Nissan leaf????
 

I have been reading about it for a few days, 100 mile range, 30 minute (ish) recharge.... as things stand (and I am sure this will change rapidly) free recharge points in London, free tax, free congestion charge.
Is it a no brainer? I am very tempted to get one for the daily hack.

2011 Nissan LEAF: Charging Capabilities Could Make Range Limitless - All Cars Electric

"In theory the system would work to extend the vehicles range to an almost limitless amount, but there is a catch. The charging system would cost around $45,000 to install it in your own home."

That's quite a catch. And what happens when/if you move house? :wonder:

Why would you need a charging system, since everything on the news and the Nissan press statement say the vehicle is 'zero emissions' :)

It does appear that they have a few details to iron out..... I have just signed up for info on one anyways.
If we can all use electric cars as our daily hack cars then it will leave more petrol for the weekend cars.... In my twisted logic it will anyways.
I think that if you really love fast cars then you will get an electric one to safe guard the long term future of the petrol engine.

Knowing how the govt think Im not so sure. More electric = good idea = rape performance car owners even more with a view to getting rid totally.

Simon

It's electric.

And how do you "make" electricity? From thin air?

And how long before the Government have to introduce a tax on the electric because of a loss of revenue from Petrol?

Wonder where the batteries are made? China maybe? :Whatever_

“The Leaf is based on a special electric vehicle chassis and will have an average range of 100 miles and a top speed of 90mph, which Nissan claims will be sufficient for more than 90 per cent of UK car customers journeys”.

“Although Nissan has not given prices of the Leaf yet, it says that the cost will be in line with an equivalent family hatchback. This is unlikely to include the lithium-ion battery, which is estimated to cost about £20,000”.

Must try harder Nissan. Infact, don't... Develop a faster, more emission producing GT-R, that is powered by lefty green wankers internal organs.

I like the last bit - £20,000 for the Li on battery.

Batteries Not Included :D

Utter fail. If its not hydrogen fuel cell, its not going to work.

I don't understand why LPG isn't as popular. I've got a 2000 4.0L Jeep and it takes a while to get used to the rabbits crying at the side of the road as I gas them into oblivion. However, if I put it on LPG (which I will most likely) the emissions drop massively.

So rather than spend £30,000 on a brand new car with all the production costs and raping of the world, why aren't we being encouraged to buy 2nd hand cars (rather than scrapping perfectly good cars) and have them converted to lower emission fuels.

When you've got the above option, to buy one of these new bullsh1t story cars is just laughable.

Edd - because the goverments of the World fall over themselves to "support" the car industry. More cars = more tax. Cunning ways of taxing the motorist = more revenue.

If dodgy economics and politics weren't involved, we'd be much much closer to low/zero emission cars. But they are so we aren't.

Yes I know it's electric, but if you're having to pay a fortune to charge it (using electricity from various high emission sources) then it's actually as "zero emission" as a big field of farting cows.

The Daily Mash - SUNDERLAND TO BUILD CAR THAT WON'T REACH DONCASTER

5t.

Post on the subject from Richard North which gets to the heart of the matter .... EU Referendum: What energy crisis? ... I'll copy it here for those too lazy to click ..... :thumb:

Particularly like the last line ....

"... You can tell that civilisation as we know it is coming to an end when they call a car "The Leaf", the new Nissan electric fantasy which is going to cost the British taxpayer £20.7 million in grants, topped up with a soft loan from the European Investment Bank of £197.3 million.

We are told that this thing will have an average range of 100 miles and a top speed of 90mph, although the egregious hacks writing this stuff forget to tell us that it is one or the other – not both. They don't tell either that you need a calendar rather than a speedometer to gauge the acceleration.

Nor, of course, do they tell you that, in terms of net efficiency, the electric car performs far less well than a petrol-driven motor, by the time you have taken into account the power station and transmission losses, to say nothing of the conversion losses in charging the batteries.

And then, since about 40 percent of our electricity comes from coal, and will do so until it is replaced by gas generation, the odds are that this wonderful "green" car will be driven by fossil fuels, only very inefficiently at one stage removed.

None of this, of course, will impinge in the slightest on the greenie brain – or that of Mr Brown who is so proud of this exercise in applied fatuity. But, not only – as we saw yesterday – do green issues bring out the meanness, they make you stupid as well.

A far better option – in terms of energy efficiency, thus reducing your "carbon footprint", if that's what turns you on – is to use gas power directly. Or, rather than use coal to produce electricity, use it to produce petrol and drive a sensible car.

That is certainly an option the being looked at. According to the Globe and Mail, researchers at the University of Texas at Arlington have developed an economic and clean way to turn lignite, the cheapest kind of coal, into synthetic crude which can then be refined into petrol.

This is the answer to a gas-guzzler's prayer. Canada, for instance, has more energy in its "proven, recoverable" reserves of coal than it has in all of its oil, natural gas and oil sands combined: 10 billion tons. The world has 100 times more: one trillion tons. These reserves hold the energy equivalent of more than four trillion barrels of oil. They are scattered in 70 countries, mostly in relatively easy-to-mine locations and mostly in democratic countries.

The United States alone has 30 percent of the world's reserves, and if the technology can be scaled up successfully, this could represent a historic moment in energy production – a secure supply of petroleum and liberation from the tyranny of the Middle East and other unstable regions.

What with the promise of shale gas and the potential for thorium-powered nuclear reactors – and access to a plentiful supply of fuel – there is no prospect of an energy shortage some time soon, not for a hundred years or more. And by that time, we will doubtless have other technological solutions, not that any of us will be around to care.

But, of course, that does not account for today's greenies, who are intent on driving us back into the economic dark ages, saddling us with dead-end technology, all in pursuit of their mad obsession over global warming. Thus, do we see public money frittered away on "The Leaf". I cannot wait for autumn ..."


Dave

Well as I see it, it's just another exercise in reducing your carbon footprint, which we should all be aiming to do.

I'm proud to announce that today, I've done just that.

I've taken the oder-eaters outta my shoes.

:smug:

It's true that electric cars produce CO2 indirectly as they need to be charged by Drax however petrol cars have 'hidden' carbon costs too.

Refining Crude into petrol is enormously energy intensive - I'd be interested to see how much energy is needed to produce a litre of petrol.

The type of oil we produce and therefore refine in the UK also takes more energy to refine into diesel so for all the lower CO2 emissions for a diesel car, it produces as much CO2 as petrol when you consider it's production.

Steve

PS I'm not a greenie but I do think that we should look at stopping chopping down the Amazon and Indonesian forests to make biofuels and palm oil before we stop producing carbon based fuels.

How many carbons are emitted in the production of this 'zero' emission car?

we constantly bitch about oil prices, at least this is one in the eye for rip off petrol prices and the companies that control them.

also when the first combuston cars came about i bet their range was a lot lower and top speed a lot less!

and at least you have the option of generating electricity at home (no matter how slowly) can't say the same about brewing petrol in the shed.

i don't give a **** about carbon arse print, or peak oil bollocks, global warming/climate change/solar flare but i would like the choice to a viable alternative to oil based products rather than having my pants pulled down by UK Govt PLc and petrol companies.

Ah, those rip-off oil companies. So, with an electric car we get one over on them and deal with the infinitely preferable power companies ... :Suspiciou So, how much will it cost to charge your car up? I've not seen any figures for this yet .... And electricity costs are not going to go down.....

Dave

well a choice of 2 is better than no choice at all......

My thoughts exactly. However, don't believe for a second that the oil alternative, whatever it turns out to be, won't be taxed to oblivion. This is how our country generates revenue. Blatent, shameless, theft. Whatever the solution, it will still cost us a ******* fortune.

My parents have a lot "green" implements strapped to their house. If they produce to much energy it gets sold back to the grid.
Should this electric thing actually catch on it will be interesting to see how they will stop you getting free, self generated fuel from solar and wind.

I was more interested in getting one to reduce my monthly outgoings rather than reduce my carbon footprint. I am sure before the launch a great new tax will be announced or solar panels will become a pay and display thing.

The only Carbon i'm worried about is my new Carbon Fibre RayBan's :D

Hey, keep that hush hush! Gordon B**tard will tax them next!

If they were cheap enough i would have an electric car no problems at all, something like the Tesla would suit me to the ground, why?

Because as part of my franchise arrangement for the carwash, i simply do not pay for any electricity used at work, at all :)

I could top the thing up all day with no issues and it would mean i never had a problem with overnight charging at home.

Anything needs charged up like laptops/mobiles/batteries we do them at work :D
My mate even has a fecking washing machine at his to do the washing lmfao, i wouldnt stoop that low though, i find it hilarious, no water charge either :)

Nissan manufacturing plant in Sunderland does this with wind turbines, on a windy day they actually get cash back.