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I just bought a 2014 Nissan Leaf. It's excellent and I'd recommend one (with a couple of caveats, see below). A few (hopefully) interesting comments: There's

by foxylad 10y ago

I just bought a 2014 Nissan Leaf. It's excellent and I'd recommend one (with a couple of caveats, see below). A few (hopefully) interesting comments: There's no premium for being "cool" or "green" any more. It cost 26,000 NZD for a 2014 Japanese import, which is about the same as an ICE (internal combustion engine) two-year-year-old mid-level vehicle costs (yes, NZ car prices are mad). And I'm guessing the trend will continue and they will soon be significantly cheaper. The real savings will come from maintenance. Apart from battery chemistry, an EV is far simpler than an ICE. You don't need to pump noxious fluids around, no oil, no complex transmission... just an electric motor connected directly to the wheels. Not even any brake pads, thanks to engine braking. If you know a mechanic, tell them to start pivoting to ICE car rental for EV owners wanting to take long trips; EV battery replacement; charging station installation; and providing a mobile EV fast-charging service. It's just a car. If you buy one expecting a radically different experience, it might be an anticlimax. Yes, it's cool the first couple of times you roar off (great acceleration, BTW) without any roar, but you quickly realise it's the exact same thing you've done thousands of times before. Your granddad won't have any difficulty the first time he drives one. Caveats: You need off street parking. I don't think it's ever going to be acceptable to run electric cables across footpaths, so unless you can park on own your property you'll need to figure out how to charge the darn thing. Maybe chargers will become a perk of working in an office one day, and there is probably a good business in installing charging stations for employers and shopping destinations. They aren't good for long distances. Duh. Unless you have a Tesla, in which case I hate you! You will probably be able to use an EV for 95% of your driving, but you will have to have a contingency plan for any long trips you make. Currently we find neighbours are more than willing to swap their ICE car for an EV for the weekend, but I think there is potential for a very local car hire service to handle this requirement.

mikestew 10y ago
One small correction: your Leaf has brake pads.
- tempestn 10y ago
  Perhaps he meant you don't need to change the brake pads (often).
- foxylad 10y ago
  Thanks for your undeniably better-informed comment. Would I be right that regenerative braking should substantially reduce brake pad wear?
  - Gibbon1 10y ago
    My boss has a Prius. Had to replace the front brake pads at 120,000 miles. Rear ones supposedly good for a while longer.
    - LoSboccacc 10y ago
      Meh. I've a 3.2L alfa gt having 120k km. Front pads got changed at 100k because they were getting old and hard, not because consumption. Rear pads are still stock. Got one spark plug and belt change at 90k km, anticipated because I did extra maintenance after a track days season. Maintenance is baskcally changing oil every two year. That's to say veihcle that are cheap to maintain are easily found if that's a priority, even amongst unexpected make/models.
      - Gibbon1 10y ago
        100,000 km is 62000 miles. My bosses Prius had 120,000 miles, so 193,000 km. You want crying my old E150 cargo van eats a set of pads every 15-20,000 miles.
  - mikestew 10y ago
    Would I be right that regenerative braking should substantially reduce brake pad wear? I'm betting the pads on ours outlast our ownership of the car. (Note that I have absolutely nothing to base this on other than watching the "I'm braking using the motor and not the pads" meter.) Not that I find lifetime brake pads to be a big selling point. Other than something like changing the oil, replacing brake pads has to be one of the easiest jobs to do (albeit with some of the greatest consequences should you screw it up). Even with new rotors, I might have to go grab a hammer to knock the old ones loose, then it's another 30 seconds to put the new one on.
Grishnakh 10y ago
You're overstating how much maintenance a modern gas car needs, and understating how much long-term maintenance and repairs an EV will need. A modern car with automatic transmission needs the fluid changed maybe 100k miles, and oil change intervals have gone up too; 7500 miles is more normal, and many cars with computers telling when to change the oil (based on actual driving conditions) are giving intervals of 10k. These are generally pretty easy to do yourself too. Most other service intervals are similarly long, usually not until 100k miles: coolant, brake fluid, etc. Brake pads usually last 50k-100k miles, but this depends a lot on how you drive. Modern spark plugs last 50-100k. Cars don't have distributors any more so you don't need to replace the cap and rotor and wires like you used to. On your EV, you probably won't need to change the brake pads as often because of regenerative braking, but they are still there. However, some things will not change: it'll still need tires just as often as a gas car, and anything related to the wheels, tires, and suspension is no different than a gas car. You may still need to replace a wheel bearing at 125k, for instance, or a ball joint (these things usually wear out faster if you drive on rough roads). Your windshield will still get cracks from rocks and need to be replaced. Your brake fluid will still need to be replaced (100-120k probably), even though you aren't using them as much. Your A/C will probably need recharge or repair or even a new compressor after 100-150k miles or 10 years. And worst of all, you might need to replace the battery pack after 50-100k miles (we really don't know that much about how long these last yet, and it probably depends on the model; Teslas seem to last longer because they don't get discharged as much in regular usage).
- deelowe 10y ago
  Leaf tires tend to last a little longer than ICE tires b/c they are over-inflated, low rolling resistance tires. Handling suffers of course and an educated ICE driver could get similar results pretty easily.

by foxylad 10y ago

mikestew 10y ago

One small correction: your Leaf has brake pads.

tempestn 10y ago
Perhaps he meant you don't need to change the brake pads (often).
foxylad 10y ago
Thanks for your undeniably better-informed comment. Would I be right that regenerative braking should substantially reduce brake pad wear?
- Gibbon1 10y ago
  My boss has a Prius. Had to replace the front brake pads at 120,000 miles. Rear ones supposedly good for a while longer.
  - LoSboccacc 10y ago
    Meh. I've a 3.2L alfa gt having 120k km. Front pads got changed at 100k because they were getting old and hard, not because consumption. Rear pads are still stock. Got one spark plug and belt change at 90k km, anticipated because I did extra maintenance after a track days season. Maintenance is baskcally changing oil every two year. That's to say veihcle that are cheap to maintain are easily found if that's a priority, even amongst unexpected make/models.
    - Gibbon1 10y ago
      100,000 km is 62000 miles. My bosses Prius had 120,000 miles, so 193,000 km. You want crying my old E150 cargo van eats a set of pads every 15-20,000 miles.
- mikestew 10y ago
  Would I be right that regenerative braking should substantially reduce brake pad wear? I'm betting the pads on ours outlast our ownership of the car. (Note that I have absolutely nothing to base this on other than watching the "I'm braking using the motor and not the pads" meter.) Not that I find lifetime brake pads to be a big selling point. Other than something like changing the oil, replacing brake pads has to be one of the easiest jobs to do (albeit with some of the greatest consequences should you screw it up). Even with new rotors, I might have to go grab a hammer to knock the old ones loose, then it's another 30 seconds to put the new one on.

Grishnakh 10y ago

You're overstating how much maintenance a modern gas car needs, and understating how much long-term maintenance and repairs an EV will need. A modern car with automatic transmission needs the fluid changed maybe 100k miles, and oil change intervals have gone up too; 7500 miles is more normal, and many cars with computers telling when to change the oil (based on actual driving conditions) are giving intervals of 10k. These are generally pretty easy to do yourself too. Most other service intervals are similarly long, usually not until 100k miles: coolant, brake fluid, etc. Brake pads usually last 50k-100k miles, but this depends a lot on how you drive. Modern spark plugs last 50-100k. Cars don't have distributors any more so you don't need to replace the cap and rotor and wires like you used to. On your EV, you probably won't need to change the brake pads as often because of regenerative braking, but they are still there. However, some things will not change: it'll still need tires just as often as a gas car, and anything related to the wheels, tires, and suspension is no different than a gas car. You may still need to replace a wheel bearing at 125k, for instance, or a ball joint (these things usually wear out faster if you drive on rough roads). Your windshield will still get cracks from rocks and need to be replaced. Your brake fluid will still need to be replaced (100-120k probably), even though you aren't using them as much. Your A/C will probably need recharge or repair or even a new compressor after 100-150k miles or 10 years. And worst of all, you might need to replace the battery pack after 50-100k miles (we really don't know that much about how long these last yet, and it probably depends on the model; Teslas seem to last longer because they don't get discharged as much in regular usage).

deelowe 10y ago
Leaf tires tend to last a little longer than ICE tires b/c they are over-inflated, low rolling resistance tires. Handling suffers of course and an educated ICE driver could get similar results pretty easily.