I like the Fiat 500 a lot. That said, I think a 2-person vehicle is another category. My Dad drives a new-ish Ford Fiesta. It's a great little car. Especially f

I like the Fiat 500 a lot. That said, I think a 2-person vehicle is another category. My Dad drives a new-ish Ford Fiesta. It's a great little car. Especially for the price. It's not nearly as well equipped, nice or fast though. That said, I have zero maintenance beyond replacing tires. Something I never thought about before seriously considering the Leaf. All in all "very expensive" seems like a great injustice to the Leaf. It's not competing against a 500 for my dollar. It's competing against VW's and Volvos. It comes out with a lower payment, zero maintenance expenses (no oil, and I've always used Mobil1 so that's $100 pop), no engine air filter, no transmission fluid, no accessory belts, and it's cheaper to "fill up" than even the most efficient small car, while being a lot more fun to drive than most (especially if the comparisons are narrowed to high-efficiency gas vehicles). For me the Leaf doesn't compete with Fiestas and Aveos. It competes with Volvo C3's, VW Golfs, etc. It's got an average MSRP in that range and much lower cost of ownership. Frankly, I just don't see mounting a serious argument on a cost basis (as long as the tax credits still apply at least) without having a big blind-spot for the European imports in the same category to be honest.