First Drive: 2011 Nissan Leaf

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Shockingly normal

Driving the world's first affordable and practical EV surprisingly uneventful

By John LeBlanc NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE — With the launch of Nissan’s Leaf, the theoretical hype over electric vehicles that’s been building for the past few years finally meets the cold reality of today’s new car buyer’s wallet. Like losing weight or quitting smoking, though, will consumers be willing to sacrifice for the Leaf’s feel-good benefits? Nissan calls its five-passenger, front-wheel-drive, five-door hatchback Leaf electric vehicle (or EV) “the world’s first affordable, zero-emission car,” the first of a host of production EVs the Japanese automaker (and its French partner Renault) plans on introducing over the next few years. Although the Leaf will be available in the United States this December, Canadian sales are still about a year out. Nissan Canada is currently mum on pricing. South of the border, though, the Leaf will start at US$32,780, not counting the US$7,500 federal tax credit for EVs. With a cold climate package (i.e. heated seats, etc.) standard, expect Canadian Leafs to cost a bit more at retail. Taking into account the Ontario government’s $8,500 rebate or Quebec’s $8,000 tax credit (the only two provinces that offer such credits), the Leaf could end up in the $28,000 to $30,000 range — right smack in the middle of the average price for a new car. But wait. There’s more to figuring out the Leaf’s value equation than simple MSRP comparisons. In the end, like a hybrid, you’ll save more fuel and tailpipe emissions than money. Based on driving 20,000 km per year, Nissan says a gas-only vehicle, like a $20,000 Versa, getting 8.0L/100km at $1/litre of gas, will cost $1,600 per year in energy costs. The Leaf, based on an average $0.06/kWh, works out to $180 year. Even if you double that with various other hydro charges like debt reduction and delivery fees, the Leaf (minus the cost of a home recharging station) could save you about $1,200 per year in energy costs. But then it costs about $10,000 more to buy than a gas counterpart... If the Leaf doesn’t exactly put money back into your piggy bank, what you do get is zero tailpipe emissions while driving. All. The. Time. Something a gas-only Versa, Toyota Prius gasoline-electric hybrid, or Chevrolet Volt range-extender hybrid can’t claim. Of course, unlike any of the above-mentioned vehicles, after an estimated 160 km of said guilt-free driving, a Leaf owner will have to pull over and find an electrical outlet to charge up the car’s depleted batteries — the all-electric Leaf’s only source of motive power. That’s the bad news all EVs deliver. It’s called “range anxiety.” And it severely limits the Leaf to being a strictly urban runabout. Even the 160 km round trip, say from downtown Toronto to the west side of Mississauga and back, is pushing the limit of the Leaf’s best-condition-scenario range. So the Leaf won’t replace most people’s total car needs. Even Nissan admits it will be a second car for most of its buyers. But as a daily commuter pod, the Leaf should be all the car most of us need. According to Statistics Canada data that Nissan cited, 90 per cent of commuters drive less than 60 km/day, with the average round trip about 25 km. At the start of our 50 km test drive, on a partly cloudy, dry, mid-20 degrees Celsius day, the gauges on our fully charged Leaf indicated we had 136 km before needing to plug in. By the end of our 1.5-hour drive, which included foot-to-the-floor highway on-ramp acceleration, spirited two-lane rural driving and a suburban coffee run near Nissan USA’s headquarters, just outside of Nashville, we had 60 km left of juice in the Leaf’s lithium-ion battery pack. In reality, we could have turned around and driven the same loop again, with about 10 km left in the tank, er, batteries. If we had depleted the Leaf’s batteries fully, Nissan estimated it would have taken 30 minutes to recharge the batteries to 80 per cent of their full capacity when using a quick charge port and a DC fast charger. While those recharging stations can cost in the tens of thousands of dollars, more realistically, charging at home via a 220V outlet (i.e. your washing machine plug) would take approximately eight hours; your standard 120V exterior block heater outlet, 20 hours. Needless to say, your zero-emissions mileage may vary. And until we can get our hands on a Leaf for a lengthier drive, and experience it in more varied driven conditions (like stuck in a traffic jam on the 401, in a snow storm, in February with the defroster, heater and optional heated seats fired up) the Nissan EV’s range ratings have to be taken with a big chunk of salt. The Leaf’s driving range and recharge times may or may not meet your needs. Plus, Nissan says, realistically, you’ll also do better if you have a garage for a home charging station. Or better yet, at work. But if you can check off all the EV ownership qualifying boxes, in addition to zero-emissions driving, the Leaf is very well suited for its mission as an urban shuttle. And compared to other EVs I’ve driven to date (Mitsubishi iMiEV, Mini E, Smart ForTwo) the Nissan asks for the least amount of compromise. The Leaf goes from naught to highway speeds in about 10 seconds and has a top speed of 140 km/h. And although it shares a similar platform, it’s slightly bigger than a Versa. With no unsettling stop/start feature or the noticeable transition from gas to electric mode that hybrids suffer from, the all-electric Leaf’s drivetrain feels very well integrated with the driver’s desires. There’s no torque or power curves. No whiny CVT gearboxes. Step on the throttle and all 207 lb-ft of torque is right there, right now. And the Leaf is eerily quiet too. The only noticeable sounds within its cabin at speed are minimal wind rush and the regenerative brake system working away. The Nissan’s long wheelbase and placement of the battery pack low and in the middle of the car means balanced weight distribution and a low centre of gravity. It’s no sports compact. But handling is more composed than a Prius and the ride is more comfortable than a ForTwo Electric. Into a Canadian market where full-size pickups powered by gas-guzzling V8 engines still dominate the sales charts, the 2012 Nissan Leaf seems a risky venture. But it’s the only affordable and practical production car today that can truly deliver a zero-emissions driving experience. For some, it will be worth the sacrifices. 2011 Nissan Leaf WHAT I LIKE: Zero-emissions driving; quick acceleration; practical packaging; quiet and comfortable ride. WHAT I DON'T: Limited driving range; premium pricing; numb steering; weak tires. EST. BASE PRICE: US$36,000 ENGINE: 80 kW electric motor POWER: 107 hp/207 lb.-ft. FUEL CONSUMPTION: L/100 km: 0.0 city; 0.0 hwy. COMPETITION: Chevrolet Volt, Toyota Prius Plug-in, Mitsubishi iMiEV, Smart ForTwo Electric

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