Right.. where to begin.. Take a chair for this one. Actually don't take a chair , you will fall off..
So, today was plug-in day. I want to the De Anza gathering of electric plug-in vehicleowners and manufacturers. Many a manufacturer, dealer and owner was there.
I mozy over to the Nissan Leaf stand and am approached by one of their reps. They flaunt and toot all about how eco friendly it is, how you are no longer dependent on oil, how much cheaper it is in usage than a regular car etc.
So i ask the question everyone want to have an answer to: What is its operational radius?
Here is what follows: (N=nissan , FE = me )
N: 85 to 100 miles on a charge
FE. Ok.. So. I live here in an Jose and want to go for a little trip to Carmel. About 75 mile one way. You mean i can't get home ? Can i even get there as it's uphill over the santa cruz mountains ?
N: Well you plug it in over there to charge.
FE. Well, how long does it take ?
N: about 8 hours
Fe: so going for lunch, stay 2 hours and come back is out of the question then ...
N: Well yeah, but how many times do you do this a year ?
FE : about 10 times ... sometimes i drive to monterey to buy fresh fish off the boats and come straight back... 150 miles roundtrip.
N: well , in that case you use your other car.
FE: ... ?!? what do you mean your 'other' car ? you expect me to buy TWO cars now ? What if my other car ( assuming he ment my wife's ) is also electric ?
N: well , nissan has a program where you can rent a car for the day or weekend from the dealer.
FE: <jaw dropping> now you want me to RENT a car ? I just bought a new car ... and what's that rental going to be ?
N: one of our standard gasoline cars
FE:
ARE YOU INSANE ? you just touted how eco friendly the damn thing is and the first thing i want to do with it can't be done and you tell me you'll happily rent me gasoline powered one ? Where is your damn logic ? What's this thing run on anyway ? double A batteries ? Put some batteries in that thing. Lithium ion cells are about a 1$ a pop in mass quantity. A battery pack like tesla's has about 6000 in em, throw in some electronics and a charger and you end up at a cost of 10K for the battery pack. inverter and motor and a chassis (speaking about a compact car like the leaf), strip all the exuberant luxury and you can sell it at 35K and make 7K profit. I'll give you a check right here and now for one. But no you want me to buy not only your crap car but also a second , gasoline powered car. this effectively more than doubles the price of the Leaf ( cost of the leaf + cost of a gasoline powered car) and i am still tied to gasoline. What do you take me for ? an idiot ?
At this point the N guy got really upset with me and walked away. Some people that were behind me listening to my argument also turned around and walked away. One guy told me: You got a very valid point there... they obviously ain't ready.
I went to look at others , Coda ( now bankrupt) , BMW E vehicle, Toyota , Chevrolet. It's everywhere the same story. 65 to 100 mile on a charge. They are INSANE...
I signed up at the Tesla stand for a testdrive, which i got to do 15 minutes later. Now that was an experience. That thing just peed all over any other car out there, whether electric or not. There is no 'range anxiety', it charges half in 22 minutes, you can swap a battery in 1 minute and 20 seconds, it's got more luxury than top Mercedes or BMW cars and it accelerates faster than many a supercar. It is absolute fun to drive. Nerdvana.
If i look at the cost of a Nissan Leaf + the cost of a second gas car to cover the range problems , i end up at the price of a base Tesla ...
No thanks Nissan. You can stick that leaf where you want it... Your car is a failure, your arguments are a failure, and the fact that you had to recommend me owning or renting a backup gasoline car car was the proverbial nail in the coffin... Heck i couldn't even drive to San francisco and back on a charge..
Note: The line of people waiting to get a testdrive in the tesla was 3 times as long as the line of any other car maker...