Leaf in fairly mild or hot climates (Oregon, Washington, California, Arizona, Tennessee, etc.) Speculation is that they will include a cold weather package in their 2012 model
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TONY.SMITH_#2
4/6/2011 5:47 AM EDT
Hi Rick,
I would be interested in knowing how the real life range compares with the marketing & predicted values. Also the practicality of partial recharging whilst at work or visiting family/friends etc. Does this usefully extend the practical usage range.
Thanks
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Rick DeMeis
4/6/2011 12:33 PM EDT
The quoted range is 100 miles but that figure depends on extreme heat or cold and how one drives the car in terms of speed and acceleration. Based on what I experienced, the range was slightly lower because it was cool. I think if I was trying to "hypermile" the car, driving slower with easy acceleration, the estimates would have climbed once the computer "stored" my driving style to use in future range estimates.
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Michael.Peterson_#2
4/7/2011 11:47 AM EDT
Since we purchased the car three weeks ago, it looks like we can get about 70 to 90 miles out of a charge. Most efficient performance is at about 38 mph. Wind drag starts to really impact range when going at freeway speeds.
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Michael.Peterson_#2
4/7/2011 11:55 AM EDT
In terms of partial charging, for every hour on a standard 110 V outlet, you will get about 3 or 4 miles of additional range. On a 220 V supply (L2 EVSE) you will get about 10 to 12 miles of range for every hour. One of our local science museums has a L2 station. In a 4 hour visit we could add about 40 miles or 12 miles if we used their L1 charger.
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djhk
4/6/2011 9:26 AM EDT
Rick,
I'm assuming that the car has a computer control system. Computers can hang. What provisions does the car have to safely stop?
We don't want to lose you.
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mr88cet
4/6/2011 10:42 AM EDT
Regarding computers hanging, I think it's important to not equate Automotive computer systems with Windows PCs. That's an apples-to-oranges comparison, if not apples-to-sea-urchins.
Availability and Reliability in PC OSes and applications is at best a fourth-order concern, whereas, in Automotive, Safety is a higher-priority concern even than Functionality. If there's ever a conflict between correct functionality and safety, safety always wins.
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mr88cet
4/6/2011 10:02 AM EDT
Really excellent "first look" review of the Leaf, so thank you!
Although I don't claim to be an expert on the topic, I'm a Prius driver, and have read a bit about EV technology (notably, James Larimie's Electric Vehicle Technology Explained - good book, although a little out-of-date in spots).
Between the fact that I live in a hot climate (Austin, TX) and what I read there about how deadly critical it is to keep batteries cool, what I have to really wonder about is Nissan's claim that their battery system doesn't need a cooling system. I'm guessing that, in hotter climates, the battery modules will start failing toward the end of the warranty period, and will pretty much all need to be replaced shortly thereafter.
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Stuart21
4/13/2011 3:16 AM EDT
What precautions have been designed into the car to prevent damage in the event of being flooded?
And what precautions to prevent electrocution?
Will the car be a write off if it is flooded by salt water?
and fresh water?
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Kevin.Jackson
4/20/2011 10:28 AM EDT
It's a cold, rainy night in stop and go traffic. The headlights (night), wipers (rainy), heater (cold), air conditioning (to keep the fog off the windsheild) and stereo (I'm bored) are on. What's the range under these conditions?
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ReneCardenas
6/14/2011 4:58 PM EDT
If I am not mistaken, stop and go traffice is not an issue for most hybrids, as it is for hydrocarbon based. That have to keep running the engine at all times.
As for Cold and rainy, that is another matter.
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Robert.Taylor_#5
4/27/2011 3:44 AM EDT
Do you know what kind of information bus is used between the ECU and other parts of the system? CAN? LIN? Flexray? Something else or a combination?
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kach30
7/5/2011 3:24 PM EDT
Are they available in right hand drive? And what is the future of EV technology cars? To me they must replace conventional hydrocarbon engine cars.
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takenmark
4/7/2013 5:20 AM EDT
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