# Nissan Leaf Arrived



## Guest (Jun 11, 2011)

I drove home my new Nissan Leaf. Damn nice vehicle. No way in hell could I build one like it for the money. Some here and on EVDL have spent more for less and even for a lead acid build. This soooo changes the game. It's quick quiet and just plain comfortable. Not a cramped fiberglass sports car. Plenty of room for the wife and I and for the kids and grandkids. 

Changing the world one electric car at a time. This is just soooo awesome. 

Pete 

Photos and vid's to come. Will be posting vid's and photos on my blog.


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## EVfun (Mar 14, 2010)

Congratulations! I'm officially jealous.


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## Tatsushige (Mar 24, 2011)

yeah they are nice cars ... The girlfriends Mitsubishi is great, love it ... never again will I pay for fuel ... Electric is the only way to go.


OH sent you a PM .. Sorry really long!


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## Guest (Jun 11, 2011)

Don't be. Your time will come. Took me 35 years to be able to afford a new home, solar and now this. Takes lots of patience but in the mean time continue and I continue to support and build DIY vehicles. VW Bus is next on the list.


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## david85 (Nov 12, 2007)

Congrats! Can't wait to see some videos, and specs on the range.

I'm itching to know what the real world range is like.


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## Guest (Jun 11, 2011)

Well a quick fix for ya. 49 miles at freeway speeds of 55 and 65 mph all the way home with the air on and in eco mode. Had 39 miles remaining if I were to still continue with the air on. Hows that for ya?


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## rochesterricer (Jan 5, 2011)

Congrats! How is acceleration in eco mode?


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## Guest (Jun 11, 2011)

Quite brisk. Power mode it will do 0 to 60 in 9 seconds. Pretty nice if you ask me.


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## david85 (Nov 12, 2007)

Sounds like a great car!


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## Tatsushige (Mar 24, 2011)

Sounds great, also cannot wait for photos and Video ...


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## piotrsko (Dec 9, 2007)

congrats on the new killer car, but the V-dub van will be WAAAAAY more cool.


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## Guest (Jun 11, 2011)

I don't know about way more cool but it will be cool none the less. Kostov powered too. 

Pete


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## GizmoEV (Nov 28, 2009)

Congrats, Pete! I had the privilege to drive one about 2 months ago and it is nice! Please do report. It will be nice to hear the experience of an avid EVer with it.


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## PZigouras (Jun 5, 2010)

Do they all come with the same size pack? Do you know what the kW/h rating is?


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## rochesterricer (Jan 5, 2011)

PZigouras said:


> Do they all come with the same size pack? Do you know what the kW/h rating is?


They all come with a 24 kW/h battery.


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## tomofreno (Mar 3, 2009)

> Well a quick fix for ya. 49 miles at freeway speeds of 55 and 65 mph all the way home with the air on and in eco mode. Had 39 miles remaining if I were to still continue with the air on. Hows that for ya?


 So 88 miles at 55 to 65 with air on? Much better than I expected! Congratulations! Looking forward to more posts on it! I agree that no way could one of us build something equivalent in performance and fit and finish for that price.


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## toddshotrods (Feb 10, 2009)

gottdi said:


> ...Not a cramped fiberglass sports car...


Hey! What are you trying to say?! 

The Leaf sounds fantastic. I have been saying for a while that if and when the manufacturers start offering more pure EVs the DIY idea isn't going to make a lot of sense - unless it's some type of custom or classic project that a person wants to keep alive without gas; or racers...

The price will come down as they manufacture and sell more, and that will make it a silly idea to spend more for less - for a driver/commuter car. I gotta hitch a ride in one of those.


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## tomofreno (Mar 3, 2009)

What did you do for charging the Leaf? Seems I recall something about Nissan requiring customers to have facilities for charging installed prior to delivery...? Is this correct, and if so, what requirements did you have to meet - a 240VAC outlet, a charging station...? What amperage charger does it have? Is there an option for higher current charger?


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## dtbaker (Jan 5, 2008)

rochesterricer said:


> They all come with a 24 kW/h battery.


wow, that's nice..... not needed in my case as I only NEED 50 miles and no AC, but nice. I sure wish there was an OEM 'cheap' version.


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## Guest (Jun 13, 2011)

No AC where you live? Damn you must be hard core. I only need 44 miles at freeway speeds. I need and want Air and safety and warranties. I will continue with my MG and VW Bus and Buggy. But for my main commuter the Leaf is it. It is exactly what the wife likes too. Safe. Safe. Safe. 

Do you push that 50 mile limit and at what speeds? Worries about running out if you happen to push your car a bit more than usual. 

Pete


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## dtbaker (Jan 5, 2008)

gottdi said:


> No AC where you live? Damn you must be hard core. I only need 44 miles at freeway speeds. I need and want Air and safety and warranties. I will continue with my MG and VW Bus and Buggy. But for my main commuter the Leaf is it. It is exactly what the wife likes too. Safe. Safe. Safe.
> 
> Do you push that 50 mile limit and at what speeds? Worries about running out if you happen to push your car a bit more than usual.
> 
> Pete


Don't need AC when my usual trip is 10 to 15 minutes max, not at highways speeds. DIY EV has airbags, what more safety is required at 35 mph? No, I don't push the 50 mile limit... usual day is LESS than 25. A $15k retail option with 50 mile range would be way more attractive than a 100 mile one for $38k with blutooth, gps, and whatever....


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## Guest (Jun 13, 2011)

Sounds perfect for your needs. That is excellent. An easy build. Glad to hear you have air bags. There will be many that won't need to do OEM stuff. I am glad I can do both. My needs are different and one is for our business and will be promoting the viability of electric, even home converted ones. 

Pete


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## Ziggythewiz (May 16, 2010)

dtbaker said:


> $38k with blutooth, gps, and whatever....


What about iPad integration? Does it have iPad integration?

(One of the Volt owners I know was bragging to everyone at an EV booth that his car has iPad integration and a 40GB hard drive.)


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## Guest (Jun 13, 2011)

It will communicate with the iPhone, iPod and since they use the same connector and software I'd be hard pressed to think it would no communicate with the iPad. It has it's own nav system so why would that matter unless you just want to play music or something. It has sirius satellite if you want it. CD MP3, iPhone/iPod and will connect through bluetooth and pipe your music that way so you don't have to connect via cable. Same with your phone to talk via wireless bluetooth through the cars speakers and mic. I works perfect. No more bluetooth headset while driving either and it imports your phones addresses and numbers too and you can have up up to 5 phones. So my Wife can take the car and use it too. Just select her phone and she's good to go. She loves it. We love the quiet. Went to Sonic Burger Drive in our first night. No A&W so Sonic had to do. No one noticed the all electric car. We just kinda blended in. Clueless people. Oh well. 

Pete


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## Guest (Jun 13, 2011)

Just did a quickie check. Yes it does work with the iPad.


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## toddshotrods (Feb 10, 2009)

gottdi said:


> ...No one noticed the all electric car. We just kinda blended in...


I think that's what the manufacturers are aiming for. They're not "electric" cars, they're cars - to help the general pop get comfortable with them.


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## Ziggythewiz (May 16, 2010)

toddshotrods said:


> I think that's what the manufacturers are aiming for. They're not "electric" cars, they're cars - to help the general pop get comfortable with them.


Agreed, just like Volt's tagline "More car than electric" (even though the car part costs $15K and the electric is another $25K)

Someday you'll spot the ICE at the Sonic by the tell-tale exhaust.


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## JRoque (Mar 9, 2010)

yeah yeah Pete... a Leaf. Pictures!!! 

Congrats! I bet those gofer runs your wife sends you to are not that bad now. "honey, be right back.. need to drive to the mailbox".

Hey tell us what you did with the charger. Did they make you buy the $2K outlet? or could you opt for the included extension cord only? Not sure how much you want to share with the world on this but, did you buy or lease?

The great thing about the Leaf is that in 3 years when the leases start expiring there will be quite a few on them available for cheap and at that time they will really be hard to compete with. Getting a Leaf and adding new/more cells can only make it better. In 3 years time batteries will only be better and cheaper too.

JR


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## Ziggythewiz (May 16, 2010)

gottdi said:


> Just did a quickie check. Yes it does work with the iPad.


Make sure you're not on that iPad while speeding!

http://tech.slashdot.org/story/11/06/13/2119222/Nissan-LEAF-Leaks-Speed-amp-Location-To-RSS-Feed


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## Vikingdad (May 22, 2011)

A buddy of mine took delivery on his Leaf a week ago and I had my first opportunity to drive it last night. We did a total of about 70 miles, give or take, with about 30 of that in the mountains (where we live). Had 15 miles left on the batteries when we got home (there were only 85 miles on the range estimate when we left the house). He is still figuring out the range estimates the computer gives you as they seem to be pretty variable. I am sure that driving the mountains screws with the computer quite a bit, but it looks like he should be able to get at least what the computer estimates with ease. We were both driving at 70-plus on the highway, and neither one of us was taking it easy in the hills (in Eco mode the whole time). 

I figure that it will easily go beyond Nissan's advertised range estimates with conservative driving habits on non-hilly roads. I suspect that in the mountains/hills it will probably be able to go as far as they say it will. 

Nice car! I want one now!


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## JRoque (Mar 9, 2010)

Hi. Makes you wonder why Nissan and others try to estimate range based on driving conditions.

For EV, they need to measure the AH you put in during charging and the AH coming out of the pack while driving. Forget about trying to estimate how many miles that is. My ICE car is just as screwy in determining that but the gas gauge is a pretty good indication of what I have left.

If they count the AH leaving the pack and put that on a scaled meter, people will instantly relate and understand it. I have a bit over half a "tank" after arriving here from home so I can get back. Or I have a quarter tank and that lets me go down the hill to my friend's house where I'll charge to get back. Trying to map that to the number of miles you can travel is deceiving and contributes greatly to people's anxiety. You start out with 100 miles on the meter but go up a hill and it drops to 60 miles and go down the other side of the hill and it's up to 90 miles. Not because of regen but due to the miles to travel calculation. It's crazy.

JR


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## david85 (Nov 12, 2007)

Although my long distance drives (more than ~50 miles) are limited with my car, I can say that conditions do very much affect the range even if I'm avoiding the brake pedal. From what I've read of two separate accounts now, it seems likely that the leaf will indeed reach 100 miles under mild highway conditions. More reports will only increase that certainty.

I'm not sure if there is an easy answer to range estimates while on the run, other than for people to simply get used to the car.

I think since the range is so limited compared to contemporary ICE powered vehicles, OEMs try to come up with as accurate an estimate as possible. So instead of showing just the battery capacity, they try to come up with a dynamic calculation on the fly to estimate the range based on all data up to that point. This is the most precise if conditions remain consistent during the drive, but unfortunately, its also the most vulnerable to "signal noise" in the driving cycle.

Sort of like the progress bar when installing new software or updates and the "estimated time remaining"........but for some reason that last 95-99% always takes the longest.....


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## John (Sep 11, 2007)

JRoque said:


> Trying to map that to the number of miles you can travel is deceiving and contributes greatly to people's anxiety. You start out with 100 miles on the meter but go up a hill and it drops to 60 miles and go down the other side of the hill and it's up to 90 miles. Not because of regen but due to the miles to travel calculation. It's crazy.


Nissan could get clever with a satellite navigation system. If their maps contained the elevation information once you’ve dialed in your destination it would be possible to more accurately calculate how much battery capacity would be needed to get there variable only on how aggressively the car was driven and sequencing of lights in cities.


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## JRoque (Mar 9, 2010)

Hi. Here's what I mean with the miles calculation thing. Imagine your ICE gas gauge going down to E(mpty) when you go up a hill or step hard on the accelerator. Wouldn't you call that defective? Yes, you are using more of the gas you have in your tank but that doesn't mean your gauge shouldn't provide an indication of how much you have left now.

I agree that it'd be nice if they display a percentage of charge, efficiency of driving and estimation of miles range based on these parameters. But show that on the center console screen and leave an "available power" gauge in the dash alone that counts Ah in and out of the pack. Otherwise, it's too confusing to drivers.

JR


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## Tatsushige (Mar 24, 2011)

mmm Was thinking of buying myself a Mitsubishi i MiEV as the girlfriend has one, but from reading this thread, I think I will get the LEAF instead, not really a Nissan person, but the car sounds good.


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