Going Electric With a Nissan Leaf and Not Missing Filling Up at Gas Stations

I got my Nissan Leaf on April 2011. After dealing with range anxiety for about the first two months, driving has been fun for me. 

I bought my Nissan Leaf from Boardwalk Nissan in Burlingame, CA. The price was pre-negotiated with a five percent discount off MSRP. I got the SL version, loaded with fast charger, cargo net, and eco packs, out the door for about $38,000. 

After the California cash rebate of $5,000, and federal tax credit of $7,500 for the car and $750 for the charger, my net out-of-pocket was about $26,000, price of Honda Civic for a luxury car - LCD console, rear view camera, power windows, world class navigation system, blue tooth phone integration, built-in garage remote, incredible driving experience - sporty acceleration, and extremely quiet and smooth ride at any speed.

My first year maintenance was about $150. Some other owners got similar service for free.  

My daily commute is about 60 miles round trip. A Civic would have cost me about $180 a month, but my electric bill went up only $60 on PG&E E9A rate — a saving of $120 a month or about a $1,440 saving a year, or about $14,400 for 10 years!

Like many of electric vehicle owners, we bought the car for many reasons - help wean ourselves from petro-based economy, help clean the environment (more than half of Leaf owners have solar panels in California, and I plan to do the same), fun driving experience, save money, etc.  

My other reason is appreciating the fact that great engineering is simple engineering — less moving parts (no engine, no spark plugs, no timing belts, no radiator, no muffler, etc).

My friends often ask where I get gas for my car. I said the car does not use gas, instead it runs on electricity.  Where do you get the battery charged?  My garage, I answer.

When I get home, I pull the charger from the wall, plug it into the car. The timer for the charging system in the car is set to charge during off peak, which equals the lowest rate at 5 to 10 cents per kilowatt hour (kwh). The battery pack holds 24 kwh for about 70 miles, I paid about as little as $1.20 for 70 miles or about 233 eMPG!  

In my case, I don't always charge during off peak, the lowest rate, as I sometimes go out after work and need extra charge to make the trip. The average rate I pay for charging my car is about 10 cents per kwh, but it's still much cheaper than fueling a gasoline car.

Other benefits from the electric car are I no longer have to smell the gas exhaust from my car, and knowing that I have made a difference.

 There are more than 30,000 Leaf owners in the world enjoying some of the benefits that I come to enjoy.  Join us.